| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Anonymization | Anonymisation of personal data in science is part of good scientific practice. According to the BDSG (Federal Data Protection Act) § 3, para. 6, anonymisation means any measures that change personal data in such a way that "the individual details about personal or factual circumstances can no longer be assigned to a specific or identifiable natural person, or can only be assigned to such a person with a disproportionate expenditure of time, costs and manpower". |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Copyright | 'In Germany, the German Copyright Act applies to the use of scientific works that meet the protection requirements specified therein. Unless the users of these works are granted further rights of use using an advanced license (e.g., a Creative Commons license), subsequent use of the works is possible only within the restrictive limitations of the German Copyright Act. As far as research data are subject to the protection of copyright law, they must be provided with extended licenses to ensure maximum subsequent usability of scientific research data. Therefore, the granting of additional rights of use, e.g., through appropriate licensing of the data, should be considered. The granting of such licenses usually leads to higher use of the data in scientific research.' |
| Creative Commons License (CC) | To ensure maximum reusability of scientific research data, which may in principle be subject to copyright, the granting of additional rights of use can be considered, e.g. by licensing the data accordingly. The use of liberal licensing models, in particular the globally recognized Creative Commons (CC) licenses, is one way of defining conditions for the subsequent use of published research data in a comprehensible manner. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Data format (Data type) | The file format (sometimes also file type) specifies the syntax and semantics of data within a file. For a computer or computer application to interpret the data within a file, knowledge of the file format is necessary. Most file formats were designed for specific use and can be grouped according to certain criteria. The corresponding groups are executable files, system files, library files, and user files (image files (vector graphics [SVG, ...], raster graphics [JPG, PNG, ...]), text files, video files, etc.). File formats can be distinguished between proprietary and open formats. Proprietary formats are usually provided by software manufacturers or platforms and are subject to licensing and/or patent protection or require manufacturer-specific knowledge for implementation. Open formats grant unrestricted access to their source code and can therefore be adapted by users. |
| Data management plan | A data management plan (DMP) systematically describes how research data created in projects will be handled. It documents how the data are stored, indexed, maintained and processed. The data management plan is important for making data interpretable and reusable for third parties. Even before the project begins, questions about responsibilities should be clarified, such as: What data will be generated and used in the project? What data must be archived at the end of the project? Who is responsible for indexing with metadata? How long should the data be archived? Who may use the data after the end of the project and under which licensing conditions? |
| Data mapping (Mapping) | Data mapping is the process of transferring research data from one data model to another. This is the first step in integrating foreign information into one's information system. It includes the data transformation during electronic data exchange, for which very often the XML markup language and the JSON data format are used. |
| Data policy (Research data policy) | A data policy (also a research data policy) is a document that describes how research data should be handled at the institution in question. This should help to ensure that the important resource of research data is managed efficiently. In Germany, there are now data policies at individual universities (institutional policies) as well as interdisciplinary and disciplinary policies. Some scientific journals have also adopted such a data policy. |
| Data protection | Data protection refers to technical and organisational measures to prevent the misuse of personal data. Misuse occurs when such data is collected, processed or used without authorisation. Data protection is regulated by the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the German Federal Data Protection Act and the corresponding laws at the level of the German states. In research, personal data is generated in particular in medical and social science studies. Encryption and storage in specially secured locations are mandatory here. However, by subsequent pseudonymisation or anonymisation, the reference to persons can be removed to such an extent that even publication of this data becomes legally possible. |
| Data selection | Data selection refers to the selection of research data worthy of archiving and publication from the totality of data in a research project. |
| Data storage | The backup of data is usually called a backup and is used to restore the original data in case of data loss. There are different methods of data backup: The backup (complete backup) is usually created automatically at regular intervals and stored in a different location from the original data so that physical damage caused by fire and the like does not lead to complete data loss. Differential backup saves only the data that has been changed and added since the last full backup. It is therefore a selective change to a complete backup, which is less time-consuming and storage-intensive than a new complete backup. In contrast, an incremental backup only saves the files or parts of files that have been changed and added since the last incremental backup. During a restore, several partial backups have to be resorted to in a chain-like and time-consuming manner. With an image backup, a complete data carrier (hard disk, network drive, etc.) is backed up so that, in addition to the data, all user settings and programs and, if necessary, the operating system is also backed up. Restoring such a backup can reverse the total failure of a computer. |
| Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | A Digital Object Identifier (DOI) is one of the most common systems for the persistent identification of digital documents. A DOI remains the same throughout the lifetime of a designated object. Another well-known system for persistent identification is the Uniform Resource Name (URN). |
| Word | Definiton |
|---|---|
| FAIR Data | The term FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) Data stands for sustainable research data management. The main goal of the FAIR Data Principles is to optimize the preparation of research data, which should be findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable. The FAIR principles have also been incorporated by the European Commission into the Horizon 2020 funding guidelines. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Good scientific practice | The guidelines of good scientific practice serve as an orientation within the framework of scientific work processes. In Germany, for example, these rules can be found in Recommendations 15 to 17 of the German Research Foundation (DFG). This states that: "Scientists adequately safeguard research data or research results that have been made publicly accessible, as well as the underlying central materials and, if applicable, the research software used, measured against the standards of the discipline concerned, and preserve them for an appropriate period. If there are comprehensible reasons for not retaining certain data, the scientists shall explain this. Universities and non-university research institutions shall ensure that the necessary infrastructure is in place to enable archiving." This is to ensure that research results remain verifiable. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) | JSON is a compact, easy-to-read and software-independent data format for data exchange between applications. It is used especially in web applications for the transfer of structured data to integrate them into other systems or applications. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Long term archiving | The goal of long-term archiving is to enable access to archived data over a long period. The aim is to prevent data loss, enable authentic data reproduction over the long term and use a suitable archiving system (metadata, structure). During planning, the various aspects of the IT infrastructure, such as hardware and software, are taken into account. In addition, social developments should be included in the planning. |
| LeoPARD | The LeoPARD of the TU Braunschweig enables scientists to publish first or second publications. In addition, LeoPARD makes numerous digitized works from the university library's legacy collections and other valuable holdings from special collections available for research purposes. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Metadata | Metadata is intrinsically independent data that contains structured information about other data or resources and their characteristics. They are stored independently of, or together with, the data they describe in more detail. A precise definition of metadata is difficult; a distinction is usually made between business metadata and technical or administrative metadata. While the latter has a clear metadata status, technical metadata can sometimes also be understood as research data. To increase the effectiveness of metadata, a standardisation of the description is necessary. Through a metadata standard, metadata from disparate sources can be linked and collaborated on. |
| Metadata standard | To ensure interoperability, i.e. linking and joint editing, of metadata, metadata standards have been created for specific purposes. They serve a contentwise as well as a structurally uniform description of similar data. A metadata standard can often be converted into another metadata standard by so-called data mapping. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Nationale Forschungsdateninfrastruktur (NFDI) | The NFDI is a distributed and networked infrastructure offering service portfolios and consulting services for the generation and use of research data. It will be organised in the form of consortia along with subject domains or methodological criteria. The NFDI aims to "systematically develop, sustainably secure and make accessible the data holdings of science and research, and to network them (inter)nationally. It will be established in a process driven by science as a networked structure of consortia acting on their initiative." DFG The initiative to establish the NFDI was initiated by the Joint Science Conference (GWK) and is funded by the federal and state governments. Nine initial NFDI consortia began their work as of October 2020. Two more selection rounds will follow in 2020 and 2021. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Open Access | Open access is understood to mean free and, as far as possible, barrier-free access to digital scientific content. As a rule, users are granted extensive rights of use and easy access. The authorship remains in the hands of the author. Open Access enables maximum dissemination, use and further processing of scientific information. Open Access is an important achievement of the Open Science movement. |
| ORCID | The Open Research and Contributor iD (ORCID) is an internationally recognized persistent identifier that can be used to uniquely identify researchers. The iD is publisher-independent and can be used permanently and institution-independently by researchers for their scientific output. It consists of 16 digits split in four blocks (e.g. 0000-0002-2792-2625). The ORCID-iD is established as an identification number at numerous publishers, universities and science-related institutions and is integrated into the workflow, e.g. for the review of journal articles. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Persistent Identifier | In research data management, a persistent identifier is a permanent digital identifier consisting of digits and/or alphanumeric characters that is assigned to a data set (or other digital objects) and refers directly to it. Commonly used identifier systems are DOI (Digital Object Identifiers) and URN (Uniform Resource Names) for data and ORCID for researchers. Unlike other serial identifiers (e.g. URL addresses), a Persistent Identifier refers to the object itself and not to its location on the Internet. If the location of a digital object associated with a Persistent Identifier changes, the identifier remains the same.' |
| Personal data | The German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG) defines personal data as 'individual details about personal or factual circumstances of an identified or identifiable natural person (data subject)'. Data can be considered personal if it can be assigned to a specific natural person. Typical examples are the person's name, profession, height or nationality. The BDSG also stipulates that information about ethnic origin, political opinion, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, health and sex life are a type of personal data that is particularly worthy of protection and is therefore subject to stricter protection requirements. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Repository | A repository can be considered a special form of archive. The term repository refers to a managed storage location for digital objects in the digital age. Since repositories are usually accessible to the public or a restricted group of users, this term is closely linked to Open Access. The repository of the TU Braunschweig is LeoPARD. |
| Research Data Management Organiser (RDMO) | The Research Data Management Organiser (RDMO) at TU Braunschweig is an online tool designed to support researchers in creating data management plans. |
| Research data | Research data is (digital) data generated during scientific activity (e.g. through measurements, surveys, and source work). They form a basis for scientific work and document its results. This leads to a discipline- and project-specific understanding of research data with different requirements for the preparation, processing, and management: the so-called research data management. |
| Research data life cycle | The research data life cycle outlines the different stages research data can go through. It begins with the research question in a research project or application. After data collection, the research data is processed and analyzed or interpreted. The data must then be stored. This is followed by the publication of the research results and the partly obligatory long-term archiving of the research data. After archiving, the research data is made available in a repository for possible subsequent use. |
| Research data management | Research data management is the process of transforming, selecting and storing research data to keep it accessible, reusable and verifiable in the long term and independently of the data creator. Structured measures can be taken at all points of the research data lifecycle to preserve the scientific validity of research data, maintain its accessibility by third parties for evaluation and analysis, and secure the chain of custody. |
| Reuse | Reuse refers to the analysis/interpretation of third-party research data. These have been archived in a repository for future research questions and can be used by other researchers for their research. |
| Rights to third parties | From the perspective of researchers, rights to third parties are decision-making powers over the data resulting from the generation. From the point of view of users, these are the rights that must be observed in the subsequent use of data. Rights can be defined and communicated in a legally binding manner via licenses and associated license texts as well as contracts. For the reuse of data, at least the rules of good scientific practice apply, i.e. essentially the obligation to cite authors correctly. By granting the Creative Commons license CC-BY, this rule can also be largely reproduced by the data producer in terms of licensing law. Data protection, and patent and personal rights restrictions can make subsequent use more difficult. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| URN (Uniform Resource Name) | URN is the name of an identification and addressing system and is used similarly to a DOI for the persistent identification of digital objects (net publications, data sets, etc.). It is particularly widespread in German-speaking countries, as the German National Library applies, administers and resolves URNs for persistent identification and addressing. |
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| XML (Extensible Markup Language) | XML is a markup language for storing hierarchically structured information as a simple text file. It is mainly used for platform-independent data exchange between applications or computers. The encoding is both machine and human-readable. It is possible to check the content of an XML document for validity if additional content rules have been defined in an external file in addition to the general, formal rules. This allows the shape and content of the coded information to be described very precisely. With the help of XSL (XML Stylesheet Language), it is possible to interpret the stored information and convert it into other file formats for visualisation. |