Kategorie: ‘Services’
Ten Years of the FAIR Principles
Source: own illustration
The FAIR principles are a fundamental concept in research data management (RDM). They were first published ten years ago in the journal *Scientific Data* and have since established themselves as an international standard for the sustainable management of research data. The RDM services at RWTH Aachen University are also based on the FAIR principles and thus support researchers in ensuring their research data is FAIR throughout the entire research process.
We are taking this anniversary as an opportunity to take a closer look at the FAIR principles and their origins in this blog post.
RDM Checklist: Be Well Prepared for Your Vacation
Source: Own Illustration
Vacation season is just around the corner, and for many researchers, that means a well-deserved break. But before you put your laptop away for a few days or weeks, it’s worth taking a quick look at research data management (RDM). With just a little preparation, you can ensure that your research data is protected, that projects can continue to run smoothly even while you’re away, and that your substitutes have all the necessary information at their fingertips. In this post, we provide an overview of the most important steps you should take regarding research data management before going on vacation.
Publishing Research Data: Questions to Clarify in Advance
Source: Own Illustration
In the previous post, “Creative Commons Licenses Explained Simply,” we explained how Creative Commons licenses work and the options they offer for making scholarly works available for reuse.
However, choosing an appropriate Creative Commons license is just one step toward publishing research data. Various legal and organizational issues should be clarified in advance. These include, for example, whether the research data may be published at all, whether intellectual property rights apply to it, and which license or repository is appropriate in each case.
This post provides an overview of the most important issues and highlights what researchers should keep in mind when publishing their research data.
Creative Commons Licenses Explained Simply
Source: creativecommons.org
Whether it’s a scientific publication, presentation, graphic, or teaching material: Anyone who publishes research findings should specify how others are permitted to use them. This is exactly where licenses come into play.
They clarify whether content may be shared, modified, or even used commercially. In this way, they promote the reuse of scientific findings and support the goals of Open Science.
Creative Commons licenses (CC licenses) are an internationally established licensing system. But what do the various abbreviations actually mean, and which license is suitable for which purpose?
Where Should I Store My Research Data? A Decision-Making Guide for RWTH
Source: Own Illustration
At the very latest when research data needs to be stored, archived, or published in a structured manner, an important question arises: Where is the best place to store the data?
At RWTH, various services are available to researchers. At the same time, there are numerous discipline-specific repositories tailored to the needs of individual fields. The right choice depends less on the file format and more on the goal: Will the data be actively used? Does it need to be preserved long-term? Or should it be published and made available for reuse?
ELN@RWTH: Digitizing Research Documentation
Source: Own Illustration
Experiment logs, measurement data, analyses, and notes are part of everyday research life. However, this information is often stored in various locations: in lab notebooks, on network drives, in email attachments, or on personal computers. This can make it difficult to retrieve data, trace workflows, or share information with colleagues.
Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELNs) offer a digital solution to this problem. They enable structured documentation of research processes and help researchers make their work traceable, efficient, and accessible over the long term.
Coscine in Everyday Work – Development, Service, and Marketing
Source: Own Illustration
There is much more to a platform like Coscine than just technical development. To enable researchers to manage and store their data in a structured way and collaborate on projects, various departments must work closely together. At Coscine, two teams in particular take on key roles: the Development Team and the Service Management Team. These are complemented by other departments such as Communications and Marketing, which support the platform’s visibility.
State Initiative for Research Data Management – fdm.nrw
Source: fdm.nrw
The state office of the State Initiative for Research Data Management (abbreviated as Landesinitiative fdm.nrw) serves as the central hub for strategic developments in research data management (RDM) in North Rhine-Westphalia. Since its founding in 2017, it has been connecting universities and stakeholders across the state, supporting the establishment and expansion of RDM structures and state-level RDM services, and providing information on current, cross-cutting developments in RDM. In addition, the Landesinitiative fdm.nrw supports the implementation of the DH.NRW State RDM Concept, which was published in 2024. With its information, networking, and exchange offerings, the fdm.nrw state initiative is aimed in particular at FDM staff at universities.
In this blog post, you will find an overview of the development of the fdm.nrw state initiative from its founding to the present, as well as its key areas of activity and its collaboration with RWTH.
Coscine Support Summit 2026 For Efficient Support Workflows
Source: Own Illustration
On April 22, 2026, the Coscine Support Summit took place at the IT Center of RWTH Aachen University. Around 15 participants from seven different universities came together to engage in an in-depth exchange on key support processes and to collaborate on their further development. The focus was particularly on the application for and review of storage resources.
Happy Birthday, Coscine!
Source: Own Illustration
In April 2026, Coscine will celebrate its third anniversary of regular operation! What began as a project during the pilot phase to make it easier for researchers to work with data has evolved over these three years into a vibrant, growing platform that has since become a central infrastructure in research data management. To mark this third anniversary, we look back on Coscine’s journey in this post.
