Data are holy for scientists
Good data management means safe data management. WUR does everything in its power to prevent hacking incidents, but it can still happen. This is why every researcher also has a personal responsibility to store data appropriately. In the sixth edition of the online magazine WUR is serious about Data, you’ll read about the importance of proper data management, particularly for researchers.
During my PhD research in New Zealand in 1992, there was no central server where you could store your research results. Back then, you had to use floppy disks for that. I still have a whole box of floppy disks with my valuable data at home, which have now become useless because current computers cannot read them. When analysing new research data, I regularly catch myself thinking: if only I still had the data from back then right now. Data is holy for scientists. There are still researchers who take their results home and store them on their personal hard disks. They may not see the need for a central data management system, or they may not even be aware of the risks. And in fairness, I have not always seen the need for it either. But you often read about a hard disk being left on a train, or that important data has been lost in some other way. Or hacked. Every researcher’s nightmare. Fortunately, I see that many PhD students have a good understanding of the importance of proper data management, because 86% have their data management plan in order.
I have not always seen the need for a central data management system either
Good data management also means safe data management. WUR tries to make data management as easy as possible for researchers. We do everything we can to keep hackers out. Our IT experts have put up all kinds of security walls and barriers, so it is virtually impossible for hackers to break into WUR’s servers. One of these barriers is two-factor authentication, which is an extra step to get into your computer. It is not particularly user-friendly, but it does wonders for data security at WUR. However, it may still happen — as the white hat hacker tells us. This is why we want everyone to take responsibility to protect our data properly. We ask all researchers to work with Yoda — YourData — which allows you to manage your data in a kind of folder system while it is stored in a safe and traceable way on the WUR servers. We also want researchers to work according to the FAIR principle, so research data can be accessed and used by future researchers. I have been working with Yoda myself for some time now. The idea that all my data are Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable is reassuring. Unfortunately all that remains of my New Zealand data from 30 years ago is that box of floppy disks.
Wouter Hendriks Dean of Research
Photos: Mirian Hendriks, Guy Ackermans