1. Digital data – integrity and standards
Dr Simon Cockell
Bioinformatics Support Unit

2. Generating data

3. Generating big data

4. Problem…
Data doesn’t fit in: (try pasting an Informative genome sequence, DIGE gel, array experiment or Excel spreadsheet into this)

5. So where do we store it instead?

6. Why is this a problem? Is your PC backed up?
Do you check integrity of files?
Back up – daily? Usb or ‘real’?
Data integrity – bit rot is a real problem

7. Why is this a problem? How organised is your electronic life?
How well does it correlate with your lab book?
How do you know which files go with which experiment?
Be organised, and systematic (true for small experiments as well as big – get into the habit).
Need to record what has happened to data, as well as the data itself.

8. Data Management Options
H: drive
Lab/Department solution
Research Data Warehouse
Cloud
Repository

9. Repositories
Functional Genomics (transcriptomics, ChIP, epigenomics etc)
Array Express
Gene Expression Omnibus
Proteomics
PRIDE (EBI)
Next generation sequencing data
SRA (NCBI)
ENA (EBI)

10. Metadata Data repositories not simple data dump Also require metadata
Data about data
Good metadata describes experimental setup
Enables reproducibility
Recording as you go makes life easier

11. There is another issue
Big data - scientific data - is EXPENSIVE to generate
It makes sense to get the most value out of it
Your funding bodies know this
Often your funding is from public money
You may think you have ownership of this data
But do you? Or the University?

12. Increasing pressure to share data“
BBSRC expects research data generated as a result of BBSRC support to be made available with as few restrictions as possible in a timely and responsible manner to the scientific community for subsequent research. Applicants should make use of existing standards for data collection and management and make data available through existing community resources or databases where possible.

13. Increasing pressure to share data“
The MRC expects valuable data arising from MRC-funded research to be made available to the scientific community with as few restrictions as possible so as to maximize the value of the data for research and for eventual patient and public benefit. Such data must be shared in a timely and responsible manner.

14. To sum up Back up your machine! USB ‘flash’ drives do not count
Be as organised with your digital data as you are with your lab books
Be aware of the expectations for releasing data
Capturing good metadata will make many things easier (including writing up!)
<shameless plug>Want to talk about how best to analyse and store your digital data? Come talk to us!</shameless plug>

15. Digital Data – Integrity and Standards
Simon Cockell
bsu.ncl.ac.uk
@sjcockell