Shared faculty research resources
Environmental Science
- Planet remotely sensed data—a subscription paid by ERI/Libraries. Contact Sarah Mincey, skmincey@indiana.edu
- IU campus tree inventories: Contact Sarah Mincey, skmincey@indiana.edu
- Indiana Green City Mapper
- Smithsonian Forest Geo Network
- Ameriflux Tower data: Contact Kim Novick, knovick@indiana.edu
A variety of data is available from the IU Research and Teaching Preserve:
- Plant species list for several RTP sites from the Midwest Herbaria
- Large amount of GIS data relating to RTP sites: Contact Michael Chitwood, michitwo@indiana.edu
- Archive of research plots and methods used at RTP: Contact Michael Chitwood, michitwo@indiana.edu
- Database of animal and plant sightings at RTP with photographs: Contact Michael Chitwood, michitwo@indiana.edu
NOTE: These analytical instruments require specialized training to operate and in most cases there is cost associated with sample preparation and analysis. Contact the environmental science faculty chair with questions about O’Neill’s environmental analytical capabilities.
- Analysis of water samples for dissolved nutrients, organic and inorganic carbon, and many dissolved gases. Instruments include Shimadzu TOC analyzer, Dionex ion chromatograph, Lachat flow injection analyzer, and hand-held field probes. Contact Todd Royer, troyer@indiana.edu, or Sarah Powers, sarellis@indiana.edu
- Analysis of carbon and nitrogen in solid samples: Contact Todd Royer, troyer@indiana.edu
- Analysis of organic contaminants and persistent organic pollutants by mass spectroscopy: Contact Marta Venier, mvenier@indiana.edu
NOTE: Much of this equipment is located at the Griffy Field Station at the IU RTP.
Contact: Michael Chitwood, michitwo@indiana.edu
- Various animal traps, microscopes, and other field-lab equipment
- Basic field equipment: measurement tools, compasses, binoculars, etc.
- Plant dryer and specimen fridges
- Equipment and skilled staff to use/teach people how to use them: handtools, chainsaws, mowers, digging tools, UTV, etc.
- Row boats and canoes, paddles, and lifejackets
- Telemetry tower at Kent Farms and the Modus data on it about bird migration
Governance and Management
Contact: Ashley Clark, afbowers@indiana.edu
The Center for Survey Research (CSR) is a research center administratively housed under the Research Office at IU, a service core of the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, and a founding member of the Association of Academic Survey Research Organizations (AASRO).
CSR’s expert services include research design, sampling and subject recruitment, data collection instrument design and testing (including cognitive interviewing), web interface development, database and data collection instrument programming, data collection, forms scanning and data entry, coding, weighting, and data analysis. Senior methodologists possess advanced training in research methods and bring 20-30+ years of experience in designing and implementing high-quality qualitative and quantitative research studies.
CSR’s IT expertise includes data collection instrument design, programming, interface development, and data management using REDCap, Qualtrics, HTML, Javascript, and SQL, as well as mass email campaign software that is used to field samples exceeding one million addresses.
CSR implements industry-leading protocols to securely collect, manage, and archive sensitive research data, including Protected Health Information, from hundreds of thousands of participants each year. The field research unit conducts complex in-person interviews, collects medical specimens and environmental samples, obtains physical measurements, and administers standardized cognitive assessments and is led by a team with decades of field research experience leading large federally funded data collection efforts.
CSR’s longstanding telephone data collection unit employs rigorous training, data collection protocols, and quality control oversight of its diverse interviewing staff. The mail operations and forms scanning unit provides specialized capacity for efficiently employing mail and paper-based methods in research studies. CSR’s capabilities also include expertise to design, conduct, code, and analyze focus groups, in-depth interviews, and structured observations with a broad spectrum of research populations.
Contact: Kirsten Grønbjerg, kgronbj@indiana.edu
Surveys of Indiana Local Government Officials
Surveys conducted by the Indiana Advisory Commission of Intergovernmental Relations (PPI) in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2017, and 2020. The format has changed some over the year. The Commission went out of existence in July 2022.
PPI has the full series of surveys, but I don’t know what format the earlier surveys have. The publications are no longer online, but you can contact PPI at iuppi@iu.edu.
See related Indiana Nonprofit Sector reports
Surveys of Indiana Nonprofits
Multiple surveys of Indiana Nonprofits between 2001 and 2020. First survey (2001) included oversampling in selected communities across the state. All respondents were promised confidentiality.
Database of Indiana Nonprofits
Data in the Comprehensive Nonprofit Database has not been maintained.
Contact: Matt Baggetta, baggettm@indiana.edu; Brad Fulton, fulton@indiana.edu
The systematic social observation data collection tool and protocol can be used for studying meetings, events, and activities—which we collectively call "convenings"—held by civil society organizations. Using these materials we collect data on:
- The type of convening
- The format of the convening and the physical space in which it occurs
- The timing of important moments, including participant arrivals and depatures
- Counts of participants and some demographic categorizations
- Procedures and norms shaping the convening
- Activities undertaken during the convening
- Evidence of organizing and/or mobilizing practices
- The presence of public-sphere oriented discussion
- Decision making processes, including number of decisions made and range of options considered
- Details about planning and strategizing
- Counts of leaders and some demographic categorizations
- Assessments of social boundaries drawn by participants
- Amounts of interaction and styles of interaction
Data can be analyzed at the convening level or collapsed to the organization or community level. Elements of the tool could be relatively easily adapted to public-sector convenings and organizations. The data entry form is currently available as a Qualtrics survey that can be loaded onto tablet computers. More details, including links to methodological papers about the technique and substantive papers using data we have collected, are available at Observing Civic Engagement.
Policy Analysis and Public Finance
Contact: Kosali Simon, simonkos@indiana.edu
- Medicare claims
- Medicaid claims (indirect through Chicago/USC)
- HealthJump (access through either AWS or Quartz)
- Burning Glass
- State Inpatient Data/HCUP
- Optum/Change Healthcare (probably ending soon)
- NVSS Births/Deaths data
There is a Canvas site with much more. Note: In most of these cases, we only have the data for selected years and you usually need to be listed in a DUA in order to use the data. (Adding new people to the DUAs is usually but not always possible, of course).
Contact: Nikos Zirogiannis, nzirogia@indiana.edu
On Particulate Matter (PM2.5) pollution measurements from satellite data:
Users are required to sign up for an account in order to download the data. There are annual and daily data files consisting of PM2.5 concentrations at a 1km*1km stable grid for the entire U.S. This is a significant improvement compared to using data from EPA air quality monitors that are sparsely located throughout the country. Each raw data file contains 11.2 million observations (lon/lat points).
The annual data were used in a 2023 AER paper.
That code assigns the 11.2 million observations of the raw data to U.S. census blocks. I am currently in the process of writing an R script that maps the daily raw data onto census blocks.
Contact: Denvil Duncan, duncande@indiana.edu
Explore our extensive listing of datasets and projects on the Public Finance Working Group website.