Code Table Request - Index Herbariorum code / GRsciColl Code, in ctagent_attribute_type

[camwebb]

Request

A new ctagent_attribute_type field to store an institution's acronym.

Context

Many organizations in the agents table are collection-holding institutions. All herbaria have a code in Index Herbariorum (e.g., ALA for the U Alaska, Fairbanks herbarium). For other Nat hist. collections, most institutions are now registered in GBIF's GRSciColl, and for these a code has been chosen if no IH code already existed.

Up to now, many Arctos agents have an 'aka' field with the collection code. However, searching on aka='K' or 'L' returns hundreds of records. Having a single field with this code would greatly increase the speed of locating an agent during transaction data entry.

Proposed Value

either ih code or grscicoll code - probably the latter, for greater scope

Proposed Definition

"An collection-holding institution's code as listed in https://scientific-collections.gbif.org/ For herbaria, this is the Index Herbariorum code"

Available for Public View

Yes

Alternative solution

Since many institutions already have their code in 'aka', modify the agent attribute search on attributes to allow aka = '=K' to exactly match aka field values. Currently the search appears to work as '%searchtext%'

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[dustymc]

ALA

Isn't this just https://arctos.database.museum/info/ctDocumentation.cfm?table=ctagent_attribute_type#kew_abbr_?

grscicoll

Use URL - https://arctos.database.museum/agent.cfm?include_verbatim=no&attribute_value=https://www.gbif.org/grscicoll/collection&include_bad_dup=false

exactly match

https://arctos.database.museum/agent.cfm?agent_name==H.&include_verbatim=no&include_bad_dup=false

[camwebb]

Isn't this just Kew Abbr.

Kew Abbr. is the (botanical) person's name abbreviation that appears in a plant name's Author string

Use URL

The goal/hope is to be able to type the 1-3 letter acronym into one of the agent search boxes and have a single match returned. typing a whole URL doesn't get us there.

exactly match

Doesn't work for me. For example, looking for A - this find thousands and this finds nothing.

[dustymc]

person

Ah thanks, derp.

nothing

Yea that's me trying to return a reasonable number of records without melting the system. Next release will take two chars in name as long as one of them is =. https://arctos-test.tacc.utexas.edu/agent.cfm?agent_name==%F0%9F%A6%95&include_verbatim=true&include_bad_dup=false

[camwebb]

Thanks for upcoming search change. But I'd still like to propose this CT addition.

[Jegelewicz]

I generally put the code in aka and the link to GRSciColl in url and with the addition of the =, it should be easier to search

name "=ALA"

than

attribute "GRSciColl Code" attribute value "ALA"

no?

[camwebb]

The upcoming change to search allowing a = for exact match will help, but any agents with first or middle names that are single characters without a period would also be returned when searching for collection codes that are single letters, e.g., 'A', 'K', 'L'. Given this, I don't think adding data to a special attribute is too onerous.

[dustymc]

upcoming

I ain't that slow, https://arctos.database.museum/agent.cfm?agent_name==A&include_verbatim=false&include_bad_dup=false

agents with first or middle names that are single characters

Hopefully there won't be any but that's probably wrong...

onerous

I just don't understand it (yet, I hope).

(WHAT do I do that posts from my keyboard occasionally?? Anyway....)

https://arctos.database.museum/agent/1006931 is itself a good identifier, and from there

https://registry.gbif.org/collection/d89c112d-f357-4697-946d-c70a6145148d

and

https://sweetgum.nybg.org/science/ih/herbarium-details/?irn=126584

are nice.

But ALA - I think that's what you're wanting a special category for - I guess I don't quite get it, maybe it was nice for botanists before real identifiers came along, but now - ??? I think we can't expect there to be only one A so this would be a name, not identifier - not sure if that changes anything. IDK, help me understand??

[Jegelewicz]

agents with first or middle names that are single characters without a period

@dustymc can you get me a list of these - I know there are some....

[dustymc]

know there are some....

Right you are. Great....

 select agent_id, attribute_type,  attribute_value, getPreferredAgentName(created_by_agent_id) creator  from agent_attribute where length(attribute_value)=1 and deprecation_type is null order by agent_id;
 agent_id | attribute_type | attribute_value |        creator         
----------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------
 21254036 | remarks        | ?               | 
 21280615 | job title      | L               | 
 21285603 | remarks        | .               | 
 21286348 | aka            | x               | 
 21327757 | middle name    | M               | 
 21338954 | middle name    | K               | 
 21344739 | aka            | A               | C. O. Webb
 21346005 | middle name    | L               | 
 21347954 | middle name    | J               | 
 21348240 | middle name    | J               | 
 21348242 | middle name    | L               | 
 21351979 | middle name    | E               | Alyssa Semerdjian
 21352037 | aka            | O               | C. O. Webb
 21352092 | first name     | H               | Jozef A. Slowik
 21352092 | middle name    | H               | Jozef A. Slowik
 21352173 | aka            | K               | C. O. Webb
 21352301 | middle name    | R               | Kevin M. Kocot
 21352373 | middle name    | R               | J. Tomasz Giermakowski
 21352413 | middle name    | J               | Justin Fulkerson
(19 rows)

[Jegelewicz]

OK - those people are fixed. Can we make a rule that first, middle and last names that are only one letter must be followed by a period?

Also note that

agent_id	attribute_type	attribute_value	creator
21344739	aka	A	C. O. Webb
21352037	aka	O	C. O. Webb
21352173	aka	K	C. O. Webb

now include some metadata with those akas.

[dustymc]

names that are only one letter must be followed by a period

It occurred to me a while back that the thing which needs the period isn't exactly a name, even though that's the container we've been using for that sort of data forever. I think I want to go back to not realizing that, but there it is if anybody thinks it matters....

Anyway - Issue please. Seems like a good idea to me, I can certainly write the code, I need something (that isn't hiding down here) to point to.

[Jegelewicz]

Also, love that the three herbaria codes spell AOK

[dustymc]

I like to imagine that the 255th herbarium to join this thing was assigned ÿ....

[camwebb]

I think we can't expect there to be only one A so this would be a name, not identifier - not sure if that changes anything. IDK, help me understand??

But there is only one 'A' - the acronym codes (many established 150+ years ago) for herbaria are unique and I imagine that the 'Code' field at GriSciColl is also unique. We remember herbaria by their codes. Often the main name entered into Arctos is only one of a number of possible names. So it would be very helpful to have a field that stores only the 'official' code for an institution to look up the institution by. As before, aka will now work, so that may be the solution chosen, but I maintain that asking to create a field for the standard codes of collections-holding institutions is a useful proposal.

[Jegelewicz]

the 'Code' field at GriSciColl is also unique

Nope! GRSciColl relies on an internal index because the collection/institution codes are definitely NOT unique.

https://scientific-collections.gbif.org/institution/search?code=MNHN

[camwebb]

definitely NOT unique

Okay - didn't know this. Index Herbariorum codes (which are what I am interested in) are unique, but perhaps this is an edge case for most Arctos users? ... Although there is a dedicated field for botanical Author abbreviations.

I'm get a sense that this is not a CT addition that anyone else is interested in...

[Jegelewicz]

I'm get a sense that this is not a CT addition that anyone else is interested in...

It just seems unnecessary? Currently I add these as an aka or url, add the related agent, and put the source in method.

https://arctos.database.museum/edit_agent.cfm?agent_id=1006931

Part of the problem is that you don't see this on the Agent summary page unless you open the metadata

[camwebb]

The '=AKA' method is working well now, even from the originating tab-complete box (e.g., entering '=ALA' in IssuingAgent and tabbing auto fills the full info). So let's drop this. Closing. Thanks for the input.