Comments on: Taro gets the social networking treatment

By: TLB resistant varieties kicking their heels, twiddling their thumbs

TLB resistant varieties kicking their heels, twiddling their thumbs — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 14:11:44 +0000

[...] another flurry of activity at Pestnet, triggered by news of devastating losses in Nigeria. And John Cho from Hawaii informs us that there has been success in breeding for the disease in the Dominican [...]

By: Taro, taro, taro | Rachel Laudan

Taro, taro, taro | Rachel Laudan — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 21:23:19 +0000

[...] to Luigi of Agricultural Biodiversity for his post that alerted me to John Cho’s work) Share and [...]

By: Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:57:21 +0000

Very nice Ning site and successful! The key elements are dedicated moderators ! The breeders with whom I am in Hyderabad do not use social networks tools and the few who do, do not yet address work related topics. However, if you ask them about the web site of their dreams, they rank high the ability to contact their peers on the web and be alerted whenever a new item is posted. They seek for exchange of expertise. So, sounds like a Ning type site or Facebook group could do it!

By: Peter Matthews

Peter Matthews — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:08:29 +0000

I think the answer is not so complicated really. We need dedicated social networks with groups inside them who (1) take responsibility for reviewing and introducing existing literature sources, (2) reviewing and introducing existing databases (with accessible or not) and their curators, (3) moderating, reviewing and summarising discussion threads, and (4) producing an original network newsletter with layout than can be printed and sent out to people who are not in the network. The network I have created (The Research Cooperative) is designed to allow anyone undertaking any kind of research-related publishing activity (in any medium) to seek and request help with writing, editing, translation, and so on. We currently have 1300 members (researchers, editors, translators, publishers), and if this can reach 10,000 then the creative synergies for all kinds of networking and publishing projects may become very significant. I hope.

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 08:07:55 +0000

Very, very interesting post & discussion here folks. Anyone of you care to write it up as a short article for our webmagazine? Please contact me for more details!

By: Elizabeth Arnaud

Elizabeth Arnaud — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 09:37:11 +0000

The interest for social networks has been growing with the emergence of the Social Sciences. Social Networks tools provide one instant way of “fishing” for large and sometimes unpredictable feedback by posting information, news, results. A good example of using social networks are the ‘Biobltiz’: ‘ is a 24-hour event in which teams of volunteer scientists, families, students, teachers, and other community members work together to find and identify as many species of plants, animals, microbes, fungi, and other organisms as possible’ (National Geographic definition, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BioBlitz). So, social networks are here used here as amplifiers to largely collect observations of specimens in the field/nature/cities that complete the scientific species inventories. A mini-Bioblitz will be launched for the 2010 meeting of TDWG-Biodiversity information standard to test tools for the use of citizen sciences and building Atlas of Biodiversity. Please keep an eye because it could be used for observation of crop diseases, crop specimen in particular environment.

Databases and social network are not exclusive but databases have to remain hidden behind intuitive interfaces. I thought about creating a SINGER group on Facebook to launch debates on the evolution, use, improvement, but just thought at it at the moment because the single post on SINGER I did on Facebook sometimes ago had no comments.

By: Jacob

Jacob — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 15:43:40 +0000

A lot of breeder knowledge is tacit, and only gets to the surface during face-to-face contact, as Buddenhagen explains in his video. I think Facebook is interesting because is provides a partial electronic substitute for face-to-face contact. IITA banana breeders may need to travel to Asia, but don’t have to rely on SINGER, newsletters and emails to maintain a network of germplasm and knowledge exchange. Databases just reflect a tiny bit of the breeding process and not really suited for quick data exchange. Email requires you to make your question explicit first. Facebook allows for more fluid communication.

It is good, though, if trial data eventually lands in some database. Pooling data should help to compare and get insights that would otherwise be lost. It´s not Either/Or (to alternate our favourite strawman philosopher).

Perhaps apart from relational databases we need more visualization/analysis/data mining tools to exploit the databases in a more interactive, intuitive way. Also, it would be really good to have possibilities to compare your own data from yesterday´s measurements on your harddisk with the big database on the internet — ideally in a few simple steps (clicking your way through a well-designed, visual software).

A lot of the database stuff we’re starting to do now (georeferencing, gap analysis, linking trials to climate data, etc.) should be available in some handy software in the near future. So breeders can start to play with it, make nice pictures to share through Facebook with colleagues, and integrate these insight in their workflow.

By: Dirk

Dirk — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 10:16:21 +0000

Databases are great if they actually manage to collate the available information from diverse sources. The meaningful linking of individual items is the challenge. The current problem of plant genetic resource documentation could be envisaged as one of fragmentation in an archipelago of data islands. While social networking is great for creating knowledge and communicating it, a reliable body of information about plant genetic resources collated in a user friendly manner is essential, especially when sifting through an ever increasing body of data.

By: Luigi

Luigi — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 08:37:37 +0000

You’re probably right. It’s just that I’ve started wondering whether the conventional relational database is necessarily the best solution for the specific purpose of making evaluation results on germplasm useful to the people that need it. What about a more people-centred social networking approach? That is, what about putting the people who are doing the evaluation and using the germplasm at the centre of the process, rather than the germplasm. As in the taro example. Let breeders post their comments and general views on germplasm on Facebook, and let other breeders browse the results and provide their own comments. Wouldn’t that get the relevant information to the people that need it faster and more effectively than accession x descriptor databases?

By: Luigi

Luigi — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 20:37:43 +0000

Absolutely.