Images from International Data Week. Clockwise from top left: the IUCr position paper on Open Data; speakers at the Crystallography Databases session; ICSTI General Assembly; panel discussion on data infrastructures.

Crystallography at International Data Week

A number of activities involving or relevant to crystallography took place at the recent International Data Week in Denver, Colorado. A session on Crystallography and Structural Data Bases explained to a general audience how some of the world’s foremost research databases maintain and deliver access to the enormous research value of their individual high-quality curated resources. The experience of the crystallography community in creating an interoperable workflow spanning experiment, software analysis, journal publication and database deposition and dissemination was described in a session on Building a Disciplinary, Worldwide Data Infrastructure. The specific experience of the IUCr as a sponsor of the Crystallographic Information Framework was highlighted in the session Coordination of Data Management Policy and Practice across ICSU Unions/Disciplines in an Open Data World. The IUCr position paper for crystallography in response to the Science International Accord Open Data in a Big Data World was presented to the CODATA Gemeral Assembly and very favourably received. The IUCr also participated in the General Assembly of the International Council for Scientific and Technical Information (ICSTI) and in various sessions of the 8th Research Data Alliance Plenary Meeting. Learn more in our report.