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Database
Management of
Specimen, Literature, and Nomenclature
for Systematics
A
key component in the philosophy for funding grants in the National
Science Foundation’s Partnerships for Enhancing Expertise in
Taxonomy program is promoting the electronic gathering and dissemination
of systematics and taxonomic information. When the Therevid PEET
project was begun in the summer of 1995, no widely used database
tools existed to catalog specimen, nomenclatural, and literature
data. Furthermore, the history of custom-built databases on now
inaccessible mainframe computers provided a daunting reminder of
what we did not want to repeat. A high priority was placed on being
able to export the data for use and integration elsewhere; being
seamlessly cross-platform on both Macs and PC’s; having full
relational capabilities so that the same data are not entered endless
times introducing additional error potential; having a server technology
and web publishing capabilities, and an open architectural design
so that Mandala could be easily modified by users with different
needs who were studying other taxa. FileMaker Pro, while not yet
fully relational in mid-1995, promised to be so in the next version
and was already cross-platform with full exporting capabilities.
Thus began the building of the yet unnamed Mandala from 5 original
files to the now 27 (+ 1 visitors guest book for the web) fully
relational, cross-platform database system (see database model (pdf).
Database
systems like other software, evolve to meet the needs of its users,
and so too has Mandala. The current focus is less on adding new
fields to accomodate data entry and more on developing easier ways
for the less experienced user to mine the data to answer the questions
about their group of organisms or places of interest. User feedback
is an essential part of this process.
Mandala,
the database system, is available upon request to potential users
from Gail Kampmeier <gkamp@uiuc.edu>,
the principal designer. Although fully functional, this demo is
to be distinguished from Therevid Mandala, with its data on specimens,
nomenclature, and literature related to the fly family Therevidae,
which is searchable on our website.
Articles:
 Reinventing
the Wheel or Prudently Hitching a Ride?
Entomological Collections Network 1996 annual meeting, Louisville,
KY
Database
gathers taxonomic information
Illinois Natural History Survey Reports, 353 (Sept.-Oct. 1998):
4, 8
Taxonomic
Keys
Specimen
Label Eccentricities
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