In general
Do: Don’t:
■
The journal Data in Brief publishes a
very specific article type that allows you
to describe and share data.
■
Follow the Data in Brief template to
prepare your article.
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Remove all submission instructions.
■
Use the word ‘data’ throughout your
data article wherever possible.
■
Spell out acronyms and abbreviations.
■
Include enough information so that
your data article can be read on its own.
■
Data articles published by Data in Brief
are not mini-research papers or short
communications.
■
Don’t include a Conclusion, Discussion
or Summary section.
■
Don’t use words such as 'study, 'results',
'conclusions', etc.
■
Don’t provide excessive background
information but refer to published
articles whenever possible.
■
Data in Brief is primarily a venue to
describe original data rather than new
methods.
Title
■
The title should be unique and focus
on the data you are sharing.
■
If possible use the words ‘data’,
‘dataset’, etc. in the title.
■
Don’t use the same title as an existing
research paper.
■
Don’t use words such as ‘effects’,
‘evidence’, ‘response’, ‘implications’,
‘influence’ etc. in the title.
Abstract
■
The abstract should be purely
descriptive and describe the contents
of the data article.
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If the data article is related to a
research article, include the
abbreviated reference in the abstract.
■
Don’t copy the abstract from a research
paper.
■
Don’t describe any related research
article, results, or provide too much
background.
Specifications
table
■
Fill in the fields in the Specifications
table.
■
Remove all instructions from the table.
If a field is not applicable, leave it
blank (e.g. data source location).
■
Keep the fields in the table brief.
■
If your dataset is deposited in a public
repository, include the link in ‘Data
accessibility’. It is not necessary to
reproduce the data in the Data in Brief
article.
■
Don’t leave the examples provided in the
table or they may end up in your final
article.
■
Don’t include too much information in
for example the “Experimental Factors”
and “Experimental Features” fields.
Instead move the details to the Materials
and Methods in the text.
■
Don’t include links to data in
repositories that are behind a firewall.
Value of the
Data
■
Value of the Data should include 3-5
broad, general, short bullet points.
■
Put into perspective the utility of the
data beyond what you used it for in
your own research.
■
Explain how/why the data you are
sharing in this Data in Brief article
could be generically valuable to the
scientific community, with an eye
towards possibly opening up doors for
new collaborations.
■
Don’t offer interpretative statements or
conclusions about the data nor state the
value of this data relative to any related
research study.
■
Don’t make conclusions about any data
not presented in your data article.