HPCwire: DOE Focuses on Scientific Data Integration

" “There are many different silos of information that have been painstakingly collected; and there are a number of existing tools that bring some strands of data into relation. But there is no overarching tool that can be used across silos.” The sentiments behind this quote could apply to a wide range of scientific disciplines, not to mention to enterprises that have collected vast amounts of data but are still piecing together the puzzle of how to integrate and make sense of it. In fact, the above quote came from quantitative biologist, Michael Schatz, as he reflected on the need for massive data integration for scientists worldwide—and the computational models needed to produce connected information sets. Schatz is one of several biologists involved in Systems Biology Knowledgebase, also known as Kbase. This DOE project was started in 2008 to make data more accessible and integrated for biological researchers. Just last year the research and development required to design and implement the Kbase effort was completed by the Genomic Science program—but there is still plenty of work ahead...."