Data Curation, Open Data, and Research Data Management – Page 49

Key Digital Preservation Standard Updated: Open Archival Information System (OAIS)

ISO has published ISO 14721:2012: Space Data and Information Transfer Systems—Open Archival Information System (OAIS)—Reference Model. A PDF version with marked changes is available from the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems.

Here's an excerpt:

This reference model:

provides a framework for the understanding and increased awareness of archival concepts needed for Long Term digital information preservation and access;

provides the concepts needed by non-archival organizations to be effective participants in the preservation process;

provides a framework, including terminology and concepts, for describing and comparing architectures and operations of existing and future Archives;

provides a framework for describing and comparing different Long Term Preservation strategies and techniques;

provides a basis for comparing the data models of digital information preserved by Archives and for discussing how data models and the underlying information may change over time;

provides a framework that may be expanded by other efforts to cover Long Term Preservation of information that is NOT in digital form (e.g., physical media and physical samples);

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

"Ten Recommendations for Libraries to Get Started with Research Data Management"

The LIBER working group on E-Science has released "Ten Recommendations for Libraries to Get Started with Research Data Management."

Here's an excerpt:

LIBER installed the 'E-Science working group' in 2010 to investigate the role libraries can and should play in the field of E-Science. The group decided to focus on research data as it was felt to be the most urgent element of e-science that is of relevance to the community of (research) libraries. The group has held three workshops, the first during the LIBER conference 2011 in Barcelona, the second during the IDCC 2011 conference in Bristol and the third and last one during the LIBER conference 2012 in Tartu. The results of the first two workshops were used as a basis for compiling recommendations to the LIBER ommunity. The "10 recommendations for libraries to support research data management" (see side bar) were finalized and prioritized during the final workshop at the LIBER-conference in Tartu.

| Digital Curation Resource Guide | Digital Scholarship |

"Researchers’ Attitudes towards Data Discovery: Implications for a UCLA Data Registry"

Rachel A. Mandell has self-archived her thesis, "Researchers' Attitudes towards Data Discovery: Implications for a UCLA Data Registry," in SSRN.

Here's an excerpt:

The UCLA Data Registry is a tool designed to serve the greater UCLA research community by collecting and making available surrogate records of research datasets. To figure out how to build this system in accordance with the needs of the community, a total of 20 researchers from disparate disciplines were interviewed about their data and metadata practices. The results indicate that researchers' attitudes and behaviors towards making their work discoverable depend on their concept and definition of data. Given that the UCLA Library will build the UCLA Data Registry, it is important to consider the other possible tools that researchers could use in conjunction with the registry to enhance the discoverability of their data. The Data Registry will be built utilizing a basic metadata schema rather than very specific descriptive fields. The interviews also demonstrated that the culture of publishing and venues for data dissemination are shifting away from the traditional journal article publication, especially in emerging areas such as the digital humanities.

| Digital Curation Resource Guide | Digital Scholarship |

Best Practices for Citability of Data and Evolving Roles in Scholarly Communication

Opportunities for Data Exchange has released Best Practices for Citability of Data and Evolving Roles in Scholarly Communication.

Here's an excerpt:

This report sets out the current thinking on data citation best practice and presents the results of a survey of librarians asking how new support roles could and should be developed. The findings presented here build on the extensive desk research carried out for the report "Integration of Data and Publication" (Reilly, Schallier, Schrimpf, Smit, & Wilkinson, Sept 2011), which identified that data citation was an area of opportunity for both researchers and libraries. That report also recounted the findings of a workshop held at the LIBER 2011 Conference in Barcelona. . . .This previous work is supported here with further information gathered through extensive desk research, structured interviews and an online survey of LIBER members to explore best practice in data citation and evolving support roles for libraries.

| Research Data Curation Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

Sharing Research Data: Compilation of Results on Drivers and Barriers and New Opportunities

Opportunities for Data Exchange has released Compilation of Results on Drivers and Barriers and New Opportunities.

Here's an excerpt:

Opportunities for Data Exchange (ODE) is a FP7 Project carried out by members of the Alliance for Permanent Access (APA), which is gathering evidence to support strategic investment in the emerging e-Infrastructure for data sharing, re-use and preservation. The ODE Conceptual Model has been developed within the Project to characterise the process of data sharing and the factors which give rise to variations in data sharing for different parties involved. Within the overall Conceptual Model there can be identified models of process, of context, and of drivers, barriers and enablers. The Conceptual Model has been evolved on the basis of existing knowledge and expertise, and draws on research conducted both outside of the ODE Project and in earlier stages of the Project itself (Sections 1-2).

| Research Data Curation Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

"De-Mystifying the Data Management Requirements of Research Funders"

Dianne Dietrich, Trisha Adamus, Alison Miner, and Gail Steinhart have published "De-Mystifying the Data Management Requirements of Research Funders" in the latest issue of Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship.

Here's an excerpt:

Research libraries have sought to apply their information management expertise to the management of digital research data. This focus has been spurred in part by the policies of two major funding agencies in the United States, which require grant recipients make research outputs, including publications and research data, openly available. As many academic libraries are beginning to offer or are already offering assistance in writing and implementing data management plans, it is important to consider how best to support researchers. Our research examined the current data management requirements of major US funding agencies to better understand data management requirements facing researchers and the implications for libraries offering data management services for researchers.

| Research Data Curation Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

Syracuse University’s School of Information Studies Offers Certificate of Advanced Study in Data Science

Syracuse University's School of Information Studies is offering a Certificate of Advanced Study in Data Science.

Here's an excerpt from the program web page:

Data scientists collect, organize, store, analyze and share big data. In other words, they know where data lives and can find it. They keep it in an accessible format ready for query. They look at data and see patterns and trends. Most importantly, they share what they find with partners, collaborators and, in many cases, the world.

The iSchool is helping lead the dialogue in defining data science within the academic community and within industry. In doing so, students in this CAS program have the rare opportunity to place their fingerprint on the first wave of standards. This will help institutions and affiliates clarify the murky definitions of data science as it infiltrates public consciousness over the next five to ten years. Professionals with this CAS are particularly poised to lead this field. Our students gain hard, technical skills but also possess the soft, theoretical skills that organizations desperately need.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

Digital Curation Resource Guide

Digital Scholarship has released the Digital Curation Resource Guide.

This resource guide presents over 200 selected English-language websites and documents that are useful in understanding and conducting digital curation. It covers academic programs, discussion lists and groups, glossaries, file formats and guidelines, metadata standards and vocabularies, models, organizations, policies, research data management, serials and blogs, services and vendor software, software and tools, and training. It is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.

The Digital Curation Resource Guide complements the Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works, which was released in June.

It is also available as an EPUB file (see How to Read EPUB Files).

The Future of Big Data

The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project has released The Future of Big Data.

Here's an excerpt:

Imagine where we might be in 2020. The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project and Elon University's Imagining the Internet Center asked digital stakeholders to weigh two scenarios for 2020, select the one most likely to evolve, and elaborate on the choice. One sketched out a relatively positive future where Big Data are drawn together in ways that will improve social, political, and economic intelligence. The other expressed the view that Big Data could cause more problems than it solves between now and 2020.

Respondents to our query rendered a decidedly split verdict.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

The Journal of Heredity Joins Growing Number of Journals Mandating Data Archiving

The American Genetic Association has mandated the Joint Data Archiving Policy for the Journal of Heredity. The Joint Data Archiving Policy (JDAP) page lists other journals that mandate data archiving.

| Digital Curation and Preservation Bibliography 2010 | Digital Scholarship |

Managing Research Data in Big Science

Norman Gray, Tobia Carozzi, and Graham Woan have self-archived Managing Research Data in Big Science in arXiv.org.

Here's an excerpt:

The project which led to this report was funded by JISC in 2010-2011 as part of its 'Managing Research Data' programme, to examine the way in which Big Science data is managed, and produce any recommendations which may be appropriate. . . .

This project has explored these differences using as a case-study Gravitational Wave data generated by the LSC [LIGO Scientific Collaboration], and has produced recommendations intended to be useful variously to JISC, the funding council (STFC) and the LSC community.

In Sect. 1 we define what we mean by 'big science', describe the overall data culture there, laying stress on how it necessarily or contingently differs from other disciplines.

In Sect. 2 we discuss the benefits of a formal data-preservation strategy, and the cases for open data and for well-preserved data that follow from that. . . .

In Sect. 3 we briefly discuss the LIGO data management plan, and pull together whatever information is available on the estimation of digital preservation costs.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

After UK’s RCUK Policy, European Commission Announces Another Major Open Access Policy

Yesterday DigitalKoans reported on the Research Councils UK's new open access policy. Today, the European Commission has announced another major open access policy.

Here's an excerpt from the press release:

The European Commission today outlined measures to improve access to scientific information produced in Europe. Broader and more rapid access to scientific papers and data will make it easier for researchers and businesses to build on the findings of public-funded research. This will boost Europe's innovation capacity and give citizens quicker access to the benefits of scientific discoveries. In this way, it will give Europe a better return on its €87 billion annual investment in R&D. The measures complement the Commission's Communication to achieve a European Research Area (ERA), also adopted today.

As a first step, the Commission will make open access to scientific publications a general principle of Horizon 2020, the EU's Research & Innovation funding programme for 2014-2020. As of 2014, all articles produced with funding from Horizon 2020 will have to be accessible:

articles will either immediately be made accessible online by the publisher ('Gold' open access)—up-front publication costs can be eligible for reimbursement by the European Commission; or

researchers will make their articles available through an open access repository no later than six months (12 months for articles in the fields of social sciences and humanities) after publication ('Green' open access).

The Commission has also recommended that Member States take a similar approach to the results of research funded under their own domestic programmes. The goal is for 60% of European publicly-funded research articles to be available under open access by 2016.

The Commission will also start experimenting with open access to the data collected during publicly funded research (e.g. the numerical results of experiments), taking into account legitimate concerns related to the fundee's commercial interests or to privacy.

| Transforming Scholarly Publishing through Open Access: A Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

"Government Response to the Finch Group Report: ‘Accessibility, Sustainability, Excellence: How to Expand Access to Research Publications’"

David Willetts, the UK Minister for Science and Universities, has issued "Government Response to the Finch Group Report: 'Accessibility, Sustainability, Excellence: How to Expand Access to Research Publications'."

Here's an excerpt:

The Government has listened carefully to what publishers, learned societies and the Finch Group collectively have had to say on this issue. We prefer the 'gold' over the 'green' model, especially where the research is taxpayer funded so the Government agrees with the sentiment expressed in the Finch Report. Embargo periods allowed by funding bodies for publishers should be short where publishers have chosen not to take up the preferred option of their receiving an Article Processing Charge (which provides payment in full for immediate publication by the 'gold OA' route). Where APC funds are not available to the publisher or learned society, for the publication of publicly-funded research, then publishers could reasonably insist on a longer more equitable embargo period. This could be up to 12 months for science, technology and engineering publications and longer for publications in those disciplines which require more time to secure payback. Even so, publications with embargo periods longer than two years may find it difficult to argue that they are also serving the public interest.

| Open Access Bibliography: Liberating Scholarly Literature with E-Prints and Open Access Journals | Digital Scholarship |

Research Councils UK Adopts New Open Access Policy

The Research Councils UK has adopted a new open access policy.

Here's an excerpt from the press release:

Research Councils UK (RCUK) has today, 16th July 2012, unveiled its new Open Access policy. Informed by the work of the National Working Group on Expanding Access to Published Research Findings, chaired by Professor Dame Janet Finch, the policy at once harmonises and makes significant changes to existing Research Councils' Open Access policies. . . .

The new policy, which will apply to all qualifying publications being submitted for publication from 1 April 2013, states that peer reviewed research papers which result from research that is wholly or partially funded by the Research Councils:

must be published in journals which are compliant with Research Council policy on Open Access, and;

must include details of the funding that supported the research, and a statement on how the underlying research materials such as data, samples or models can be accessed.

Criteria which journals must fulfill to be compliant with the Research Councils' Open Access policy are detailed within the policy, but include offering a 'pay to publish'; option or allowing deposit in a subject or institutional repository after a mandated maximum embargo period. In addition, the policy mandates use of 'CC-BY', the Creative Commons 'Attribution' license, when an APC is levied. The CC_BY licence allows others to modify, build upon and/or distribute the licensed work (including for commercial purposes) as long as the original author is credited.

The Research Councils will provide block grants to eligible UK Higher Education Institutions, approved independent research organisations and Research Council Institutes to support payment of the Article Processing Charges (APCs) associated with 'pay-to-publish'. In parallel, eligible organisations will be expected to set-up and manage their own publication funds. The Research Councils will work with eligible organisations to discuss the detail of the new approach to funding APCs and to ensure that appropriate and auditable mechanisms are put in place to manage the funds.

Along with HEFCE and other relevant Funding Bodies, we shall monitor these policies actively, both to review their effects and to ensure that our joint objectives on Open Access are being met.

| Transforming Scholarly Publishing through Open Access: A Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

"A Study of Faculty Data Curation Behaviors and Attitudes at a Teaching-Centered University"

Jeanine Marie Scaramozzino, Marisa L. Ramírez, and Karen J. McGaughey have published "A Study of Faculty Data Curation Behaviors and Attitudes at a Teaching-Centered University" in the latest issue of College & Research Libraries.

Here's an excerpt:

This paper describes information gathered from a survey distributed to the College of Science and Mathematics faculty at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly), a master's-granting, teaching-centered institution. There was a more than 60 percent response rate to the survey. The survey results provided insight into the science researchers' data curation awareness, behaviors, and attitudes, as well as what needs they exhibited for services and education regarding maintenance and management of data. It is important that professional librarians understand what researchers both inside and outside their own institutions know so that they can collaborate with their university colleagues to examine data curation needs.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Library and Information Studies Offers Online Introduction to Research Data Management Course

The University of Wisconsin-Madison's School of Library and Information Studies is offering an online Introduction to Research Data Management course taught by Dorothea Salo. The course runs from 9/10/2012-11/30/2012.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

Research Data Management: "Improving University Research Value: A Case Study"

Kelley O'Reilly, Jeffrey Johnson, and Georgiann Sanborn have published "Improving University Research Value: A Case Study" in SAGE Open.

Here's an excerpt:

This article investigates the current data management practices of university researchers at an Intermountain West land-grant research university in the United States. Key findings suggest that researchers are primarily focused on the collection and housing of research data. However, additional research value exists within the other life cycle stages for research data—specifically in the stages of delivery and maintenance. These stages are where most new demands and requirements exist for data management plans and policies that are conditional for external grant funding; therefore, these findings expose a "gap" in current research practice. These findings should be of interest to academics and practitioners alike as findings highlight key management gaps in the life cycle of research data. This study also suggests a course of action for academic institutions to coalesce campus-wide assets to assist researchers in improving research value.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

EPUB Version of Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works

Digital Scholarship has released an open access EPUB version of the Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works.

EPUB is the International Digital Publishing Forum's format standard for digital books. EPUB files can be read using free e-book reader software, such as Adobe Digital Editions and the Apple iBooks app (download e-book with Safari) as well as e-book readers, such as the Barnes & Noble Nook readers. See the EPUB Wikipedia page for more details and reader options.

Here's an excerpt from the original announcement of the book:

In a rapidly changing technological environment, the difficult task of ensuring long-term access to digital information is increasingly important. This selective bibliography presents over 650 English-language articles, books, and technical reports that are useful in understanding digital curation and preservation. It covers digital curation and preservation copyright issues, digital formats (e.g., data, media, and e-journals), metadata, models and policies, national and international efforts, projects and institutional implementations, research studies, services, strategies, and digital repository concerns.

Most sources have been published from 2000 through 2011; however, a limited number of key sources published prior to 2000 are also included. The bibliography includes links to freely available versions of included works, such as e-prints and open access articles.

The Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works is available as a paperback (98 pages, $9.95, ISBN 1477497692 and ISBN-13: 9781477497692) and an open access PDF file. All versions of the bibliography are available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.

| Reviews of Digital Scholarship Publications | Digital Scholarship |

TechWatch: Preparing for Data-driven Infrastructure (Draft)

The JISC Observatory has released a draft for public comment of TechWatch: Preparing for Data-driven Infrastructure.

Here's an excerpt :

This report provides an overview of some concepts and approaches as well as tools, and can be used to help organisational planning. Specifically, this report:

describes data-centric architectures;

gives some examples of how data are already shared between organisations and discusses this from a datacentric perspective;

introduces some of the key tools and technologies that can support data-centric architectures as well as some new models of data management, including opportunities to use "cloud" services;

concludes with a look at the direction of travel and lists the sources cited in a References section.

| Research Data Curation Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

Open Data Dialogue: Final Report

Research Councils UK has released Open Data Dialogue: Final Report.

Here's an excerpt:

Undertaken on the behalf of the Research Councils UK in partnership with JISC, the Royal Society and Sciencewise-ERC, this public dialogue explored views on open data, data reuse and data management policies within research.

The public dialogue was designed to:

Provide insight on the business issues that the dialogue will support, at the research councils and JISC

Build on prior work in the area and account for the wider policy framework

Engage people meaningfully around this complex area, enabling the public to frame issues and test out any principles emerging across a range of research contexts.

The research comprised a number of elements:

an initial literature and policy review of the area

two reconvened discussion groups in Swindon and Oldham

a workshop involving key stakeholders conducted between the first and second wave of the public dialogues.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

Science as an Open Enterprise

The Royal Society has released Science as an Open Enterprise.

Here's an excerpt:

This report analyses the impact of new and emerging technologies that are transforming the conduct and communication of research. The recommendations are designed to improve the conduct of science, respond to changing public expectations and political culture and enable researchers to maximise the impact of their research. They are designed to ensure that reproducibility and self-correction are maintained in an era of massive data volumes. They aim to stimulate the communication and collaboration where these are needed to maximise the value of data-intensive approaches to science. Action is needed to maximise the exploitation of science in business and in public policy. But not all data are of equal interest and importance. Some are rightly confidential for commercial, privacy, safety or security reasons. There are both opportunities and financial costs in the full presentation of data and metadata. The recommendations set out key principles. The main text explores how to judge their application and where accountability should lie.

| Research Data Curation Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

Research Data Management: Review of DCC Tools and Guidance

The REDm-MED Project has released the Review of DCC Tools and Guidance.

Here's an excerpt:

In the course of its work, the REDm-MED Project has used various tools and guidance produced by the DCC, most notably CARDIO and DMP Online, the latter in both its checklist and software forms. The Project team found CARDIO to be promising but in need of further development before being used widely. The process of setting up a DMP Online template was relatively straightforward, but unfortunately there was no opportunity to solicit feedback from researchers on using it in the context of the tool.

| Research Data Curation Bibliography | Digital Scholarship |

One Culture. Computationally Intensive Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences: A Report on the Experiences of First Respondents to the Digging Into Data Challenge

The Council on Library and Information Resources. has released One Culture. Computationally Intensive Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences: A Report on the Experiences of First Respondents to the Digging Into Data Challenge.

Here's an excerpt from the announcement, which includes links to additional case studies:

This report culminates two years of work by CLIR staff involving extensive interviews and site visits with scholars engaged in international research collaborations involving computational analysis of large data corpora. These scholars were the first recipients of grants through the Digging into Data program, led by the NEH, who partnered with JISC in the UK, SSHRC in Canada, and the NSF to fund the first eight initiatives. The report introduces the eight projects and discusses the importance of these cases as models for the future of research in the academy.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

Repositories for Visual Arts Research Data: Kaptur Technical Report

The KAPTUR project has released the Kaptur Technical Report.

Here's an excerpt:

This report is framed around the research question: which technical system is most suitable for managing visual arts research data? . . . .

The Technical Manager selected 17 systems to compare with the user requirement document (Appendix B). Five of the systems had similar scores so these were short-listed. The Technical Manager created an online form into which the Project Officers entered priority scores for each of the user requirements in order to calculate a more accurate score for each of the five short-listed systems (Appendix C) and this resulted in the choice of EPrints as the software for the KAPTUR project.

| Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works | Digital Scholarship |

Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works

Digital Scholarship has released the Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works.

In a rapidly changing technological environment, the difficult task of ensuring long-term access to digital information is increasingly important. This selective bibliography presents over 650 English-language articles, books, and technical reports that are useful in understanding digital curation and preservation. It covers digital curation and preservation copyright issues, digital formats (e.g., data, media, and e-journals), metadata, models and policies, national and international efforts, projects and institutional implementations, research studies, services, strategies, and digital repository concerns.

Most sources have been published from 2000 through 2011; however, a limited number of key sources published prior to 2000 are also included. The bibliography includes links to freely available versions of included works, such as e-prints and open access articles.

The Digital Curation Bibliography: Preservation and Stewardship of Scholarly Works is available as a paperback (98 pages, $9.95, ISBN 1477497692 and ISBN-13: 9781477497692) and an open access PDF file. All versions of the bibliography are available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.

| Digital Scholarship's Digital/Print Books | Digital Scholarship |