Open Data is data that are freely available for reuse/secondary data analysis. The “openness” of data can be viewed and treated differently based on a spectrum of openness ranging from being highly restricted (as in the case of personal health information) to being freely available data that are usable.
National Library of Medicine, Data Glossary
General Characteristics of Open Data include FAIR principles:
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There are multiple benefits to publishing and/or using Open Data in your research process. Here are just a few:
Increase your research's visibility and impact: When your data is easy to find, it significantly increases the chances of your work being cited and recognized by others.
Promote collaboration: Data repositories make it much easier to share and manage data when you're working with collaborators. New collaborations can arise from others connecting with your data.
Improve data quality and understanding: Good data quality and management practices help both you and others better understand your research over time.
Promote research integrity: Preserving high-quality data for the long-term helps ensure the integrity of your research.
Secure your data: Many data repositories provide robust protections to help you store your data safely and securely.
Protect your investment: Open data helps preserve the significant time and resources you've put into your research.
Adapted from UCLA Library and Open Economics Guide for Open Science
Repositories may be either:
Data Repositories by subject - Links to open access repositories and databases for open data from Simmons College School of Information Sciences.
Re3Data - A global, multidisciplinary registry of data repositories that includes "experimental and simulation data; images, sound, and video; surveys and observations; physical samples; laboratory and clinical trial data; software source code; genomic and geospatial data; and more."
PLoS Reccomended Repositories - Created by Public Library of Science (PLoD), sorted by type and disciplines. Includes repositories for both the natural and social sciences.
Creative Commons Search Portal - The Creative Commons (CC) Search Portal helps you search CC licensed works across multiple platforms.
For additional guidance, please reach out to your Subject Librarian.
Data Glossary - National Library of Medicine created a searchable list of key terminology to understand data concepts.
Following the scientific conventions for your discipline using standardized taxonomies and vocabularies helps others understand and use Open Data in their research to promote new discoveries (Cornell Data Services). Reach out to your Subject Librarian for support in finding your discipline's taxonomy.
On Selecting a Repository - MIT Libraries created an overview of repositories and their features in file management, permissions and access, and administrative maintenance.
Some helpful questions to consider when choosing where to publish your data:
Guidance on Data Repository Requirements - created by Springer Nature for scientific data.
Open Data Tools - Tools to explore, publish, and share public datasets maintained by Open Knowledge Foundation. Topics include coding, web-scraping, data visualization, and geodata.
Some grant funding opportunities require certain open data sharing requirements to promote public research. Applications often require a data management plan (DMP) for the research proposal.
Funding Agency Guidelines for Public Access - North Carolina State University Libraries created a list of data requirements from some of the main US federal agencies.
Please contact Nicole Scalessa, Head of Digital Scholarship and Technology Services, for more support on creating a Data Management Plan (DMP).
Writing READMEs for Research Data by Cornell Data Services - This guide provides a structure for creating a readme file for research data. A data readme file is intended to help ensure that the data can be correctly interpreted, by yourself at a later date or by others when sharing or publishing data.
MkDocs - This website helps you build static sites that can record project documentation. Documentation source files are written in Markdown, and MkDocs offers user guides on how to get started.
Digital Scholarship Services Collaboration (DiSSCo) - Vassar's DiSSCo includes members of the Library Digital Scholarship & Technology Services, Academic Computing Services, Academic Engagement Librarians, and Media Resources departments. Its goal is to support the interests of faculty and students pursuing digital scholarship in their teaching, learning, and research.
