Collaborative Research: CIBR: The OpenBehavior Project

In recent years, the field of neuroscience has benefited from open source tools such as the computer language Python, off-the-shelf methods for 3D printing, low-cost microcontrollers such as Arduino, and public repositories for computer code and hardware designs such as GitHub. Many labs are using these tools, but most do not share their code and designs.

As a result, it is not possible to systematically track the use of open source tools and their revisions and there is no central repository for open source tools or benchmark materials, such as video recordings of animal behavior. This award will allow these issues to be addressed by creating a database for open source research tools used in the field of neuroscience as well as a repository of benchmark and training materials for using the tools.

The specific aims of the project are to create a taxonomy for open source tools used in neuroscience research, use the taxonomy to create and curate a database of open source tools, including creating Research Resource Identifiers (RRIDs) for all tools in the database, and disseminate information on open source tools and the skills required to use them. A special focus of the initial funding period (Aim 3) will be methods for video analysis of animal behavior, which are extremely popular in recent years.

Activities in the third aim include creation of a database of video recordings of commonly used behavioral tasks, an open data analysis competition using a common set of benchmark videos (developed through the project), and the development of training materials and in-person and virtual workshops on making and using the most popular open source tools used for neuroscience research. Broader impacts of this project will be to increase public awareness of neuroscience research through the OpenBehavior website (https://edspace.american.edu/openbehavior), social media, and participation in Society for Neuroscience (SfN) sponsored advocacy and outreach events.

The project will facilitate discussions of open source tools through a dedicated and moderated discussion topic in the SfN sponsored Neuronline forums and provide curated itineraries on open source tools for attendees of the annual SfN meeting.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.