The not-for-profit DuraSpace organization announced that it will develop a hosted, cloud-based data storage and management service aimed at meeting the specific needs of working scientists and researchers. The new service, an expansion of DuraSpace’s popular DuraCloud data management and archiving service, is being funded through a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
“Scientists and researchers are under increasing pressure to archive and provide access to their data well beyond the grant funding period. The currently available commercial cloud services do not fully meet their needs and have no ties back to the research organization”, said Michele Kimpton, CEO of DuraSpace. “We’re committed to providing a solution for managing research data that’s safe, secure, flexible, and most of all, easy-to-use for the scientist who does not have IT staff on hand to help tackle data management issues.” With “Direct-to-Researcher, “catching” the results of research at the source means that scientists and researchers have the ability to meet granting agency requirements for accountability in preserving and creating access to data.
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“The DuraCloud Direct-to-Researcher model is compelling since it can bridge the researcher’s need for an easy solution for storing data with the institution’s interest in managing and preserving research data for the long term. The DuraCloud Direct-To-Researcher service has the potential to make a valuable contribution to scientists by providing an easy cloud-based platform for research data.” Said Mary Marlino, NCAR Director of e-Science.
Development will begin by soliciting input directly from scientists, university administrators, and other stakeholders in a workshop scheduled for the fall. Results of the workshop will help inform the first set of requirements for building a platform specific to the needs of researchers. The new service is expected to launch sometime in 2013.
DuraSpace to Bring Cloud-Based Platform "Direct-to-Researchers"
Filed by on July 26, 2011
About Gary PriceGary Price (gprice@mediasourceinc.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. Before launching INFOdocket, Price and Shirl Kennedy were the founders and senior editors at ResourceShelf and DocuTicker for 10 years. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com, and is currently a contributing editor at Search Engine Land.
