add "Why do the number of datasets on Data.gov change?" to the FAQ

[rebeccawilliams]

Recently WaPo reported:

Three months ago, there were 195,245 public data sets available on www.data.gov, according to Nathan Cortez, the associate dean of research at Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law, who studies the handling of public data. This week it stood at just under 156,000.

Data experts say the decrease, at least in part, may reflect the consolidation of data sets or the culling of outdated ones, rather than a strategic move to keep information from the public. But the reduction was clearly a conscious decision.

It'd be great to articulate:

• what's a "dataset" for data.gov purposes

  • a reference to approx how many individual datasets are actually "collections" of datasets if possible, eg this "dataset" is a collection of 113 datasets: https://catalog.data.gov/dataset?collection_package_id=d4f92d86-e9c0-4e45-a585-609722f2f398

• how often does the number change

• the varied sourcing: https://catalog.data.gov/harvest (federal, geospatial, and local)

• how someone can report an issue if they think a dataset is missing