Taxonomy for
Emerging Technologies:
Mary Chitty, MSLS, Library Director & Taxonomist, Knowledge & Information Services
Cambridge Healthtech, Needham MA | www.healthtech.com
mchitty@healthtech.com 781 972-5416 | www.genomicglossaries.com
TODAY’S SCIENCE FICTION CAN BE TOMORROW’S SCIENCE
A Division of Cambridge Innovation Institute

In-house database
taxonomy
 Home-grown SQL database
 1991 CEO created structure for
keywords – Still involved with
identifying and creating new terms
 2011 Major reorganization into 25 top
level categories
 2017 Nearly 1,600 concepts and
synonyms
 Database 2.0 in planning
 Looking into new software options
Public website www.genomicglossaries.com​
SharePoint intranet
 2015 Company migrated
to SharePoint intranet
 2017 Summer Knowledge &
Information Services portal
launched
 Developing resources on using and
training about in-house keywords
and database
 All very technical complex
terminology
1999 Started as a small glossary ​based on content from in-house taxonomy​
2000 Launched as website​
2001 Renamed Glossaries & Taxonomies​
June Reviewed by Science magazine – a nice surprise!​
MyTaxonomies

CaseStudy
Search works best IF:
1. You know what to call what you're looking for AND
2. You know what you're looking for exists.
Often neither one is certain for my topics. So …
 1999, created glossaries on DNA and proteins for new market research products.
 Really interested in poly-hierarchical and non-hierarchical relationships
-- not easily curated!​
 2000, when websites were still new, realized this could be a solution to update and
share my terms. This website could be valuable to others.​
 My company is in the information overload business, but we get overloaded too.
 In 2017, major Updates including Ontologies & Taxonomies.
http://www.genomicglossaries.com/content/ontologies.asp
www.GenomicsGlossaries.com

Start small
 Because you’re going to make changes
 Call projects prototype/s or proof/s of concept as long as possible
 Break daunting project revisions and updates into small
manageable chunks
Look for quick wins
 Maximum effect with limited effort​
 More complicated projects can
come later
 Knowledge and credibility gained by
rapid prototyping​
Seek metrics feedback
anywhere and everywhere
 Qualitative and quantitative
 Google Analytics for usage metrics
 Welcome questions and emails
from users
 Look for reviews and accolades
BestPractices
to Start

Both NIH through the Big Data to Knowledge Program and the
European Commission with Horizon 2020 have allocated
considerable resources to making data FAIRer.
FAIR DATA
FAIR Data Principles, 2017 short with link to long version
https://www.force11.org/group/fairgroup/fairprinciples
FAIR Guiding Principles for scientific data management and
stewardship Sci Data. 2016; 3: 160018. Published online 2016
Mar15. doi: 10.1038/sdata.2016.18
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4792175/
Opportunities
fortaxonomists
&ontologists
 Findable
 Accessible
 Interoperable
 Reusable

LessonsLearned
USEFUL INSIGHTS
 Take advantage of modularity & reusability. Don’t re-invent the wheel.​
 Descriptive not prescriptive definitions,​ if any.​
 Packaging and labels matter. Taxonomies or ontologies sound sexier than
thesauri or controlled vocabularies​
 Taxonomies inherently get more and more granular. Keep editing!​
REMEMBER
 Don't try to boil the ocean.​
 80/20 rule or the Pareto principal
Focus on 20% of effort with 80% of usage – not the other way around.
 Relevance is inherently subjective. ​What do your users value most?​

MyOngoing
Challenges
in2017
even after years of experience!
MAINTENANCE AND UPKEEP
 Integration
Topics morph in new directions & into new disciplines
 Interoperability & reusability
Huge challenges still
 Scalability
Balance short term & long term needs & goals​
RETURN ON INVESTMENT
 Complexity and information overload trade-offs​
 Out-of-the-Box vs. Configurability vs. Customization
More programming = more $ - Choose software wisely​
 People can’t buy your products if they don’t know they exist,
or where to find them.​

TakeHome
Messages
 Choose challenging – but not impossible projects.
Look for allies and buy-in to help make sustainable
progress.
 Use metrics and feedback to measure progress, so you
know when you've made some.
 Share best practices, lessons learned and ongoing
challenges. Acknowledge issues nobody has resolved
yet, so you don't get discouraged.
Focus