Box 1.

NRC Committee on Responsibilities of Authorship in the Biological Sciences


UPSIDE principles
In the committee's view, the principle has five corollary principles:
1. Papers should include all data or algorithms needed to support their major claims.
2. If this information cannot be included (e.g., data set is too large), authors should make it available to all researchers at no charge (e.g., online).
3. By the time of publication, authors should deposit data in publicly accessible data respositories if these are in general use.
4. Authors should identify which materials others might request and should state how to obtain those materials.
5. Authors should make patented materials available under license.
UPSIDE recommendations
Building on these principles, Cech makes ten recommendations:
1. Scientists should continue to contribute to framing database protection laws.
2. Reviewers for journals should advise authors on the what and how of making materials available.
3. Authors should not apply conditions to others' use of unpatented new materials (e.g., requiring collaboration).
4. We should move toward one standard Material Transfer Agreement with a streamlined process.
5. Researchers should receive their requested materials expeditiously (<60 days).
6. Journals should have a clear policy on sharing data and materials, with a policy on authors' nonadherence to the policy.
7. Research funding policy should include a material and data sharing policy for PIs.
8. Researchers should report an author who delays despatch—first to the journal (>60 days), then to the authors' employer or funder (>90 days).
9. Funders should pay PIs to cover costs of dissemination of data and materials.
10. Researchers receiving data and materials should acknowledge this appropriately.