Transcript Emil Platon/Utah

CYBERNETWORK
INTEGRATION OF
CHRONOSTRATIGRAPHIC DATA
ACCESSIBLE AGE INFORMATION FOR A
BROAD USER CLIENTELE
Paul J. Sikora, Associate Professor
Emil Platon, Research Assistant Professor
Energy & Geoscience Institute at the University of Utah
The Challenge
• How to make a database (e.g., EGI
research database) designed for the
professional paleontologist available to
the general public?
– Constructed at Amoco Exploration (19641998)
– Technician-based data entry and
manipulation
– Very user-unfriendly
• There are many such databases.
Template for Database Conversion
Starting System
Paleontologist
Geoscientist
General Public
(Process 1)
(Process 2)
(Process 3)
• Ease of data
entry
• Application
development
• Ontological
development
• Ease of age
retrieval
– Absolute
– Relative
• Research beta
testing
• Education
– Time and
time scales
– Absolute vs.
relative
– Methods
• Ease of age
retrieval
Cybernetwork Integration
Paleontologist User (Process 1)
•
Application development – graphic correlation
– StrataPlot (Emil Platon)
•
•
•
Point-and-click ease of use
Software and starting composite standard available to users
as downloads
Easy data entry – Excel format
– User data
– EGI research data (~2400 localities)
•
Beta-testing
– Calibration tool for Chronos Permian/Triassic boundary test
bed
•
Taxonomic revision of EGI database
StrataPlot
Database Integration (Process 1)
• e.g.,
EGI/Arizona
linkage
Register DBs with GEON Grid
Match
similar
attributes
Set up unique
attribute
values
Matching Keys; e.g. Site = Location
Data retrieval; e.g.: “68-71.3 Ma”,
“Early Maastrichtian, or “Late Cretaceous”
e.g.: use consistent
environment
descriptors
Run integration tests for
shared localities in North
America
Geoscientist User (Process 2)
• What’s the age?
– Age constraints for multidisciplinary modeling
• e.g., basin models, sequence stratigraphy, etc.
• Age retrieval without need for specialist
knowledge
– e.g., EGI database; age stored as lines of
correlation
• Algorithm to convert to relative and/or absolute age
• Whole section, sample, sample range
Time Scale (Process 2)
• GEON needs tie to widely recognized
“standard” time scale
– Chronos scale
• System centerpiece
• Unveiled at IGC meeting – Aug. 2004
• EGI database
– Over 700 localities need to be recalibrated
against new time scale
– Development of automatic process
Data Acquisition (Process 2)
• GEON test bed support; e.g. Appalachians
General Public User (Process 3)
• Shared data retrieval issues with Process 2
• Educational outreach
– Leverage several sources, e.g.,
• Chronos timescale page
• Joint development of stratigraphic definitions and
exercises/tutorials with U. Arizona
• Other existing sources; DLESE, USGS, etc.
Progress Report
• Complete or nearing completion
– Appalachian data gathering and composite standard
construction (Process 1)
– StrataPlot graphic correlation software (Process 1)
– EGI database table structure revision for broad-based
age retrieval (Process 2)
• In progress
– Integration with U. Arizona databases (Processes 1-3)
– Population of new database fields (Processes 1-3)
– Recalibration of ~700 calibrated EGI localities
(Processes 1-3)
Year 3 Activities
• Completion of
– Integration with U. Arizona
– EGI locality calibration
– Algorithm for Processes 2, 3 age retrieval
• Public availability for StrataPlot
– Permian/Triassic boundary calibration with Chronos
• Ontological integration with GEON
– Beta test = basin modeling for Appalachian test bed
• Continuation of taxonomic revisions