Is There Any Truth in the Accusation That the LIGO Administration Is Not Allowing External Researchers to Scrutinize Their Raw Data or Other Data?

No, there is no shred of truth to the accusation. The LIGO Scientific Collaboration openly shares its data with the scientific community, which can be downloaded from their official website. Furthermore, it is against U.S. federal law to restrict the sharing of data from scientific projects funded with federal money, such as those from the National Science Foundation (NSF), which primarily funds LIGO.

Legal and Ethical Obligations for Data Sharing

While there are some exceptions, these do not pertain to the majority of data. The three main exceptions are:

Temporary exclusion periods: These periods, lasting typically a year, are designed to give the researchers who invested in the equipment the opportunity to write and publish their papers. This is standard practice and typically applies to data that are at least a year old. Data cleaning: Only datasets that have been appropriately cleaned to avoid misleading others are published. This step typically occurs before or during the writing of papers, not afterward. Classified data: Regardless of funding source, data classified for national security reasons cannot be published. However, the LIGO dataset does not, to my knowledge, include any classified data in basic physics and astrophysics.

Scientific Community Norms and Data Accessibility

It is a fundamental principle in the scientific community that data should be shared transparently. The desire to stay in good standing with funding agencies, who hold the keys to continued financial support, further incentivizes data sharing. Scientists who fail to share their data risk losing their funding, as the majority of their research is publicly funded.

Benefits and Challenges of Collaborations

Besides the legal and ethical expectations, scientific collaborations are widely encouraged within the scientific community. While data sharing and publication must occur, collaborations can facilitate the rapid advancement of science and provide valuable support to the original project. These collaborations often enhance the quality and impact of research outputs.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the LIGO data is accessible to the scientific community and the process adheres to both legal and ethical standards. The exceptions to data sharing are minimal, and the principle of open data sharing is upheld. Collaboration in science, coupled with data transparency, fosters a more productive and transparent research environment.