Collaboration in Scientific Research

If one is preparing to slay the devil Ignorance, one needs help and should plan on collaborating. That collaboration should include some clever colleagues operating in an environment that supports a long-term large-scale collaborative effort. One should also understand what collaboration is as well as what it isn't. Collaboration is a social process centered on the sharing and production of knowledge. Collaboration is not cooperation, a bureaucratic process. Collaboration is not coordination, a management process. Collaboration is a long hard road reserved for learners who share what they have. The rewards of collaboration include the promise of greater effectivity through task sharing, greater breadth through inclusion of differing viewpoints, and the pleasure of working with a dedicated community.

I've been building collaborative tools off and on since 1983. And, I've been trying since 1985 to understand why it's so difficult for people to engage in collaboration. It's easy to build tools and very difficult to build collaborations. My dissertation discusses the process of collaboration in scientific research, describes a collaborative environment, and how that environment supports the process. Pieces of my dissertation will be linked from this site, and when the work is finished the entire disseration will be made public.

Tools:
The Research Web is a concept that brings together several tools and a structured infrastructure to provide a place for the research team to communicate, disseminate information, store reference information, and criticize the essays they produce.

The EssayAssistant is a suite of scripts which allow the author of a document to display information in smaller popup windows so the reader does not leave the document for ancillary information. The information consists of bibliographic entries, glossary definitions, sidebars, footnotes, graphics, and xxx. Research Web Essays are presented in the resulting HyperDocument format.

DocReview is the keystone for my vision of scientific collaboration. It allows the collaborative team to mount a document on the WWW in a format that can be annotated. It also serves as a permanent annotation facility for each of the "canonical(canonicaldocuments)diss" documents (Research Web Essays) produced by the research team.

The Annotated HyperBibliography is an interactive bibliography which allows the team to share and criticize references used in the research web Essays. Bibliographic information, abstracts and full text are available from popups in the Essays or in the Annotated HyperBibliography. I use an http://students.washington.edu/~veritas/diss/AHB/ahb.html(Annotated HyperBibliography) in my disseration.

The Annotated HyperGlossary is an interactive glossary which allows the team to share and criticize definitions and interpretations of terms used in the research web Essays. Glossary information is available from popups in the Essays or in the Annotated HyperGlossary. I use an http://students.washington.edu/~veritas/diss/AHG/ahg.html(Annotated HyperGlossary) in my disseration.

Dissertation:
I will be awarded a Ph.D. at the end of Summer Quarter 2002. Until the University cancels my computer account (December 2002) the dissertation will be available on this site.

The Migration Collaboration Site:
When Mosaic, the first WWW browser, came out I could see the future. I built this prototype purl(collaborative web site) on the topic of migration. It shows how a model can be used to organize a Research Web. While the site is still alive, it is unmaintained and functionally very obsolete (built in 1993).

Research Interests:
Web-based tools for asynchronous collaboration.
Epidemiological spatial research using point data rather than aggregation units.
Facilitation of asynchronous collaborative research initiatives.

Some Personal History: December 1, 1999