Data Management

Data Archiving

The challenges of establishing a lasting data archive are several, paramount of which are choosing a format that stands the test of time, appointing a willing conservator, ensuring that all values are correct, and offering enough description to each datum that its meaning is unambiguous to future users. Initially the data archiving exercise will concentrate on MITHE-SN projects that collect field data, but we envisage that the data generated from laboratory experiments will also be included in the MITHE-SN archive once it is established. The data archiving exercise has two parts; the first is to establish a meta-data file for each project, and the second is to link these meta-data files to the numerical data. The meta-data file for each project describes the data that are being collected in the project, the location of the study sites, and the objectives of the study; the meta-data files are openly available on the Network web site, so that anyone can quickly determine the specifics of studies that are underway in the network, and contact the investigators for more information, if desired. The meta-data files will be posted on the website after the first year's research activities. The numerical data will be added to the website later in the life of the Network. This will permit students and researchers to have an appropriate time interval after data collection to interpret and publish their results.

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