Physical sciences and IT
Solar photovoltaics
Four page POSTnote, autumn 2011
Solar electricity has the potential to provide low carbon electricity and generate employment. This POSTnote discusses the prospects for solar electricity in the UK. It also examines debate over financial support policies introduced in 2010 to stimulate uptake. For further information on this project, or to contribute, please contact Dr Chandrika Nath.
Open Access to Scientific Information
Four page POSTnote, autumn 2011
This POSTnote will provide an overview of how modern digital technologies have altered the scientific research process, focusing on their impact on access to, and the dissemination of, scientific information. It will outline the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) 2004 and the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act 2000, which regulate access to research data in the UK, and how they impact on scientists and research institutions. It will seek to clarify to what extent both regimes apply to access to research information, how they should be applied in terms of the materials developed during the research process, and the timing of release of data. The major developments in Open Access publishing and repositories will also be examined, and the main arguments for and against ‘open-access' models of dissemination summarised. Issues around the need for standardisation of data formats and metadata and the inter-operability of open-repositories will also be explored. For further information on this project, or to contribute, please contact Abbi Hobbs.
Digital Preservation
Four page POSTnote, winter 2011
An ever increasing proportion of the information we produce is created and stored in a digital form. However, preserving digital information so that it can be accessed in the future presents many challenges. Not only may the storage medium physically deteriorate, but the software or hardware used to store the data may become obsolete. For example, while the original Domesday Book from 1086 is still preserved in a readable condition, the "laser discs" that contained the BBC's 1986 Domesday project became unreadable within 15 years, and have only recently been "rescued". There is increasing awareness of the need for appropriate strategies to preserve electronic information over the long term, both that which is "born digital" and that which is digitised later in its life, such as historical records. This POSTnote will provide MPs and Peers with an overview of the technological and policy challenges associated with digital preservation. For further information on this project, or to contribute, please contact Dr Chandrika Nath.
Opening up Public Sector Data
Four page POSTnote, winter 2011
Information collected by public bodies often has significant economic or social worth. This data ranges from postcodes to traffic CCTV and is estimated to be worth over £100billion to the UK economy. At present, organisations like the Ordnance Survey and the Met Office fund their data collection by selling the information. This POSTnote looks at the issues of giving easy access to information along with how to maintain its quality and security. For further information please contact Dr Martin Griffiths.