The term e-Research (alternately spelled eResearch) refers to the use of

information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

to support existing and new forms of research. This extends cyber-infrastructure practices established in

STEM Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...

fields such as

e-Science E-Science or eScience is computationally intensive science that is carried out in highly distributed network environments, or science that uses immense data sets that require grid computing; the term sometimes includes technologies that enable dis ...

to cover other all research areas, including HASS fields such as

digital humanities Digital humanities (DH) is an area of scholarly activity at the intersection of computing or Information technology, digital technologies and the disciplines of the humanities. It includes the systematic use of digital resources in the humanitie ...

Principles

Practices in e-Research typically aim to improve

efficiency Efficiency is the often measurable ability to avoid making mistakes or wasting materials, energy, efforts, money, and time while performing a task. In a more general sense, it is the ability to do things well, successfully, and without waste. ...

, interconnectedness and

scalability Scalability is the property of a system to handle a growing amount of work. One definition for software systems specifies that this may be done by adding resources to the system. In an economic context, a scalable business model implies that ...

across the full research data lifecycle:

collection Collection or Collections may refer to: Computing * Collection (abstract data type), the abstract concept of collections in computer science * Collection (linking), the act of linkage editing in computing * Garbage collection (computing), autom ...

, storage,

analysis Analysis (: analyses) is the process of breaking a complex topic or substance into smaller parts in order to gain a better understanding of it. The technique has been applied in the study of mathematics and logic since before Aristotle (38 ...

, visualisation and

sharing Sharing is the joint use of a resource or space. It is also the process of dividing and distributing. In its narrow sense, it refers to joint or alternating use of inherently finite goods, such as a common pasture or a shared residence. Still ...

of data. E-Research therefore involves collaboration of

research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

ers (often in a

multi-disciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several fields such as sociology, anthropology, psychology, economi ...

team), with

data scientist Data science is an interdisciplinary academic field that uses statistics, scientific computing, scientific methods, processing, scientific visualization, algorithms and systems to extract or extrapolate knowledge from potentially noisy, struct ...

s and

computer scientists Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to applied disciplines (including the design an ...

data steward A data steward is an oversight or data governance role within an organization, and is responsible for ensuring the quality and fitness for purpose of the organization's data assets, including the metadata for those data assets. A data steward may ...

s and

digital librarian A digital library (also called an online library, an internet library, a digital repository, a library without walls, or a digital collection) is an online database of digital resources that can include text, still images, audio, video, digita ...

s, and significant

information and communication technology Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless signals) and computer ...

infrastructure. In addition to human resources, it often requires the physical infrastructure for data-intensive activities, often using

high performance computing High-performance computing (HPC) is the use of supercomputers and computer clusters to solve advanced computation problems. Overview HPC integrates systems administration (including network and security knowledge) and parallel programming into ...

systems such as

grid computing Grid computing is the use of widely distributed computer resources to reach a common goal. A computing grid can be thought of as a distributed system with non-interactive workloads that involve many files. Grid computing is distinguished fro ...

Applications

Examples of e-Research problems range across disciplines which include: * Modelling of ecosystems or economies * Exploration of human genome structures * Studies of large linguistic corpora * Integrated social policy analyses

In Australia

Specialist services, centres or programmes instituted to support

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n data and technology intensive research operate under the umbrella term: eResearch. In March 2012, representatives from these eResearch groups came together to discuss the need build a "collaborative program to strengthen eResearch and address issues facing the sector nationally". The Australian eResearch Organisation (AeRO) emerged from this forum as "a collaborative organisation of national and state-based research organisations to advance eResearch implementation and innovation in Australia". Professionals working in Australian eResearch annually convene a conference known as: eResearch Australasia.

References

External links

New Zealand eScience Infrastructure
(NeSI)
Centre for eResearch, University of AucklandeResearch, the University of MichiganResearch Paper ServiceOxford e-Research CentreCentre for eResearch and Digital Innovation (CeRDI) at Federation UniversityUniversity of Cape Town eResearch Centre
{{DEFAULTSORT:E-Research Research Information technology

Principles

Applications

In Australia

See also

References

External links