Resources for Engineering Faculty : Manage Research Data

Data visualization or information visualization is a very broad term used to describe any visual representation of information. This can be anything from charts and graphs, to sketches and diagrams, to posters and presentations. Anything that helps communicate information visually. At Northeastern University Library, Research Data Analyst Kate Kryder can help people with things like creating dashboards, maps, and tables of data.

A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer-based means of storing, analyzing, displaying, and otherwise managing geospatial data - that is, any data that has a plottable or mappable geographic component. More than just a means of creating maps, GIS is a powerful tool for revealing and examining how geographic relationships affect the world around us, and for solving real-world problems where location and proximity come into play.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is implementing a new policy to further their efforts to improve the reproducibility and reliability of NIH-funded research through effective and efficient data management and data sharing practices. This policy, NOT-OD-21-013, went into effect on January 25, 2023, and applies to “all research, funded or conducted in whole or in part by NIH, that results in the generation of scientific data.”

Key points of this policy:

• A data management and sharing plan (DMSP) is required at the time of application.
• Compliance with the DMSP as approved by NIH Institute, Center, or Office (ICO) is required. Specifically:
  • An approved DMSP will become a term and condition of the Notice of Award.
  • NIH will monitor compliance with the DMSP during the award period. Noncompliance at the end of the funding period may factor into future award decisions.
• The use of established repositories for the sharing of data is strongly encouraged.
• Expects that data will be made accessible “as soon as possible, and no later than the time of an associated publication, or the end of the award/support period, whichever comes first.”
• Reasonable costs related to data management and sharing may be included in NIH budget requests. 

The Digital Repository Service (DRS) was developed by Northeastern University Library as a tool for University faculty and staff to protect the valuable information and data that has been created as part of the University’s research and instructional mission.

Anyone is welcome to use the DRS to discover publicly available content, like theses and dissertations or the University Archives and Special Collections Digital Collections. Members of the Northeastern community are encouraged to sign in to access additional content that is not available to the general public, like photographs from the Office of Marketing and Communications or certain research materials.