Future-Proofing 'Big Data' Biological Research Depends on Designing Good Digital Identifiers (image)

PLOS

Caption

In the life sciences, if individual communities think about identifiers at all, it is usually in the context of a single database 'hub' and a variety of cross-referenced 'spokes', or an aggregation of these; however, the real complexity of the inter-relationships is often overlooked -- and with it, the importance of persistent identifiers to hold everything together. Identifier issues such as broken links undermine the flow and integrity of data for data providers and consumers alike.

Credit

Julie McMurry and Lilly Winfree from the Monarch Initiative.

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