Опитувальник для працівників установ та організацій природничого спрямування

Hello,

we are the team of the State Museum of Natural History (Lviv, Ukraine), which is engaged in the development of protocols for the digitization of natural history collections within the framework of the program of the National Research Foundation of Ukraine. We are putting a lot of effort into creating the simplest yet most effective protocols for digitizing war-threatened natural history collections. We are sure that many of you, if working in Ukraine, have already started or even completed the digitization of your collections and, unfortunately, have considerable experience in saving them. We ask you to share your experiences and thoughts so that together we can develop an optimal strategy for the future and educate those who are still facing the issue of digitization.

We promise that none of the data provided will be personalized, so we look forward to your sincere response. These data will make it possible to assess the real state of digitization of natural histroy collections in Ukraine and other countries and identify those weak points we need to be strengthened and those problematic aspects that need to be discussed and resolved.

Thank you very much in advance for your time!

Sincerely, on behalf of the team,

PI Andriy Novikov

What is your name (you can fill out the questionnaire anonymously if you wish)?

What city (country) are you from?

Which institution or organization are you from (if you wish, you can fill out the questionnaire anonymously)?

What is the highest level of education (not necessarily scientific degree) you have at the moment?

Is your activity directly related to the maintenance of natural history collections?

What is your role in the collection to which you are involved?

How long have you been involved with the collection?

How many specimens (storage units) does your collection have?

Are you an active scientist?

If so, is your research directly related to processing natural history collections?

Rate from 1 (not involved) to 5 (strongly involved), in what way are natural history collections involved in your scientific research?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Natural history collections are a source of primary data for large-scale research involving data sets, e.g., spatio-temporal modeling, biogeographical studies
I mostly use natural history collections for classical studies of regional biodiversity (floristic, faunistic, etc.)
I mostly use natural history collections as a reference, to work with type material
I use natural history collections mostly for conservation research and environmental impact assessment
I use natural history collections to study the history of science and biographical explorations
I directly study the principles of creation and management of natural history collections
Other

How often do you use online nature-oriented resources (for example, specialized YouTube channels, popular blogs, educational, scientific or sci-pop platforms, e.g., iNaturalist, GBIF, BHL, etc.)?

Have you ever worked with foreign natural history collections?

If so, which countries' natural collections did you work with?

Do you use virtual natural history collections (e.g., virtual herbaria, etc.)?

What software do you use to work with your collection (for accounting, cataloging, digitization, etc.)?

Do you think it is necessary to create and promote open virtual natural history collections?

Rate from 1 (less expected) to 5 (strongly expected), what do you most expect from the virtual collection as a user?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Beautiful and high-res digital images of specimens
Intuitive and convenient interface (API)
Possibilities of convenient work with data (in particular, their filtering, downloading, validation, etc.)
Possibilities to conduct statistical analysis and visualization of data online
Additional educational content that will allow you to better study the subject, the collection or its individual specimens
Other

Rate from 1 (less expected) to 5 (strongly expected), what do you most expect from the virtual collection as a employee (engaged person)?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Intuitive and convenient interface for management and filling (CMS)
Bulk data export/import capabilities
Possibilities of convenient work with data (in particular, their filtering, downloading, validation, etc.)
Automation of archiving, backup and data protection
Possibilities of automatic formation of articles, catalogs, identifiers, etc. directly from the database (like in Pensoft journals' environment)
Ability to monitor user activity
Ability to conduct statistical analysis and visualization of data online
Other

What devices do you most often use to access natural history virtual collections, databases and other similar online resources?

How do you think, can virtual natural history collections replace original ones?

How do you think, has the need to digitize natural history collections generally increased in light of the threats of war?

How do you think, has the need to digitize your collection increased in light of the threats of war?

Was your collection once forcibly moved?

Has your collection suffered as a result of the war?

Do you have a protocol of actions in case of evacuation or other emergency situations to preserve your collection?

How do you assess the risk associated with possible loss or damage to natural history collections due to war from 1 (risk absent) to 5 (extreme risk)?

1 is Worst, 5 is Best

Do you cooperate with other curators or organizations for the joint preservation of natural history collections in case of war or other global emergency situations?

How would you react to possible war-related dangers or other global emergency situations?

Other

How do you assess from 1 (absent) to 5 (totally present) the availability of resources for digitizing your collection in case of war?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Time
Money
Equipment
Staff
Skills
Access to educational materials and digitization guides
Administration support
State support
Support of foreign partners

Rate from 1 (initial) to 5 (final), at what stage of digitization is your collection?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Data mobilization
Production of digital media files
Archiving
Publishing

Are the data and digital content for specimens from your collection freely available online?

How do you generally assess the quality of digital content in relation to your collection?

Do you have experience in data archiving (not necessarily natural history related)?

Do you have codding experience?

How does digital archiving work in your collection?

Rate from 1 (absent) to 5 (strongly present), what advantages do you see in the digitization of natural history collections in general?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Limiting the load on the original specimens due to their processing, since instead of working directly with the specimen, part of the users will be satisfied with data and digital images
More active involvement of the collection in scientific and cultural activities, since data and digital images can be obtained and processed much faster
The possibility of at least remote access to the collections in conditions where a personal visit is not possible (for example, in conditions of a pandemic, war, etc.)
The possibility of virtual potentially unlimited storage of collections in conditions of a relatively limited storage period of real specimens
The possibility of integrating data on regional collections into global databases, thereby popularizing them
Other unmentioned advantages

Rate from 1 (absent) to 5 (strongly present), what disadvantages do you see in the digitization of natural history collections in general?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Risk of theft, misappropriation or unauthorized use of data and/or other digital content related to the collection
Loss of the opportunity to conduct unique research by having access to a collection unavailable to competing academics and institutions
Loss of monetization by receiving payment for granted access to collections
Loss of job places related to collection maintenance
The need to attract significant investment to digitize collections that does not justify the potential benefits
The need for retraining or recruiting new personnel qualified in digital data related work
Loss of identity and originality of regional collections, as well as national scientific traditions
Loss of public interest in real collections, which may lead to their decline or close
Other unmentioned disadvantages

Rate from 1 (less appropriate) to 5 (most appropriate), which way of digitization do you consider appropriate for institutions and organizations hosting the natural history collections?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Mobilization of data on specimens from the collection (creation and distribution of digital data on these specimens)
Digitization of specimens (creation of digital still images, videos or other similar type of digital content)
Creation of own independent databases (or virtual collections) of wide coverage, including, but not limited to, information on specimens from the institution's collection
Creation of own independent databases (or virtual collections) of narrow coverage, which contain information only about specimens from the collection
Integration of digital content in global aggregators, such as GBIF and iDigBio, etc. without creating own databases
Integration of digital content in global aggregators, such as GBIF and iDigBio, etc. alongside with development of the own databases (or virtual collections)
Development of independent online analytical resources, which can perform certain calculations and simulations based on existing data (for example, analyze the species distribution, etc.)
Creation of independent platforms for citizen science, not integrated into similar global platforms
Creation of various nature-oriented applications for mobile devices (for example, interactive identification keys, checklists, virtual tours, etc.)
Development and integration of digital interactive elements related to collections directly on exhibitions and expositions

How do you think digitization of natural history collections should take place in wartime conditions?

Rate from 1 (less important) to 5 (highest priority), which natural history specimens do you consider more prioritized for digitization in wartime?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Authentic (type) specimens
Specimens collected from the occupied territories
Specimens of rare species
Specimens of species representing a certain region (trivial specimens)
Specimens of author's collections
Attractive specimens (those that will attract the most attention of visitors)

How do you think, what exactly should in priority focus during digitization of the natural collections in wartime?

How do you think, does your country require its own protocols and standards for the digitization of scientific and natural collections, as well as the creation and distribution of digital data about them?

Other

If images of digitized specimens are to be freely distributed, what quality should these images be available online?

Other

If images of digitized specimens are supposed to be freely distributed, what do you think should be the resolution of available images?

Is it reasonable to grant access to occurrence coordinates to regular users?

In the case of creating own databases, should it be possible to download bulk data for external users?

Under what license do you think data and digital materials related to natural history collections should be distributed?

How do you think, is it reasonable to distribute data and digital materials about national natural history collections on foreign resources?

How do you think, is there a strong reason to create a centralized national portal to access virtual natural history collections in your country?

Other

How do you think, is it worth digitizing specimens of Ukrainian natural history collections, if they were collected once (probably in the last century) from the territory of Russia (from the point of the academic integrity)?

How do you think, is it worth processing and/or publishing data on specimens of Ukrainian natural history collections, if they are collected from the territory of Russia (from the point of the academic integrity)?

How do you think, should data from the territory of Russia, including the data from Russian collections, be included in Ukrainian databases or in personal data sets of Ukrainian researchers for the purpose of investigation (from the point of the academic integrity)?

Rate from 1 (unnecessary) to 5 (strongly important), how digitization of natural history collections should be taught?

Rows	1	2	3	4	5
Specialized educational courses at the institutions and universities
Open live courses for those interested
Online courses and/or a series of educational videos
By providing the list of specialists you can ask for advice if necessary
Specialized seminars and/or conferences dedicated to digitization

If you have any other thoughts or comments about the digitization of nature collections, please post them here:

E-mail

example@example.com

Questionnaire for employees of natural history institutions and organizations

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