Welcome
A short video introduction to the eIUS Project is available.
Latest Project News
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7 Aug 2009, Experience reports, use cases, and videos now available. The website now contains a table of outputs, including links to all the videos.
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8 June 2009, eIUS videos on youTube. We have released two videos
highlighting the use of e-infrastructure in archaeology and bioinformatics.
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10 Nov 2008, Progress Report This document presents an overview
of the progress made in the period April - September 2008 (as PDF document).
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June 2008, eIUS outputs on Engage Portal. In common with the
other Community Engagement Projects we are making the eIUS project outputs
available through the Engage
Portal.
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19 Dec 2007, Scoping e-Infrastructure Usage: Interim Report . The
eIUS Project has published a scoping study which describes and evaluates a
piloting of the project's methodology for interviewing researchers and
developing use cases. The study includes a series of annotated use cases.
The Executive Summary is available together
with the full report (as PDF document).
Project Outputs
Experience reports and use cases are currently available in PDF only. Videos are
delivered via the Project's channel on youTube.
Developing SUMs (work in progress documents)
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Developing e-framework SUMs (PDF)
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Connecting use cases and SUMs (PDF)
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Developing SUMs from technical documentation (PDF)
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Identifying e-framework Service Genres (PDF)
Reports, Papers and Presentations
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eIUS Final Report, July 2009 Report, PDF
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Progress Report, October 2008
Report (PDF)
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Presentation, Steering Group Meeting, October 2008 Slides (PPT)
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Scoping e-Infrastructure Usage: Interim Report, December 2007 Executive Summary and full report
(PDF)
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Presentation, "e-Research Infrastructure Development and Community
Engagement", UK e-Science All Hands Meeting, Nottingham, 13 September 2007
Slides
(PPT)
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eIUS Project Plan, July 2007 Full Text
(PDF)
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Presentation, National Grid Service 3rd User Forum and Training, Oxford
e-Research Centre, 19 June 2007 Slides (PPT)
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Poster, Oxford e-Research Centre Launch, 15 June 2007 Poster (PDF)
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eIUS Proposal, November 2006 Full Text
(PDF)
Background/Context
The UK is entering a period in which online collaborative environments,
distributed computing and data resources, advanced analytical tools, together
with support and training, are becoming readily available for researchers in all
disciplines. Within some subject areas, for example, high-energy physics and
bioinformatics, e-infrastructure already underpins everyday work; whilst other
subject areas are still investigating the applicability of existing resources
for their research and making recommendations for future development. The
deployment of e-infrastructure, whether within institutions, nationally or
internationally, has the potential to increase the pace, impact, and efficiency
of research both within and across disciplines.
If academic research in the UK is to build on the foundations laid by UK
e-Science then it is essential first to understand the process by which
different research communities can adopt e-infrastructure, and secondly to
ensure that the required interfaces, support and training are put in place. The
eIUS (pronounced 'ey-yus') project, led by Oxford University Computing Services
in partnership with NCeSS and the Oxford e-Research Centre, is one of two
complementary projects funded by JISC that aim to study current and planned
usage of e-infrastructure, and also the perceived or actual barriers to uptake
across research communities. Outcomes from the two projects will help identify
and implement the appropriate interventions that will make e-Infrastructure
available to a wider group of researchers.
Aims and Objectives
The eIUS project aims to gather and document concrete evidence of how
e-infrastructure is, or is planned to be used as a facilitator of the research
process across all major disciplines. This is not simply an information
gathering project but rather is intended to broaden participation in the use and
future development of e-infrastructure services. The project's overall
objectives are to:
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develop a deep understanding of the e-Infrastructure services that are
currently available in the UK, as well as how they are used by the
research community in all major subject disciplines;
-
establish a self-sustaining community process to contribute to this
shared understanding during and beyond the lifetime of the project;
and
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contribute to the International e-Framework Initiative whose primary
aim is to facilitate technical interoperability within and across
education and research through improved strategic planning and
implementation processes.
Methodology
The project intends to accomplish its objectives through an iterative process of
experience capture and analysis carried out in conjunction with the UK research
community. This is being carried out through a combination of interviews, focus
groups, and observational studies. Three different but related types of outputs
will be produced:
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Experience Reports, capturing concrete examples of the use of existing
e-Infrastructure by individuals or groups of researchers;
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Use Cases, derived and linked back to the Experience Reports, to
provide non-technical idealised 'stories' of how users are currently
interacting (or intend to interact) with e-Infrastructure to achieve
specific research goals; and
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Domain Models and Service Usage Models (SUMs), describing patterns or
combinations of e-Infrastructure services required to fulfill the
specific Use Cases.
These outputs will be published early and often through a dedicated community
engagement website, to allow for frequent review and validation by the research
community and e-infrastructure service providers, as well as to enable
researchers to submit new content. The project will pro-actively encourage this
participation throughout its lifetime through the organisation of focus groups,
workshops and other events designed specifically to engage the research
community.
Implications/ Deliverables/ Stakeholders
The outputs of the project are expected to serve different but related
stakeholder requirements:
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UK researchers seeking concrete examples of the use of
e-Infrastructure to meet their specific needs;
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existing and future e-Infrastructure providers formulating their
research and development strategies;
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JISC and other funding bodies developing strategic programmes and
services; and
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institutions investigating and developing tailored virtual research
environment frameworks.
Team
Project Manager
Dr Michael Fraser
Oxford University Computing Services
13 Banbury Road
Oxford
OX2 6NN
tel. +44 (0) 1865 283 343
Investigators
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Dr Michael A.
Fraser, Principal Investigator, Oxford University
Computing Services
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Professor Rob
Procter, co-Investigator, National Centre for e-Social
Science
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Professor Peter Halfpenny, co-Investigator, National
Centre for e-Social Science
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Dr Alex
Voss, co-Investigator, National Centre for e-Social
Science
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Dr Marina Jirotka, co-Investigator, Oxford e-Research
Centre, University of Oxford
Research Staff
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Gabriel Hanganu, Senior Analyst, Oxford University Computing
Services
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Meik Poschen, Research Associate, National Centre for e-Social
Science
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(until March 2009) Dr Mercedes Arguello Casteleiro, Research
Associate, National Centre for e-Social Science
e-Infrastructure Service Providers
The following list comprises a selection of e-infrastructure service providers,
related initiatives and projects with whom we are consulting:
