The Impact of Scientific Data Management
Posted April 23rd, 2014
The scientific community is struggling with the same Big Data conundrum as most other sectors. The amount of research being generated is exponentially growing; in fact, 90% of the data being generated was between 2011-2013. This growth is only expected to continue, with the amount of research data expected to grow 30% every year from this point on.
The amount of data is becoming overwhelming, and this leads to mismanagement. One study has found that …to the point that one study has found that a massive 80% of scientific data will be lost within two decades. Another study found that sourcing datasets have declined by 17% each year. In fact, the difficulty of managing and accessing data is one of the most common issues cited within the scientific community today.
Data simply is just not being managed effectively.
The concern is that as data output grows, effective data organization is only going to get more difficult. And if data continues to be managed poorly, then science – which depends on verifiable data – will feel the pain. Experiments will be harder to replicate, findings will be called into question, and papers will have to be redacted. The number of retractions due to error has grown over 5 times since 1990. Findings based on bad data can ruin careers.
For example, in the last 14 years, over 80,000 patients took part in clinical trials based on research that was later retracted due to bad data.
This issue has grown so much that now many funding organizations have policies on th management, dissemination and sharing of research; 34 countries have signed the “Declaration on Access to Research Data from Public Funding” – supporting access to publicly funded research data.
Another option is the utilization of electronic laboratory notebooks, which are obtainable to help researchers collect notes and metadata about their research and protocols. Another option is to utilize the stable of generic tools (such as Evernote, Google Drive, Dropbox or GitHub) and integrate them into existing research workflows.
However, regardless of your data management strategies, the most successful research initiatives start with better talent. You need experienced, innovative thinkers who understand industry protocols and are proficient in using the latest technology. At Bayside Solutions, we can provide that level of talent.
Bayside provides a wide range of research experts for biotechnology, pharmaceutical, clinical/molecular diagnostics and medical device companies. If you are such a firm in the Bay Area, give us a call today!
