Contributing to the Fred Hutch SciWiki

The Biomedical Data Science Wiki aims to support ongoing biomedical research now and in the future and is the product of the Fred Hutch research community. The ongoing contribution and curation of the content in the Wiki by the Fred Hutch researcher community itself is intended to serve two purposes:

  1. create an evolving source of documentation that grows and changes along with the particular interests and research tools available to Fred Hutch researchers over time, and
  2. unify content that bridges the divide between how research processes are performed in general and how those processes are performed at the Fred Hutch specifically.

To fulfill these two purposes we have the Wiki Writer/Editor program which is intended to engage current Fred Hutch based postdocs, staff scientists and research specialists over a three month timeframe to create and edit content to help the Biomedical Data Science Wiki achieve those goals. We aim to incorporate information about new and emerging technologies or projects in which Fred Hutch researchers are involved or use, and also provide a mechanism for feedback regarding what additional documentation is needed to support their research.

Note: as of the pandemic, the funded Writer/Editor program is on hiatus, but any contributions pro bono are still accepted.

Suggestions for Contributing to the Biomedical Data Science Wiki

  • Editing any existing content on the SciWiki for accuracy, readability, and brevity.
  • Tackling some issues on the SciWiki
  • Adopting a realm or page to build and evolve content about a specific topic you see missing.
  • Adding a demo or detailed instructions on using a resource, performing a common task, setting up a tool for use in either our Data Generation Resource Library, or the Scientific Computing Resource Library.
  • Propose a new Pathway.
  • Some other proposal about how to improve our site, make things more readable or findable.

Get in Touch

  • More information can be found in our Github README.
  • Join the Fred Hutch Bioinformatics and Computational Research Community Slack workspace via this link, and use your fredhutch.org, uw.edu, scharp.org, or sagebase.org email to join. In this Slack workspace we have a #wiki-contributors channel where you can chime in with edits, get updates about next meetings, or converse with other contributors about next steps.

Why be a Wiki Writer/Editor?

  • Communicate with the research community and help improve the Biomedical Data Science Wiki
  • Share and communicate out how to use a new tool or resource
  • Document something you find yourself explaining multiple times to your co-workers( ex. best practices, getting started, how to, things to avoid, TL;DR)
  • Get better at using GitHub
  • Get technical writing experience

Responsibilities for a Wiki Writer/Editor

  • An initial one hour meeting for training on how to edit and manage contributions via GitHub (web OR desktop client training will be provided; previous experience with Github is not required).
  • Participate remotely or locally in the one hour weekly working meeting.
  • Write documentation in your primary area of expertise and/or editing existing documents on the Biomedical Data Science Wiki both in and outside of your primary area of expertise. This work is done remotely, anytime during the week at your convenience and contributions are submitted regularly via GitHub. Contributions are then reviewed and incorporated along with all other contributions at the weekly Data Science Wiki work meeting.
  • Provide reviews of content for formatting, clarity and accuracy (when in your area of expertise) when other contributors submit pull requests.

Ideal Writer/Editor Qualities

  • Have the ability (or interest) to write clearly and concisely for a wide range of scientific audiences and levels of expertise.
  • Can self-direct and time manage to make your contributions have the most value as well as coordinate with your research.
  • Can work collaboratively and professionally with others who will both edit your writing and whose writing you will edit.
  • Have an interest in contributing to the Fred Hutch research community.
  • Have an interest in learning more about biomedical research and resources here at Fred Hutch that you may not already be familiar with!