Thing 5: Data sharing

Research data may be shared in many ways.  This week we look at 3 ways.

  • Getting started: looks at sharing data via access methods: Open, Shared and Closed Data
  • Learn more: explores data sharing trends of some countries and by disciplines
  • Challenge me: dips into ensuring that data can be shared for a long time via some preservation tools

Getting started

Access to research data

Introducing ‘open’, ‘shared’ and ‘closed’ data.

When you explore Research Data Australia, you may notice that not all the data described is available for immediate access. This activity explains why different datasets may have different access conditions.

  1. Watch this 2.5 minute video from the Open Data Institute titled Open/Closed/Shared: the world of data.
  2. Read the open data handbook for a more in-depth discussion of open data. Read about how open sourcing genomes helped scientists to crowdsource solutions for killer outbreaks.
  3. If you have time, go to Research Data Australia and try searching for data that is ‘open’. Hint: Look for the option to limit your search to data that is publicly accessible online.

Consider: why more data isn’t publicly accessible or more ‘open’.

Learn more

Data sharing practices

Repositories are one means by which research data may be shared.

  1. Take a look at these infographics from Wiley titled Research Data Sharing Insights [PDF, 2.08MB], and Global Data Sharing Trends. They provide a succinct overview of current data sharing practice and perceptions.
  2. Now look closely at the sections titled ‘Global Data Sharing Trends’ and ‘Data Sharing By Discipline’

Consider: Why do you think there are differences between disciplines and countries - what changes to these statistics would you expect between 2014 and now?

Challenge me

Tools to preserve research data

Data sharing is only a long term prospect if repositories have preservation as part of their workflows and procedures.

Community Owned digital Preservation Tool Registry (COPTR) describes tools useful for long term digital preservation and acts primarily as a finding and evaluation tool to help practitioners find the tools they need to preserve digital data.

  1. Go to the COPTR site and pick a discipline you are familiar with and see what tools are available to support long term data sharing of datasets.
  2. Try out one of the tools in COPTR and share a brief evaluation of it.

Consider: Have you, or would you, use any of these tools? How feasible it is to expect such preservation tools to be widely used?

Do you have a question? Want to share a resource?

Keep on going to the next thing: Long-lived data: curation & preservation or return to all the things