We dare to open science

We invite you to the first Open Science Day by and for researchers at TU Wien on 03 June 2025

UNESCO Open Science Pillars

© UNESCO CC BY SA

TU Wien Bibliothek invites you to the first Open Science Day at TU Wien — an event by and for researchers. Organized by TU Wien Bibliothek with the support of the Vice Rector for Digitalisation and Infrastructure, this event is your platform to share, learn, and connect - whether you publish open access, manage research data, work with open source code, or engage in citizen science.

When and where?

Date: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Time: 08:45 – 17:00
Location: TU Wien Bibliothek, 5th floor, lecture room
Language: German, English

Why attend?

  • Learn how Open Science is taking shape at TU Wien
  • Discover good-practice examples from colleagues
  • Explore services and tools to support your research
  • Talk openly about challenges and needs
  • Connect with peers in an informal setting

Register now

Questions? Contact us at sekretariat@tuwien.ac.at

We look forward to seeing you there!

Programme

08:45–09:00 | Welcome Coffee
09:00–09:15 | Opening by Library Director Beate Guba and Overview by Moderator Philipp Steger

09:15–10:30 | Session I: Participatory Research – Good Practices & Challenges

  • “Citizen science and urban transformation” – Christian Peer (future.lab Research Center)
  • “Citizen Science data supported forest monitoring: Potential, Challenges, and Limitations” – Markus Hollaus (Department of Geodesy and Geoinformation)
  • “Soil Walks: How Numbers and Data can raise Awareness for Soil Protection” – Elias Grinzinger, Barbara Steinbrunner (Institute of Spatial Planning)

10:30–11:00 | Discussion
11:00–12:30 | Session II: Research Practices From Open Access to AI

  • “Community led publishing: Opportunities, challenges and pitfalls using the example of Quantum” – Marcus Huber (Faculty of Physics)
  • “Automated Reasoning” – Laura Kovacs (Faculty of Informatics)
  • “Open Science in Industry Collaborations: Challenges in Recommender Systems and Behavioral Data Analysis” – Julia Neidhardt (Faculty of Informatics)

12:30–13:00 | Discussion
13:00–14:00 | Lunch & Networking
14:00–14:20 | Pitch Session: Services for Open Science @ TU Wien

  • Citizen Science, Open Access Publishing, Journal Hosting, Recognising Predatory Publishing, PID-Services, Davis as an Open Infrastructure, Text- and Data Mining, TU Wien Academic Press, TU Wien Research Data Repository

14:30–15:30 | Session III: The European Open Science Cloud (EOSC)

  • Short introduction to the EOSC – Beate Guba (Library)
  • “Data Quality Framework for EOSC” – Chris Schubert (Library)
  • “Different shades of FAIR” – Tomasz Miksa (Center for Research Data Management)

15:30 | Closing Remarks
Afterwards | Informal networking with refreshments

Abstracts and speakers

Elias Grinzinger, Barbara Steinbrunner

Title: Soil Walks: How Numbers and Data can raise Awareness for Soil Protection 

Abstract:

In the research project "Soil Walks", led by TU Wien (Institute of Spatial Planning) in cooperation with the Environment Agency Austria and Wallenberger & Linhard Regional Consulting, the walk-and-talk format of the same name is being developed into a sustainable and broadly effective method for raising awareness on land use, soil sealing, and inner development. The goal is to stimulate public dialogue and support the preparation of participatory planning processes. The method is being prepared in the form of a handbook and a training video, enabling awareness-raising walks to be independently organized in municipalities and regions across Austria. To support this, a data dashboard was developed to visualize key indicators related to land use and sealing throughout Austria.

Bio:

Elias Grinzinger works and conducts research in the areas of town center revitalization, vacancy activation, energy and mobility transitions, awareness-raising, and digital tools at the Research Unit for Regional Planning and Regional Development (Institute of Spatial Planning). In addition to leading the Soil Walks project, he co-authored the handbook "Leerstand mit Aussicht" and is co-coordinator of the mobility lab land.mobil:LAB.

Barbara Steinbrunner is a researcher and lecturer at the Research Unit for Land Policy and Land Management (Institute of Spatial Planning) and a team member of the Soil Walks project. She is also active in local spatial planning and a member of Scientists for Future. Her research focuses on land policy, land use reduction, and rural development topics.

Markus Hollaus

Title: Citizen Science data supported forest monitoring: Potential, Challenges, and Limitations

Abstract:

Involving citizens in scientific studies sounds tempting and holds great potential not only for obtaining data, but also for sensitising the population to certain topics such as trees and forests and to science in general. This can lead to a higher acceptance of science in the population and to an increased interest of citizens in the topics under investigation.
In this presentation, two Citizen Science projects will be presented that are currently being carried out at the Photogrammetry Research Group of the Department of Geodesy and Geoinformation at TU Wien. In addition to a general presentation of the projects and the role of citizens in the two projects, the potentials, challenges and limitations in connection with citizen science data will be discussed.

Bio:

Markus Hollaus holds a MSc (2000) in Land & Water Management and Engineering from BOKU, Vienna and a PhD degree (2006) from TU Wien in the field of LiDAR for forest applications. He is a pioneer in laser scanning change detection based forest inventories. He has long term experience in processing all type of LiDAR data and deriving topographic and forest information from various remote sensing data.

Marcus Huber

Title: Community led publishing: Opportunities, challenges and pitfalls using the example of Quantum

Abstract:

Overcoming the profit-driven publishing model can be addressed by community led-initiatives to address both the skewed incentives and bibliometric impacts on scientific developments as well as the draining of public money into private hands. Nonetheless, such initiatives come with general challenges, which I illustrate on the example of the community led publishing initiative Quantum. Founded in 2016 using a Vienna based non-profit as organisational background it has since become the world leading journal in Quantum Computation and Quantum Information. I will describe the journal's history, the challenges we faced and what we foresee for the future.

Bio:

Marcus Huber is a physicist working on the interface of theoretical and experimental quantum physics. After his PhD from the University of Vienna in 2010, he held postdoctoral appointments in Vienna, Bristol, Barcelona and Geneva before returning to Vienna in 2016 with a START prize at the Austrian Academy of Sciences. Since 2021 he is a professor at the Institute of Atomic and Subatomic Physics of TU Wien.

Laura Kovacs

Title: Automated Reasoning

Abstract:

Certified computer systems are becoming the key in the increasingly complex decision making activities of our modern society. Among others, error-free and secure solutions are indispensable within AI, Autonomous Systems, Big Data, Blockchain, Decentralized Finance (DeFi), or Cloud Computing. While the explosion in applications of computer systems leads to great increases in productivity, wealth, and convenience, it creates a paradoxical situation: we rely on computer systems despite that uncountable many scenarios showcase that computer systems are not (properly) certified and hence are error-prone.

The area of automated reasoning provides computer-aided solutions to prove that computer systems are error-free, just like we prove theorems in mathematics. However, who can tell software developers which automated reasoning solutions should be used? Moreover, which reasoning method is best to be used during code review, for ensuring system safety and security?

This talk will reflect on some challenges of automated reasoning and focus on concrete applications of system verification security. We will highlight aspects of open-source code development, allowing others to easily use our solutions in their technologies without the need of becoming experts in automated reasoning.

Bio:

Laura Kovacs is a full professor at the Faculty of Informatics and head of the research unit Formal Methods in Systems Engineering. She designs new computer-aided program analysis and verification methods by combining automated theorem proving, automated assertion generation, and symbolic computation. She won an ERC Starting Grant, ERC Proof of Concept, and the ERC Consolidator Grant 2020.

Tomasz Miksa

Title: Different shades of FAIR

Abstract:

Tomasz Miksa will illustrate how each of the FAIR principles is applied in practice, highlighting the decisions researchers must make individually and those shaped by their research communities. This will shed light on both the opportunities and challenges of FAIR testing, as well as our efforts to integrate FAIR testing into data management planning.

Bio:

Tomasz Miksa is a senior researcher specializing in data management, digital preservation, and reproducibility. He holds a PhD from TU Wien and has led international projects on data infrastructures, auditability, and open access. He chairs the RDA DMP group and leads efforts in machine-actionable Data Management Plans in Austria.

Julia Neidhardt

Title: Open Science in Industry Collaborations: Challenges in Recommender Systems and Behavioral Data Analysis

Abstract:

Open Science encourages transparency and reproducibility, but its application in industry collaborations poses specific challenges. In areas like recommender systems and behavioral data analysis, tensions arise between academic goals and business interests. This talk outlines key issues such as restricted data access, publication limitations, and proprietary models. We discuss practical experiences and approaches for addressing these challenges while maintaining scientific quality.

Bio:

Julia Neidhardt is an Assistant Professor at the Research Unit Data Science at TU Wien Informatics with a background in mathematics and computer science. Her research focuses on user modeling, recommender systems, online behavior analysis, and digital humanism. She leads the Christian Doppler Laboratory for Recommender Systems and has held visiting positions at institutions including Northwestern University and the University of Geneva. Since 2023, she serves as UNESCO Co-Chair on Digital Humanism.

Christian Peer

Title: Citizen science and urban transformation

Abstract:

Citizen science is situated within the context of open science and presented as an approach to participatory research that potentially combines social, human, natural and technical sciences. The lecture discusses citizen science as a participatory practice of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary knowledge production and its methodological potential and challenges in urban research. With regard to the interfaces between technology and society, references are made to current research projects, expert debates and, in particular, to the research and innovation ecosystem.

Bio:

As a senior scientist he heads the urban transformation centre and the social innovation cluster at the future.lab of TU Wien. After studying environmental planning and cultural anthropology in Graz, Vienna and Lyon, he completed his doctorate while working for the Vienna city planning department and joined TU Wien in 2013. His work focuses on applied research in architecture and spatial planning, and in this respect on inter- and transdisciplinarity, urban studies, and science & technology studies.

Chris Schubert

Title: Data Quality Framework for EOSC

Abstract:

The need for explicit and precise information on data quality within the data productivity chain is becoming increasingly important, particularly in the context of EOSC strategy development. The former EOSC Task Force 'FAIR Metrics & Data Quality' developed a framework document providing recommendations on achieving Data Quality as an opportunity rather than a burden. This is a starting point that facilitates the reuse of trustworthy data, methods, for artificial intelligence, and providing an ensemble of agreements for EU Data Spaces. Through open consultations with the global community, a consensus was reached on providing data quality and indicators as a FAIR artefact. The new EOSC Strategic Pillars for 2026–2027 have raised awareness of the importance of data quality, emphasising its significant role in the operation of research data infrastructures. An overall assessment service on Data Quality does not exist. Domain-specific insights provide examples from NFDI, CODATA and for cultural data, spatial data domains or the health sector.

Bio:

Chris Schubert is Head of Media Management and Library-IT at TU Wien Bibliothek. He has been working for almost 20 years in data interoperability and semantics. He was heavily involved in the EU INSPIRE Directive at the European Commission, especially for data modelling and EU vocabulary management and setting up a Climate Data Research Data Infrastructure in Austria since 2015.