Carnegie Mellon University's (CMU) CloudLab (https://cloudlab.cmu.edu/) is an example of the growing movement toward automated science -- the "practice of scientific research without the need for significant human intervention" (https://cbd.cmu.edu/about-us/what-is-automated-science.html). This recent piece in Science describes another automated science facility at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory focused on "recipes" for materials used in batteries. In some cases, these facilities are built for start-up or private companies that explicitly do not want to share their trade secrets, proprietary information, etc. The opportunity at hand with CMU's CloudLab is redesigning and re-engineering the workflows to be more open and conducive for cooperation within and perhaps beyond the walls of a university. Working with the originators and CMU leadership of CloudLab, the CMU OSPO has identified important questions regarding this redesign and re-engineering process including the different types of artifacts with varying degrees of possible IP issues, workflows connecting software and hardware artifacts, and questions regarding interoperability with external systems. Perhaps most interestingly, this work affirms a phrase stated by Josh Greenberg from the Sloan Foundation regarding "rolling wall of openness" rather than a binary view of open or closed with the prospects of embargoes in a new context. This talk will outline these issues and proposed approaches for addressing them with an objective of engaging the broader community who will eventually encounter similar issues at various institutions including universities.
Speakers: Sayeed Choudhury