1. Managing your research data
Ben Taylorson
Academic Liaison Librarian

2. Outline Why manage data? What is data management? Data life cycle
Putting together a plan
Actively managing data
Metadata
Backups
Versions
Storing and sharing

3. What are data?
Research data, unlike other types of information, is collected, observed, or created, for purposes of analysis to produce original research results.
Qualitative or quantitative
Analogue or digital – both have challenges

4. Reasons to manage your data
Responsible conduct of research
Funding body grant requirements
Research integrity and replication
Increase research efficiency
Save time and resources
Enhance data security
Prevent duplication of effort by enabling others to use your data

5. Climategate
1,000 private s and many other documents were stolen or leaked from the University of East Anglia's (UEA) Climatic Research Unit (CRU) in November 2009
While HoC Select Committee cleared them of scientific failings, it did find room for improvement in research practices.

6. Activity What is data management? Think about A definition
Elements of data management
Questions/issues

7. A definition “
actively managing data for as long as it continues to be of scholarly, scientific, research and/or administrative interest […] managing it from its point of creation until it is determined not to be useful, and ensuring its long-term accessibility and preservation, authenticity and integrity.
Adapted from Digital Curation Centre definition for digital curation
It is not just archiving or preservation “”

8. What is data management?
Planning
Creation
Processing
Describing, archiving and organisation
Analysing
Preservation and security
Access and reuse
Ethics and privacy
Disposal

9. Data life cycle www.data-archive.ac.uk/create-manage/life-cycle
creating
processing
analysing
preserving
giving access
reusing
Data life cycle

10. Specific Plans
ICPSR Framework
Digital Curation Centre Data Management Plan
Individual institutions e.g. Oxford and MIT

11. Creating data
Types of data e.g. text, numerical, models, multimedia, software
Format e.g. Word or PDF, XML or Excel? Consider longevity and choose open formats
How much data will you produce?
How will you document it?
Will the data change or be updated? Tracking?
Will it be reproducible?
What if it was lost?

12. Metadata Accurately describing your data so
you can find and understand it again efficiently
others can reuse your data easily
Descriptive, administrative, structural
Basic – files and folders in Windows
Complex – XML, Dublin Core
Where will this be stored? With the data? Will you need additional storage/software?

13. Basic metadata Flickr For own use
Project level descriptor then breakdown into useful groupings
Unique element including date
PhD\Primary Research\Interviews\phase 1\ Government officials\Highlevel\MrSmith mp3
PhD\Primary Research\Interviews\phase 1\ Government officials\Highlevel\ MrSmith docx
Flickr

14. More complex metadata Dates Funders Language Location Rights
List of file names and relationships
Formats
Methodology

15. More complex metadata
Workflows
Sources
Versions
Checksums
Explanation of codes used in file names
List of codes used in files
Store metadata in a text file (such as a readme file or codebook) in the same directory as the data

16. Version control Will you retain originals or overwrite as you go?
Will anyone else be editing the information and do you need to track these changes?
Need to consider this before deciding on naming conventions

17. Storage Short term Think about volume of data
Which media you will use do you need something more than DVD/portable hard drive
Security
Cost

18. Backups
Make 3 copies which are geographical distributed (original + external/local + external/remote)
ITS will do much of this for you but what if remote from Durham?
How frequently?
Analogue data
Consider digitising if unique

19. Preservation Long-term, more strategic Selection criteria
Time-scale – how long will it be saved for?
Disposal
Additional information necessary for deposit?
Does it need to be migrated?
Where will it be deposited? Will they manage it for you?

20. Where to preserve your data
UK Data Archive
Archaeology Data Service, History DS, Economic and Social DS, Oxford Text Archive
No one repository at Durham University for data, only outputs; speak to Sebastian Palucha at Main Library

21. Sharing Will you share it? Are you obliged to share it?
Who will be interested in it? How might they use it?
Are there reasons not to fully disclose data?
How will it be accessed?
When will you make it available? Embargo?
Will you publish findings that rely on the data?
Consider FOI

22. Dissemination
Deposit in a specialist data centre, dedicated to archiving digital data
Submitting to a journal (may be required)
Deposit in a self-archiving system or an institutional repository
Via a project or institutional website
Informally on a peer-to-peer basis e.g.

23. Activity
Thinking about the data life cycle, look at the ICPSR guidance
Try and fill in some of the sections of the DCC Data Management Plan
Have you identified any areas on which you will need to seek further advice?

24. Sources of guidance Durham University
UK Data Archive (Social Sciences and Humanities)
Create and Manage Data
Digital Curation Centre
Research Information Network
Funders’ web sites

25. Conclusions Good data management = good research practice
Needs management throughout its life cycle
Planning helpful and possibly a requirement of funders
Depositing data for preservation and access
Slides available at