A Call for Data: Share Your Anonymized Datasets with Our Community
This is a request for data to further positive health outcomes through research and analysis of historical data!
At HowToFixShinSplints.com, we believe in the power of data to uncover insights, drive innovation, and tell compelling stories. Whether it's for machine learning, statistical analysis, or pure exploration, high-quality datasets are the lifeblood of progress.
However, we know that valuable data often remains locked away in personal folders or on private servers, inaccessible to the researchers, students, and enthusiasts who could use it to learn and create. We despise the file drawer problem.
That's why we're launching a call for data! We want to build a diverse, open, and fascinating collection of datasets, and we would like your help to do it.
What We Are Looking For
We are interested in anonymized datasets from any related field touching on the topics of:
- Shin splints
- Lower Limb Overuse Injuries
- Recovery Tools, Protocols, Modalities, etc. for overuse injuries
- Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome (MTSS)
- Stress Fractures or Breaks
- Acute Exertional Compartment Syndrome
- Peroneal Tendonitis
Any and all data collected in relation to these topics is requested.
Submission Checklist: 4 Steps to Success
To ensure your data is usable, legally sound, and properly credited, please follow these four steps before submitting. Should you have any questions, please send an email to: contact@howtofixshinsplints.com
1. Anonymize Your Data
This is the most critical step. You must remove all Personally Identifiable Information (PII). This includes, but is not limited to:
- Names
- Addresses (physical or digital (including email))
- Phone numbers
- Governmental identification
- Specific dates of birth
- IP addresses or device IDs
Data should not include any information that would lead to the identity of an individual study/observed participant.
2. Choose a Permissive License
To allow us and others in the community to use, modify, and share the data for any purpose, it must be released under a permissive license. We strongly recommend one of the following:
- Creative Commons Zero (CC0): This is the "no rights reserved" option, effectively placing the data in the public domain. This offers maximum flexibility for reuse.
- Creative Commons Attribution (CCBY4.0): This license allows anyone to use the data for any purpose, as long as they give you credit.
Please include the license choice in your documentation.
3. Create a README.md File
A dataset without context is just numbers. Your submission must include a README.md (or .txt) file that contains the following:
- Dataset Title & Description: What is this data about?
- Attribution Information: The name or organization you want to be credited, and a link to your website or a contact email. This is how others will know the source.
- License: Clearly state the license you have chosen (e.g., "CC0", "CCBY4.0").
- Data Dictionary: A description of each column/field in your dataset (e.g.,
column_name,data_type,description_of_what_it_means). - Context & Methodology: How was the data collected? What time period does it cover?
- Known Limitations: Are there any biases, gaps, or potential errors in the data we should know about?
4. Package & Submit
Package your data file(s) (preferably in an open format like .csv or .json) and your README.md file into a single .zip archive.
Email your .zip file or download url to: data@howtofixshinsplints.com
What Happens Next?
Our team will review each submission to ensure it meets the criteria for anonymization, documentation, and licensing.
If your dataset is accepted, we will:
- Host it on our platform for public access.
- Display the attribution and license information you provided clearly.
- Potentially use it in our own analyses, tutorials, and projects—always with full credit to you as the source.
By contributing, you are not just sharing a file; you are empowering a global community of learners, builders, and problem-solvers.
Thank you for considering this call for data. We can't wait to see what you've got!
If you are interested in exploring other avenues of collaboration, please do not hesitate to get in contact. We are always eager and open to collaborative exploration and other projects.