How dictionary services are used in open science

The lecture is dedicated to the topic "How dictionary services support the development of open science."
Open science is not just about publishing research in open access. It is also about ensuring that data is understandable, reusable, and interoperable.
And this is where dictionary services play an important role. They ensure consistency of terminology, which facilitates data search, structuring, and sharing between different scientific disciplines.
Today, we will learn how these services are integrated into the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), contributing to better visibility and reuse of data.

Key tags: EOSC, FAIR principles, ontologies, vocabulary services, Vocabularies-as-a-Service, VaaS, FAIRsharing.org, OpenAIRE, open science, Zenodo, Dataverse, B2SHARE.

1. The role of vocabulary services in open science

Vocabulary services:

• Ensure consistency of terminology across disciplines.
• Facilitate the search and indexing of research data.
• Support interoperability between systems and repositories.

2.Examples of vocabulary services in open science

• AGROVOC – an agricultural thesaurus for agricultural data.
• GEMET – environmental taxonomies for describing environmental changes.
• SNOMED CT – medical ontologies for the standardization of clinical data.

3.How do vocabulary services help find data?

• Semantic search → search by content, not by keywords.
• Term mapping → harmonization of different names for the same concept.
• Automatic indexing in OpenAIRE and B2FIND.

4.Use of dictionary services to increase the reproducibility of research

• Harmonized terms make research more understandable.
• Standardized metadata allows research to be reproduced by other scientists.
• Vocabularies-as-a-Service (VaaS) facilitates the correct interpretation of data.

5.Challenges in the use of vocabulary services in open science

• Terminological differences between disciplines.
• High cost of creating and maintaining ontologies.
• Problems of researchers' adaptation to new tools.

6.Strategies for overcoming challenges

• Training of researchers → trainings, webinars.
• Use of ready-made ontologies and thesauri → FAIRsharing.org.
• Collaboration between disciplines to harmonize terms.

7.Examples of successful use of vocabulary services

• FAIRsharing.org – harmonization of terminology in environmental research.
• Vocabularies-as-a-Service (VaaS) – standardization in biomedical research.
• OpenAIRE – semantic search and indexing of research data.

8. Summary – Why are vocabulary services important for open science?

• They increase the visibility and findability of scientific data.
• Promote interoperability between research systems.
• Improve the reproducibility of research through agreed terms.

9. Next steps and recommendations

• Familiarization with EOSC tools (VaaS, FAIRsharing.org, OpenAIRE).
• Use of vocabulary services in one's own research.
• Cooperation with international initiatives to harmonize terms.