Comparing internal and external interoperability of digital infrastructures

Abstract

This research study compares the internal and external interoperability of digital infrastructures across two cyberinfrastructure organizations. Internal interoperability refers to the work that goes into developing seamless relations to align people and resources for a CI provision whereas external interoperability refers to the linkages the CI provision makes to the larger institutional ecology of science. The case study is designed to look at the governance of digital infrastructures to understand policy decisions in relation to three institutional aspects of science: funding, publication norms, and training and professionalization. Initial findings suggest that internal interoperability is similar for both digital infrastructures whereas external interoperability differs and is shaped by the domain of science that is stewarding the development of the provision. The study concludes by suggesting that linking digital infrastructure development to the components of science practice may be a starting point to understand how they become embedded (or not) in scientific work.