The OA repository for works funded by the US National Science Foundation.
Category Archives: oa.usa.nsf
Engage on NSF’s Public Access Policy
“The White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy this past August issued a memo directing the nation’s major, science-funding agencies, including NSF, to ensure free, immediate, and equitable access to the products of federally-supported research. The required updates to the policy will have direct and lasting impacts on NSF internal and external stakeholders, including researchers, research institutions, scholarly societies, research libraries and the universities they support, and publishers. NSF’s Working Group on Public Access is committed to ensuring that the policy it recommends has been informed by active stakeholder engagement. This is the only way that NSF’s updated public access policy can be equitable, sustainable and best serve NSF’s broad and diverse community.
To that end, we will hold a virtual information and listening session at 2:00 PM EST on November 30, 2022.
Participants will be briefed on the history and driving principles of NSF’s public access policy. More importantly, this webinar will serve as a forum for NSF to hear and appreciate what’s on the minds of our stakeholders, and to discuss opportunities and challenges surrounding the update of NSF’s open access policy.”
CU Boulder receives collaborative national grant for open science project | University Libraries | University of Colorado Boulder
“This multi-year research project aspires to establish community-informed recommendations on how to assign persistent identifiers like Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) and Research Resource Identifiers (RRIDs) to research facilities and instrumentation. CU Boulder is also working with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Florida State University on the project to strengthen coordination among researchers in order to advance FAIR data principles and open science practices.
The “Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable (FAIR) Open Science Facilities and Instruments project is one of 10 projects funded by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) as part of its Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable, Open Science Research Coordination Networks (FAIROS RCN) program. FAIR is a set of international principles that focus on making scientific research more open and transparent.
Johnson said these projects are part of a nationwide attempt to establish norms and best practices to strengthen coordination among researchers to advance fair data principles and open science practices. …”
OPEN KNOWLEDGE NETWORK ROADMAP: POWERING THE NEXT DATA REVOLUTION
“Open access to shared information is essential for the development and evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-powered solutions needed to address the complex challenges facing the nation and the world. The Open Knowledge Network (OKN), an interconnected network of knowledge graphs, would provide an essential public-data infrastructure for enabling an AI-driven future. It would facilitate the integration of diverse data needed to develop solutions to drive continued strong economic growth, expand opportunities, and address complex problems from climate change to social equity. The OKN Roadmap describes the key characteristics of the OKN and essential considerations in taking the effort forward in an effective and sustainable manner….”
NSF releases Open Knowledge Network Roadmap report
“The U.S. National Science Foundation today published the Open Knowledge Network Roadmap – Powering the next data revolution report that outlines a strategy for establishing an open and accessible national resource to power 21st century data science and next-generation artificial intelligence. Establishing such a knowledge infrastructure would integrate the diverse data needed to sustain strong economic growth, expand opportunities to engage in data analysis, and address complex national challenges such as climate change, misinformation, disruptions from pandemics, economic equity and diversity….”
AAI/OC Receives NSF Grant for Collaborative Research Coordination Network – The Alexandria Archive Institute
“We are thrilled to announce Disciplinary Improvements for Past Global Change Research: Connecting Data Systems and Practitioners, a National Science Foundation (NSF) Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable Open Science Research Coordination Network (FAIROS RCN) funded initiative to advance ethical scientific practices in the use of paleoecological, contemporary ecological, paleoclimatic, and archaeological data….”
ARL Applauds NSF Open Science Investment – Association of Research Libraries
“The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) commends the ongoing commitment of the US National Science Foundation (NSF) to open science. NSF today announced awards for 10 new projects focused on building and enhancing coordination among researchers and other stakeholders to advance FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable) data principles and open-science practices.
The inaugural awards in NSF’s Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable, Open Science Research Coordination Networks (FAIROS RCN) program represent a pooled investment of over $12.5 million in open science from all directorates comprising NSF. This program is particularly unique given that the 10 projects are composed of 28 distinct NSF awards (detailed below) representing many organizations and institutions in the United States seeking to advance open-science efforts….”
NSF Grant for New STEM-focused Commons | Platypus – the Humanities Commons Blog
by Kathleen Fitzpatrick
The Commons team is delighted to have been awarded one of the inaugural FAIROS RCN grants from the NSF, in order to establish DBER+ Commons. That’s a big pile of acronyms, so here’s a breakdown: the NSF is of course the National Science Foundation, one of the most important federal funding bodies in the United States, and a new funder for us. The FAIROS RCN grant program was launched this year by the NSF in order to invest in Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable Open Science (FAIROS) by supporting the formation and development of Research Coordination Networks (RCN) dedicated to those principles.
We have teamed up with a group of amazing folks at Michigan State University who are working across science, technology, engineering, math, and more traditional NSF fields, all of whom are focused on discipline-based education research (DBER) as well as other engaged education research methodologies (the +). Our goal for this project is to bring them together with their national and international collaborators in STEM education to create DBER+ Commons, which will use — and crucially, expand — the affordances of the HCommons network and promote FAIR and CARE (Collective Benefit, Authority to control, Responsibility, Ethics) practices, principles, and guidelines in undergraduate, postbaccalaureate, graduate, and postdoctoral science education research activities.
Association of Polar Early Career Scientists – IARPC Program Manager Chat – Supporting Open Polar and Cryospheric Science at NSF and NASA
“The Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC) announces their upcoming IARPC Program Manager Chat: Supporting Open Polar and Cryospheric Science at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The webinar will take place 31 May 2022, 12:00-1:00 p.m. AKDT.
Webinar Description:
The new Arctic Research Plan 2022-2026 articulates the need for continued work towards ethically open data and research practices. But what does “open science” mean for Arctic research funders? And how can you get funding to support it?
Join this IARPC Program Officer Chat with Thorsten Markus and Kaitlin Harbeck (Program Officers for Cryospheric Sciences at NASA) and Allen Pope and Kelly Brunt (Program Officers in the NSF Office for Polar Programs) to talk about what open science means in their programs, and how NASA and NSF provide funding and support to advance open polar and cryospheric science. After short presentations, there will be ample time for questions with the panel of program officers….”
Dear Colleague Letter: Effective Practices for Making Research Data Discoverable and Citable (Data Sharing) (nsf22055) | NSF – National Science Foundation
“This Dear Colleague Letter describes and encourages effective practices for publicly sharing research data, including the use of persistent digital identifiers (PDIs).
Datasets underpinning published research findings are expected to be shared with other researchers, at no more than incremental cost and within a reasonable time. Data-sharing holds numerous benefits, from enabling broader research collaboration, through facilitating transparency and solidifying confidence in scientific research, to providing increased resources for teaching and education purposes. Recent studies found that research articles containing a link to data in a repository have markedly higher usage and visibility. Discoverable and citable data also serve to reduce barriers to entry for junior researchers, scientists in under-served communities, and researchers from underrepresented and minority groups, thus enabling improved implementation of open science principles.
The nature of digital data produced during research may vary among the different topical disciplines encompassed by the field of Materials Research. Most often, digital research data comprise one or more of the following: raw data files collected using experimental instrumentation and converted into digital format; digital files of processed experimental data; video and animation files; numerical data produced by computer simulations or computational models; computer code, scripts, software, software documentation and user manuals developed as part of the research project; digital files of theoretical models, protocols, and methods; educational, instructional, and training materials.
Open-access data sharing platforms (data repositories) comprise the most efficient way to publish and share research data1. Moreover, as long-term data curation and preservation are core to their mission, data repositories provide a stable means for data preservation. Upon publication of a dataset, most repositories automatically generate a citation for the data, which includes identifying metadata such as the archiving repository, the data’s author(s), and a PDI such as a digital object identifier (DOI). A DOI is a unique and persistent digital identifier, which, when assigned to a digital entity such as a dataset, remains unchanged over the lifetime of the object. Having a DOI (or other form of PDI) from an open-access repository renders data findable, accessible, and readily citable. Searchable global registries of data repositories provide information on indexed repositories to help researchers identify the most appropriate ones2. In the case where a suitable repository is not available, researchers are strongly encouraged to use their institutional digital repositories, which typically issue DOIs to institutionally hosted content….”
TEXT OF H.R. 4521, THE AMERICA COMPETES ACT OF 2022
The bill mandates public access to NSF-funded “research products, including data, software, and code.” See §10306(f) starting at p. 349.
Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable Open Science Research Coordination Networks (FAIROS RCN) (nsf22553) | NSF – National Science Foundation
“The FAIROS RCN program seeks to create three-year Research Coordination Networks (RCNs) which will foster catalytic improvements in scientific communities focusing on the FAIR (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reuse, see Program Description for more information) guiding principles and Open Science best practices (inclusively summarized by the combined phrase FAIROS for purposes of this program). This program will support a broad range of activities by these new RCNs to advance the means by which investigators can share information and ideas, coordinate ongoing or planned research activities, foster synthesis and new collaborations, develop community standards, and in other ways advance science and education through communication and sharing of research products through FAIROS strategies.
FAIROS RCN proposals must select one of two tracks to focus on, either: 1) Disciplinary Improvements to targeted scientific communities, or 2) Cross-Cutting Improvements that apply to many or most scientific disciplines. In the case of proposals focused on Disciplinary Improvements, it is strongly recommended that prospective PIs contact a program officer from the list of Cognizant Program Officers in the directorate closest to the major disciplinary impact of the proposed work to ascertain that the scientific focus and budget of the proposed work are appropriate for this solicitation. In the case of proposals focused on Cross-Cutting Improvements, it is strongly recommended that prospective PIs contact a program officer from the list of Cognizant Program Officers from the Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure. For more on the NSF Public Access Initiative and Office of Integrative Activities, see the Program Description section below.
This program is undertaken in support of the NSF Public Access Initiative as described in the 2015 NSF Public Access Plan entitled “Today’s Data, Tomorrow’s Discoveries”, an agency-wide response to the need for publicly funded research products to be made publicly accessible. This national priority was first broadly articulated by the Office of Science and Technology Policy in 2013, and is of ongoing importance to NSF as a whole. In addition, this program advances the priorities of NSF’s Office of Integrative Activities, which supports work across disciplinary boundaries that: advances research excellence and innovation; develops human and infrastructure capacity critical to the U.S. science and engineering enterprise; and promotes engagement of scientists and engineers at all career stages.”
Senators unveil bipartisan bill requiring social media giants to open data to researchers | TheHill
“Meta and other social media companies would be required to share their data with outside researchers under a new bill announced by a bipartisan group of senators on Thursday. …
The bill, the Platform Accountability and Transparency Act, would allow independent researchers to submit proposals to the National Science Foundation. If the requests are approved, social media companies would be required to provide the necessary data subject to certain privacy protections. …”
University Libraries a part of national group to investigate true institutional cost of research data sharing | VTx | Virginia Tech
“Virginia Tech and five other members of the Data Curation Network and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) were awarded a National Science Foundation EAGER grant (#2135874) to conduct research, develop models, and collect information related to cost for public access to research data. The group, led by ARL, is composed of data specialists from Virginia Tech, University of Michigan, Duke University, University of Minnesota, Cornell University, and Washington University in St. Louis.
Public access to research data increases transparency of research results, heightens the visibility of institutional scholarship, and can accelerate the pace of discovery through scholarship. However, common questions around public access to research data remain. Where are funded researchers making their data publicly accessible, and what is the quality of the corresponding metadata? How do researchers make the decision on how and why to share data? What is the cost to institutions to implement the federally mandated public access to research data policy?…”
NSF establishes new institutes for harnessing the data revolution
“The U.S. National Science Foundation announced a $75 million investment to establish five new Harnessing the Data Revolution Institutes. The institutes support convergence between science and engineering research communities, bringing together expertise in data science foundations, systems, applications and cyberinfrastructure. Together, they will enable breakthroughs through collaborative, co-designed programs to formulate innovative data-intensive approaches for addressing critical national challenges. …”