Description of the Primary Data Storage System at UMB

Transcription

1 VERSION OF JANUARY 2011 NORWEGIAN UNIVERSITY OF LIFE SCIENCES DEPARTMENT OF RESEARCH Description of the Primary Data Storage System at UMB The system described in the following applies to all departments at UMB and is valid as of 1 May Latest update: January 14, General description of the primary data storage system UMB has a separate server for storing primary data. Academic staff members who are responsible for data storage will be assigned a directory on the server. This directory (R-directory) will appear on each person's computer catalogue structure. Each permanent academic staff member is to be assigned a personal directory. Furthermore, each department can decide to assign personal directories to other staff members as well, such as temporary academic staff or doctoral students. The directories are personal and no one else will generally have access to them. Primary data, approvals and concessions linked to scientific publications, including doctoral theses, are to be stored. All files associated with a specific publication are to be jointly stored in one R-directory. For publications written by several UMB authors, the co-authors have to agree upon which one of them is responsible for storing the data on his or her directory. The person who has the primary data stored on his or her directory is responsible for making sure that all relevant primary data and approvals are stored. The same person is thus responsible for completing and signing a self-declaration, which shall be submitted to and signed by the department, and then filed in ephorte. At the same time, the folder for the publication in question is locked in a "read-only" mode, therewith preventing any further modification of its contents. The primary data storage system is linked to the allocation of funds to the departments, since publications do not qualify for budget support until the primary data have been stored and the self-declaration completed and filed. However, there are numerous exceptions to this rule for publications published prior to or in 2008, please refer to a separate memo on this. 2. What is to be stored, and what not? For each publication, the following shall be jointly stored in the R-directory of one of the authors: Final and complete literature reference of the publication in question. All primary data on which the analyses, presentations and conclusions of the publication are based. Necessary approvals and concessions linked to the research. Additional methodological descriptions (voluntary).

2 Primary data storage is required for data underlying publications that qualify for UMB 'publication counts' 1, and for data underlying doctoral theses submitted to UMB. In general, all types of primary data linked to a publication are to be stored. Exceptions are: Data obtained by co-authors who do not have UMB as their author s address 2, unless these data have been generated under the auspices of a research project owned by UMB. Data generated from public records. An accurate description of the data source and of how the data were extracted is to be stored Data that are adequately stored at other institutions, e.g.: a) the Norwegian Social Science Data Services (NSD) b) the employer of an external doctoral student, if a doctoral programme agreement has been made that requires the employer to store all primary data and grant UMB access to these data upon request 3. c) cooperating institutions, which upon agreement have committed themselves to storing all primary data and granting UMB access to these data upon request. If data are not stored because of b) or c), the self-declaration must refer to the agreement by stating the ephorte case number. It is also possible to file the actual agreement in the folder for approvals and concessions ( Godkjennelser og konsesjoner ). Data that for some reason are subject to restrictions that prevent data storage at UMB. This could be, e.g., a) the result of the licence issued for the use of personal data by the concession authorities (NSD) b) because the Norwegian National Security Authority does not grant permission to store data at UMB for security reasons c) because others than UMB have the right of ownership to the data If data are not stored due to such restrictions, this shall be documented by a letter, an agreement, etc., which is to be filed in the folder for approvals and concessions ( Godkjennelser og konsesjoner ). The self-declaration shall state which data are not stored at UMB, as well as listing the institution that is storing the data or the data source (institution or database). References to how to find the data at the institution or in the database shall also be included in the self-declaration or in a file that is stored in the primary data folder (project name, project number, complete internet address, programme or algorithm for extruding data, etc.). 1 Publications that qualify for 'publication counts' are: peer-reviewed articles in journals and series, chapters in scientific anthologies and scientific monographs. 2 According to UMB's Doctoral Degree Regulations, doctoral students are to state UMB as the author's address on publications resulting from the work on their thesis. Primary data from master's theses or other student assignments that are used in a scientific publication are also to be stored (the student should list UMB as the author's address). 3 The issue of primary data storage will be included in the template for doctoral programme agreements from 1 May Primary data storage is not required for doctoral students employed by other research institutions when the doctoral programme agreement was signed before 1 May

3 3. What are actually primary data? Primary data are unprocessed data that are used for further analysis. Such data include primary observations, data from instrumental analysis, field records and lab protocols, interviews, questionnaires, etc. It is often difficult to distinguish between material, primary data and processed data. In some cases, the material being studied will be regarded as primary data. In other cases, the observations in an experiment will be regarded as the primary data. As a rule, the data that is stored should be as primary as possible, i.e., representing totally unprocessed observations. Thus, one ensures that the data stored is as close to the source as possible, which helps to avoid error and bias that can occur during data processing. However, it could be appropriate to also to store sets of secondary data. Such data can facilitate the reconstruction of the process leading from the primary observations to the results presented in the publication. Sometimes primary data are not available in digital form. Instead, they may exist as handwritten notes in field records and lab protocols, completed questionnaires, autoradiograms, etc. Although it is not required that such data are scanned, it is recommended to do so if this does not entail an unreasonable workload. Files that in any way summarise non-digital primary data must be stored. Non-digital primary data must be clearly marked and securely stored in such a way as to enable the department s access to these data for at least 10 years. Experimental plans and/or protocols in experimental research at UMB shall enable another scientist/expert in the same field to repeat the experiment. Such plans and protocols are to be stored securely for at least 10 years. 4. Who shall R-directories be assigned to? The department 4 can formulate guidelines for whom R-directories can be assigned to, or they can delegate this task to the subject groups or research teams. The department must clearly designate the persons authorised to order R-directories from the computer systems manager. 5. Structure of the individual R:\-directories The R:\-directory of each staff member is organised as shown in Figure 1. 4 Current or former employees at UMB do have a R directory. Former employees that no longer have access to the UMB server, may send their self declaration scheme and primary data to their former department, and the department (e.g. IT-responible) will store the data in the correct R directory. For students who publish, it is most convenient that self declaration and primary data are stored in the R directory belonging to their main supervisor. The student may send the self declaration and the primary data to the supervisor, who is then responsible for storing the data in correct directory. The name of the directory where the data are stored, should reflect the author name (e.g. surname). 3

4 Figure 1. R-directory tree structure. The tree structure s base directories are individual years. Primary data are to be filed according to year of publication. Within each year subdirectory, there is a folder for each publication. The publication folders shall be named with the publication s title, alternatively its short title. The publication folder is then further subdivided into folders for: primary data ( Primærdata ), concessions and approvals ( Konsesjoner og godkjennelser ), additional methodological descriptions ( Utfyllende metodebeskrivelser ) and the final and complete literature reference ( Endelig og fullstendig litteraturreferanse ). The latter is to contain a file with the respective publication s final and complete literature reference, thus enabling a definite link between the stored data and the publication. The user is free to further organise the primary data folder by establishing appropriate subfolders. Primary data must be organised in such a way as to enable peers to reconstruct calculations, analyses and presentations. For example, the data can be organised according to the presentation of results in the publication: one folder for the data underlying Figure 1, another for the data underlying Figure 2, etc. At the discretion of the authors, methodological descriptions beyond those provided in the publication can also be stored. As a default, each year subdirectory contains five publication folders. Additional publication folders can be created by the department's computer systems manager. Each directory owner is free to edit, add and delete files in the publication folders. However, upon publication, the respective publication folder is locked, after which folder contents can only be read and copied (see Chapter 7). In addition to the "year" subdirectories, each R-directory contains a work area folder ( arbeidsområde ). This folder is at the free disposal of the directory owner. 6. Self-declaration Whoever has the primary data of a publication stored on his or her directory must complete the "Self-declaration on the Storage of Primary Data of Scientific Publications". In this form, information must be provided on any primary data that is, possibly not, stored at UMB, including 4

5 reference to where they are stored. The completed and signed self-declaration form is submitted to the department, whereupon the relevant publication folder is locked, and finally, the selfdeclaration is filed in ephorte. For every publication year, each department creates a separate folder for self-declarations. 7. Progress and control Authors should continuously finalise their publication folders and submit the self-declaration forms as the publications are completed and published. After the self-declaration forms are submitted, the department shall lock the respective publication folder, preventing modification of its contents. The head of department is responsible for making sure that a self-declaration form is completed, signed and filed for each submitted doctoral thesis or publication that qualifies for 'publication counts'. Publications for which no primary data or self-declaration forms are stored will not be considered as part of the research component of budget allocations. However, the linkage between primary data storage and budgeting will be gradually introduced, please refer to the memo on 2008-publications that are exempt from the data storage requirements. In connection with annual reporting, the department must state if self-declaration forms have been completed for all of the department's publications. If any of the authors who have stored relevant data are employed at another UMB department, this must also be stated. This report form is signed by the head of department and filed in the ephorte folder for the publication year in question. The deadline for this annual report is 15 March. The Research Department carries out spot checks in connection with budgeting. 8. Who is responsible for what? Scientific staff and doctoral students are responsible for obtaining necessary approvals and concessions, making sure that primary data linked to scientific publications are stored in accordance with these guidelines, and for completing and submitting the self-declaration forms. The department, represented by its head, is generally responsible for the department's compliance with the guidelines for primary data storage. Furthermore, the department is responsible for ensuring that the required self-declaration forms have been completed, signed and filed, and for locking the respective publication folders. To begin with, the R directories will be created by the university s central IT department, but in the long run they will be administered by the departments themselves. 9. Examples Case 1: A purely theoretical scientific manuscript without primary data (includes review articles as well). - Self-declaration is stored Case 2: A scientific publication whose authors all are UMB employees. No data are stored at NSD and there are no restrictions on data storage (see Chapter 2). - All primary data are stored - Self-declaration is stored Case 3: 5

6 A scientific publication, for which some primary data was generated at another institution and by the work of persons who are neither employees nor students at UMB. - Primary data generated by UMB staff or UMB students are stored - Primary data generated by persons who are neither employees nor students at UMB does not have to be stored at UMB. An exception is primary data generated by such persons under the auspices of a UMB-owned research project - such data must be stored at UMB. - Self-declaration is stored Case 4: Manuscript completely based on primary data generated at another institution and by the work of an external research fellow employed at that institution. It has been agreed upon that the research fellow's institution shall store the primary data and make them available to UMB upon request (part of a doctoral programme agreement). - Primary data are stored at the research fellow's home institution - Self-declaration is stored at UMB, including a reference to how the data can be accessed Case 5: Primary data and self-declaration for a doctoral thesis have been stored. Part of the thesis is later published in a scientific journal, etc. - A separate publication folder is created for the new publication - Self-declaration for the new publication is stored. The declaration refers to the primary data and that these are stored in the thesis folder, and it describes the folders and files that contain the data on which the new publication is based. 6