Redesigning the DOE Data Explorer to Embed Dataset Relationships at the Point of Search and to Reflect Landing Page Organization

Scientific research is producing ever-increasing amounts of data. Organizing and reflecting relationships across data collections, datasets, publications, and other research objects are essential functionalities of the modern science environment, yet challenging to implement. Landing pages are often used for providing ‘big picture’ contextual frameworks for datasets and data collections, and many large-volume data holders are utilizing them in thoughtful, creative ways. The benefits of their organizational efforts, however, are not realized unless the user eventually sees the landing page at the end point of their search. What if that organization and ‘big picture’ context could benefit the user at the beginning of the search? That is a challenging approach, but The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) is redesigning the database functionality of the DOE Data Explorer (DDE) with that goal in mind. Phase I is focused on redesigning the DDE database to leverage relationships between two existing distinct populations in DDE, data Projects and individual Datasets, and then adding a third intermediate population, data Collections. Mapped, structured linkages, designed to show user relationships, will allow users to make informed search choices. These linkages will be sustainable and scalable, created automatically with the use of new metadata fields and existing authorities. Phase II will study selected DOE Data ID Service clients, analyzing how their landing pages are organized, and how that organization might be used to improve DDE search capabilities. At the heart of both phases is the realization that adding more metadata information for cross-referencing may require additional effort for data scientists. OSTI’s approach seeks to leverage existing metadata and landing page intelligence without imposing an additional burden on the data creators.