Collaboratories: Doing science on the Internet

The term collaboratory was coined when William Wulf merged ''collaboration'' and ''laboratory'' to describe a ''...center without walls, in which the nation's researchers can perform their research without regard to geographical location-interacting with colleagues, accessing instrumentation, sharing data and computational resources, and accessing information in digital libraries.'' To what degree can we realize this potential? Computer scientists working with domain specialists have made progress on several fronts to facilitate immersive electronic interaction. A new paradigm for intimate collaboration among scientists is thus emerging that will accelerate the development and dissemination of basic knowledge, optimize the use of research instruments, and minimize the time between discovery and application. However, both technical and sociological. challenges remain. A collaboratory is a new, artificial environment that must be socially acceptable to the people who participate, and it must improve their ability to work. Many computing tools must be brought together and integrated to allow seamless interaction. Some of these tools, such as electronic mail and the WWW, are already in wide use, while others, like tele-presence, are still being created.