Rehma Chandaria | nature.com blogs

Researchers shared their tools to help scientists use and share data more effectively at the 2015 Publishing Better Science Through Better Data conference.

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The session of lightning talks at the 2015 Publishing Better Science Through Better Data conference was strategically scheduled to combat the post-lunch lull that often occurs. Five speakers had seven minutes each to tell the audience about their tools for helping scientists to use and share data more effectively.

Dr Sam Payne and Dr Balint Antal have both written programmes that allow researchers to collaboratively analyze and visualize large amounts of data. Payne of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Washington State developed Active Data Biology, a tool for interactively exploring and analyzing ‘big data’. He demonstrated how the programme can be used to assess proteomics data in the form of a heatmap — you can click on various proteins, conduct real-time analytics, save the proteins you find interesting and look at what your collaborators have saved. Rather than having the information hidden away in your notebooks or in your head, everything is stored on GitHub so it’s transparent and available to everyone involved. Mineotaur, developed by Antal of the University of Cambridge, UK, is based on a similar idea. It is an open-source tool designed for biologists to explore high-throughput microscopy data. Mineotaur can also be used to share research findings and allow others to analyse them further. It can even be embedded in publications to allow readers to explore the data for themselves. Continue reading →

The Human Genome Project led to a paradigm shift in the way science is conducted and data is shared, says Rehma Chandaria.

Guest contributor Rehma Chandaria

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In 1996, an international group of scientists came together in Bermuda to discuss how sequence data from the Human Genome Project (HGP) should be released. The meeting concluded in the formation of the ‘Bermuda Principles’, a set of rules ensuring the data would be immediately shared on publicly accessible databases as it was generated. This ground-breaking accord contravened the conventional practice of releasing data only after publication in scientific journals. It changed the way we see data sharing, and ultimately, changed the way science research was conducted.

Its success demonstrated how a global community of scientists could collectively produce and use data far more efficiently than an individual could. This greatly benefited scientific progress and led to many important new insights and discoveries. For example, information of 30 genes associated with disease was published prior to publication of the draft sequence in 2001.

Recognising its ability to accelerate progress, there is an enormous push for all scientists to make raw data publicly available for others to analyse and use. As a prerequisite for publication or receiving grants, it is becoming increasingly common for journals and funding bodies to insist that data is shared openly. Continue reading →

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#SciData15: Get more out of your research data

Researchers shared their tools to help scientists use and share data more effectively at the 2015 Publishing Better Science Through Better Data conference.

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The Human Genome Project led to a paradigm shift in the way science is conducted and data is shared, says Rehma Chandaria.