BioNumbers

Article summary

BioNumbers is a free-access database of quantitative data in biology designed to provide the scientific community with access to the large amount of data now generated in the biological literature. The database aims to make quantitative values more easily available, to aid fields such as systems biology. The BioNumbers project performs literature-based curation of various sources. It is a regularly updated online resource that contains >13,000 entries from ~1,000 distinct references. Examples of data include transcription and translation rates, organism and organelle sizes, metabolites concentrations and growth rates. Entries are provided with full reference and details such as measurement method and comments. BioNumbers also publishes a monthly review of a problem in quantitative biology.

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Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
3. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

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