USING INFORMATICS TO GUIDE FACT-BASED SHALE GAS ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION

Informatics is the field that seeks to understand how data is shared, learned and structured in light of the use of technology. The goal of informatics is to increase efficiency of data collection and sharing with the use of technology. The data and information studied can be of different types, to be combined into a coherent analysis. Informatics has been applied to meet the specific needs of different fields, including medicine, sociology, and geosciences. One specific example of the use of informatics in geosciences is a current multidisciplinary project devised to provide suggestions for fact-based environmental regulation of shale gas. The informatics component of this project is focused on analyzing scientific peer-reviewed literature and technical documents generated by government agencies. The result of the analyses is a series of topical map visualizations that allow for users from various backgrounds and interests to quickly understand and synthesize the information. Topical map visualizations are images with a series of circles, or nodes, connected by lines, or edges. The elements of the images can be altered in size, distance from other components, and color to emphasize different aspects of the underlying information set. In this particular case study the objective is to gain an understanding of what environmental concerns science has studied, and how this relates to the topics identified citizens, the media, and interest groups. The results will eventually include a GIS component and be relocated into a cyberinfrastructure hub, which will further increase transparency and access of the information. The ultimate objective of informatics in this particular research is to make the science already obtained regarding environmental issues surrounding shale gas more accessible to various stakeholders, emphasize gaps between social and scientific understanding, and indicate where more research is warranted.