Biodiversity informatics
“Informatics” is a field in computer science that focusses on answering questions by analyzing large amounts of data from different disciplines. Biodiversity informatics focusses on questions relating to biodiversity, any aspect of biodiversity that involves consideration of many records from two or more disparate fields of study.
Getting started
Biodiversity informaticists need a background in both computer science and biodiversity science. Both are broad fields with lots of areas for specialization. Undergraduate degree programs enable students to learn enough about different areas to decide where they wish to specialize and opportunities to build and demonstrate their knowledge and skill in their chosen specialties. All universities are restricted in what they can offer by the resources available to them. The Foundation is exploring mechanisms for offering computer science classes in Somaliland.
Biodiversity observations in the age of informatics
Humans have been recording observations about the plants and animals for centuries. This knowledge can be found in drawings, books, and scientific collections. Collections continue to be a critical source of information because their specimens can be examined again and again using new technologies (if care is taken); reports and images cannot. Today, a major focus of collections is on sharing specimen-based information via the internet. This has led to development of new software platforms, recognition of the need for standards in data recording, and the possibility of associating specimens with a vast array of additional information, thereby creating “extended specimens”.