In this module we will discuss data management for research workflows, why it’s important, and introduce how you can use ARCC resources to manage your data. This page give background information for future topics, if you are looking for specific examples, please head back to the main Data Management page to navigate to other pages.

It is also important to note that the content of these pages are general suggestions ans guidelines to assist in your research workflows. The content is NOT rules or requirements for using ARCC resources during your research project.

Research Data Life-cycle

The Life-cycle of data in a research project can be broken down into multiple phases. These phases can be thought of as distinct phases, but often blend into each other with little to distinguish the differences between them. Below we provide details and guidelines for each phase.

The Planning Phase

Data Management Planning is an often overlooked, but critical phase of the Research Data Management Life-cycle. Not only will it be useful for the execution of your research project, a formalized plan is often required by funding agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) among many others. The planning phase of the research data life-cycle usually comes after a research project has been conceptualized but before a the project is underway (or even funded), but can always be re-visited in an informal manner. It is important to consider a variety of things during this phase as well as establish goals for your data:

• What kind of data is required to answer our research question?

• What file formats will be collected?

• Is there a particular software needed in the other phases that requires the data to be formatted in a particular way?

• Are there any federal compliance requirements?

• How will the data be stored and protected prior to analysis?

• Will the data be preserved or discarded after the project is complete?

How ARCC Can Help With Planning

ARCC is a good resource for many of the phases in the Research Data Management Life-cycle, but in the planning phase, is a bit more limited in scope. That said, there are some things researchers can interact with ARCC on in forming this plan:

• The ARCC documentation and polices can provide researchers with much of the background information required about resources available

• ARCC resources are described in a Facilities Statement

• ARCC is always willing to meet with researchers to discuss any Data Management issues by scheduling through our ticketing system

• We work closely with UWyo Libraries, who are well versed in Data Management and can refer to them for more nuanced questions

  • They also administer the UWyo instance of a Data Management Planning Tool called DMPTool, which can be very useful for writing data management plans

  • They also have resources available for publishing research data, which will be discussed later in this module

The Collection Phase

There are multiple types of data and collection of these data vary greatly depending on the kind of research being done. Below is a table of some types of data that could apply top any management scenario. Please note this is not a comprehensive list and many more types of data that exist.

During this phase, it is important to keep data that are being collected organized and named with appropriate conventions to assist with the next phases, and examples will be discussed in other modules.

How ARCC Can Help With the Collection Phase

Since ARCC does not advise on how research should be done, how data are collected is not usually an area of expertise we provide. However, we can provide advice on how the data maybe used in later phases of the Research Data Management Life-cycle, that you may want to be mindful of while you are in the collection phase. If you are unsure about anything that you may run into, please remember that ARCC provides the following that may assist you:

• The ARCC documentation and polices can provide researchers with much of the background information required about resources available

• ARCC resources are described in a Facilities Statement

• ARCC is always willing to meet with researchers to discuss any Data Management issues by scheduling through our ticketing system

The Storage Phase

How ARCC Can Help With the Storage Phase

The Analysis Phase

How ARCC Can Help With the Analysis Phase

The Publishing Phase

How ARCC Can Help With the Publishing Phase

Next Steps