2026
Conference article
Open Access
A conversational assistant for geoscientists in virtual research environments
Peccerillo Biagio, Oliviero Alfredo, Procaccini Marco, Candela Leonardo, Frosini Luca, Mangiacrapa Francesco, Panichi Giancarlo, Assante Massimiliano, Pagano Pasquale
D4Science provides web-based Virtual Research Environments (VREs) that support FAIR, open, and reproducible science across multiple research domains, including Earth science. These environments integrate data access, computation, and collaboration services, offering powerful capabilities to researchers and enabling complex, data-intensive scientific activities within a shared digital infrastructure. This contribution introduces a conversational intelligent assistant integrated into D4Science VREs, designed to support Earth scientists in their research activity. The assistant provides a natural language interface that helps users interact with D4Science VREs' services, locate relevant datasets and research items, obtain guidance on common tasks, and support exploratory and operational activities within the VRE. The assistant is designed with a modular approach. The user interacts with a coordinator agent that orchestrates a multi-agent system, where specialized AI agents collaborate to perform a variety of tasks. This architecture allows the assistant to handle heterogeneous requests and to support users across different phases of their research activities, while also facilitating maintenance and extensibility. The conversational agent adopts a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) approach that leverages the knowledge already captured by the VRE through its regular use by research communities. In fact, as VREs naturally accumulate updated knowledge created and curated by researchers over time, the assistant's knowledge base evolves incorporating new information. This way, the assistant can ground its responses in domain-specific and up-to-date information, effectively acting as a domain-aware expert embedded within the research environment. By serving as an accessible entry point to the VRE, the assistant complements existing interfaces without altering established workflows. The presentation discusses the motivation, design choices, and integration strategy. It also presents various concrete use cases relevant to Earth scientists, demonstrating how the conversational assistant can be effectively employed to support their research activity.DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-egu26-13138
Metrics:
Peccerillo Biagio, Oliviero Alfredo, Procaccini Marco, Candela Leonardo, Frosini Luca, Mangiacrapa Francesco, Panichi Giancarlo, Assante Massimiliano, Pagano Pasquale
D4Science provides web-based Virtual Research Environments (VREs) that support FAIR, open, and reproducible science across multiple research domains, including Earth science. These environments integrate data access, computation, and collaboration services, offering powerful capabilities to researchers and enabling complex, data-intensive scientific activities within a shared digital infrastructure. This contribution introduces a conversational intelligent assistant integrated into D4Science VREs, designed to support Earth scientists in their research activity. The assistant provides a natural language interface that helps users interact with D4Science VREs' services, locate relevant datasets and research items, obtain guidance on common tasks, and support exploratory and operational activities within the VRE. The assistant is designed with a modular approach. The user interacts with a coordinator agent that orchestrates a multi-agent system, where specialized AI agents collaborate to perform a variety of tasks. This architecture allows the assistant to handle heterogeneous requests and to support users across different phases of their research activities, while also facilitating maintenance and extensibility. The conversational agent adopts a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) approach that leverages the knowledge already captured by the VRE through its regular use by research communities. In fact, as VREs naturally accumulate updated knowledge created and curated by researchers over time, the assistant's knowledge base evolves incorporating new information. This way, the assistant can ground its responses in domain-specific and up-to-date information, effectively acting as a domain-aware expert embedded within the research environment. By serving as an accessible entry point to the VRE, the assistant complements existing interfaces without altering established workflows. The presentation discusses the motivation, design choices, and integration strategy. It also presents various concrete use cases relevant to Earth scientists, demonstrating how the conversational assistant can be effectively employed to support their research activity.DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-egu26-13138
Metrics:
See at:
CNR IRIS 
| www.egu26.eu | CNR IRIS 
2026
Journal article
Open Access
D4Science: an enabling infrastructure for open science
Assante Massimiliano, Frosini Luca, Mangiacrapa Francesco, Pagano Pasquale
D4Science supports Virtual Research Environments that integrate data, computing, and collaboration tools, making Open Science part of everyday research practice across diverse communities. Open Science is increasingly embedded in research practice, but implementing it in everyday workflows remains both a technological and organisational challenge. D4Science [1] addresses this challenge by adopting the as-a-Service paradigm and by offering Virtual Research Environments (VREs) [2], also called Virtual Laboratories (VLabs), as integrated, web-based, working environments. These environments provide researchers with seamless access to data, computational resources, and analytical services within a unified framework. By abstracting away the complexities of storage management, computation, and service orchestration, VREs enable scientists to focus on research design, methodological rigour and knowledge production rather than on IT and infrastructure concerns. However, fragmentation of tools and the effort required to prepare artefacts for reuse often hinder adoption. D4Science addresses this by embedding Open Science practices directly within VREs.Source: ERCIM NEWS, vol. 144, pp. 38-39
Assante Massimiliano, Frosini Luca, Mangiacrapa Francesco, Pagano Pasquale
D4Science supports Virtual Research Environments that integrate data, computing, and collaboration tools, making Open Science part of everyday research practice across diverse communities. Open Science is increasingly embedded in research practice, but implementing it in everyday workflows remains both a technological and organisational challenge. D4Science [1] addresses this challenge by adopting the as-a-Service paradigm and by offering Virtual Research Environments (VREs) [2], also called Virtual Laboratories (VLabs), as integrated, web-based, working environments. These environments provide researchers with seamless access to data, computational resources, and analytical services within a unified framework. By abstracting away the complexities of storage management, computation, and service orchestration, VREs enable scientists to focus on research design, methodological rigour and knowledge production rather than on IT and infrastructure concerns. However, fragmentation of tools and the effort required to prepare artefacts for reuse often hinder adoption. D4Science addresses this by embedding Open Science practices directly within VREs.Source: ERCIM NEWS, vol. 144, pp. 38-39
See at:
ercim-news.ercim.eu | CNR IRIS | CNR IRIS
2026
Journal article
Open Access
Deploying conversational agents in virtual research environments: approaches and lessons learned
Assante Massimiliano, Candela Leonardo, Dell'Amico Andrea, Frosini Luca, Mangiacrapa Francesco, Oliviero Alfredo, Pagano Pasquale, Panichi Giancarlo, Peccerillo Biagio, Piccioli Tommaso, Procaccini Marco
Conversational agents have the potential to streamline tasks, provide support, and enhance user experience across various domains including Virtual Research Environments (VREs). The recent progress in conversational artificial intelligence and Large Language Models (LLMs) offers novel strategies for the development of these agents. This paper reports on the potential benefits, the challenges and the approaches resulting from concrete experiences in developing and equipping D4Science-based VREs with suitable conversational agents. The paper presents three successive implementation approaches and the resulting agent solution, each designed to address the limitations identified in the preceding iteration and to leverage the advantages offered by newer implementation and development options. The proposed approaches led to the progressive refinement of the agent design and functionality, resulting in DAVE, a conversational agent capable of securely interacting with multiple D4Science services and supporting a wide range of user workflows. The iterative process highlighted critical requirements—including authentication handling, usability, and extensibility—that can inform the design of conversational agents in similar research infrastructures. The study shows that conversational agents can effectively lower the barrier to accessing VRE functionalities and enhance user engagement. The resulting design principles and lessons learned provide a foundation for future work aimed at extending DAVE with an enhanced feedback mechanism and locally hosted LLM integration, and conducting systematic usability evaluations within active research communities.Source: SN COMPUTER SCIENCE, vol. 7
DOI: 10.1007/s42979-026-04863-3
Project(s): A federated European FAIR and Open Research Ecosystem for oceans, seas, coastal and inland waters, FOSSR—Fostering Open Science in Social Science Research
Metrics:
Assante Massimiliano, Candela Leonardo, Dell'Amico Andrea, Frosini Luca, Mangiacrapa Francesco, Oliviero Alfredo, Pagano Pasquale, Panichi Giancarlo, Peccerillo Biagio, Piccioli Tommaso, Procaccini Marco
Conversational agents have the potential to streamline tasks, provide support, and enhance user experience across various domains including Virtual Research Environments (VREs). The recent progress in conversational artificial intelligence and Large Language Models (LLMs) offers novel strategies for the development of these agents. This paper reports on the potential benefits, the challenges and the approaches resulting from concrete experiences in developing and equipping D4Science-based VREs with suitable conversational agents. The paper presents three successive implementation approaches and the resulting agent solution, each designed to address the limitations identified in the preceding iteration and to leverage the advantages offered by newer implementation and development options. The proposed approaches led to the progressive refinement of the agent design and functionality, resulting in DAVE, a conversational agent capable of securely interacting with multiple D4Science services and supporting a wide range of user workflows. The iterative process highlighted critical requirements—including authentication handling, usability, and extensibility—that can inform the design of conversational agents in similar research infrastructures. The study shows that conversational agents can effectively lower the barrier to accessing VRE functionalities and enhance user engagement. The resulting design principles and lessons learned provide a foundation for future work aimed at extending DAVE with an enhanced feedback mechanism and locally hosted LLM integration, and conducting systematic usability evaluations within active research communities.Source: SN COMPUTER SCIENCE, vol. 7
DOI: 10.1007/s42979-026-04863-3
Project(s): A federated European FAIR and Open Research Ecosystem for oceans, seas, coastal and inland waters, FOSSR—Fostering Open Science in Social Science Research
Metrics:
See at:
CNR IRIS | link.springer.com | CNR IRIS
2025
Journal article
Restricted
NAVIGATOR: a regional multimodal imaging biobank initiative powered by AI tools for precision medicine in oncology
Aghakhanyan G., Barucci A., Pascali M. A., Assante M., Bagnacci G., Bertelli E., Caputo F. P., Cuibari M. E., Carlini E., Carpi R., Caudai C., Cioni D., Colantonio S., Colcelli V., Dell'Amico A., Vecchio V. D., Gangi D. D., Faggioni L., Formica V., Francischello R., Frosini L., Kotsa C., Lipari G., Manghi P., Martino V. D., Marzi C., Mazzei M. A., Mangiacrapa F., Meglio N. D., Miele V., Molinaro E., Paiar F., Pagano P., Panichi G., Pasquinelli F., Peccerillo B., Perrella A., Piccioli T., Oliviero A., Olivoni M., Rucci D., Tampucci M., Tumminello L., Volpini F., Zanuzzi A., Fanni S. C., Neri E.
The NAVIGATOR project established an Italian regional imaging biobank and interactive research platform designed to support precision oncology through the integration of multimodal imaging, clinical, and omics data. The platform goes beyond a static repository, offering a secure Virtual Research Environment (VRE) where users can upload data, test AI algorithms, and execute complete analytical pipelines. The platform incorporates artificial intelligence (AI)-driven radiomics and deep learning methodologies to enable biomarker extraction, disease stratification, and predictive modeling. This manuscript presents the development and implementation of the NAVIGATOR infrastructure, including its data governance framework, ethical and legal considerations, and application to three oncological use cases: prostate, rectal, and gastric cancers. To date, the biobank has collected imaging and clinical data from over 700 patients across these cohorts. AI models were deployed within a dedicated VRE to facilitate image analysis, feature extraction, and classification tasks. The project addresses critical challenges related to data harmonization, regulatory compliance, privacy safeguards and fairness in AI systems. NAVIGATOR demonstrates the feasibility of integrating AI methodologies within imaging biobanks and provides a scalable framework to advance oncological research and support clinical decision-making.Source: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF RADIOLOGY, vol. 191 (issue 112327)
DOI: 10.1016/j.ejrad.2025.112327
Project(s): An Imaging Biobank to Precisely Prevent and Predict cancer, and facilitate the Participation of oncologic patients to Diagnosis and Treatment
Metrics:
Aghakhanyan G., Barucci A., Pascali M. A., Assante M., Bagnacci G., Bertelli E., Caputo F. P., Cuibari M. E., Carlini E., Carpi R., Caudai C., Cioni D., Colantonio S., Colcelli V., Dell'Amico A., Vecchio V. D., Gangi D. D., Faggioni L., Formica V., Francischello R., Frosini L., Kotsa C., Lipari G., Manghi P., Martino V. D., Marzi C., Mazzei M. A., Mangiacrapa F., Meglio N. D., Miele V., Molinaro E., Paiar F., Pagano P., Panichi G., Pasquinelli F., Peccerillo B., Perrella A., Piccioli T., Oliviero A., Olivoni M., Rucci D., Tampucci M., Tumminello L., Volpini F., Zanuzzi A., Fanni S. C., Neri E.
The NAVIGATOR project established an Italian regional imaging biobank and interactive research platform designed to support precision oncology through the integration of multimodal imaging, clinical, and omics data. The platform goes beyond a static repository, offering a secure Virtual Research Environment (VRE) where users can upload data, test AI algorithms, and execute complete analytical pipelines. The platform incorporates artificial intelligence (AI)-driven radiomics and deep learning methodologies to enable biomarker extraction, disease stratification, and predictive modeling. This manuscript presents the development and implementation of the NAVIGATOR infrastructure, including its data governance framework, ethical and legal considerations, and application to three oncological use cases: prostate, rectal, and gastric cancers. To date, the biobank has collected imaging and clinical data from over 700 patients across these cohorts. AI models were deployed within a dedicated VRE to facilitate image analysis, feature extraction, and classification tasks. The project addresses critical challenges related to data harmonization, regulatory compliance, privacy safeguards and fairness in AI systems. NAVIGATOR demonstrates the feasibility of integrating AI methodologies within imaging biobanks and provides a scalable framework to advance oncological research and support clinical decision-making.Source: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF RADIOLOGY, vol. 191 (issue 112327)
DOI: 10.1016/j.ejrad.2025.112327
Project(s): An Imaging Biobank to Precisely Prevent and Predict cancer, and facilitate the Participation of oncologic patients to Diagnosis and Treatment
Metrics:
See at:
European Journal of Radiology | Archivio della Ricerca - Università di Pisa | CNR IRIS | CNR IRIS | Archivio della Ricerca - Università di Pisa
2025
Other
Open Access
ISTI-day 2025 Proceedings
Del Corso G., Pedrotti A., Federico G., Gennaro C., Carrara F., Amato G., Di Benedetto M., Gabrielli E., Belli D., Matrullo Zoe, Miori V., Tolomei Gabriele, Waheed T., Marchetti E., Calabrò Antonello., Rossetti G., Stella Massimo, Cazabet Rémy, Abramski K., Cau E., Citraro S., Failla A., Mesina V., Morini V., Pansanella V., Colantonio S., Germanese D., Pascali M. A., Bianchi L., Messina N., Falchi F., Barsellotti L., Pacini G., Cassese M., Puccetti G., Esuli A., Volpi L., Moreo Alejandro, Sebastiani F., Sperduti G., Nguyen Dong, Broccia G., Ter Beek M. H., Ferrari A., Massink M., Belmonte Gina, Ciancia V., Papini O., Canapa G., Catricalà B., Manca M., Paternò F., Santoro C., Zedda E., Gallo S., Maenza S., Mattioli A., Simeoli L., Rucci D., Carlini E., Dazzi P., Kavalionak H., Mordacchini M., Rulli C., Muntean Cristina Ioana, Nardini F. M., Perego R., Rocchietti G., Lettich F., Renso C., Pugliese C., Casini G., Haldimann Jonas, Meyer Thomas, Assante M., Candela L., Dell'Amico A., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Peccerillo B., Procaccini M., Mannocci A., Manghi P., Lonetti F., Kang Dongjae, Di Giandomenico F., Jee Eunkyoung, Lazzini G., Conti F., Scopigno R., D'Acunto M., Moroni D., Cafiso M., Paradisi P., Callieri M., Pavoni G., Corsini M., De Falco A., Sala F., Saraceni Q., Gattiglia Gabriele
ISTI-Day is an annual information and networking event organized by the Institute of Information Science and Technologies "A. Faedo" (ISTI) of the Italian National Research Council (CNR). This event features an opening talk of the Director of the Dept. DIITET (Emilio F. Campana) as well as an overview of the Institute's activities presented by the ISTI Director (Roberto Scopigno). Those institutional segments are complemented by dedicated presentations and round tables featuring former staff members, as well as internal and external collaborators. To foster a network of knowledge and collaboration among newcomers, the 2025 ISTI Day edition also includes a large poster session that provides a comprehensive overview of current research activities. Each of the 13 laboratories contributes 1–3 posters, highlighting the most innovative work and offering early-career researchers a platform for discussion. Thus these proceedings include the posters selected for ISTI-Day 2025, reflecting the diverse and innovative nature of the Institute's research.
Del Corso G., Pedrotti A., Federico G., Gennaro C., Carrara F., Amato G., Di Benedetto M., Gabrielli E., Belli D., Matrullo Zoe, Miori V., Tolomei Gabriele, Waheed T., Marchetti E., Calabrò Antonello., Rossetti G., Stella Massimo, Cazabet Rémy, Abramski K., Cau E., Citraro S., Failla A., Mesina V., Morini V., Pansanella V., Colantonio S., Germanese D., Pascali M. A., Bianchi L., Messina N., Falchi F., Barsellotti L., Pacini G., Cassese M., Puccetti G., Esuli A., Volpi L., Moreo Alejandro, Sebastiani F., Sperduti G., Nguyen Dong, Broccia G., Ter Beek M. H., Ferrari A., Massink M., Belmonte Gina, Ciancia V., Papini O., Canapa G., Catricalà B., Manca M., Paternò F., Santoro C., Zedda E., Gallo S., Maenza S., Mattioli A., Simeoli L., Rucci D., Carlini E., Dazzi P., Kavalionak H., Mordacchini M., Rulli C., Muntean Cristina Ioana, Nardini F. M., Perego R., Rocchietti G., Lettich F., Renso C., Pugliese C., Casini G., Haldimann Jonas, Meyer Thomas, Assante M., Candela L., Dell'Amico A., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Peccerillo B., Procaccini M., Mannocci A., Manghi P., Lonetti F., Kang Dongjae, Di Giandomenico F., Jee Eunkyoung, Lazzini G., Conti F., Scopigno R., D'Acunto M., Moroni D., Cafiso M., Paradisi P., Callieri M., Pavoni G., Corsini M., De Falco A., Sala F., Saraceni Q., Gattiglia Gabriele
ISTI-Day is an annual information and networking event organized by the Institute of Information Science and Technologies "A. Faedo" (ISTI) of the Italian National Research Council (CNR). This event features an opening talk of the Director of the Dept. DIITET (Emilio F. Campana) as well as an overview of the Institute's activities presented by the ISTI Director (Roberto Scopigno). Those institutional segments are complemented by dedicated presentations and round tables featuring former staff members, as well as internal and external collaborators. To foster a network of knowledge and collaboration among newcomers, the 2025 ISTI Day edition also includes a large poster session that provides a comprehensive overview of current research activities. Each of the 13 laboratories contributes 1–3 posters, highlighting the most innovative work and offering early-career researchers a platform for discussion. Thus these proceedings include the posters selected for ISTI-Day 2025, reflecting the diverse and innovative nature of the Institute's research.
See at:
CNR IRIS | www.isti.cnr.it | CNR IRIS
2025
Other
Open Access
GreenDIGIT D5.3: Design and operation of a federated data management infrastructure for open science workflows
Assante M., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Oliviero A., Panichi G.
This short report accompanies the deliverable “Design and Operation of a Federated Data Management Infrastructure for Open Science Workflows”, classified as a “DEM” (Demonstrator). It provides a concise overview of the design and deployment of the key software components constituting the Federated Data Management Infrastructure (FDMI), developed to meet the current operational needs of the GreenDIGIT community in support of open science workflows.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17210872
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17210872
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17210871
Project(s): Greener Future Digital Research Infrastructures
Metrics:
Assante M., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Oliviero A., Panichi G.
This short report accompanies the deliverable “Design and Operation of a Federated Data Management Infrastructure for Open Science Workflows”, classified as a “DEM” (Demonstrator). It provides a concise overview of the design and deployment of the key software components constituting the Federated Data Management Infrastructure (FDMI), developed to meet the current operational needs of the GreenDIGIT community in support of open science workflows.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17210872
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17210872
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17210871
Project(s): Greener Future Digital Research Infrastructures
Metrics:
2025
Conference article
Open Access
Geoportal technology: a customizable framework for managing and publishing georeferenced research objects
Mangiacrapa F., Vannini G. L., Pagano P.
The Geoportal technology is an open-source, highly customizable framework designed for the management and publication of georeferenced research objects—complex digital entities composed of files, metadata, and spatiotemporal attributes. Built on the D4Science infrastructure, Geoportal supports user-defined data models and workflows, enabling adaptation to diverse scientific domains and access policies. It integrates Web-GIS technologies and adheres to international standards such as OGC’s WMS and WFS, ensuring interoperability and scalability. The platform features two main interfaces: a Data-Entry Interface for moderated content creation and a Data-Viewer Interface for public access via interactive maps and timelines. An API extends its capabilities for automated data retrieval and advanced queries. A key case study, the Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archaeology (D4GNA), developed for the Italian Ministry of Culture, demonstrates Geoportal’s effectiveness in managing archaeological data. With over 1,150 investigations cataloged, D4GNA exemplifies the platform’s potential in supporting FAIR principles and fostering open, collaborative research across disciplines such as archaeology, environmental science, and climate studies.DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-egu25-19423
Metrics:
Mangiacrapa F., Vannini G. L., Pagano P.
The Geoportal technology is an open-source, highly customizable framework designed for the management and publication of georeferenced research objects—complex digital entities composed of files, metadata, and spatiotemporal attributes. Built on the D4Science infrastructure, Geoportal supports user-defined data models and workflows, enabling adaptation to diverse scientific domains and access policies. It integrates Web-GIS technologies and adheres to international standards such as OGC’s WMS and WFS, ensuring interoperability and scalability. The platform features two main interfaces: a Data-Entry Interface for moderated content creation and a Data-Viewer Interface for public access via interactive maps and timelines. An API extends its capabilities for automated data retrieval and advanced queries. A key case study, the Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archaeology (D4GNA), developed for the Italian Ministry of Culture, demonstrates Geoportal’s effectiveness in managing archaeological data. With over 1,150 investigations cataloged, D4GNA exemplifies the platform’s potential in supporting FAIR principles and fostering open, collaborative research across disciplines such as archaeology, environmental science, and climate studies.DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-egu25-19423
Metrics:
See at:
CNR IRIS | meetingorganizer.copernicus.org | doi.org | CNR IRIS
2025
Contribution to conference
Open Access
Deploying Conversational Agents in Virtual Research Environments: Approaches and Lessons Learned
Massimiliano Assante, Leonardo Candela, Andrea Dell’amico, Luca Frosini, Francesco Mangiacrapa, Alfredo Oliviero, Pasquale Pagano, Giancarlo Panichi, Biagio Peccerillo, Marco Procaccini
The rapid progress of conversational artificial intelligence and Large Language Models (LLMs) has opened new opportunities to enhance user interaction, support, and accessibility in Virtual Research Environments (VREs). This poster presents the approaches, challenges, and lessons learned from a multi-year e!ort to design, develop, and deploy conversational agents within the D4Science infrastructure. Through three successive implementation cycles—Janet, D4Science AI Agent, and DAVE—the poster traces a process of iterative refinement aimed at improving flexibility, extensibility, usability, and integration with existing VRE services. Janet, the first prototype, explored modular NLP components but revealed limitations in adaptability and feedback integration. The second approach, based on the Cheshire Cat framework, improved modularity and LLM interoperability but remained constrained by a single-agent design. The latest solution, DAVE (D4Science Assistant for Virtual research Environments), introduces a multi-agent architecture built with Google’s Agent Development Kit, enabling secure and context-aware interaction with multiple D4Science services. DAVE combines specialized agents for tasks such as document analysis, catalogue navigation, social interaction summarization, and algorithm deployment within D4Science’s computational platform. Integrated feedback mechanisms and a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) knowledge base further enhance its learning and personalization capabilities. The findings demonstrate that conversational agents can lower barriers to VRE adoption, streamline workflows, and foster user engagement by o!ering intuitive, natural language interfaces. Lessons learned from this evolution suggest key design principles for future research infrastructure agents, emphasizing modularity, interoperability, and data security. Future work will involve usability evaluations, the integration of user-driven feedback, and experimentation with locally-hosted LLMs to strengthen privacy and operational sustainability.
Massimiliano Assante, Leonardo Candela, Andrea Dell’amico, Luca Frosini, Francesco Mangiacrapa, Alfredo Oliviero, Pasquale Pagano, Giancarlo Panichi, Biagio Peccerillo, Marco Procaccini
The rapid progress of conversational artificial intelligence and Large Language Models (LLMs) has opened new opportunities to enhance user interaction, support, and accessibility in Virtual Research Environments (VREs). This poster presents the approaches, challenges, and lessons learned from a multi-year e!ort to design, develop, and deploy conversational agents within the D4Science infrastructure. Through three successive implementation cycles—Janet, D4Science AI Agent, and DAVE—the poster traces a process of iterative refinement aimed at improving flexibility, extensibility, usability, and integration with existing VRE services. Janet, the first prototype, explored modular NLP components but revealed limitations in adaptability and feedback integration. The second approach, based on the Cheshire Cat framework, improved modularity and LLM interoperability but remained constrained by a single-agent design. The latest solution, DAVE (D4Science Assistant for Virtual research Environments), introduces a multi-agent architecture built with Google’s Agent Development Kit, enabling secure and context-aware interaction with multiple D4Science services. DAVE combines specialized agents for tasks such as document analysis, catalogue navigation, social interaction summarization, and algorithm deployment within D4Science’s computational platform. Integrated feedback mechanisms and a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) knowledge base further enhance its learning and personalization capabilities. The findings demonstrate that conversational agents can lower barriers to VRE adoption, streamline workflows, and foster user engagement by o!ering intuitive, natural language interfaces. Lessons learned from this evolution suggest key design principles for future research infrastructure agents, emphasizing modularity, interoperability, and data security. Future work will involve usability evaluations, the integration of user-driven feedback, and experimentation with locally-hosted LLMs to strengthen privacy and operational sustainability.
2025
Other
Restricted
InfraScience research activity report 2024
Angioni S., Artini M., Assante M., Atzori C., Baglioni M., Bardi A., Bosio C., Bove P., Calanducci A., Candela L., Casini G., Castelli D., Cirillo R., Coro G., De Bonis M., Debole F., Dell'Amico A., Frosini L., Ibrahim Ahmed, La Bruzzo S., Lelii L., Manghi P., Mangiacrapa F., Mangione D., Mannocci A., Molinaro E., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Teresa M. T., Pavone G., Peccerillo B., Piccioli T., Procaccini M., Straccia U., Vannini G. L., Versienti L.
InfraScience is a research group within the Institute of Information Science and Technologies (ISTI) of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR), based in Pisa. This activity report outlines the group's research achievements and initiatives throughout 2024. InfraScience focused its efforts on key challenges in the areas of Data Infrastructures, e-Science, and Intelligent Systems, maintaining a strong synergy between research and development and a firm commitment to open science principles. In 2024, the group played a leading role in the development and evolution of two major Open Science infrastructures: D4Science and OpenAIRE. InfraScience researchers contributed significantly to the scientific community through the publication of peer-reviewed papers, active participation in EU-funded research projects, organization of international conferences and training activities, and engagement in various working groups and task forces. This report highlights these contributions and underscores the group's ongoing dedication to advancing open, collaborative, and impactful science.DOI: 10.32079/isti-ar-2025/001
Metrics:
Angioni S., Artini M., Assante M., Atzori C., Baglioni M., Bardi A., Bosio C., Bove P., Calanducci A., Candela L., Casini G., Castelli D., Cirillo R., Coro G., De Bonis M., Debole F., Dell'Amico A., Frosini L., Ibrahim Ahmed, La Bruzzo S., Lelii L., Manghi P., Mangiacrapa F., Mangione D., Mannocci A., Molinaro E., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Teresa M. T., Pavone G., Peccerillo B., Piccioli T., Procaccini M., Straccia U., Vannini G. L., Versienti L.
InfraScience is a research group within the Institute of Information Science and Technologies (ISTI) of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR), based in Pisa. This activity report outlines the group's research achievements and initiatives throughout 2024. InfraScience focused its efforts on key challenges in the areas of Data Infrastructures, e-Science, and Intelligent Systems, maintaining a strong synergy between research and development and a firm commitment to open science principles. In 2024, the group played a leading role in the development and evolution of two major Open Science infrastructures: D4Science and OpenAIRE. InfraScience researchers contributed significantly to the scientific community through the publication of peer-reviewed papers, active participation in EU-funded research projects, organization of international conferences and training activities, and engagement in various working groups and task forces. This report highlights these contributions and underscores the group's ongoing dedication to advancing open, collaborative, and impactful science.DOI: 10.32079/isti-ar-2025/001
Metrics:
2025
Other
Open Access
Blue-Cloud2026 D5.4 - Blue Cloud VRE Common Services 2nd Release
Assante M., Candela L., Dalla Torre G., Dell'Amico A., Fernandez E., Frosini L., Lettere M., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Mugnaini M., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Peccerillo B., Piccioli T.
This deliverable documents the design principles and software architecture characterising the release and development of the Blue-Cloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) common services, namely the analytics computing framework, the catalogue framework, the storage framework and the enabling framework components. This report is the second of two versions, each one describing the design associated with a specific version of the VRE. This deliverable D5.4 provides the updated and extended version of D5.1 “Blue-Cloud VRE Common Services 1st Release” [8]. The document presents the current state of the Blue-Cloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) common services, detailing both the new components introduced in the period M13 to M36 and the enhancements applied to the existing ones to ensure compliance with interoperability, scalability, and robustness requirements. Overall, deliverable D5.4 provides a consolidated, fully up-to-date view of the Blue-Cloud VRE common services architecture, covering functional capabilities, API exposure, deployment configuration, and integration status as of the end of the second reporting period. The deliverable consists of six sections. ● Section 1 briefly introduces the role of this deliverable in the development and delivery of the Blue-Cloud VRE common services. ● Section 2 describes the Blue-Cloud VRE logical architecture of the common services and how they relate to the other services available in the VRE. ● Section 3, 4, 5 and 6 document the release of the Blue-Cloud VRE common services available at M36, reporting the design principles and reference software architecture of the released solutions. Specifically, Section 3 describes the analytics computing framework which includes the Analytics Engine, Galaxy workflows, the RStudio and the Jupyter Notebooks via JupyterHub. Section 4 presents the VRE Catalogue framework and its components, and section 5 reports on the Storage framework. ● Finally, section 6 concludes the report by illustrating the services composing the Enabling framework, which is used as a common ground for all the above-mentioned frameworks.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18189109
Project(s): A federated European FAIR and Open Research Ecosystem for oceans, seas, coastal and inland waters, Blue-Cloud+2026
Metrics:
Assante M., Candela L., Dalla Torre G., Dell'Amico A., Fernandez E., Frosini L., Lettere M., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Mugnaini M., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Peccerillo B., Piccioli T.
This deliverable documents the design principles and software architecture characterising the release and development of the Blue-Cloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) common services, namely the analytics computing framework, the catalogue framework, the storage framework and the enabling framework components. This report is the second of two versions, each one describing the design associated with a specific version of the VRE. This deliverable D5.4 provides the updated and extended version of D5.1 “Blue-Cloud VRE Common Services 1st Release” [8]. The document presents the current state of the Blue-Cloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) common services, detailing both the new components introduced in the period M13 to M36 and the enhancements applied to the existing ones to ensure compliance with interoperability, scalability, and robustness requirements. Overall, deliverable D5.4 provides a consolidated, fully up-to-date view of the Blue-Cloud VRE common services architecture, covering functional capabilities, API exposure, deployment configuration, and integration status as of the end of the second reporting period. The deliverable consists of six sections. ● Section 1 briefly introduces the role of this deliverable in the development and delivery of the Blue-Cloud VRE common services. ● Section 2 describes the Blue-Cloud VRE logical architecture of the common services and how they relate to the other services available in the VRE. ● Section 3, 4, 5 and 6 document the release of the Blue-Cloud VRE common services available at M36, reporting the design principles and reference software architecture of the released solutions. Specifically, Section 3 describes the analytics computing framework which includes the Analytics Engine, Galaxy workflows, the RStudio and the Jupyter Notebooks via JupyterHub. Section 4 presents the VRE Catalogue framework and its components, and section 5 reports on the Storage framework. ● Finally, section 6 concludes the report by illustrating the services composing the Enabling framework, which is used as a common ground for all the above-mentioned frameworks.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18189109
Project(s): A federated European FAIR and Open Research Ecosystem for oceans, seas, coastal and inland waters, Blue-Cloud+2026
Metrics:
2025
Other
Open Access
D4Science Geoportal: un framework per la gestione e la pubblicazione di oggetti di ricerca georeferenziati
Vannini G. L., Mangiacrapa F.
The D4Science Geoportal is an open-source framework developed by CNR-ISTI for managing and publishing georeferenced research objects. Integrated within the D4Science digital infrastructure, the system supports spatial, temporal, and multimedia data, promoting the FAIR principles of Open Science. Its modular architecture includes components for data entry, visualization, and secure storage, ensuring interoperability through OGC standards (WMS, WFS). Notable applications include the Reef Archive Lab for coral reef studies and the (Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archaeology (D4GNA), developed for the Italian Ministry of Culture to standardize and digitize archaeological documentation.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.16892832
Metrics:
Vannini G. L., Mangiacrapa F.
The D4Science Geoportal is an open-source framework developed by CNR-ISTI for managing and publishing georeferenced research objects. Integrated within the D4Science digital infrastructure, the system supports spatial, temporal, and multimedia data, promoting the FAIR principles of Open Science. Its modular architecture includes components for data entry, visualization, and secure storage, ensuring interoperability through OGC standards (WMS, WFS). Notable applications include the Reef Archive Lab for coral reef studies and the (Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archaeology (D4GNA), developed for the Italian Ministry of Culture to standardize and digitize archaeological documentation.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.16892832
Metrics:
See at:
gitonline.org | CNR IRIS | CNR IRIS | CNR IRIS
2024
Conference article
Open Access
D4Science: advancing ocean science through collaborative data analysis
Assante M., Candela L., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Pagano P.
In the realm of ocean science, addressing intricate challenges necessitates collaborative analysis of extensive datasets. This underscores the significance of infrastructures that facilitate multidisciplinary collaboration, effective communication, and timely data sharing. D4Science [Assante et al., 2019], an operational infrastructure initiated 18 years ago with European Commission funding, has evolved into an efficient solution. Utilizing the “as a Service” paradigm, D4Science provides webaccessible Virtual Laboratories [Assante et al., 2023; Candela et al., 2023] (VLabs) that proved to be also suitable for ocean science collaboration [Schaap et al., 2022]. These VLabs simplify access to marine datasets, concealing underlying complexities. Key functionalities include a cloudbased Workspace for file organization, a platform for largescale data analysis on a distributed computing infrastructure, a catalog for publishing research results, and a communication system based on social network practices. D4Science has been actively supporting diverse marine and ocean science Virtual Laboratories (VLabs), adapting to evolving research needs. Notable initiatives include contributions to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), starting with the ‘BlueCloud’ project in 2020 and its subsequent extension, ‘BlueCloud2026.’ In 2015, D4Science played a pivotal role in the BlueBRIDGE Horizon 2020 Project, which aimed to provide userfriendly data services and tools for the aquaculture, fisheries, and environmental sectors. Additionally, in 2013, D4Science contributed to the iMarine FP7 Project, which has since evolved into the current iMarine initiative. This ongoing effort is dedicated to establishing and operating an einfrastructure that aligns with the principles of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management and the conservation of marine living resources, further supporting the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Blue Growth Initiative. D4Science is currently supporting over 20 scientific communities and over 150 VLabs, and pioneers Open Science in ocean research. It fosters collaboration, offers userfriendly environments, and provides service for accessing, sharing, analyzing, and publishing oceanographic data. A detailed description of these services is given in the followingSource: MISCELLANEA INGV, pp. 284-286. Bergen (Norway), 27-29/05/2024
DOI: 10.13127/misc/80/109
Project(s): Blue-Cloud 2026
Metrics:
Assante M., Candela L., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Pagano P.
In the realm of ocean science, addressing intricate challenges necessitates collaborative analysis of extensive datasets. This underscores the significance of infrastructures that facilitate multidisciplinary collaboration, effective communication, and timely data sharing. D4Science [Assante et al., 2019], an operational infrastructure initiated 18 years ago with European Commission funding, has evolved into an efficient solution. Utilizing the “as a Service” paradigm, D4Science provides webaccessible Virtual Laboratories [Assante et al., 2023; Candela et al., 2023] (VLabs) that proved to be also suitable for ocean science collaboration [Schaap et al., 2022]. These VLabs simplify access to marine datasets, concealing underlying complexities. Key functionalities include a cloudbased Workspace for file organization, a platform for largescale data analysis on a distributed computing infrastructure, a catalog for publishing research results, and a communication system based on social network practices. D4Science has been actively supporting diverse marine and ocean science Virtual Laboratories (VLabs), adapting to evolving research needs. Notable initiatives include contributions to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), starting with the ‘BlueCloud’ project in 2020 and its subsequent extension, ‘BlueCloud2026.’ In 2015, D4Science played a pivotal role in the BlueBRIDGE Horizon 2020 Project, which aimed to provide userfriendly data services and tools for the aquaculture, fisheries, and environmental sectors. Additionally, in 2013, D4Science contributed to the iMarine FP7 Project, which has since evolved into the current iMarine initiative. This ongoing effort is dedicated to establishing and operating an einfrastructure that aligns with the principles of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management and the conservation of marine living resources, further supporting the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Blue Growth Initiative. D4Science is currently supporting over 20 scientific communities and over 150 VLabs, and pioneers Open Science in ocean research. It fosters collaboration, offers userfriendly environments, and provides service for accessing, sharing, analyzing, and publishing oceanographic data. A detailed description of these services is given in the followingSource: MISCELLANEA INGV, pp. 284-286. Bergen (Norway), 27-29/05/2024
DOI: 10.13127/misc/80/109
Project(s): Blue-Cloud 2026
Metrics:
See at:
CNR IRIS | imdis.seadatanet.org | doi.org | IRIS Cnr | CNR IRIS
2024
Other
Open Access
SoBigData++ - SoBigData e-Infrastructure Operation Report 3
Assante M., Candela L., Dell'Amico A., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Piccioli T.
This Deliverable builds upon and updates the previous reports, D9.2 - “SoBigData e-Infrastructure Operation Report 2” [5] and D9.1 - “SoBigData e-Infrastructure Operation Report 1” [3]. The SoBigData e-Infrastructure has been pivotal in enabling the core services and research support required for the SoBigData++ project, including Virtual Research Environments (VREs), the Catalogue, and Analytics Services. It is accessible through the SoBigData gateway (https://sobigdata.d4science.org), which provides end-users with seamless access to tools, datasets, and services. The SoBigData e-Infrastructure is built upon the D4Science infrastructure, offering a comprehensive platform that facilitates collaborative, transparent, and interdisciplinary research. The deployment and operation of VREs followed a well-defined procedure, leveraging the consolidated process inherited from D4Science. Throughout the 60 months of the project, a total of 27 VREs were created and operated to meet project and community needs. These VREs were classified into five categories: Exploratories, Applications, Virtual Labs, Training, and Management. Notable examples include, (i) SoBigDataLab and SoBigDataLab-PlusPlus for method development and experiments, (ii) Training VREs created for events like Summer Schools and specialised workshops, and (iii) Research spaces (formerly known as Exploratories) supporting targeted domains, such as Migration Studies, Sports Data Science, and Social Impacts of AI. The SoBigData Catalogue (https://sobigdata.d4science.org/catalogue-sobigdata) emerged as a critical resource for both human users and integrated services, enabling access to datasets, services, and analytical methods. The catalogue supports customisable item profiles enriched with metadata fields, controlled vocabularies, and validation rules. By end of term, the Catalogue recorded significant growth, particularly in key item types such as Methods (192 items) and Datasets (250 items). This expansion underscores the Catalogue’s role in promoting resource discoverability and supporting research workflows. Its usage indicators demonstrate its active adoption, with 31,909 total accesses, 29,595 metadata views, and 4,171 resource views recorded. Monthly trends reveal consistent engagement, highlighting its importance in the research ecosystem. The Social Mining Analytics Engine (SMAE) transitioned through the development of a new service, namely Cloud Computing Platform (CCP), offering enhanced scalability and automation through container orchestrations. Methods hosted on the SMAE span multiple categories, such as Text Processing, Web Analytics, and Image Analysis. Over the last year, the platform executed an average of 6.4 million method invocations per month, peaking at 16 million executions in July 2024. As of mid-December ’24, the e-infrastructure serves more than 13,000 users, with an overall trend in the use of the SoBigData VREs from January 2020 to December 2024, highlighting their importance for the research community. The steady engagement through 2023 and 2024, with peaks like July 2024 (2,592 sessions), underscores the VREs continued relevance and utility.Project(s): SoBigData-PlusPlus
Assante M., Candela L., Dell'Amico A., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Piccioli T.
This Deliverable builds upon and updates the previous reports, D9.2 - “SoBigData e-Infrastructure Operation Report 2” [5] and D9.1 - “SoBigData e-Infrastructure Operation Report 1” [3]. The SoBigData e-Infrastructure has been pivotal in enabling the core services and research support required for the SoBigData++ project, including Virtual Research Environments (VREs), the Catalogue, and Analytics Services. It is accessible through the SoBigData gateway (https://sobigdata.d4science.org), which provides end-users with seamless access to tools, datasets, and services. The SoBigData e-Infrastructure is built upon the D4Science infrastructure, offering a comprehensive platform that facilitates collaborative, transparent, and interdisciplinary research. The deployment and operation of VREs followed a well-defined procedure, leveraging the consolidated process inherited from D4Science. Throughout the 60 months of the project, a total of 27 VREs were created and operated to meet project and community needs. These VREs were classified into five categories: Exploratories, Applications, Virtual Labs, Training, and Management. Notable examples include, (i) SoBigDataLab and SoBigDataLab-PlusPlus for method development and experiments, (ii) Training VREs created for events like Summer Schools and specialised workshops, and (iii) Research spaces (formerly known as Exploratories) supporting targeted domains, such as Migration Studies, Sports Data Science, and Social Impacts of AI. The SoBigData Catalogue (https://sobigdata.d4science.org/catalogue-sobigdata) emerged as a critical resource for both human users and integrated services, enabling access to datasets, services, and analytical methods. The catalogue supports customisable item profiles enriched with metadata fields, controlled vocabularies, and validation rules. By end of term, the Catalogue recorded significant growth, particularly in key item types such as Methods (192 items) and Datasets (250 items). This expansion underscores the Catalogue’s role in promoting resource discoverability and supporting research workflows. Its usage indicators demonstrate its active adoption, with 31,909 total accesses, 29,595 metadata views, and 4,171 resource views recorded. Monthly trends reveal consistent engagement, highlighting its importance in the research ecosystem. The Social Mining Analytics Engine (SMAE) transitioned through the development of a new service, namely Cloud Computing Platform (CCP), offering enhanced scalability and automation through container orchestrations. Methods hosted on the SMAE span multiple categories, such as Text Processing, Web Analytics, and Image Analysis. Over the last year, the platform executed an average of 6.4 million method invocations per month, peaking at 16 million executions in July 2024. As of mid-December ’24, the e-infrastructure serves more than 13,000 users, with an overall trend in the use of the SoBigData VREs from January 2020 to December 2024, highlighting their importance for the research community. The steady engagement through 2023 and 2024, with peaks like July 2024 (2,592 sessions), underscores the VREs continued relevance and utility.Project(s): SoBigData-PlusPlus
2024
Other
Open Access
Blue-Cloud VRE operation report
Assante M., Candela L., Calanducci A., Cirillo R., Dell’amico A., Frosini L., Lelii L., Molinaro E., Mangiacrapa F., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Piccioli T.
The Horizon Europe Blue-Cloud initiative started in 2019 with the aim of creating a European Open Science Cloud for marine data. This involves federating data and e-infrastructures to provide data products and technologies as open science resources for the wider marine research community. Since 2023, the Blue-Cloud 2026 follow-up project has sought to further evolve this pilot ecosystem into a Federated European Ecosystem, offering FAIR and open data and analytical services crucial for advancing research on oceans, EU seas, and coastal and inland waters. Building on the pilot Blue-Cloud project, the current technical framework is designed to be extensible and open, continually evolving to meet the community's needs. The Blue-Cloud platform architecture comprises two major components: (a) the Blue-Cloud Data Discovery and Access Service (DDAS) component, which facilitates federated discovery and access to 'blue data' infrastructures, and (b) the Blue-Cloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) component, which provides a Blue-Cloud VRE as a federation of computing platforms and analytical services. The VLabs leverage both DDAS and VRE, co-created with leading marine researchers to demonstrate the power of the Blue-Cloud Open Science platform through real-life scientific cases. \ This deliverable focuses on the VRE operation, specifically on how the VRE services have been utilised and managed to support the development of the Blue-Cloud VRE gateway (https://blue-cloud.d4science.org), its underlying infrastructure, and the VLabs on top of it, during the reporting period from January 2023 (M1) to June 2024 (M18). A total of 13 VLabs were created and operated to meet the needs arising from the Blue-Cloud 2026 project. Additionally, 7 VLabs from the previous Blue-Cloud project are being maintained. These working environments serve more than 1,700 users from 34 countries. Between January 2023 and June 2024, users initiated more than 26,000 working sessions via the Blue-Cloud VRE, averaging 1,447 sessions per month. Operating the VRE and VLabs involves managing support requests, issues, and incidents. A total of 143 tickets have been created and managed in the Blue-Cloud Project Issue Trackers (23 in the project consortium tracker and 120 in the support tracker), with 85% of these tickets closed. Additionally, 24 tickets related to Blue-Cloud have been created within the D4Science overall context, with an 88% closure rate.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12667549
Project(s): Blue-Cloud 2026
Metrics:
Assante M., Candela L., Calanducci A., Cirillo R., Dell’amico A., Frosini L., Lelii L., Molinaro E., Mangiacrapa F., Oliviero A., Pagano P., Panichi G., Piccioli T.
The Horizon Europe Blue-Cloud initiative started in 2019 with the aim of creating a European Open Science Cloud for marine data. This involves federating data and e-infrastructures to provide data products and technologies as open science resources for the wider marine research community. Since 2023, the Blue-Cloud 2026 follow-up project has sought to further evolve this pilot ecosystem into a Federated European Ecosystem, offering FAIR and open data and analytical services crucial for advancing research on oceans, EU seas, and coastal and inland waters. Building on the pilot Blue-Cloud project, the current technical framework is designed to be extensible and open, continually evolving to meet the community's needs. The Blue-Cloud platform architecture comprises two major components: (a) the Blue-Cloud Data Discovery and Access Service (DDAS) component, which facilitates federated discovery and access to 'blue data' infrastructures, and (b) the Blue-Cloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) component, which provides a Blue-Cloud VRE as a federation of computing platforms and analytical services. The VLabs leverage both DDAS and VRE, co-created with leading marine researchers to demonstrate the power of the Blue-Cloud Open Science platform through real-life scientific cases. \ This deliverable focuses on the VRE operation, specifically on how the VRE services have been utilised and managed to support the development of the Blue-Cloud VRE gateway (https://blue-cloud.d4science.org), its underlying infrastructure, and the VLabs on top of it, during the reporting period from January 2023 (M1) to June 2024 (M18). A total of 13 VLabs were created and operated to meet the needs arising from the Blue-Cloud 2026 project. Additionally, 7 VLabs from the previous Blue-Cloud project are being maintained. These working environments serve more than 1,700 users from 34 countries. Between January 2023 and June 2024, users initiated more than 26,000 working sessions via the Blue-Cloud VRE, averaging 1,447 sessions per month. Operating the VRE and VLabs involves managing support requests, issues, and incidents. A total of 143 tickets have been created and managed in the Blue-Cloud Project Issue Trackers (23 in the project consortium tracker and 120 in the support tracker), with 85% of these tickets closed. Additionally, 24 tickets related to Blue-Cloud have been created within the D4Science overall context, with an 88% closure rate.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12667549
Project(s): Blue-Cloud 2026
Metrics:
2024
Other
Open Access
Dataset per il Geoportale Nazionale per l'Archeologia - Guida al Data-Viewer
Vannini G. L., Mangiacrapa F., Pagano P., Candela L.
The Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archeology (D4GNA) is a digital platform that allows access and consultation of archaeological data coming from 'Surveys carried out under concession regime (in Italian territory)' and from 'Italian archaeological missions to abroad'. This guide provides the necessary instructions to consult the datasets, navigate the interactive cartography and download the data. To access the D4GNA, you need to connect to the official website https://gna.d4science.org/.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12531823
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12531823
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Metrics:
Vannini G. L., Mangiacrapa F., Pagano P., Candela L.
The Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archeology (D4GNA) is a digital platform that allows access and consultation of archaeological data coming from 'Surveys carried out under concession regime (in Italian territory)' and from 'Italian archaeological missions to abroad'. This guide provides the necessary instructions to consult the datasets, navigate the interactive cartography and download the data. To access the D4GNA, you need to connect to the official website https://gna.d4science.org/.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12531823
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12531823
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Metrics:
2024
Other
Open Access
Dataset per il Geoportale Nazionale per l’Archeologia - Guida al sistema D4GNA
Vannini G. L., Mangiacrapa F., Candela L., Pagano P.
The Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archeology (D4GNA) is a digital platform that allows access and consultation of archaeological data coming from 'Surveys carried out under concession regime (in Italian territory)' and from 'Italian archaeological missions to abroad'. This guide provides the necessary instructions for consulting the datasets, navigating the interactive cartography and inserting, modifying or deleting a survey project by excavation concessionaires. To access the D4GNA, it is necessary to connect to the official website https://gna.d4science.org/ and authenticate using credentials provided by the authorized institutions.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12530857
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12530857
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Metrics:
Vannini G. L., Mangiacrapa F., Candela L., Pagano P.
The Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archeology (D4GNA) is a digital platform that allows access and consultation of archaeological data coming from 'Surveys carried out under concession regime (in Italian territory)' and from 'Italian archaeological missions to abroad'. This guide provides the necessary instructions for consulting the datasets, navigating the interactive cartography and inserting, modifying or deleting a survey project by excavation concessionaires. To access the D4GNA, it is necessary to connect to the official website https://gna.d4science.org/ and authenticate using credentials provided by the authorized institutions.DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12530857
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12530857
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Metrics:
2024
Contribution to conference
Open Access
Blue-Cloud 2026 - Virtual Research Environment service
Assante M., Candela L., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Pagano P.
BlueCloud Virtual Research Environment Service The BlueCloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) is one of the two main components of the BlueCloud technical framework, next to the BlueCloud Data Discovery and Access Service (DDAS). The BlueCloud VRE components are developed and operated by relying on the D4Science infrastructure [Assante et al., 2019; 2023; Candela et al., 2023] and range from services to promote the collaboration among its users to services supporting the execution of analytics tasks embedded in a distributed computing infrastructure, and to services enabling the cocreation of entire Virtual Laboratories (VLabs), also interoperable with the BlueCloud DDAS. The VRE services are instrumental in advancing Open Science practices within VLabs, empowering researchers to harness the advantages of stateoftheart einfrastructures. By leveraging these services, researchers can capitalise on the power of the Cloud and of einfrastructures, driving scientific progress and enabling collaborative research efforts within the realm of Open Science.Source: MISCELLANEA INGV, vol. 80, pp. 240-241. Bergen, Norway, 27-29/05/2024
DOI: 10.13127/misc/80/91
Project(s): Blue-Cloud 2026
Metrics:
Assante M., Candela L., Frosini L., Mangiacrapa F., Molinaro E., Pagano P.
BlueCloud Virtual Research Environment Service The BlueCloud Virtual Research Environment (VRE) is one of the two main components of the BlueCloud technical framework, next to the BlueCloud Data Discovery and Access Service (DDAS). The BlueCloud VRE components are developed and operated by relying on the D4Science infrastructure [Assante et al., 2019; 2023; Candela et al., 2023] and range from services to promote the collaboration among its users to services supporting the execution of analytics tasks embedded in a distributed computing infrastructure, and to services enabling the cocreation of entire Virtual Laboratories (VLabs), also interoperable with the BlueCloud DDAS. The VRE services are instrumental in advancing Open Science practices within VLabs, empowering researchers to harness the advantages of stateoftheart einfrastructures. By leveraging these services, researchers can capitalise on the power of the Cloud and of einfrastructures, driving scientific progress and enabling collaborative research efforts within the realm of Open Science.Source: MISCELLANEA INGV, vol. 80, pp. 240-241. Bergen, Norway, 27-29/05/2024
DOI: 10.13127/misc/80/91
Project(s): Blue-Cloud 2026
Metrics:
See at:
editoria.ingv.it | CNR IRIS | doi.org | IRIS Cnr | CNR IRIS
2024
Other
Restricted
FOSSR D6.8A - VRE catalogue release
Assante M., Candela L., Frosini L., Lelii L., Mangiacrapa F., Oliviero A., Paratore M. T.
The purpose of this document is to outline the software solution for the VRE Catalogue, enabling to effectively find, access and reuse every research artefact, offering the possibility to publish results as digital objects in Zenodo.org so as to ensure FAIR preservation, citation, and DOI minting for such objects. Scientists will be supported in this process by the VRE, which will transparently make sure the objects are deposited in Zenodo.org with links between them (e.g. workflow linked to methods objects used and to input and output datasets) and to the FOSSR project;Project(s): Fostering Open Science in Social Science Research
Assante M., Candela L., Frosini L., Lelii L., Mangiacrapa F., Oliviero A., Paratore M. T.
The purpose of this document is to outline the software solution for the VRE Catalogue, enabling to effectively find, access and reuse every research artefact, offering the possibility to publish results as digital objects in Zenodo.org so as to ensure FAIR preservation, citation, and DOI minting for such objects. Scientists will be supported in this process by the VRE, which will transparently make sure the objects are deposited in Zenodo.org with links between them (e.g. workflow linked to methods objects used and to input and output datasets) and to the FOSSR project;Project(s): Fostering Open Science in Social Science Research
2023
Journal article
Open Access
ARIADNE Plus e il D4GNA-Dataset per il Geoportale Nazionale per l'Archeologia
Acconcia V, Boi V, Candela L, Falcone A, Mangiacrapa F, Massara F, Pagano P, Sinibaldi F
The article describes the experience of the D4GNA - Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archaeology born within the framework of the ARIADNEplus (Advanced Research Infrastructure for Archaeological Dataset Networking in Europe, plus) project, which ended last 31 December. The contribution starts from the broader context of the European project to delve into the world of Italian archaeological data; the technological solution, standardization, dema- terialisation and network sharing of data are the topics touched upon in this journey that illustrates the progress towards a virtuous objective: the Geoportale Nazionale per l'Archeologia, GNA. The GNA, created by the Istituto Centrale per l'Archeologia (ICA), released online july 10, 2023, is the national access point for receiving and consulting both archaeological interventions carried out under the scientific direction of the Ministry of Culture (MiC) as well as archaeological investigations conducted by universities and other re- search institutions.Source: DIGITALIA (ONLINE), vol. 1 (issue 2023), pp. 129-140
DOI: 10.36181/digitalia-00064
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Metrics:
Acconcia V, Boi V, Candela L, Falcone A, Mangiacrapa F, Massara F, Pagano P, Sinibaldi F
The article describes the experience of the D4GNA - Dataset for the National Geoportal for Archaeology born within the framework of the ARIADNEplus (Advanced Research Infrastructure for Archaeological Dataset Networking in Europe, plus) project, which ended last 31 December. The contribution starts from the broader context of the European project to delve into the world of Italian archaeological data; the technological solution, standardization, dema- terialisation and network sharing of data are the topics touched upon in this journey that illustrates the progress towards a virtuous objective: the Geoportale Nazionale per l'Archeologia, GNA. The GNA, created by the Istituto Centrale per l'Archeologia (ICA), released online july 10, 2023, is the national access point for receiving and consulting both archaeological interventions carried out under the scientific direction of the Ministry of Culture (MiC) as well as archaeological investigations conducted by universities and other re- search institutions.Source: DIGITALIA (ONLINE), vol. 1 (issue 2023), pp. 129-140
DOI: 10.36181/digitalia-00064
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Metrics:
See at:
digitalia.cultura.gov.it | CNR IRIS | ISTI Repository | CNR IRIS
2023
Journal article
Open Access
ARIADNE: A data infrastructure for the archaeological research community
Bardi A, Assante M, Mangiacrapa F
The ARIADNE infrastructure provides tools and services for researchers to address archaeological grand challenges that require discovery and analysis of information scattered across different thematic and geographically distributed sources.Source: ERCIM NEWS, vol. 133, pp. 8-9
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
Bardi A, Assante M, Mangiacrapa F
The ARIADNE infrastructure provides tools and services for researchers to address archaeological grand challenges that require discovery and analysis of information scattered across different thematic and geographically distributed sources.Source: ERCIM NEWS, vol. 133, pp. 8-9
Project(s): ARIADNEplus
See at:
ercim-news.ercim.eu | CNR IRIS | ISTI Repository | CNR IRIS