Do you feel supported in your Research?

Let us know if you think more can be done at Oxford around research data management support. We need the participation of researchers in ensuring the services we are delivering keep pace with what’s needed in all the divisions.

What are your views on support around:

  • Training on RDM
  • Advice provided on data standards, benchmarks and good practice
  • Support around storage and dissemination options for your data
  • Current guidance on tools for gathering data in the field
  • Support around data analysis
  • Advice provided on Reproducibility and FAIR data
  • Key RDM needs of your discipline

A short survey is running until March 20 to gather the views of individual researchers on these and similar issues. Make sure your voice is heard! Complete the survey here.

 

If you have any questions about the survey or the wider project, please contact John Southall, Bodleian Data Librarian.

 

Research Data Management Online Survey: Researchers, we require your views

The Bodleian Libraries have instigated a review into current Research Data Management (RDM) practices and services which has now developed into a project also being supported by the University IT and Research Services.

This review aims to ensure that we are all ready for the challenges of the future and we can meet the evolving needs of our academics, researchers and students; whether in the earliest stages of a project or nearing completion.

The first stage of the project is a short online survey, which runs until the 20 March 2020.

The survey is aimed at individual researchers and research administrators across all the divisions and should take between 10 and 20 minutes to complete.

 

If you have any questions about the survey or the wider project, please contact John Southall, Bodleian Data Librarian.

 

Research Data Management and Cybersecurity

white padlock against a background of codeJohn Southall, the Research Data Librarian, was recently interviewed on data management and good research practice. Some of his comments appear in the Nature article, ‘Cybersecurity for the Travelling Scientist’ (August 2017, Vol 548, pp123-4).

The article covers the importance of Cybersecurity, especially in a research environment, and also covers key issues for researchers in the Social Sciences.

More information on the safe gathering, handling and management of reseach data can be found on the Bodleian Data Library website.

Want to find out more about Research Data Management? Visit the RDO Website

 rdm logo v7largeWhat is Research Data Management?

It is simply the phrase used to describe how researchers create and control information produced during the course of a project. It is particularly linked to the strengths and weaknesses of working with digital media, where data may be easily copied but also easily lost. Every research project involves some form of data management and most funding bodies expect this to be done in a methodical and planned way as part of good research practice. As a result ‘data management plans’ and  ‘metadata’ (descriptions of data) are routinely discussed in funding applications.

What are the benefits of RDM?

The benefits of RDM to you as a researcher are real and effective. It can help improve collection and analysis of data throughout the various stages of a research project. It can also play a major role in preserving data for future use by the original data creators or for sharing in such a way that adds depth to publications, informs wider academic debates and builds your own standing and career profile.

Where can you go to find out further information?

Visit the University of Oxford’s dedicated website for Research Data Management. It aims to support researchers by offering guidance on working with data, lists FAQs, has links to useful tools, and contact information for further assistance.

Questions?

Contact the RDM Enquiries Team who will be happy to help you.

Find out about upcoming training sessions.

You can also keep up to date on the subject by subscribing to the Oxford Research Data Blog.

Keep your research data safe with ORA Data

In addition to being a catalogue of data produced by Oxford researchers, ORA-Data is also a data archiving service provided by the University of Oxford.

It is designed to help researchers access, create, archive, share and cite research data.

ORA-Data is aimed at Oxford researchers who have either deposited data at external archives and want a centralised record of this, or need a repository to deposit research data. The Oxford Research Archive already acts as a searchable repository of theses and publications, so ORA-data extends this capability. Using the service will prevent loss of data and increase the impact of your research. It will make your data accessible in a way you think appropriate and preserve it for future use.

rdm logo v7largeIf you would like to find out more about Research Data Management (which is a general term covering how you organize, structure, store, and care for the information used or generated during a research project) visit the University of Oxford’s dedicated website for this topic. It aims to support researchers by offering guidance on working with data, lists FAQs, has links to useful tools, and contact information for further assistance.

Find out more here.

Research Data Management Website

rdm logo v7large

What is Research Data Management?

It is simply the phrase used to describe how researchers create and control information produced during the course of a project. It is particularly linked to the strengths and weaknesses of working with digital media, where data may be easily copied but also easily lost. Every research project involves some form of data management and most funding bodies expect this to be done in a methodical and planned way as part of good research practice. As a result ‘data management plans’ and  ‘metadata’ (descriptions of data) are routinely discussed in funding applications.

What are the benefits of RDM?

The benefits of RDM to you as a researcher are real and effective. It can help improve collection and analysis of data throughout the various stages of a research project. It can also play a major role in preserving data for future use by the original data creators or for sharing in such a way that adds depth to publications, informs wider academic debates and builds your own standing and career profile.

Where can you go to find out further information?

Visit the University of Oxford’s dedicated website for Research Data Management. It aims to support researchers by offering guidance on working with data, lists FAQs, has links to useful tools, and contact information for further assistance.

Questions?

Contact the RDM Enquiries Team who will be happy to help you.

Find out about upcoming training sessions.

You can also keep up to date on the subject by subscribing to the Oxford Research Data Blog.

Research Data Survey Reminder (closes Fri 30th May)

rdm logo v7large

As you may be aware the care and preservation of the data we produce in the course of our research has become more and more important in recent years. The university has a formal policy that expects us to take active steps in this direction. In addition funding bodies are increasingly asking for evidence of this as part of project applications.

One of the many responses the university is making to this is to step up the development of its research data management and archiving services. ORA-Data (formerly Databank and Datafinder) will be launched at the end of the year and deal with archiving of data from completed projects. Current development is focusing on the deposit process and interface. It is important that the Social Science Division finds such processes usable and appropriate to its research activity. Therefore a survey of types, varieties and volume of data typical of our areas is essential.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/C7YJZ6R

Please take a few minutes to follow the link and complete the online survey. The closing date has now been extended until Friday 30th May.

 

Things to do with Data lunchtime talks

rdm logo v7largeYour research involves collecting data – maybe from experiments, or surveys, or information plucked from ancient texts – but what do you do with it? How do you organize it, analyse it, visualize it, share it with colleagues, ensure that it’s kept safe, preserve it so that others may find and use it in future, perhaps in ways that you never imagined when you first collected it? These are the issues we’ll be looking at over Trinity Term 2014 in the new ‘Things to do with data‘ series of lunchtime talks.

This series looks at some of the interesting things that researchers do with their data to unlock its potential and realize its value. Covering aspects of data management from planning to re-use, these talks are intended to inspire whilst also considering the practical requirements of research funders and the issues surrounding data sharing.

Please note that this series of talks is aimed at research staff and postgraduate researchers.The programme is as follows:

How to do something with data in the ARC (Andy Richards, Advanced Research Computing, IT Services)

Wed 14th May, 12.30-1.30

Booking at: http://courses.it.ox.ac.uk/detail/THAF

Securing documents and data in the cloud (Tom Ansty, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine)

Wed 21 May, 12.30-1.30

Booking at: http://courses.it.ox.ac.uk/detail/THAG

Resources for research data managers (Meriel Patrick, IT Services)

Wed 28 May, 12.30-1.30

Booking at: http://courses.it.ox.ac.uk/detail/THAH

Citing and archiving your research data using ORA-Data (Sally Rumsey, Bodleian Libraries)

Wed 4 June, 12.30-1.30

Booking at: http://courses.it.ox.ac.uk/detail/THAI

Create and publish reusable data in the life sciences (Susanna-Assunta Sansone, OeRC)

Wed 11 June 12.30-1.30

Booking at: http://courses.it.ox.ac.uk/detail/THAJ

The talks will be hosted by the Research Support team and the IT Learning Programme, and will be held at IT Services in the 13 Banbury Road building.

Find out more about Research Data Management: New Website

 

rdm logo v7large

What is Research Data Management?

It is simply the phrase used to describe how researchers create and control information produced during the course of a project. It is particularly linked to the strengths and weaknesses of working with digital media, where data may be easily copied but also easily lost. Every research project involves some form of data management and most funding bodies expect this to be done in a methodical and planned way as part of good research practice. As a result ‘data management plans’ and  ‘metadata’ (descriptions of data) are routinely discussed in funding applications.

What are the benefits of RDM?

The benefits of RDM to you as a researcher are real and effective. It can help improve collection and analysis of data throughout the various stages of a research project. It can also play a major role in preserving data for future use by the original data creators or for sharing in such a way that adds depth to publications, informs wider academic debates and builds your own standing and career profile.

Where can you go to find out further information?

Visit the new University of Oxford dedicated website for Research Data Management. It aims to support researchers by offering guidance on working with data, lists FAQs, has links to useful tools, and contact information for further assistance.

Questions?

Contact the RDM Enquiries Team who will be happy to help you.

Find out about upcoming training sessions.

You can also keep up to date on the subject by subscribing to the Oxford Research Data Blog.