The rich data informing Thomas Piketty’s landmark research in Capital in the Twenty-First Century has been instrumental to its success. Ulrich Atz argues it is highly commendable that Piketty has made attempts to share the data files. But none of this data is explicitly open for reuse and fails to be available in machine-readable formats. Without an open licence it is not clear whether […]
Category: open data
Feedback Wanted: Publishers & Data Access
This post is co-authored with Jennifer Lin, PLOS Short Version: We need your help! We have generated a set of recommendations for publishers to help increase access to data in partnership with libraries, funders, information technologists, and other stakeholders. Please read and comment on the report (Google Doc), and help us to identify concrete action items for each of the recommendations […]
It’s the Neoliberalism, Stupid: Why instrumentalist arguments for Open Access, Open Data, and Open Science are not enough.
The Open Movement has made impressive strides in the past year, but do these strides stand for reform or are they just symptomatic of the further expansion and entrenchment of neoliberalism? Eric Kansa argues that it is time for the movement to broaden … Continue reading →
Four critiques of open data initiatives
Open data initiatives may hold much promise and value, but more attention is needed on how these projects are developing as complex socio-technical systems. Rob Kitchin elaborates on four specific areas that have yet to be fully interrogated. These critiques affirm … Continue reading →
Researchers, publishers, libraries and data centres all have a role in promoting and encouraging data citation.
The key to verifying and validating research is the identification and access of datasets. But cultural and behavioural barriers to sharing data are still widespread. Rachael Kotarski, the Content Expert for scientific datasets at the British Library, explains why citing data, … Continue reading →
The availability of open data and new trends in data visualisation will transform how we understand our cities.
Due to the increasing availability of large urban datasets, it is now becoming easier to produce online visualisations that capture and help interpret the complex spatial dynamics of cities. Duncan A. Smith argues that as further open datasets are made available, … Continue reading →
Greater training is necessary to put open data at the heart of Research Data Management policy and practice.
As higher education institutions look to implement broader visions of openness, there is a need to re-assess the training and skills required for appropriate research data management (RDM). Geoff Curtis and Stéphane Goldstein present the findings of a report on how best to … Continue reading →
Data sharing not only helps facilitate the process of psychology research, it is also a reflection of rigour.
Although many psychologists acknowledge the usefulness of storing and sharing their data, studies suggest this is not a common practice. Secrecy can lead to all sorts of problems including biases in reporting of results, honest errors, and even fraud. Jelte Wicherts believes it … Continue reading →
Open Data in Economics: The Basis of Reproducible Research
Delving deeper into discipline-specific perspectives on openness in the social sciences, Velichka Dimitrova looks at the present and future of open data for economics research. By sharing data, economists stand to enhance the visibility and the impact of their research … Continue reading →
Two Altmetrics Workshops in San Francisco
Last week, a group forward-thinking individuals interested in measuring scholarly impact gathered at Fort Mason in San Francisco to talk about altmetrics. The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation funded the events at Fort Mason, which included (1) an altmetrics-focused workshop run by the open-access publisher (and leader in ALM) PLOS, and (2) a NISO Alternative Assessment Initiative Project Workshop to discuss standards and […]