Abstract

The proposal will develop an app for screening memory function in elderly people concerned about declining cognition. It uses a simple word-pairing test that has demonstrated sensitivity and specificity in detecting prodromal Alzheimer’s disease.

The app will be built following a model developed by Frankl Open Science, a Sydney-based blockchain start-up. It will incorporate three key features that facilitate and incentivise open science and FAIR data sharing:

Data collected via the application is archived “on the fly” in secure repositories. This facilitates data sharing within collaborations; between relevant clinicians, patients, and caregivers; and allows broader data sharing of deidentified data as and when appropriate.
Access to the application is via a cryptocurrency micropayment. If the data are later shared openly then part of this payment is returned to the researcher. This incentivises researchers to share their data even if the study is not published.
Writing these transactions to the Ethereum blockchain provides a public, immutable, timestamped record of the data’s existence. Adding the data’s archived location to this metadata makes the data findable. Adding a hash (digital fingerprint) of the data allows the data’s provenance to be established.

In addition to its immediate clinical and scientific benefits, the application will serve as a working example for a new way of conducting open research. The strategy of Frankl Open Science is to share code and other resources so that scientists can integrate the above features into their own data collection protocols.

Aims

We will develop an app that screens memory function in older people who are concerned about declining cognition. It uses a simple word-pairing test that can detect early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. It will incorporate three key features that facilitate open science and FAIR data sharing (findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability). Data will be archived in secure repositories that allow data sharing between collaborators, clinicians, patients, and caregivers, and allows broader data sharing of anonymised data.

Researchers access the application using a cryptocurrency micropayment. If data are later openly shared, the payment is returned to the researcher. This provides an incentive to share data even if the study is not published. These transactions provide a public, time-stamped record of the data’s existence.

As well as clinical and scientific benefits, the application will serve as a working example for a new way of conducting open research.