Exploring digital preservation requirements: a case study from the National Geoscience Data Centre (NGDC)

Purpose This case study is based on an MSc dissertation research undertaken at Northumbria University. The aim was to explore digital preservation requirements within the wider NGDC organisational framework in preparation for developing a preservation policy and integrating associated preservation workflows throughout the existing research data management processes. Design/methodology/approach This mixed methods case study used quantitative and qualitative data to explore the preservation requirements and triangulation to strengthen the design validity. Corporate and the wider scientific priorities were identified through literature and a stakeholder survey. Organisational preparedness was investigated through staff interviews. Findings Stakeholders expect data to be reliable, reusable, and available in preferred formats. To ensure digital continuity, the creation of high quality metadata is critical, and data depositors need data management training to achieve this. Recommendations include completing a risk assessment, creating a digital asset register, and a technology watch to mitigate against risks. Research limitations/implications The main constraint in this study is the lack of generalisability of results. As the NGDC is a unique organisation, it may not be possible to generalise the organisational findings although those relating to research data management may be transferrable. Originality/value This research examines the specific nature of geoscience data retention requirements and looks at existing NGDC procedures in terms of enhancing digital continuity, providing new knowledge on the preservation requirements for a number of national datasets

Building resilience at the National Geoscience Data Center: enhancing digital data continuity through research data management training

The National Geoscience Data Center (NGDC) is the designated repository for the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) grant-funded Earth science data and holds the CoreTrustSeal certification. The NGDC is hosted by the British Geological Survey (BGS), which co-funds post-graduate research students through the BGS University Funding Initiative (BUFI) program. This paper describes the research data management training (RDM) course developed and delivered by the NGDC to help instill good data management practices in our students from early on, and to strengthen the long-term quality of research data they generate and deposit with the NGDC. It also looks at how RDM training fits into the wider context of the NGDC modular digital preservation program, currently under development. This paper is aimed at data repository managers and research data managers who provide user training in data management best practice and digital preservation. It is also suitable for postgraduate students interested in digital continuity and preservation of their research data

Performance Assessment of UVAPS: Influence of Fungal Spore Age and Air Exposure

This work focused on two main outcomes. The first was the assessment of the response of the Ultraviolet Aerodynamic Particle Sizer Spectrometer (UVAPS) for two different fungal spore species. The UVAPS response was investigated as a function of fungal age and the frequency of air current that their colonies exposure to. This outcome was achieved through the measurement of fungal spore fluorescent percentage and fluorescent intensity throughout a period of culturing time (three weeks), and the study of their fluorescent percentage as a function of exposure to air currents. The second objective was to investigate the change of fungal spore size during this period, which may be of use as a co-factor in this differentiation. Fungal spores were released by blowing the surface of the culture colonies with continuous filtered flow air. The UVAPS was used to detect and measure auto-fluorescing biomolecules such as riboflavin and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAD(P)H) present in the released fungal spores. The study demonstrated an increase in aerodynamic diameter for fungal spores under investigation (Aspergillus niger and Penicillium species) over a period of time. The fluorescent percentage of spores was found to decrease for both fungal genera as they aged. It was also found that the fluorescent percentage for tested fungi decreased with frequency of air exposure. The results showed that, while the UVAPS could discriminate between Aspergillus and Penicillium species under well-controlled laboratory conditions, it is unlikely to be able to do so in the field

Using role play to explore professional situations for practice-based courses

This chapter explores how practice-based courses in a professional environment, such as teaching, social work or medicine, can use role play to help students explore ideas of professionalism in different scenarios to prepare them for work-based settings. Students will work collaboratively in groups, using exploratory dialogic talk in order to reach a consensus on a scenario that they will create from a range of situations. They will then produce two role plays where they reenact the scenario: the first representing unprofessional behaviour; the second representing professional behaviour. The rest of the groups will have the opportunity to reflect on and ask questions of the scenario. All groups will reflect on the strengths and challenges of the activity itself

A case study: management and exploitation of the Nuclear Decommissioning Agency Geoscience Data Archive

The British Geological Survey (BGS) is responsible for managing a major geoscience data archive on behalf of the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). Much of this geological data was captured during the 1990s and early 2000s using now obsolete software and data formats. This data asset remains an important resource for the NDA and the wider scientific community. The NDA wishes to ensure the data remain accessible and usable for many decades into the future. BGS has been working closely with Radioactive Waste Management (RWM), a wholly owned subsidiary of the NDA, on a program of data management and digital continuity measures to ensure the long-term usability of the data. This article describes some of the challenges and outlines the approaches we have taken to address these issues

Examining Elementary Teacher Perceptions and Experiences of Transitioning from Knowledge-Based to Inquiry-Based Social Studies Standards

Elementary educators are responsible for the earliest years of student learning in a public setting. The amount of content students are expected to master continues to grow in scope, and the methods that are utilized shift to align with educational research and social momentum. After a decade of Common Core policies, social studies education in elementary schools has become a deemphasized subject. Reading and math, as well as science, have taken a greater precedence in today’s classrooms. Yet, expectations for the creation of knowledgeable and participatory citizens continue to serve as a goal in elementary schools. Conceptualization of citizenship form their initial roots in the minds of young learners. Social studies content ensures that students have an understanding and basis of civic mindedness at the elementary level. In Kentucky, social studies standards, with a foundation of inquiry, were adopted in 2019. This shift has impacted classroom teachers, particularly teachers of fifth-grade students. This study was designed to gain insight into the perceptions and experiences of fifth-grade elementary teachers’ processes for planning social studies instruction along a framework of inquiry. The methodology was conducted under a phenomenological approach, utilizing in-depth semi-structured interviews of classroom teachers. The findings of this study help to provide a contextualized view of the experiences of teachers applying inquiry-based methods in their classrooms. Teacher and student resources, literacy, teacher preparation and development, pedagogy, and the shaping of future citizens are all discussed to present the challenges, concerns, and outcomes experienced through the lens of the classroom teacher

The value of neck adipose tissue as a predictor for metabolic risk in health and type 2 diabetes

Upper-body adiposity is adversely associated with metabolic health whereas the opposite is observed for the lower-body. The neck is a unique upper-body fat depot in adult humans, housing thermogenic brown adipose tissue (BAT), which is increasingly recognised to influence whole-body metabolic health. Loss of BAT, concurrent with replacement by white adipose tissue (WAT), may contribute to metabolic disease, and specific accumulation of neck fat is seen in certain conditions accompanied by adverse metabolic consequences. Yet, few studies have investigated the relationships between neck fat mass (NFM) and cardiometabolic risk, and the influence of sex and metabolic status. Typically, neck circumference (NC) is used as a proxy for neck fat, without considering other determinants of NC, including variability in neck lean mass. In this study we develop and validate novel methods to quantify NFM using dual x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) imaging, and subsequently investigate the associations of NFM with metabolic biomarkers across approximately 7000 subjects from the Oxford BioBank. NFM correlated with systemic insulin resistance (Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance; HOMA-IR), low-grade inflammation (plasma high-sensitivity C-Reactive Protein; hsCRP), and metabolic markers of adipose tissue function (plasma triglycerides and non-esterified fatty acids; NEFA). NFM was higher in men than women, higher in type 2 diabetes mellitus compared with non-diabetes, after adjustment for total body fat, and also associated with overall cardiovascular disease risk (calculated QRISK3 score). This study describes the development of methods for accurate determination of NFM at scale and suggests a specific relationship between NFM and adverse metabolic health

Fluorescence spectra and elastic scattering characteristics of atmospheric aerosol in Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA: Variability of concentrations and possible constituents and sources of particles in various spectral clusters

The UV-excited laser-induced-fluorescence (UV-LIF) spectra of single atmospheric particles and the three-band integrating-nephelometer elastic scattering of atmospheric aerosol were measured during four approximately 24-h periods on May 2007 in Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA. Aerosol scattering measurements in the nephelometer red channel (50-nm band centered at 700-nm) ranged from around 3e10 times the molecular (Rayleigh) scattering background. On average 22.8% of particles with size greater than about 1 μm diameter have fluorescence above a preset fluorescence threshold. A hierarchical cluster analysis indicates that most of the single-particle UV-LIF spectra fall into about 10 categories (spectral clusters) as found previously at other geographic sites (Pinnick et al., 2004; Pan et al., 2007). The clusters include spectra characteristic of various humic/fulvic acids, humic-like-substances (HULIS), chemically aged terpenes, fungal spores, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, bacteria, cellulose/ pollens, and mixtures of various organic carbon compounds. By far the most populated cluster category is similar to those of chemically aged terpenes/humic-materials; on average this population comprises about 62% of fluorescent particles. Clusters with spectra similar to that of some HULIS aerosol contain on average 10.0% of particles; those characteristic of some fungal spores (or perhaps mixtures of aromatic organic compounds) 8.4% of particles; bacteria-like spectra 1.6% of particles; and cellulose/pollen-like spectra 0.8% of particles. Measurements of fluorescent particles over relatively short (24 min) periods reveal that the concentrations of particles in the most populated clusters are highly correlated, suggesting that the particles populating them derive from the same region; these particles might be composed of crustal material coated with secondary organic carbon. On the other hand, concentrations of particles having cellulose-like spectra are generally uncorrelated with those in any other cluster. No clear distinction in fluorescent aerosol characteristics can be seen for different air mass trajectories arriving at the sampling site, suggesting that fluorescent aerosol particles are primarily of local origin. Integrations of the single-particle UV-LIF spectra over approximate 24 h time intervals reveal two broad peaks around 350 nm and 450 nm (for 263 nm excitation); the 450 nm peak is somewhat similar to that measured previously for water soluble organic carbon derived from aerosol collections. The 350 nm peak apparently has not been seen before in measurements of aerosol collections and may derive from nonsoluble primary biological aerosol particles such as fungal spores. Further measurements are needed to investigate in more detail the generality of these results