Table 1 Stages of exploratory and explanatory analysis shared across scientists
Stage (its dominant reasoning) | % completing this stage | Description |
|---|---|---|
Confirmation (validation) | 100% | Scientists vetted query results and the tool for accuracy, reliability, and timeliness Example: Look for familiar literature references. |
Separating Wheat From Chaff (classification and validation) | 85% | Scientists classified relationships to find genes and protein interactions of interest Example: Locate an interaction between a candidate gene from experimental findings and a gene product known to be associated with a disease |
Beyond Read-offs (Model-based reasoning and validation) | 0 | Scientists wanted to place relationships of interest in local and global contexts to mentally model explanatory biological events relevant to a disease. Example: Contextualize significant regulatory relationships in pathways. |
Story-building (narrative reasoning and validation) | 0 | Scientists sought to turn explanations about biological events into new, credible and plausible biological stories. Examples considered to be credible were not available based on scientists' progress. |