Publicly available data

Many biocurators work for life sciences data resources that make their data publicly available. This data is usually data generated by researchers, which is then collated, curated and shared freely with others by biocurators.

This online tutorial, which will take around 30 minutes, will introduce you to publicly available life sciences data and various example data resources.

By the end of this online tutorial you will be able to:

• Explain what publicly available data is
• Recall some data resources that make data publicly available
• Explain why some data resources have restricted access
• Describe the importance of licences

     Go to Using publicly available data: an introduction

Were any of the data resources mentioned in this online tutorial familiar to you? Perhaps you’ve used one in your research. It’s often biocurators who reply if you contact a resource’s helpdesk, so maybe you’ve even talked to biocurators before!

There are lots of data resources which make data openly available, but not all data can be made open, such as sensitive patient data. Learn more about how access to this kind of data can be restricted on the next page.