[Air-L] do we need an aoir data archive

[Eric Meyer]

While Jeremy is bringing this issue up, let me get in a bid to generate some discussion on the topic of building archives of web content.  These may be slightly different than the structured data archives Jeremy is referring to, but potentially offer future researchers access to important content for Internet research.

At OII, we have written a draft report that we will be delivering at the IIPC conference next week, and we are hoping that communities such as AoIR will scan the report and contribute your thoughts. This report has been commissioned by the IIPC, so your ideas have a pretty good chance of finding the right audience.  Please let us know if there is data you think that archives should be collecting, storing, and making available for research, and research questions they should be considering as they build archives, or partner with organizations like AoIR to make archives.

The draft report is available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1830025

Comments prior to 04 June 2011 will be taken into account when we write the final report.  You can respond directly to me (so as not to bog down this interesting discussion), and we will post the final report back to the list at the end of June.

Thanks,
Eric

Eric T. Meyer
Research Fellow, Oxford Internet Institute
University of Oxford
eric.meyer at oii.ox.ac.uk
http://people.oii.ox.ac.uk/meyer


-----Original Message-----
From: air-l-bounces at listserv.aoir.org [mailto:air-l-bounces at listserv.aoir.org] On Behalf Of jeremy hunsinger
Sent: 06 May 2011 04:53
To: jeremy hunsinger
Cc: aoir list
Subject: Re: [Air-L] do we need an aoir data archive

I mean to say... 'i do not think you can peer review data based research without access to the data'  not  'As I've said elsewhere, i don't actually think you can do peer reviewable research without providing access to the data that generated that research'  bleh, i really should stop multitasking when writing email.  

> I brought this up on twitter yesterday.   Perhaps it is time for AoIR to start an archive of data for current and future use.  My thought is that right now many researchers have access and rights to share significant bits of data, and many do not have access.  As I've said elsewhere, i don't actually think you can do peer reviewable research without providing access to the data that generated that research, and given that I have reviewed several papers based on proprietary information they could not release..., I'm thinking that we need to find ways of getting our data out there in the spirit of community and to promote scholarly quality.     I also think having a neutral nonprofit holding the information would make it far easier for people to get information shared from corporations.  
> 
> However, that i see the need and others have agreed here and there, I think it is time to have a discussion.  Personally, I know that I could set the infrastructure up without issue.   The website in theory has close to unlimited storage space, though downloads would need to be limited as we have limited processor speed.   There are also legal issues, copyright issues, and codebook issues that would need to be sorted out.  
> 
> so do we need something like this?  and if so or if not, why or why not?  
> 
> 
> Jeremy Hunsinger
> Center for Digital Discourse and Culture
> Virginia Tech
> 
> 
> Words are things; and a small drop of ink, falling like dew upon a thought, produces that which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think. --Byron
> 
> 
> 
> 
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Jeremy Hunsinger
Center for Digital Discourse and Culture
Virginia Tech



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