CODATA China and the Computer Network Information Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences organised an international training workshop on “Scientific Big Data and Machine Learning” in Beijing from 9-20 September 2019. Supported by CODATA, CODATA China has successfully held similar training workshops since 2012 and this is the 5th event in the series. The training course was funded by the Chinese Academy of Science and qualified applicants received full support for travel to Beijing as well as their subsistence and accommodation when at the workshop.

Participants in the Training Workshop also attended the CODATA 2019 Beijing Conference: Towards next-generation data-driven science: policies, practices and platforms.  Applicants were encouraged also to submit a paper or poster for the conference.

Objective:
Due to advances in information technology, we are witnessing an explosion in digital data through all forms of human activity: much of this data can also contribute to the production of knowledge for all domains of enquiry and across domains, as well as providing essential information for decision-making in response to global challenges such as sustainable development, disaster risk reduction, climate change, the growth of cities, the maintenance of biodiversity etc., etc. In order to meet the many global challenges and to take advantage of the opportunities of the data revolution, it is imperative to develop global skills and capacity in the science of data.

The mission of CODATA, the Committee on Data of the International Science Council, is to support the advancement of science as a global public good by promoting improved research data management and use, and by advancing data science and the enhanced exploitation of data in all areas of scientific research. Building data science capacity in countries with developing and emerging economies (in part through promoting technical training in data science, in data management and in the implications of the data revolution for science) is an important part of CODATA’s strategy.

The training workshop aimed to engage participants with a number of facets of data science and data management in the age of the data revolution and Big Data. Topics included, but were not limited to:

• Basic data science skills (e.g. introduction to data infrastructures in CAS, data carpentry, data management plan)
• Machine learning and data driven scientific discovery
• Scientific data policies, good practices, norms, specifications and standards
• Selected disciplinary scientific data stewardship exemplars (e.g. geoscience, biology, genomics, astronomy, etc.)

A number of activities were organised involving elite Chinese scientists, in order to promote knowledge sharing and to develop opportunities for future exchanges and collaboration. Participants benefited from visits to a number of leading research institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). During these visits, participants had the opportunity to learn from the scientific approach, management expertise, knowledge development and practical application which characterise activities at CAS institutes working at the frontiers of research. Furthermore, the programme promoted interaction and exchange of knowledge between experts and participants and among participants who benefited from exchanges with colleagues from a variety of academic and national backgrounds.

Further information about the training programme and contact details is available on the Training Workshop website.

This page last reviewed: 2024-12-05.