Metadata and Preservation

Abstract

This chapter will focus on four big issues in digital data curation: data integration, electronic dissemination, sustainability, and metadata.I will begin by describing the origins of microdata and early efforts at data integration. I will then describe the development of IPUMS, which has required development of new technology for data integration and dissemination. I will discuss the implications of this experience for the ‘Big Three’ National Science Foundation surveys: the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, the American National Election Study, and the General Social Survey. Finally, I will discuss the importance of preservation, persistant identifiers, and structured metadata.