Reusable Tools for Metadata Management - Pie in the Sky?

Summary form only given. Advances in information technology contributed powerful tools for the development of scientific applications. Today scientists routinely exploit data mining and analysis tools, visualization tools, and increasingly leverage database and workflow management systems. Some of these tools run out-of-the-box, others require customization. But when it comes to metadata management, there is very little reusable technology that scientists can draw upon. Manipulating metadata, such as database schemas, taxonomies, interface definitions, and mappings between them, requires tedious object-at-a-time programming and in-depth database expertise. Recently, researchers embarked on factoring out common metadata management operations and packaging them as reusable tools that offer a higher-level abstraction for solving metadata problems. In this article the author attempts to draw a big picture, highlight the challenges, and outline some ongoing efforts