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Have you ever wondered how researchers consider data as a part of their research proposal or project design?

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This video will introduce you to data and ethics, including questions for you to consider regarding your information and research.

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What is data ethics? In the broadest sense, data is simply a piece of information.

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Data could be facts or statistics, which is often why we think about data as being numbers, but data can be in a variety of forms.

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For example, data could even be an image or a physical sample, like a cell sample.

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Anytime we start talking or even thinking about data, we should also think about data ethics.

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According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, data ethics can be defined as a new branch of ethics that studies and evaluates moral problems related to data, algorithms, and corresponding practices to formulate and support morally good solutions.

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Additionally, data ethics considers how and in what way is sensitive data shared, maintained, analyzed and appropriated.

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Sensitive data is personally identical to feeble information, such as human samples, survey results, even your DNA.

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Why do we need to consider ethics and data? We need to consider ethics and data because data is created every day, and this data is becoming increasingly more and more detailed.

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How we interact with this data is extremely important. We also need to be mindful about where all of this data is coming from.

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Let's look at Google as an example. Every time you watch a YouTube video, go to Google Maps, put something in your calendar, search something on a Google search engine, or send an email.

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Google is collecting data. To give you an idea of just how much data Google collects, they collect over 20 million web pages per day, over 3 million daily search queries, and according to CNN, Google can track your searches on your devices for up to 6 months, even if you're not logged into your account.

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This example is just one of many to consider. Any time we think about data collection and data ethics, we should ask ourselves, how is this data being used, how is this data being shared, and what are the repercussions of this data collection, short term and long term?

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What are some situations where you should consider data ethics? Any time you're about to start collecting data or giving your data, you should consider the ethical practices behind it.

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As a student, an easy example of when you should consider data ethics could be when you fill out surveys.

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Did you provide any identifiable information in that survey? If so, were you asked about consent before you completed the survey?

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Moving forward, how might you change what surveys you complete, or as a researcher, how could you design a survey to address concerns that you may have when collecting data?

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Additionally, how do you know you're complying with institutional requirements, and don't worry, you'll learn about these if you don't know now.

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When should ethics be considered? At the start of every research project, to ensure you have the proper training, ask your professor, research mentor, or a librarian for help.