biology

IDigBio

IDigBio is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand IDigBio rather than just read about it. In short: iDigBio, Integrated Digitized Biocollections, is the National Resource funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) for Advancing Digitization of Biodiversity Collections (ADBC). Through iDigBio, data and images for millions of biological specimens are being curated, connected and made available in electronic format for the biological research community, government agencies, students, educators, and the general p…

Key takeaways

IDigBio belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect IDigBio to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of IDigBio from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

iDigBio, Integrated Digitized Biocollections, is the National Resource funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) for Advancing Digitization of Biodiversity Collections (ADBC). Through iDigBio, data and images for millions of biological specimens are being curated, connected and made available in electronic format for the biological research community, government agencies, students, educators, and the general public.

Mission

The mission of iDigBio is to develop a national infrastructure that supports the vision of ADBC by overseeing implementation of standards and best practices for digitization; building and deploying a customized cloud computing environment for collections; recruiting and training personnel, including underserved groups; engaging the research community, collections community, citizen scientists, and the public through education and outreach activities; and planning for long-term sustainability of the national digitization effort. iDigBio enables digitization of data from all U.S. biological collections and integrates those data to make them broadly available and useful with shared standards and formats. Ultimately, ADBC will further the discovery and understanding of biological diversity, and iDigBio will engage the research, collections, and education communities in a spirit of collaboration that will open biological research collections to new downstream user communities. The vision for ADBC is a permanent repository of digitized information from all U.S. biological collections that leads to new discoveries through research and a better understanding and appreciation of biodiversity through improved outreach, which then leads to improved environmental and economic policies. Creation of the permanent digitized repository is occurring in four stages:

An initial stage where the effort to digitize U.S. biological collections is catalyzed by funding from NSF and enabled by iDigBio activities that foster collaborations, identify priorities, demonstrate the value of biodiversity and collections, and generate information on best practices related to standards, workflows, and data management. An intermediate stage where digitization at Thematic Collections Networks (TCNs), Partners to Existing Networks (PENs), and other participating institutions/networks improves methods and strategies and demonstrates the scientific and societal benefits of validated and readily accessible data. A third stage in which the vision for ADBC is realized through participation by all U.S. institutions with biological collections. A fourth stage in which digitization is a routine and sustained practice in all institutions with biological collections, and the national database is easily accessible as an up-to-date source of information on biodiversity

Scope

iDigBio is the national resource for digitized information about vouchered natural history collections within the context established by the NIBA community strategic plan and is supported through funds from the NSF ADBC program. As such, iDigBio serves as the administrative home for the national digitization effort; fosters partnerships and innovations; facilitates the determination and dissemination of digitization practices and workflows; establishes integration and interconnectivity among the data generated by collection digitization projects; and promotes the uses of biological/paleontological collections data by the scientific community and stakeholders including government agencies, educational institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other national and international entities to benefit science and society through enhanced research, educational, and outreach activities. iDigBio provides these services to all stakeholders with clarity, simplicity, transparency, intuitive methodology, and intuitive design. The iDigBio HUB is based at the University of Florida (UF), in partnership with Florida State University (FSU). In addition to the iDigBio central digitization HUB, there are partner institutions referred to as "Thematic Collections Networks" (TCNs) and associated "Partners To Existing Networks" (PENs) which consists of networks of institutions with a strategy for digitizing information that addresses a particular research theme. Through the iDigBio HUB cyberinfrastructure, compilation and the inter-linking of data from the TCNs and existing collaborative databases will create opportunities to address research questions and education interests regarding biodiversity, climate change, species invasions, natural disasters, and the spread of pests and diseases. New TCNs will be funded in succeeding years based on solicitations from NSF.

History In 2021, the NSF awarded iDigBio a further $20 million in funds.

References

External links

Official website Florida Museum of Natural History

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with IDigBio

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what IDigBio claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to IDigBio before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about IDigBio ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of IDigBio

In research: IDigBio appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses IDigBio in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: IDigBio is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2011 establishments in Florida, Biodiversity databases, Biology organizations based in the United States, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for IDigBio outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study IDigBio in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what IDigBio means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain IDigBio out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is IDigBio in simple terms?

Why does IDigBio matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study IDigBio?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on IDigBio.