Hanover's IT professionals save endangered climate research data from censorship!

Hanover's IT professionals save endangered climate research data from censorship!

At a time when science and research are often exposed to political influences, IT professionals from Hanover are on the front lines to secure at-risk data. The US government has announced plans to specifically delete unpleasant scientific content, particularly in the areas of climate research and gender studies. This creates an alarming situation for the scientific community.

Micky Lindlar, a dedicated employee at the Leibniz Information Center for Technology and Natural Sciences (TIB) in Hanover, is committed to saving this data. He and his team manage to rescue valuable scientific information by opening links to articles and securing them. They have established an extensive backup system that now includes 2.7 million articles from the arXiv platform at Cornell University. This data is essential for future research.

The threat of censorship

Censorship, such as that carried out by the Trump administration, is often arbitrary and affects not only research data, but also common keywords such as “gender” and “trans”. This approach not only has an impact on political discussions, but can also have fatal consequences for gender-specific medical research. In the USA, more and more scientists are experiencing content disappearing from research databases without warning. As the Politics Page Watson reported, the method of deletion is often purely ideological in nature and one is inclined to ask: Where is academic freedom?

The TIB is not only not idle, but has developed into a central player in the international network “Safeguarding Research and Culture”. This network includes several hundred people and institutions who work together to secure data. Lindlar highlights the importance of this savior project, saying it is crucial for future generations to have access to uncensored scientific data.

The technical background

It took a powerful computer almost ten days to back up 2.7 million items. In order to overcome these challenges, the TIB not only has enormous storage space - currently 300 terabytes are used for long-term archiving - but also a well thought-out system: the collected data is stored in a "dark archive" and, if necessary, i.e. in the event of censorship, converted into a "light archive" in order to grant scientists access.

In addition, the team reviews new articles monthly to ensure that the most current research is secured. The dynamics of the data backup infrastructure are also constantly growing, which provides valuable support for scientists.

In a further step, two universities in Hanover and the University of Oldenburg are applying for funding status next autumn. This could further support the work of the TIB and its ambitions to protect research. The Ministry of Science and the Volkswagen Foundation have also announced funding amounts, which further strengthens this initiative.

By taking on the fight against censorship, the IT professionals at TIB are sending a clear signal for the preservation of academic freedom. The situation shows that it is not just about data, but about the bigger picture: the future of science itself.

The NDR has also taken up this crucial development and provides a comprehensive insight into the challenges that researchers are faced with. Our world of science needs such dedicated professionals more than ever!