Professional Philosophy

Photo of librarian with map
Photo of librarian with map

A librarian working with the original Earth-observing format.

Page Contents

Curator for Geoscience Datasets

I plan to use my MLIS to become a curator for geoscience datasets. My ideal position will combine digital and data curation: I will help select, archive, maintain, and make available remote sensing datasets, and I will help ensure that the data within have the proper metadata and are the highest quality possible.

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Career Goals

I want to work with the Earth science community. The biggest issue facing them right now is climate change, so I expect much of my work will be in that field. Also, understanding our planet–especially through the lenses of satellites–helps us understand other planets which we can only view via remote sensing (Mars excepted; Mars rovers give us ground truth data as well).

I want to be involved in all aspects of being a “librarian” for geoscience datasets. My role should be that of helping scientists find the datasets they need, whether they are in an archive I manage or one I know of. In order to do that, I want to help manage a geoscience dataset archive by doing the following:

  • Obtain useful datasets
  • Verify that metadata are as correct, complete, and standards-compliant in format as possible
  • Verify that data are geolocated, evaluated for quality, marked for coverage, and standards-compliant in format
  • Verify that the data are in a useable state (size of files, well-documented)
  • Catalog the datasets and provide a catalog interface so they are as findable as possible
  • Maintain the datasets and their provenance in excellent, long-term condition
  • Assist scientists in exploring the archive and finding the best datasets for their purposes
  • Assist non-scientist patrons in the above (such as politicians, students)
  • Keep the archive up-to-date with technological innovations

In working for these goals, I expect to do the following:

  • Work with standards groups to help identify improvements that increase useability
  • Continuously learn about and train on new technologies and processes that can enhance my abilities and help me better serve the patrons
  • Work towards making more datasets in more archives accessible with as few restrictions as possible (cost, limits on publication)
  • Promote new and better satellite programs to obtain better datasets
  • Work on improving quality in datasets with more ground-truth verification, checking against other datasets that cover the same areas, and any other methods available
  • Help create applications and processes that can encourage broader, faster pattern-matching, especially amongst disparate datasets
  • Keep up with innovations in geoscience and geoinformatics to be sure my archive is serving the community in the best possible manner

Remote sensing images are fascinating to me, and I look forward to being able to work with them and with the people who need them on a daily basis.

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How the MLIS Prepared Me for Digital Curation

Every class I took as part of my MLIS gave me skills and understanding that I will use when I fill the data curator role. A list of all the classes I took at iSchool, with brief descriptions and links to the evidence used from them, can be found here.

The enrichment I’ve gained from this program is too detailed to list completely, but here is a summary of what I have learned at iSchool that I expect to be influential in my future career.

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Cataloging and Classification

Photo: verso page, Mount Kovacs, 1991
Photo: verso page, Mount Kovacs, 1991

The heart of library science is, to me, cataloging and classification. I have learned about how to classify information so that it can be found after it is archived, and I have learned about how to organize those classifications to create ways to find the information in a catalog. This is a complicated field of study that involves not just knowledge of best practices and the mathematical theories underpinning the acts of information-seeking and information-gathering but also a more general understanding of how humans think about information and labels that touches upon psychology and linguistics. I now know the basics of this field and am prepared to work on classifying and cataloging datasets to make them as findable as possible to as many patrons as possible.

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Metadata and Vocabulary Design

Image: Flowchart for using Geoscience Map Catalog
Image: Flowchart for Using Geoscience Map Catalog

Datasets without metadata are almost unfindable and difficult to use. Good metadata are almost as important as good data. Metadata make datasets findable and understandable. In iSchool I have learned about the principles of metadata and standards that can be used for metadata, specifically of ocean- and sea ice-oriented metadata (which will help me understand similar aspects of land and atmospheric metadata when I work with them). I have learned about the meanings of words, in and outside of context, and how they can be used as beacons to the right information. I expect to work as extensively, if not more, with metadata for geoscience datasets than the data in the datasets themselves, as I am not a data scientist but am an information scientist.

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Ethics and Fundamentals of Being an Information Professional

Photo: patrons looking at Sanborn insurance map

I have been steeped in the culture and ways of library science. This has brought me to >almost reflexive reactions about the ethics of information access and working with patrons; I have studied and thought deeply about characteristic issues, and the standards of professional LIS behavior have become part of my personal philosophy. These will guide me as I work with patrons (especially grumpy ones), as I grapple with issues of access, and as I work to keep metadata and data at the highest quality.

In addition, I have been trained in the foundation of sociological research standards, and if I should carry out any research–such as surveying patrons to better understand how well my archive is meeting their needs–I will be able to approach it meaningfully and ethically.

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Technological skills

While I come from a computer science background with years of experience in computer engineering, I nonetheless learned even more about various technologies while at iSchool. I am now adept at the following:

I have experience with, and could quickly master, the following:

I have worked with the following standards:

Having mastered these and many more applications and technologies throughout my career, I am poised and eager to continue learning about new technologies as they come along.

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Outreach

resevoir-inset
Image: graphic of reservoir conditions in California, 15 April 2015

In becoming a data curator for geoscience datasets, I hope to help add to humanity’s understanding of the Earth and science in general. I want to help scientists better understand climate change so that we can prevent more changes to our planet that would lead to conditions unsuited for human life. I want to make life a little easier for my patrons; I want to make it easier for them to explore and understand datasets to that they can create knowledge. And I hope to create a satisfying and enjoyable environment for my co-workers as we run a solid, helpful geoscience archive. My MLIS has prepared me to work to achieve this.

Photo: Lake Shasta \(CA\) 2014
Photo: Lake Shasta (CA) 2014

Lake Shasta (CA) in drought, October 2014.

REFERENCES

California Data Exchange Center, Department of Water Resources, California. (2015, April 16). Conditions for major resevoirs: 15-APR-2015 [Online image]. Retrieved from http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cdecapp/resapp/getResGraphsMain.action

Collins, C. (2007, March 25). A map librarian looking at a map [Online image]. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/carlcollins/448915337/

Davis, J. L. (2015, April 16). Verso page of Mount and Kovacs, 1991 [Digital photo].

Mlet. (2012, December 8). WLL Seattle [Online image]. Retrieved from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WLL_Seattle_13.jpg

Mount, E., & Kovacs, B. (1991). Using science and technology information sources. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press.

Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). (2010). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Soller1 D. R., & Berg, T. M. (2003). Geoscience Map Catalog user navigates [Online image]. Retrieved from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Geoscience_Map_Catalog_user_navigates.jpg

Last updated: Friday, April 17, 2015

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