Periodic Reporting for period 3 - EOSC Future (EOSC Future)
Berichtszeitraum: 2023-04-01 bis 2023-09-30
Today, most information is digital and available through the internet. This changes the way we produce and use data, share knowledge and communicate. This opens new ways to do science: collaboration is no longer limited to location or to colleagues in the same discipline. This connects with a 2nd trend that access to scientific knowledge should be as open as possible. One reason for that is that science that has been financed with public funds. Another reason is that we need to share scientific knowledge to solve complex scientific and societal problems. For example, the Sustainable Development Goals are very complex and interdependent: ending poverty concerns strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth, and tackling climate change relates to preserving our oceans and forests.
The European Commission follows an Open Science strategy with on eight pillars. For example, that scientific publications are freely available, to develop digital skills, to engage citizens in science. For (research) data there are two main goals. First, the FAIR concept which implies that data are Findable (search in a catalogue or Google), Accessible (right to use the data), Interoperable (data can be combined with other data), and Reusable (quality of the data). Second, to realise a platform where such data and tools to work it, can be stored, found, combined and re-used - the European Open Science Cloud, or EOSC.
Complex problems and global crises like COVID require global collaboration, across disciplines, alignment between government, science, industry, and society. COVID concerned genetics, vaccine development, economic measures, behaviour, just to name a few. Vaccines could be developed fast because of years of research on related viruses. But this information should be findable and available and new results should be checked and added quickly to the database. It was also important to share experiences over countries – on research, on which measures where most effective, about effects from the vaccines, etc.
Before you can compare data there must be agreement about definitions, how the research was carried out, to describe the respondents in the clinical trials. To find the data, these must be described in a proper (comparable) way – a computer search on COVID and Corona will give no hits, unless it is somewhere described that these two terms are related (and machines might miss the link between “covid”, “Covid”, “Covid-19” and “SARS-CoV-2”).
Hence, a lot of preparatory work needs to be carried out before heterogenous data can be used and combined. Further, one needs the equipment (or research infrastructure) to handle the data. Building new facilities takes years, and therefore it is good to have an overview of infrastructures that are available in Europe – and globally. There must be organisations that take care of storing, improving, cleaning and describing the data, and there must be storage, networks and (super)computers to operate the data.
Luckily, we don’t need to start from scratch. There are many research facilities available and data (digital, but also DNA, samples, pictures, video) are stored and can go back in time. But making all this ready to share is a different chapter. That is where EOSC comes in: this platform would provide researchers a trusted environment where they can develop, access and use research data, using existing infrastructures, computers and specialist services.
The EOSC Future project is the major implementation project building the EOSC. Combining expertise from major European research infrastructures (computing, network, storage, data, tools) it works on operationalising the EOSC. It also builds on previous EU projects that developed core parts of EOSC. The architecture connects and integrates existing and new technological elements. It brings in (data) content and tools to investigate and analyse. This is carried out by a large consortium of over 90 partners, in collaboration with researchers and major European stakeholders.
The mission of the project is to bring the different research infrastructure communities together to implement an operational EOSC Platform focusing on technology and interoperability, resources, user engagement and user experience.
The EOSC will consist of three technical features, called the Core, the Exchange and the Interoperability Framework, offering base functionalities, tools to work with the data, and protocols for connecting existing facilities to the EOSC.
The European Commission follows an Open Science strategy with on eight pillars. For example, that scientific publications are freely available, to develop digital skills, to engage citizens in science. For (research) data there are two main goals. First, the FAIR concept which implies that data are Findable (search in a catalogue or Google), Accessible (right to use the data), Interoperable (data can be combined with other data), and Reusable (quality of the data). Second, to realise a platform where such data and tools to work it, can be stored, found, combined and re-used - the European Open Science Cloud, or EOSC.
Complex problems and global crises like COVID require global collaboration, across disciplines, alignment between government, science, industry, and society. COVID concerned genetics, vaccine development, economic measures, behaviour, just to name a few. Vaccines could be developed fast because of years of research on related viruses. But this information should be findable and available and new results should be checked and added quickly to the database. It was also important to share experiences over countries – on research, on which measures where most effective, about effects from the vaccines, etc.
Before you can compare data there must be agreement about definitions, how the research was carried out, to describe the respondents in the clinical trials. To find the data, these must be described in a proper (comparable) way – a computer search on COVID and Corona will give no hits, unless it is somewhere described that these two terms are related (and machines might miss the link between “covid”, “Covid”, “Covid-19” and “SARS-CoV-2”).
Hence, a lot of preparatory work needs to be carried out before heterogenous data can be used and combined. Further, one needs the equipment (or research infrastructure) to handle the data. Building new facilities takes years, and therefore it is good to have an overview of infrastructures that are available in Europe – and globally. There must be organisations that take care of storing, improving, cleaning and describing the data, and there must be storage, networks and (super)computers to operate the data.
Luckily, we don’t need to start from scratch. There are many research facilities available and data (digital, but also DNA, samples, pictures, video) are stored and can go back in time. But making all this ready to share is a different chapter. That is where EOSC comes in: this platform would provide researchers a trusted environment where they can develop, access and use research data, using existing infrastructures, computers and specialist services.
The EOSC Future project is the major implementation project building the EOSC. Combining expertise from major European research infrastructures (computing, network, storage, data, tools) it works on operationalising the EOSC. It also builds on previous EU projects that developed core parts of EOSC. The architecture connects and integrates existing and new technological elements. It brings in (data) content and tools to investigate and analyse. This is carried out by a large consortium of over 90 partners, in collaboration with researchers and major European stakeholders.
The mission of the project is to bring the different research infrastructure communities together to implement an operational EOSC Platform focusing on technology and interoperability, resources, user engagement and user experience.
The EOSC will consist of three technical features, called the Core, the Exchange and the Interoperability Framework, offering base functionalities, tools to work with the data, and protocols for connecting existing facilities to the EOSC.
The project builds on existing projects, took over existing facilities from projects, started collaborations with other EOSC projects, and ensured the alignment of the ‘fishbone’ elements within the project. The work is divided into 10 work packages and systems for quality control on deliverables and progress are in place. A specific WP deals with the alignment with external partners (e.g. European Commission, Member States & Associated Countries, the EOSC Association). The technical WPs align via a Technical Coordination Board and deal with the architecture, the supply layer (service providers) and the demand layer (researchers), the service management of the platform. This group also defined and described the (technical) elements that need to sustain after the project ends.
Content comes in via the Science Clusters, but also from national, regional or thematic research infrastructures and via procurement (existing and new services from commercial providers). There is co-creation between science and industry via so-called Digital Innovation Hubs. Via the Research Data Alliance we connect with activities outside Europe.
Training has two main features: to describe (catalogue) what is already available on training, including checks on quality, and to offer a platform for creating new training based on the material that is available in the EOSC.
Outreach is very relevant, to attract new users and service providers, to align with other stakeholders, to build communities that will last after the project.
Compared to the previous periods, many improvements were achieved:
-EOSC Core and Exchange: marketplace, onboarding of data sources, workflow of the EPOT onboarding committee, and 3rd party resource catalogues, connecting catalogues, self-service integration with EOSC Core functions (helpdesk, monitoring, order management, etc.).
-Interoperability Framework: scaled up capabilities and delivered EOSC Execution Framework and Interoperability Guidelines. The M22 release including the the EOSC Service Management System went operational in January 2023.
-Science projects: producing results on data & services content and integration and via scientific papers.
-Catalogue: enriched with 07-project services, cluster/RI services, and e-Infrastructure services: 293 resource providers and 543 individual services
-Knowledge Hub: in production, creating and delivering the training and learning resources.
-Collaboration with other projects, e.g. with the EOSC-07 projects via 3 thematic groups on technical activities; with the EOSC Steering Board including on EOSC Observatory. Beneficiaries are involved in all 13 EOSC-Association Task Forces.
Content comes in via the Science Clusters, but also from national, regional or thematic research infrastructures and via procurement (existing and new services from commercial providers). There is co-creation between science and industry via so-called Digital Innovation Hubs. Via the Research Data Alliance we connect with activities outside Europe.
Training has two main features: to describe (catalogue) what is already available on training, including checks on quality, and to offer a platform for creating new training based on the material that is available in the EOSC.
Outreach is very relevant, to attract new users and service providers, to align with other stakeholders, to build communities that will last after the project.
Compared to the previous periods, many improvements were achieved:
-EOSC Core and Exchange: marketplace, onboarding of data sources, workflow of the EPOT onboarding committee, and 3rd party resource catalogues, connecting catalogues, self-service integration with EOSC Core functions (helpdesk, monitoring, order management, etc.).
-Interoperability Framework: scaled up capabilities and delivered EOSC Execution Framework and Interoperability Guidelines. The M22 release including the the EOSC Service Management System went operational in January 2023.
-Science projects: producing results on data & services content and integration and via scientific papers.
-Catalogue: enriched with 07-project services, cluster/RI services, and e-Infrastructure services: 293 resource providers and 543 individual services
-Knowledge Hub: in production, creating and delivering the training and learning resources.
-Collaboration with other projects, e.g. with the EOSC-07 projects via 3 thematic groups on technical activities; with the EOSC Steering Board including on EOSC Observatory. Beneficiaries are involved in all 13 EOSC-Association Task Forces.
Currently the project is at 80% (24 of 30 months) and it defined its Key Exploitable Results (features that are to be continued after the project has ended). For the next months the integration of the EOSC components is planned, to deliver a first operational EOSC.