Tethys Frequently Asked Questions

What is Tethys, and what is the advantage of using something like Tethys versus a normal search engine?

Tethys is a wiki-based knowledge management system providing a user friendly interface which allows visitors to search and browse for environmental and regulatory information related to marine renewable energy. Because it is a wiki page, Tethys also enables visitors to engage with the site through adding or modifying content using a simple markup language. This concept promotes topic associations between different pages and subjects; enhancing the site’s searchability through creating linkages and updating pages as new words, phrases, and articles are linked to other related topics. The outcome of searching for information on wiki pages such as Tethys is that the user is provided with information related to their original search as well as other topics that may be connected in some other way.

For more information, please visit the About Tethys page.

Why is Tethys so important for marine renewable energies?

Tethys allows users to search for and access valuable data and information related to the environmental effects of offshore renewable energies. As a new source for renewable energy, there is still a lack of information and understanding on how to best proceed in developing these technologies. The goal of Tethys is to gather all the relevant information and data on marine renewable energies with the intent to expedite the development of these technologies and attempt to clarify the associated uncertainties.

Who is the target audience of Tethys?

From developers searching for environmental data, regulators, or general citizens wanting to learn more about marine renewable energy, Tethys can accommodate the needs of many different kinds of users.

What is Annex IV, and what is its relationship to Tethys?

Annex IV is an international collaboration amongst member nations of the IEA Ocean Energy Systems-Implementing Agreement to gather information on MHK environmental research worldwide. Tethys is working with the Annex IV to collect and disseminate this information within the Annex working group. Where appropriate, Tethys will also make portions of this information and data available to the broader audience.

What is the advantage of registering on Tethys and do I have to register to access information?

While anyone can access the Tethys knowledge base, registration on Tethys provides access to a small but growing number of personalization and interaction features. Currently, registered users can:

• Provide comments on our Tethys Blog
• Participate in threaded discussion forums about any article in the Tethys knowledge base
• Request Tethys to send an e-mail notification each time a page is updated in the knowledge base

Additional personalization features are planned for the coming year, and will be announced via the Tethys Blog as they become available.

If I register, what happens to my personal information?

The personal information that is collected from users at registration (name, email and a user-selected Tethys password) is stored on the Tethys server and used solely for purposes of identifying users to allow the use of personalization features. The use of this information is solely for web site administrative purposes, and our policy is to not allow any non-administrative use by Tethys or third parties.

OK, I've registered on Tethys. How can I change or update my personal information?

Simply visit the Special:Preferences page to update your registration information.

I have information that I think belongs on Tethys. How can I contribute?

If you have information and/or data which you think belongs on Tethys, let us know! Send us an email with a description of your information and will be more than happy to work with you to get your information up onto Tethys.

Who is responsible for the content of Tethys?

Currently, researchers and scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are responsible for providing and curating the content of Tethys. As the user base grows, registered users will also begin to contribute additional content to Tethys.

I can’t find what I’m looking for and/or have questions that are not answered here. Can you help?

If you are having trouble finding what you are looking for, and have searched all possible fields, please feel free to contact us.

For more information, please visit our Contact Page.

Are there other sites similar to Tethys that you could direct me to?

When it comes to a knowledge management system that houses environmental effects information and data on offshore renewable energy, Tethys really is one of a kind. One notable example of a similar knowledge base is the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS). This database holds over 700 BOEM-sponsored environmental research projects and over 2,000 research reports. More information on ESPIS can be found here.

What is that little scissor icon that shows up on the search knowledge base page(s)?

Clicking on that "scissor" icon will allow you export the currently displayed table data in a variety of formats. This may be useful if you are attempting to generate a list of documents related to a specific topic, and would prefer to have them in a format that (for instance) could be imported into a program like Microsoft Excel. This icon will remain hidden until you move your cursor over the data area, at which point it will appear and be clickable to bring up a menu of export format options.

How are dates commonly displayed?

The date is shown as year/month/day (ex. 2012/05/18 corresponds with May 18th, 2012)

On the search knowledge base page(s), how can I use boolean operators to narrow my search terms?

You can use boolean operators in your faceted search but need to ensure your boolean operators are capitalized. Note that "AND" is the default boolean operator. Therefore, if you were to type in "fish birds" into the search field, your result would contain BOTH of the searched items. If you wanted to find documents that contain either "fish" or "birds", you would need use the search string "fish OR birds" in the search field. This will give you only results that contain fish OR birds. Available boolean operators are "AND" and "OR" to help narrow your search results.