Metadata, vocabularies and licensing Managing research data in repositories workshop, 11 Nov 2015 Kathryn Unsworth

What I’ll cover today A little context What is metadata? ●Definitions ●Types of metadata You say, I say, we say – metadata huh?! Repository managers/staff helping researchers to: ●Improve their metadata for discovery/interoperability - a brief look at controlled vocabularies ●Improve their metadata for reuse - a brief look at licensing

Can’t be done without metadata!

Data without metadata is wasted effort! Copyrighted image – Wasting time - ways-we-waste-time-what-to-do-about-it/

What is metadata? Definitions, types of metadata and examples

Metadata is “structured data about data”. It typically provides detailed information about a specific data object or file. DATUM in Action What is metadata? “Metadata is structured information that describes, explains, locates, or otherwise makes it easier to retrieve, use, or manage an information resource. Metadata is often called data about data or information about information.” --National Information Standards Organisation (NISO) Metadata provides information enabling us to make sense of data (e.g. documents, images, datasets), concepts (e.g. classification schemes) and real-world entities (e.g. people, organisations, places). Open Data Support - en_0.pdf en_0.pdf

You say, I say, we say – are we talking about the same thing?

Labels in a spreadsheet; accompanying data dictionary Digital image attributes coming off photographic equipment: image size, color depth, image resolution, when the image was created, etc. ReadMe file accompanying software code File/Folder names Meta tags for web pages Meteorological measurements: location of readings (latitude, longitude, and height), instrumentation used to collect data, units, processing actions Metadata for research dataset records For example:

The metadata “accompanying your data set should be written for a user 20 years into the future. Therefore, you should consider what that investigator needs to know to use your data. Write the documentation for a user who is unfamiliar with your project, sites, methods, or observations.“ Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Distributed Active Archive CenterOak Ridge National Laboratory, Distributed Active Archive Center (2010) A message to your researchers: Cea+. (2012). Metadata is a love not to the future CC By 2.0

Data without metadata is a missed opportunity! Quote by Thomas Edison “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Assumed copyrighted image from: /citations-thomas-edison/

Common types of metadata: Descriptive metadata - describes a dataset for the purposes of discovery and identification Structural metadata – models content types and attributes (records, elements, attributes) and also indicates how a dataset may form part of a multi- layered and/or complex data object (data collection) Administrative metadata - provides information to help manage a dataset and ensure its authenticity (versions, ownership (IP), licensing)

Administrative metadata

Structural metadata {A} Repository managers have responsibility for some of the structural metadata that shapes their data collection records, i.e. what are the most appropriate elements/fields to include.

Structural metadata

Descriptive metadata

Data without metadata is only half the story! So why are we telling half the story? Assumed Copyrighted image from Google: 680&bih=921&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0CFgQ7AlqFQoTCICVz- 7zk8kCFeXfpgodVZUGlg&dpr=1#tbm=isch&q=telling+only+half+the+story&imgrc=Yn RV0S_VAPsZiM%3A

Aiding data discovery Raising a researcher’s profile

What is a controlled vocabulary? Using thesauri, taxonomies and standardised lists of terms for assigning values to metadata properties.

Vocabularies in everyday life

Aiding data reuse Vocabularies

Vocabularies & research

Vocabularies & data reuse {A} Data Data dictionary

Vocabularies & data linking {A}

ANDS Vocabulary Service - RVA

ANDS Vocabulary Service © Australian National Data Service 2015, is licenced under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence ( vocabs.ands.org.au RVA Documentation Home: Contact us to get started:

Data reuse and the role of licensing

Aiding data reuse Making Ts & Cs around data reuse explicit

Rights and data reuse Front facing in RDA Registry view in RDA Recent Release 18 changes to RIF-CS vocabulary - definitions Open: Data is publicly accessible online Conditional: Data is publicly accessible online, subject to certain conditions. For example: an embargo period; a fee applies. Restricted: Data access is limited. For example: to a particular group of users; where formal permission is granted; the data may only be accessed at a specific physical location.

AusGOAL licensing framework AusGOALAusGOAL contains eight licensing options: Six Australian Creative Commons (CC) Version 4.0 licences Restrictive Licence Template (RLT) BSD 3-Clause Software Licence ANDS endorses AusGOAL Wide support by Federal and State Governments

Licensing and data NOT FOR DATA Slide is courtesy of Baden Appleyard – Director of AusGOAL

Creative Commons Licenses compatibility

The Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research says "Researchers have a responsibility to their colleagues and the wider community to disseminate a full account of their research as broadly as possible". In terms of research data, the best way to achieve this objective is to license the data (using AusGOAL) and to place it in a publicly-accessible repository (along with appropriate metadata etc). If you don't license the data, no-one else can use it; it's that simple! A message for researchers ANDS - Copyright, data and licensing

“Metadata has value for data users, data developers, and organizations. No dataset should be considered complete without accompanying metadata. Data without metadata is useless ”. Source: U.S. Geological Survey - Core Science Analytics and Synthesis – Metadata

Dublin Core Element Set - Emphasis on web resources, publications FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (CSDGM) - Emphasis on geospatial data ISO 19115/19139 Geographic information: Metadata - Emphasis on geospatial data and services standards#fgdcendorsedisostandards Metadata Standards Examples

Metadata Standards Examples continued… Ecological Metadata Language (EML) - Focus on ecological data Darwin Core - Emphasis on museum specimens Geography Markup Language (GML) - Emphasis on geographic features (roads, highways, bridges)

In summary Well-managed, well-connected, discoverable and reusable data depend on metadata! Minimal metadata is acceptable for discovery, but can be useless for the reuse of data When talking with researchers and other data stakeholders, either be explicit about what metadata is in scope or better still refer to it in another way Controlled vocabs are highly useful for data discovery, interoperability, and reuse – check out RVA Data without an appropriate license is essentially a reuse nightmare

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia License ANDS is supported by the Australian Government through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS).