Open Science Blog

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Decode the Science Without Reading the Fine Print

Academic articles make my eyes glaze over. I can usually push through a few sentences, maybe the full abstract if I have a bit of caffeine in me. Reading them aloud can help, but I sometimes still go into “robot mode,” saying the words on the page while my brain is making up theories about whatever book I’d rather be reading.

Let’s be honest: academic articles aren’t exactly something I’d curl up with in my comfy chair while snuggling my cat. But working as a technical writer at a company that champions open science, I’ve had to dive back into the scholarly deep end—sometimes even reading papers that evaluate other papers (yes, really).

That first plunge involved a lot of caffeine and...

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Strength in Numbers: Growing Your Academic Support System in an Open Science Era

So, you’ve chosen the best advisor (i.e., PI, committee chair, etc.) — someone whose research and goals align with yours. That’s a huge step! (If you haven’t yet, check out my previous post about selecting an advisor!) Your advisor will play a starring role in shaping your research and day-to-day grad school experience.

But, have you ever heard the saying strength in numbers? Graduate school is no different. Your success depends not only on your advisor but also on a whole ecosystem: committee members, mentors, peers, and a strong department culture. In today's research landscape, this ecosystem is increasingly built on open science principles (e.g., sharing data, code, and methods; making research accessible; and fostering collaboration across traditional boundaries).

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Reflections from Johns Hopkins University: An Open Science Perspective

Recently, our team at DUTC hosted our NASA Open Science Virtual Training session with Johns Hopkins University. The event was a huge success, bringing in over a hundred registrants! Before the training began, we wanted to get to know attendees better, so we provided a pre-survey to understand their background and familiarity with open science principles. In total, 68% of survey participants pursued the training on their own, and 32% took the online course along with co-workers and/or colleagues. Well over half of them had or were pursuing graduate degrees, bringing valuable knowledge and experience from their respective fields to the training. Their disciplines spanned a wide variety of fields; we had attendees in economics, biomedical engineering, electrical engineering, biological science, environmental health science, analytical chemistry, biodesign, psychology, neuroscience, applied mathematics, library and information science, and financial engineering.

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Open Science without the Science

I am not a scientist. I am not a developer. Scratch engineer, analyst, and coding instructor off the list for good measure. My degree is in English with a Professional Writing emphasis. I took a couple of 101 coding classes to get a fancy IT certificate to look nice on a resume, but that's about it.

So, why have I taken nearly 20 Open Science trainings? I'll give you a hint: it's not just because I'm required to for my job. It's also not just because I enjoy them, either, although they're always the highlight of my day!

To put it simply, open science is open humanity, a way of collaboration that welcomes everyone to participate in discovery. Every time I attend the training, I take away something new about the idea that I can apply to everything from everyday conversations to community events to a technical work setting.

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Planting Your Roots: Finding the Right Grad Advisor with the Help of Open Science Values

Congratulations—you got into a graduate program! Now what? If you’re anything like most new graduate students, you’re probably overwhelmed by the flood of information. You are thrown into instantaneous berating of what’s important; funding, classes, research expectations, publications, seminars, teaching, endless new acronyms… Insert Imposter syndrome here.

Here’s the thing: one of the most important decisions you’ll make during your graduate degree is choosing your advisor (in some programs, this role may have a different title, such as a “research mentor” or “committee chair”). This isn’t just a "boss" for the next few years—this person’s research will shape your work, their mentoring style will influence your day-to-day experience, and their name will likely follow you on your first publications and way beyond into your career (especially if you stay in academia). Your advisor will likely be one of your key references for years to come, possibly influencing your opportunities long after you graduate. Think of it as becoming a branch on their academic “family tree.” Read More

Git, GitHub, and You: How Collaborative Writing Tools Propel Open Science

One voice can make a stunning melody, but a chorus of voices weaves soul-stirring harmonies otherwise impossible to achieve. In the same way, collaboration transforms innovative scientific ideas into meaningful, reproducible research.

NASA and the White House declared 2023 the Year of Open Science, launching Transform to Open Science (TOPS) to make scientific research more accessible, transparent, and reproducible. As part of this initiative, NASA has awarded my organization, Don’t Use This Code (DUTC), a grant in a collective effort to train 20,000 scholars through free virtual cohorts... Read More

Open Science at the Alabama Academy of Science

 photo of our lead instructor, teachin assistants, and class facilitator

With the skills gained through the DUTC NASA Open Science Skills Training, we believe the AAS will continue to inspire and equip Alabama's scientific community to embrace open, accessible, and reproducible research practices... Read More

Take Open Science Further With Us
  • July 31, 2024
  • Dr. Courtney Haun

In addition, you will be able to connect with a broad network of like-minded researchers from many disciplines who are passionate about open science. These connections can foster fruitful collaboration and further your professional development.

This NASA certified training will cover…
  • What is Open Science?
  • Reproducible Analysis
  • Tracking History
  • Honest Data
  • Visualization
  • Open Data
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