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Open Data, Open Source and Open Standards in chemistry: The Blue Obelisk five years on
Noel M O'Boyle1, Rajarshi Guha, Egon L Willighagen
1Analytical and Biological Chemistry Research Facility, Cavanagh Pharmacy Building, University College Cork, College Road, Cork, Co, Cork, Ireland. baoilleach@gmail.com.
Journal of Cheminformatics
|October 18, 2011
Summary
The Blue Obelisk movement promotes Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source (ODOSOS) in chemistry. It has successfully fostered collaboration, leading to valuable, freely accessible resources for researchers.
Area of Science:
- Chemistry
- Computational Chemistry
- Cheminformatics
Background:
- The Blue Obelisk movement was founded in 2005 to address the scarcity of Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source (ODOSOS) in the field of chemistry.
- The initiative seeks to enhance chemistry research by improving software interoperability, fostering collaboration among Open Source developers, and creating community resources and open standards.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the progress and identify challenges in Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source within chemistry over the past five years.
- To assess the impact and success of the Blue Obelisk movement in promoting ODOSOS principles.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective analysis of the Blue Obelisk movement's activities and outputs over a five-year period.
- A survey of advancements and persistent obstacles in implementing ODOSOS in chemical research and software development.
Main Results:
- Significant progress has been made in developing and adopting Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source tools and practices in chemistry.
- Numerous freely available resources and community-driven projects have emerged as a direct result of the Blue Obelisk's efforts.
Conclusions:
- The Blue Obelisk has effectively united researchers and developers around shared interests in ODOSOS.
- The movement has demonstrably succeeded in generating valuable, open resources that benefit the broader chemistry community.
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