OCR AAQ Applied Science F181 - Lesson 10: Storage of Scientific Data

By the end

You should be able to…

Describe key features of personal, national and international databases.
Give examples of scientific data stored in each type.
Explain when each database type is appropriate.
Compare advantages and disadvantages of each type.
Explain how data can be kept safe and used responsibly.

MWB: Where might scientists store data?

List as many places or systems as you can.

Big picture

Why store scientific data?

Collect data

→

Store safely

→

Analyse

→

Share evidence

→

Support conclusions

Stored data can be reused, checked, compared and built on by scientists.

Three database types

Click each database type

💾 Personal database Small-scale data controlled by an individual or research team.

🏛️ National database Large data collections held at country level.

🌍 International database Shared data accessed by scientists across countries.

Comparison table

Personal vs national vs international

Database type	Key features	Example data	Advantages	Disadvantages
Personal	Managed by an individual, class, lab or research team.	Practical results, local survey data, small project results.	Easy to control, specific to the investigation, quick to access.	Small sample size, risk of loss, limited access and checking.
National	Large database managed within one country by an organisation or government-linked body.	Health records, geoscience data, UK Biobank-style research data.	Large sample, standardised systems, useful for national decisions.	May have restricted access, privacy concerns, expensive to maintain.
International	Shared across countries for global research and collaboration.	Genetic sequences, disease data, published research records, climate data.	Huge datasets, global comparisons, supports collaboration.	Harder to standardise, different laws, access and data quality may vary.

Expert group task

Become the expert

Group A: Personal databases

Find out when a personal database is useful and what data might be stored.

Group B: National databases

Find out how national scientific databases support research and public decisions.

Group C: International databases

Find out how international databases support global collaboration.

Then: form groups of three so each group has one expert for each database type.

Expert presentation table

Each expert should help the group complete this structure:

Question	Notes
What are the key features?
When should this database be used?
What data could be stored?
Why is this database suitable?
Advantages?
Disadvantages?

Rank the pros and cons

Choose your strongest advantage and strongest disadvantage. Justify both.

Data safety and responsibility

Keeping scientific data safe

Confidentiality

Personal or medical data should not be shared in a way that identifies people without permission.

Access control

Only authorised users should access sensitive data. Some databases are public; others are restricted.

Data quality

Data should be accurate, complete, well-labelled and stored with enough information to understand how it was collected.

Choose the database

Scenario challenge

Press start to begin.

Student writing task

Write a short paragraph to employees of a scientific organisation explaining:

how their data will be stored
why it will be stored that way
how the data will be used
how the data will be kept safe

Glossary builder

Click each term and add the definition to your notes.

Extended work

Rank and justify

Advantages

Rank these from strongest to weakest:

Data can be reused by other scientists.
Large datasets can make conclusions more reliable.
Stored data can be checked and compared later.
International data can show global patterns.

Disadvantages

Rank these from most serious to least serious:

Personal data could be misused.
Data may be stored in different formats.
Maintaining large databases is expensive.
Access may be restricted.

Finishing quiz

Multiple-choice checkpoint

Answer each question. Your score will appear at the end.