INTEGRATION OF CHRONOSTRATIGRAPHIC DATA ACCESSIBLE AGE INFORMATION FOR AB ROAD USER

							     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 (1964-
    1998)
  – 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    • Ease of age     • Education
    entry             retrieval          – Time and
  • Application        – Absolute          time scales
    development        – Relative        – Absolute vs.
                                           relative
  • Ontological     • Research beta
    development       testing            – 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)
                        Register DBs with GEON Grid
• e.g.,
  EGI/Arizona                      Matching Keys; e.g. Site = Location
  linkage        Match
                 similar
                                Data retrieval; e.g.: “68-71.3 Ma”,
                attributes      “Early Maastrichtian, or “Late Cretaceous”




                Set up unique      e.g.: use consistent
                  attribute        environment
                    values         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