Ecological Informatics: Scope, Techniques and Applications

Contents -- Part I: Introduction -- Chapter 1: Ecological Informatics: An Introduction -- 1.1 Introduction -- 1.2 Data Management -- 1.3 Analysis and Synthesis -- 1.4 Communicating and Informing Decisions -- 1.5 Case Studies -- References -- Part II: Managing Ecological Data -- Chapter 2: Project Data Management Planning -- 2.1 Introduction -- 2.2 Components of a Data Management Plan -- 2.2.1 Context -- 2.2.2 Data Collection and Acquisition -- 2.2.3 Data Organization -- 2.2.4 Quality Assurance/Quality Control -- 2.2.5 Documentation -- 2.2.6 Storage and Preservation -- 2.2.7 Data Integration, Analysis, Modeling and Visualization -- 2.2.8 Data Policies -- Box 2.1 Recommended Data Citation Guidelines from Dryad Digital Repository (2016) -- 2.2.9 Communication and Dissemination of Research Outputs -- 2.2.10 Roles and Responsibilities -- 2.2.11 Budget -- 2.3 Developing and Using a Data Management Plan -- 2.3.1 Best Practices for Creating the Plan -- 2.3.2 Using the Plan -- 2.4 Conclusion -- References -- Chapter 3: Scientific Databases for Environmental Research -- 3.1 Introduction -- 3.2 Challenges for Scientific Databases -- 3.3 Examples of Scientific Databases -- 3.3.1 A Useful Analogy -- 3.3.2 Examples of Databases -- 3.4 Evolving a Database -- 3.4.1 A Strategy for Evolving a Database -- 3.4.2 Choosing Software -- 3.4.3 Database Management System (DBMS) Types -- 3.4.4 Data Models and Normalization -- 3.4.5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Using a DBMS -- 3.5 Interlinking Information Resources -- 3.5.1 A Database Related to the Human Genome Project -- 3.5.2 Environmental Databases for Sharing Data -- 3.5.3 Tools for Interlinking Information -- 3.6 Conclusions -- References -- Chapter 4: Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC) -- 4.1 Introduction -- 4.2 Quality Assurance -- 4.3 Quality Control -- 4.3.1 Data Filters -- 4.3.2 Graphical QC