AUTHORSHIP, AUTHENTICITY, INTEGRITY, PRESERVATION AND LIABILITY ASPECTS OF DIGITAL GEOLOGIC PRODUCTS

Digital Geologic Products (DGP's) provide a key means to communicate the societal value of to geology to stakeholders (who ultimately influence funding). DGP's also are a way to provide geologic information in a format that can be readily used by non-geologic professionals. The opinions of focus groups of customers for geologic data analyzed by the USGS lead to the conclusion that "the demand for digital maps is strong, diverse and far exceeds current production". The viability of DGP's as a replacement for traditional paper based products, requires resolution of the issues of authorship, authenticity, integrity and preservation. In addition DGP's have significant liability if the misuse of the data could lead to poor decisions and possible adverse outcomes. An approach to authorship of DGP's is proposed that is rooted in the traditional concepts of taking responsibility for part of the product. The responsibility taken by the geologic and digital authors can be detailed in the metadata. Metadata has also been proposed as a way of ensuring the authenticity and integrity of digital geologic maps. A random sample of 100 published metadata has been critically assessed in this context and found to be inadequate for these purposes. Similarly the metadata surveyed failed to address data quality issues in such a way that the liability associated with digital products is even minimally mitigated. A geologic metadata profile is proposed that focuses on a standardized approach to lineage and data quality. Such an enhanced metadata, combined with creation of a National Digital Geologic Product Standard forms the basis for addressing preservation issues as well as authenticity, integrity and liability issues.