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The 10 marine science (rd) Things: Thing 5

Thing 5: What are publishers & funders saying about data?

Data sharing policies are becoming increasingly common in Australia and internationally. Learn why research funders and journal publishers are particularly influential when it comes to encouraging data availability.

Activity 1: Learn about journal data policies

More and more journal publishers are asking authors to make the data underpinning a journal article available. It’s all about ensuring that the research being described in the article is based on solid, reproducible science. Thinking back to Thing 4: Data Sharing, remember that “available” can be “open” or “shared” through mediated access.

Have a look at the resources below:

1. Data policies of journal publishers:

2. Figshare and Dryad are data repositories which integrated data and articles. They facilitate submission of your research data to journals.

3. Look up a journal you know and see what the advice the journal gives on related data.

Consider: How easy, or hard, it was for you to understand what you had to do in regard to research data?

Activity 2: Data Journals

Explore this relatively new form of data publishing: the data journal. Data journals focus on data, rather than discuss an analysis of the data (as in traditional journals).

Read the following short introduction to data journals::

2. Browse the following data paper published in the data journal Scientific Data. 

a. Note the extensive exposure of the data through maps, links to full tables, and diagrams etc. and how to cite this article.

Consider: Why do you think authors might choose to share their data in data journals rather than, or in addition to, traditional journal formats?

Activity 3: Data sharing policies of funders

The Australian Research Council (ARC) provides funding to various research programs in Australia.

1. Take a look at the Australian Research Council (ARC) requirements on research data management:

2. Review the ANDS Guide to filling in the data management section in ARC grant applications. What are some of the aspects of research data management a researcher can look into when describing how to manage his/her datasets when applying for a grant?

3. Click the link below to check how long is the embargo period allowable to a Western Australian Marine Science Institution (WAMSI) funded researcher before his/her research project data is made accessible to the public.

International collaborations are increasingly common in our ever-connected world. Researchers in Australia are involved in projects funded by overseas bodies which are now mandating researchers to make their research data publicly accessible.

4. Take a look at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in the US and review their requirements for open access data. Also look at the FAQs - Underlying Data Guidelines for more information.

5. Explore the Data Sharing Policy of the US National Science Foundation