When citing media that you either uploaded or accessed in a published work, it is best practice to use a DOI (in addition to any other requirements stipulated by the use agreement or museum stakeholders).
However, media do not automatically receive a DOI upon creation. Therefore, users will often need to request assignment of DOI.
If you need a DOI, please do the following:
1) make a list with the URLs or ARK ids of all media you need a DOI for
2) Send an email to "morphosource@duke.edu" requesting DOI assignment and provide the list.
MorphoSource will then review your request. After determining that the quality of the media meets a basic standard, DOIs will be minted for you. We will let you know when this process is completed.
Time frame for minting
Depending on the number of media requiring a new DOI, prepare to wait between a day and week. This process takes time because, we do a cursory quality check of the media (see checklist below). If we find that there are issues with your media, we may require your assistance in revising the deposits. Thus, your responsiveness to our queries will sometimes affect the turnaround time.
What if it is not my data?
You can request DOIs for media that are not yours. We will handle any permissions that must be discussed with the Data Manager or other stakeholders.
MorphoSource Checklist for DOI assignment (Users may be contacted about any of the issues below even if they have not requested DOIs)
| Record Type | Checklist Item | Best Practice for Item | Changes may be suggested if... | Changes will be required if... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Media | Format of deposited file | Modality and image type dependent. The system disallows many incompatible combinations. | file is a zip with multiple meshes; zip is overly complex with multiple subfolders and accessory data | file is a zip with nested zips; file is a zip containing multiple zips or subfolders that represent separate data volumes; file is a zip that contains multiple zips or subfolders that clearly represent multiple scans/modalities/etc.; proprietary file formats (e.g., vgl or surf) are identified |
| Media | Economy of deposited file | for CT data, the volume does not include large number of empty pixels | the volume includes a large number of empty pixels that can be resolved through cropping to a subvolume | volume includes a large number of empty pixels and no reason for inclusion of these empty pixels is given |
| Media | Text entered for "Object Element or Part" | the name of an anatomical element or part has been entered | left blank; 3D preview appears to show something different than anatomical term supplied | inappropriate terms like "16-bit tiff stack" or "Homo sapiens" or "AMNH FM 12345" have been entered |
| Media | Voxel Dimensions & Units | filled in with numerical values only; units specified in dropdown | "units" left blank but voxel dimensions filled in with numeric values | voxel dimensions left blank; non-numeric values included in voxel dimensions field; other evidence points to inaccuracy in "voxel dimenions" or "units" field |
| Media | Preview quality | visible in viewer with correct scale, proportions and/or color | proportions or scale appear incorrect; color seems to be missing; preview mesh is of low quality | proportions or scale are verified to be incorrect; color verified to be missing; mesh quality of preview is verified to |
| Media | Preview status | set to "interactive" for all meshes and CT/MRI ImageSeries; set to "2D thumbnail" for Photogrammetry collections | status differing from best practice; absent 2D thumbnails | no reason for differences from best practice status is given |
| Imaging Event | Scanning facility information | facility selected | "No Org" selected; "Unknown Org" selected | Depending on circumstances, "No Org" selected; "Unknown Org" selected; "Unknown Device" selected; Other evidence points to incorrect or needlessly vague information being used for scanning facility. |
| Imaging Event | Scanner (aka device) information | a device of a specific make/model has been selected | "Unknown Device" selected | Evidence points to incorrect or needlessly vague information being used for scanner device. |
| Imaging Event | Voxel Dimensions & Units | for CT derived Meshes without parent media, voxel dimensions and units need to be included in Description field or an attachment file included with the data | units are missing | information is not available as a numerical value with units or in a file |
| Specimen | institution code and catalog number | institution code and distinctive catalogue number are provided for "user created" records | inaccuracies in the format or values of institution code, collection code or catalogue number are suspected | institution code or catalogue number are left blank; other evidence points to inaccurate values being used for institution code or catalogue number |
| Specimen | Occurrence ID is entered when available | Specimens with an occurrence ID can alomst always be imported from iDigBio; if users have not been able to locate a specimen via iDigBio (see tutorial), but are certain of the exact value of its occurrence ID, it should be included in the Occurrence ID field. | No occurrence ID is provided for a specimen from an organization that publishes its record to aggregators | It is verified that the specimen in question has an Occurrence ID that should be entered via the iDigBio portal (https://www.idigbio.org/portal/search) or museum specific public databases (e.g., Natural History Museum Data Portal). |
| Specimen | Organization record is correct | A given museum may have a number of organization records (e.g., for different collections or facilities). | Based on other information (eg specimen id or taxonomy) the incorrect organization appears to have been chosen | Other evidence verifies the organization record is incorrect (e.g., the specimen uses a "facility" organization of the AMNH rather than one of its "collection" organizations. |
| Taxonomy | taxonomy information is present and accurate | All biological specimens should have a taxonomy that is specific as possible; though species level identification is not required; a taxonomy from GBIF should be selected | GBIF taxon names have not been selected | no taxonomic information has been provided; other evidences verifies an inaccuracy in the taxonomic information used |