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\begin{center}
{\huge Integrated Information Management in Physics}
\ab
Eberhard R.
\htmladdnormallink{Hilf}{
http://www.physik.uni-oldenburg.de/Docs/theo3/hilf.html}
\htmladdnormallink{University of Oldenburg}{
http://www.physik.uni-oldenburg.de},
Germany \\
hilf@merlin.physik.uni-oldenburg.de
\ab
talk given at the EP-ARCHIVE Los Alamos LANL, USA Oktober 1994
\footnote{please feel free to set links to this text
or copy it to your own server or cache, or even print and distribute it,
the proper citation is {\sl E. R. Hilf, Integrated Information
Management in Physics; Conf. EP-ARCHIVE, ed.: R. A. Kelly; Los Alamos LANL, Octobre 1994}
}
%\cite{epconf}
\footnote{If you happen to read a printed copy of this \LaTeX text,
you miss the main part of the work.
You should turn to the full hypertext, available at
http://eptalk@aps.org/EPRINT/papers.html.
After expiration of that link the more permanent address will be
http://www.physik.uni-oldenburg.de/~hilf/vortraege/ep-archive/ep-archive.html . 
Be patient, our University is connected by a 64kByte line at present.. }
\end{center}
\tableofcontents
\begin{abstract}
a report of activities in Germany is given and some arguments
how the future development could be.
In Germany the Physics, Information Science and Mathematics Societies
are picking the thread jointly and hopefully in close collaboration with
their international partners.
It is argued, that since we do not know where the future will go, 
intensive discussions and innovative experiments of trying different ways have to be done.
The past system has had some advantages: truely international, interdisciplinarystandards for publication and refereeing.
This should not get lost, thus the experiments we propose should be the same
way: international and with differnt fields.
\section{Introduction}
The industrial revolution from {\large \bf Printed Matters}
to the {\large \bf world wide web of
electronic hypertexts} is a phase transition
to a new-age-of-information, remoulding almost all aspects of life.
\ab
We here dwell mainly on the impact on the Physics Community.
Many aspects, however, are not specific to Physics but apply
basically to many other fields of human activities especially in
science of course.
\ab
Physics means searching for the laws of Nature by   experiments
and by developing
theoretical models casted in mathematical structures to predict
the experimental results.
The question here is, what can information technology help and how
will this process be affected by the new age of information.
\ab
In the first part I give scenarios of some aspects of physicists work.
\ab
We then will present the action that the German Physical Society
DPG  \footnote{with its
\htmladdnormallink{ELFIKOM}{http://elfikom.physik.uni-oldenburg.de}
Arbeitsgruppe elektronische Fachinformation und Kommunikation\\
Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft DPG} is planning in close
cooperation with the
\htmladdnormallink{APS}{http://aps.org}, the American Physical
Society.
\ab
Only specific action, world-wide coordinated
and interlinked with other fields activities will be able to
actively participate in the casting the future.
\section{Organizing the e-print archiving}
\subsection{adjust the present organization or  turn to a new one?}
Should the present professional organizations take care of
the new tasks or should there be new organizational strucuters?
\ab
In history the introduction of railways has led to the new
organizational structures of the present railway companies
and railway government structures, which once established
have done their task in a sophisticated, professional and
dedicated way. Thus even if nowadays one wouldcomeup with the
opinion, that another way of organization might be better,
due to the huge inertia of the present large system, the
high dependance of the public on the continuous availability
and the enormous political and economical power, - the barrier for
a transition is unsurmountable high and can not be overcome.
\ab
The habits of travelling have adjusted over time, often
unrealized.
\ab
Similarly for another industrial transition: the letter printing.
Over the time a highly sophisticated intricate, professional system
of libraries, distributors, book-shops, publishers, referees,
has developed which serves the public.
\ab
The reader's habits have adjusted accordingly, and so have the
authors. Scientists think in terms of papers to be published
as part of their career and scientific progress.
\ab
The organizational structures have grown from small individual
enterprises, having had the right ideas andmeans at the right time,
such as Mr. Elsevier for the international scientific journal.
\ab
The organizational structures from the times before the
transition, -cloisters with monks copying by hand, horse-riding
messengers, although they still exist, do not play an important
role.
\subsection{Should there be lobbying or public advertizing?}
History tells  that lobbying to get the money is certainly important.
But in contrast to the task of introducing  a similar product into
an existing market, acting in the time of an industrial phase
transition has advantages: The earlier an initiative the less
competition. Although the public, thinking in the traditional
way has often infinitively high objections against a change to the
unknown for a solution to their known needs,
their are two options: trying in vain to convince the future customer
or just proceed with the experience that those who use the new tools
see immediately the superiority and prospectives. Thus I propose
to proceed.
\footnote{The German Government, in spring 1994, - in the middle  of
the heated phase  of the transition, had an at first sight brilliant
idea: a full- flegded set of hearings was organized to get the
opinions and views of all institutions and bodies, who would
in the future be part of the new system.
Since almost none of the attending  persons had any extended experience in
electronic printing or archiving the result was a bunch of
precautions, hesitations, and warnings, which effected into a one-year
stall.
}
\subsection{propositions}
The following ideas are for discussion, not meant as an imperative.
\ab
The Ginsparg-initiative has given a fruitful answer to the
preprint service and its archiving. It is at present run at a
National Research Center.
\ab
The Physics Societies should take means to guarantee that this service
is available on a long term basis, -even if the  LANL were closed,-
and extend it to other fields of physics.
Thus the physicists worldwide should be urged to join using the server.
The Physics Societies should either  take over the service,
or mirror it, or delegate it to companies with the respective
boundary conditions.
\ab
Hoever we do have to analyze why the server is not accepted and used in
specific fields of physics yet.
\ab
It should be accompanied by setting up servers at all physics
laboratories and give access to  all physicists to the web.
This is more an educational task.
\ab
In addition, the Physics Societies should set up dedicated electronic
services in specific fields, including the exchange of data,
the coupling of computers and programmes.
In some fields where in the past huge data bases (chemical physics, material science)
have been set up and are widely used, it may have to be reexamined, which part 
could be replaced and what could be added by using distributed data bases ,
via world wide web called programs, or even distribute programs.
The reason is, that in the past, for industrial data bases, when 
experimental numbers where missing yet, this has to be filled by numerical
data, produced by numerical programs or simulations.
With the new age of distributed powerful computer power and storage
this has to be revisited.
\ab
Furthermore a huge task is the set-up and offering of information
providers, filters, dedicated work-surfaces, retrieval assistance,
etc.
This is a whole new market and needs all kinds of professions,
software writing, distributors, librarians, editors, etc.
\ab
The properties of such services being developed by the prospective
users, the service and installation is  best in the hands of the
Societies or their cooperating industrial partners.
\ab
Whether some of the present industrial bodies such as
publishers, libraries, distributors, are taking the pole or
whether new structures will form, should peacefully be left to the
indsutrial competition. The present large international publishers
and the University Libraries do  have the advantage of a large
staff of professionals and an established set of referees.
So, {\bf if} they enter they will be transformed but survive.
But probably other, even new companies with less inertia,
may have a perfect chance.
\footnote{A perfect example is the young Elsevier, who, with seeking and 
taking the advice of the then top physicists started the first {\sl international} scientific journal,-- with ELSEVIER Publ. Comp. now having some 15.000.}
Since one cannot forsee the  future
development, and has no means to steer it , we here should not
point a direction but  offer to all willing to participate
our collaboration.
\ab
Personally I think, we all should try hard to cooperate with all parties,
Physics societies, publishers, librarians, willing to search for the best way
to cast the future, to have enough expertise, strength and audacity on board.
\ab
Forming task forces addressing specific topics small enough to be
flexible and fast enough, but containing enough breadth could be best:
joint work-groups of the APS, EPS or some of their societies, a publisher,
a software house, and a few University departments, groups or libraries.
\ab
The results of these experiments should be presented and discussed 
internationally. Setting and organizing the scene for a full fledged
sensibilization and discussion of the world-wide physics community
is at present the main task of the Physics societies instead of fixing
new standards too early.
\section{specific experiments to be addressed}
\subsection{refereeing and Peer system}
In the past the refereeing had two aims:
\ab
The reader of a scientific published article wanted a guarantee,
that the article has been screened by some referees.
By picking the journal and knowing its past reputation, he had a feeling
by his or other's experience what level of srcutiny to expect from the
Publisher.
\ab
The author wanted to reach out to his readers and by getting his article
into the suitable journal got this label, his aimed at readers use as a 
filter.
\ab
In addition the author needs the thus gained reputation for his applications
for positions, etc. The hiring committees as well used the reputation of 
puthor's picked journals to help judging. 
\ab 
Thus the peer refereeing system was basically attached to the long standing
and developed history and reputation of the scientific international journals.
Without having a better and worldwide established system to cope with these
job-related tasks as well, one has here to keep in parallel to new 
expermental ways the traditional way, added by a smooth extension of the
journals being offered in parallel electronically and archived that way.
\ab
However, experimentally, and in parallel, the Physics Societies could think of setting up a Peer system
by themselves, -as APS has anyway due to its journals-, which could      
be quite differently organized: 
\ab
Hiring commitees of a department, say, could ask the Society for a scientific
referee report for the applicants. It would delegate this to its respective division (at present for APS its PR, PRL journal refereeing division), picking
the actual referees by the well established patterns, who would 
then greatly ease their work by having full access to the work of the candidate by the internet accessed archive.
\ab
The innovative part is more subtle: authors could decide to live with
their papers as ep-preprints, with no delay in distribution by refereeing.
\ab
But they could ask the referee system for screening specific articles,
in order to eventually address a reader having turned on his filters
to get only refereed articles.
The screening and the distribution of science would thus be decoupled,
and not more refereeing been done as necessary.
\subsection{distribution of journals at Universities}
For a smooth transition to a future with a yet unknown system 
of ep-archive it is absolutely necessary to keep the present system 
of journals running as is, but transferring it to use the electronic advantages.
\ab
The tasks here are :
\begin{itemize}
\item
The publisher would have to put all journal's articles on its server,
\item
tools for the online retrieval of a desired subset of papers, their
easy transmission, levels of access rights, screening of the use of the 
services,  user's surfaces and local storing and handling means
have to be developed, this needs testing, adapting and 
developing the respective software,
\item
financial agreements have to be set with the Universities individually
or even with departments of Physics  of the Publishers to open the 
access of its readers to all manuscripts of all journals of the Publisher,
howver only electronically.
\item
 This has to be paralelled by an encouraging 
of user's orders for printing on demand of an article or a bunch or articles
of specific use for that reader or a certain subset of readers
(say 'Theory of atomic and molecular clusters', to name a field.
These printed services are  of course more expensive than the 
present journal volumes, but because of their high specificity 
the reader will pay a higher price.
\end{itemize}
Apparently, a task force of a publisher with some departments of Physics
in different countries as embedded in the discussion boosted by the 
Societies, and in conjunction with a software house or group could
do a very valuable experiment. For interested parties the author would like
to act catalytically.
\section{Reader's wishes}
The physicsist's dream as a daily user and producer of information can
now with the new electronic possibilities be addressed:
\ab
Information to be accessed and distributed 
\begin{itemize}
\item
(almost) free of charge for him (not for the Government, University,..)
\item
instantaneous,
\item
fully world-wide from and to all physicists, interested,
\item
easy to use tools, even for the almost ep-archive illiterate,
\item
get and distribute full SGML manuscripts if necessary,
\item
serving and distributing is guaranteed even over 'historic' time-scales,
\item
a sensitive set of layers of authorization, access rights,
\item
a refereeing on demand and on different levels,
\item
tools, organization, standards, surfaces,-- all worldwide
the same so that the international and mobile web of physicists is not 
hampered by national or local, or for adjacent fields different
working means in ep-archiving.
\end{itemize}
Especially the primary aim that the future system of ep-archiving has to be 
stable, worldwide, interdisciplinary sets a high level to the 
responsibility of organizing the experiments.
\section{fields adjacent to ep-archiving}
The phase transition from printed matter to electronic typing,
storing, transmitting of text and the information network 
 will equally revolutionize all fields fo life,
including not only the commerce but also the way, administrations internally 
operate.
We have  
\htmladdnormallink{proposed}{http://www.physik.uni-oldenburg.de/~hilf/vortraege/bmftwww/bmftwww.html"}
to the German Science Ministery by means of a
study in July 1994 how to approach this.
\section{Actions of the german Physical Society DPG}
The german Physical Society has set up a committee for 
Electronische Fachinformation und Kommunikation ELFIKOM to advice the 
DPG in these matters.
\ab
\htmladdnormallink{ELFIKOM}{http://elfikom.physik.uni-oldenburg.de/index_german.html}
had had its first meeting in July.
Members are delegates from Physics Departments, of Industry, of the 
commercial server FIZ Karlsruhe, the TIB Hannover (a large state Library),
of publishers (Elsevier, Springer, CH), of computer centres.
Permanent guests are the Societies of Chemistry, Information Science,
Mathematics. 
For the APS R. A. Kelly was invited presenting the lines of the APS.
It was decided that the tasks should be worked out and persued in close 
cooperation with the APS and hopefully in the future other national Societies.\ab
In the past, the German Science Ministery had had a national programme
with about 45 Physics departments to implant and distribute the use
of using commercial data servers such as STN and the FIZ-Karlsruhe.
\ab
Since then, each of the departments has a highly educated 
expert and a local system of education and training.
\ab
on the 27th of September 1994 the Societies of Physics (DPG), of
Information Science (GI-Informatik) and of Mathematics (DMV) in Germany
have merged their efforts in striving for the future of information and communication electronically.
\ab
First actions are a joint e-mail server, 
a icooperative applying  to the German Science Ministery
for funding, a joint international workshop in spring 95,
and a lot of future activities, such as harmonizing the 
University servers, a mutual representation in international
bodies and conferences, a sharing of the professionalities,
..
\ab
We are aware, that although doing experiments in all directions, 
these have to be done with the international partners their
interdisciplinary counterparts in neighbouring fields.
\section{later additions}
\subsection{Living textbooks}
\subsection{Arthur Smith to the ep-archive 1994}
Date: Thu, 6 Oct 94 16:17:12 -0700
To: eptalk@aps.org
Subject: The Living Textbook etc
Another interesting idea on the Web, spelled out a little differently
from what we seem to have been thinking, is available at:
\htmladdnormallink{The Living Textbook, D. Ebner}{http://kaluza.physik.uni-konstanzsnssssstanzuni-konstanz.de/
tanz/de/LT/Welcome.html}

-- this describes a proposal for the future of scientific publishing that
eliminates the "journal" paradigm in favor of a network-based "textbook"
constantly updated, with every new section specifically explaining what other
sections it is dependent on, so that a reader may know immediately
what background material is required, and be able to obtain it as well.
I'd be interested to hear opinions on the practicality of this idea...

What of the idea of "dissolving" the concept of a paper? Papers seem
to have been decreasing in length generally in recent years (at least
there is a perception of trends towards the "least publishable unit")
and paper-counting is a very arbitrary mode of giving credit that
it would be nice to supersede with something better. But I think figuring
out what that "something better" is requires stepping back and analyzing
 more carefully exactly what it is we scientists are up to. Some
recent advances in the philosophy of science may give us some
direction here...
{\small the reset of the note you find in 
\ref{A. Smith at ep-archive on SECURITY}{label}
Date: Thu, 6 Oct 94 16:17:12 -0700
To: eptalk@aps.org
Subject: The Living Textbook etc

Mark E. Williams raised the question of security, which nobody
seems to have responded to. He asked:
  How does one, with free or relatively free access, avoid having
  material erased or corrupted by those who have no business being there?
  Can we be open to members of the physics community while being closed to
  hackers and others?

As far as I know, the only way to try to be open to physicists and
not to others is "security through obscurity", which has been proven
not to be very effective against hackers in general. Basically, as
soon as you're on the network you are vulnerable. But there are
relatively simple steps you can take to minimize that vulnerability.
There are firewall programs, which themselves no doubt have holes
in them but which will at least keep the idle curious away.
Back up your data - the more critical it is, the more frequently you
should do it. If you have a back-up of the original data you can
always recover from erasure or corruption. Then you just need to
know whether such corruption has happened, and there are relatively
simple checksum techniques, or you can hook up WORM media (write once,
read many - like CD-ROMs) and check the integrity of critical files
periodically.

If you're worried about the e-print archives themselves getting
corrupted (and we should be - so far 1. the data hasn't been important
enough (?) and 2. we've been lucky?) - the same measures (back up,
write-once devices) can and should be used.

But there are other problems - suppose somebody without proper
authorization tries to replace something in the e-print archive
by pretending (through e-mail forgery or password snatching) they are the
original author? How do you, generally, identify a given person
as the physicist they claim to be rather than some imposter? Methods (such
as public key/private key encryption systems) are available to reduce the
possibilities for this, and we should investigate them and promote their
use by scientists.

In summary, security methods are available, but they aren't necessarily
trivial to implement.

                        Arthur Smith
\subsection{reply to A. Smith}
reply to ep-archive E. R. Hilf on 7. 10.94
\\
in reply to Arthur Smith's note on the subject of 'Living manuscripts and
Text books etc:
For me also in the past ages authors have exploited all possible
ways to express their thougths: for different subjects and different authors thu
s X : (+49)-441-798-3201                D 26111 Oldenburg
different ways of putting it down and distributing have been used
(books, articles, Leporello, journals, posters, ..).
Thus with the world wide web's communication possibilities all ways technically
to think of will be exploited by someone once discovered.
Only after it has been tried can we esteem the value for scientific information
and communication.
I think we have not to wait for philosophy colleagues but to try ourselves for
material of our own science, keeping in mind that it will be suitable for some
material and authors but not for all, and thus will be an addition.

Technically this means: each of us who talks about, should pick a topic and
write a 'living manuscript' himself to gain his own experience and then let us
share the experience.
Mine is http://aps.org/EPRINT/hilf.html
which will after the eprint meeting move to
http://www.physik.uni-oldenburg.de/~hilf/vortraege/ep-archive/ep-archive.html
.
Basically 'living manuscript' means to update chapters, keep the history, install slowly
a hierarchy of levels of sophistication, add links and hyper-links as they become known,
The advantages are that one can offer different readers a different path through the relevant
to him parts of the text, and to separate totally the refereeing process.


The refereeing would come about on demand of the author, or a ('hiring' )committee, or
the reader, whoever has this demand and ability to get it refereed. In this case:
the manuscript has been apparently screened by the ep-archive in September 1994 and accepted
for posting on the server, but later versions migth be better from the author's side,
but the referee status is non-permanent and expires, thus would have been renewed on demand.

Clearly, we all can easily think of scientific results not suited for this medium,
such as results with a recognized priority, and an accepted refereeing processm not to be
changed (integrity of the result) by anyone,
but others could fit well, such as reports on the  status of the construction of an
experimental setup, the present status of simulation programmes, etc.

Yours ebs Hilf
hilf@merlin.physik.uni-oldenburg.de
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