1 / 29

Data Management

Data Management. Science as a Profession Graduate School of Biomedical Science Baylor College of Medicine Gayle R. Slaughter, Ph.D. Assistant Dean of Graduate Education Associate Professor of Molecular & Cellular Biology. Why do we need scientific records?.

inga-strickland
Download Presentation

Data Management

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Data Management Science as a Profession Graduate School of Biomedical Science Baylor College of Medicine Gayle R. Slaughter, Ph.D. Assistant Dean of Graduate Education Associate Professor of Molecular & Cellular Biology

  2. Why do we need scientific records?

  3. Why do we need scientific records? Know what has been done Know how to do experiments Record of progress for granting agencies Record of achievement for publications and patents

  4. Data Ownership Who owns scientific data? Person who does the experiment? Head of the lab? Institution to which grant is awarded? Granting agency?

  5. Data Ownership Use of Rosalind Franklin’s x-ray photos of DNA by James Watson and Francis Crick

  6. Responsibility for Data Acquisition Person doing the experiment Supervisor should oversee Advise as to the system used Allow time to keep records Review records Critique record keeping

  7. Systems for Data Acquisition Notes on scraps of paper, or even papers not in organized place, are unacceptable Daily notebooks Bound journals Looseleaf notebooks Computer logs Primary data; if can’t fit in notebook Summaries of findings

  8. Types of Lab Notebooks General notebook: Experiment description, data, interpretation, conclusions Procedure or reagent notebook Computerized records Summary of findings, figures for papers

  9. Table of Contents Need to leave a few pages at beginning blank Organize by date, usually Include page numbers Categorize by: Techniques and protocols Type of experiment Title of experiment Include * by experiments that yielded publishable data; may also place copy in another notebook

  10. Hypothetical Experimental Description RNA Isolation from Rat Testis Cells (11/18/92) RNA was isolated by standard procedure from 106 testis cells isolated as usual. Northern blot was prepared and hybridized to P32-CaM cDNA. Blot showed three RNA bands of 1.8, 1.6, and 1.4 kb. Blot was scanned and digitized with a relative ratio for the 1.6 kb RNA band that changed by as much as six fold.

  11. Hypothetical Experimental Description RNA Isolation from Rat Testis Cells (11/18/92) Protocol: RNA isolated according to Biol. Repr. 37: 1247 (1) from 106 testis cells from the spermatogonial (SG), pachytene spermatocyte (PcS), & round spermatid (RS) fractions isolated as described in Mol. Endo. 3:1569 (2) with the cell distributions reported on 10/18/92 on Book 3, p 54. Northern blot was prepared & hybridized to the P32 EcoR1/Hind3 320 bp rat CaM 1 cDNA and washed according to ref. 1. Results: Blot showed three RNA bands of 1.8, 1.6, and 1.4 kb. Blot was scanned and digitized according to ref 2 with the following relative ratio of RNA bands: SG = 1:2:4; PcS = 1:12:3; RS = 1:4:8. Conclusion: CaM RNA bands are found at different ratios in different stages of spermatogenesis. Future Directions: strip and probe blot with CaM II and III cDNAs and CaM act. protein kinase to see if CaMapk is coordinately regulated with one CaM RNA/gene.

  12. Sample Format for Experiment Description What information are we missing? What elements would you include in the ideal lab notebook that is a record of daily experiments?

  13. Sample Format for Experiment Description Title of experiment Objective, purpose Rationale for doing experiment Procedures and reagents Experimental design and performance Details of samples, set-up, what you did Results: primary data, calculations, graphs Interpretation, conclusions, next step

  14. Guidelines for Lab Notebooks Permanent, well organized record Honest, complete information Sufficient information to understand, repeat Keep data up-to-date; keep all primary data Sign, number, date every page Maintain at least 3 years after project ends Most people keep for forever

  15. What would you do? You have just inherited a very interesting project from a former graduate student whose lab notebook is indecipherable? How do you get the information you need to move ahead with the project?

  16. Why make corrections to lab notes? Find mistakes Errors in recording or calculating Forgot to record something New information that changes interpretation Not really a change but an addition; explanation regarding interpretation, or conclusion

  17. Making Corrections to Lab Notes Do not erase or use whiteout Draw a line through what is being changed Write above or in the margin; date & initial it Use a different color ink Computer record; add a blank line, put in the correction with a date beside it

  18. Concerns about Computer Records Difficulty inputting some primary data Scanners are improving; some data difficult Ease of manipulation; temptation to alter data Loss of data - need to backup Constantly changing computer systems Computers; operating systems Hacking or duplication (for sensitive information)

  19. Guidelines for Computer Records Permanent, well organized record, back-up Number, date every page Honest, complete information Sufficient information to understand, repeat Keep data up-to-date; keep all primary data in a specified, easy to find place Keep a record of un-manipulated data Maintain for 3 years after project ends

  20. Guidelines for Record Handling Follow the rules of the workplace!! Types of records Rules on records: dating, signing Access of others to records Policies regarding duplication and distribution

  21. What would you do? You have made a major discovery, but the journal to which you submitted the work dragged their heels and has requested changes that will take months to complete. You need to get a claim to your discovery! You have a personal website. Should you post the finding there? What could you do to stake the claim?

  22. Guidelines for Record Handling Information may not be disclosed without the permission of your mentor. Cannot jeopardize publication or patents Some information may require government clearance for disclosure Homeland Security projects, for example

  23. Key Questions on Data Management Could you understand the lab notebook 10 years from now? Can anyone who didn’t do the experiments repeat them? Can you find the primary data, materials used to do the experiments?

  24. What happens when records aren’t maintained or can’t be understood? Difficulty understanding research Difficulty reproducing results Inability to document progress Difficulty responding to questions Can’t defend challenges that arise Loss of public trust

  25. Baltimore/Imanishi-Kari Fraud Case

  26. Baltimore/Imanishi-Kari Fraud Case One of the most publicized cases of suspected fraud in American science Came at time when American science was under assault Involved multiple government agencies, labs, outstanding scientists Changing verdicts Never completely resolved to everyone’s satisfaction

  27. Impact of Fraud or Suspicion of Fraud What happens when questions are raised about the validity of work? Concerns about relying on data Lost time to defend against charges Lost time to investigate charges Damage to careers, friendships Public loses confidence in science

  28. Keys to Reliable Record Keeping Provide a table of contents in each book Keep all records up to date Number experiments in a series in order Put primary data in the lab notebook if possible; if not, put in easy to find place Make corrections in different color and date

More Related