The annual Cornell Day of Data gathers strength in numbers by bringing together professors, researchers and students across the university to share techniques, tools and insights in working with data.

This year’s virtual event, Jan. 27-28, focuses on the theme of “Scholarship through Collaboration.”

Shane G. Henderson, the Charles W. Lake, Jr. Professor in Productivity in the School of Operations Research and Information Engineering, will deliver the keynote presentation, “Yes, Data Is Great, But …”, about decision-making under uncertain conditions.

“I’ll survey some of those decision contexts, including ambulance deployment, bike sharing in NYC and the questions surrounding reopening Cornell’s Ithaca campus for in-person instruction in the time of COVID-19,” he said. “Data plays a central role in each of these settings, but care must be exercised to avoid pitfalls.”

Several panels and presentations will cover a range of topics cutting across different fields of study – from archaeological science to crop cultivation and animal breeding to social justice – and presenters will share insights drawn from working on diverse interdisciplinary projects that include:

• fostering a sustainable balance between local communities and wildlife in Tajikistan’s Pamir Mountains, led by the Cornell Wildlife Health Center;
• creating a free open-access digital publication about the known remnants of approximately 1,200 ancient Roman gardens, featuring research by students in landscape architecture and archaeology; and
• wielding data for social change through an initiative called Data for Equitable Economic Development and Sustainability (Good DEEDS), led by the Cornell ILR Buffalo Co-Lab.

Several lightning talks and workshops also are planned.

Details about the sessions and registration information are available on the Cornell Day of Data webpage of event organizer Research Data Management Service Group (RDMSG), whose members include data experts from the Biotechnology Resource Center, Cornell Center for Advanced Computing, Cornell Institute for Social and Economic Research and Cornell University Library.

Apart from featuring panelists and presenters, the event is meant to create a sense of community and encourage attendees to network and partner with each other, according to RDMSG coordinator and Day of Data planning committee chair Wendy Kozlowski, who is also a data curation specialist at Cornell University Library.

“RDMSG is excited to be holding this event again,” she said, “and we are looking forward to learning how our university community is collaborating with data, especially through the shifting priorities and workflows of this past year.”

Jose Beduya is a staff writer, editor and social media coordinator for Cornell University Library.