http://fosteropenscience.eu 
FACILITATE OPEN SCIENCE TRAINING FOR EUROPEAN RESEARCH – 612425 
Discovering Open 
Practices 
Anatomy Museum, King's College London 
 
LSE, King's College London and Queen Mary University of London Libraries 
04/09/2014 
 
 
 
 
 
  
A one day conference and workshop for Postgraduate Research Students and Early Career Researchers 
introducing best practice in open research.  The day will introduce concepts and themes around open 
research and the open agenda, provide practical help in engaging with open access to research 
information, and investigate some of the broader topics relating to open access that researchers need 
to consider.   
DISCOVERING OPEN PRACTICES 1 
 
EXERCISE: METADATA 
This exercise is intended to draw out issues related to intellectual property which often are the main 
obstacle to sharing data. Two scenarios are presented, both drawn from real cases. The scenarios are 
intended to stimulate discussion within the group.  
 
SCENARIO ONE 
A study conducted a survey on how people travelled to work at a university and the following metadata 
and documentation items were produced. Keeping in mind the criteria of “what would you need to 
know to understand these data”, group the following objects into what you consider to be essential to 
understanding, useful to understanding, or not relevant/suitable? 
Participants can work as individuals or in groups. They place each item on in a group of essential, useful, 
or not relevant. Either cards with the objects written on them, or post it notes with the object’s 
corresponding number  
1. The weather forecast  for days on which the survey was conducted 
2. A list of names of participants 
3. Descriptions of variable names 
4. A news item about the research in the university newsletter. 
5. A copy of the letter sent to all staff and students asking for participants 
6. Name of the researcher and data access conditions 
7. Postcode of participants. 
8. Instructions for administering the survey for interviewers and participants 
9. Information on the sampling frame and universe of analysis 
10. List of publications arising from this survey 
Essential Useful Not relevent/suitable 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Adapted from Corti et al (2014) Managing and Sharing Research Data (Sage: London) p.53  
 
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, 
technological development and demonstration under grant agreement no 612425