Common review of sections 1 and 2

Author: fiveop

paper.tex

@@ -71,11 +71,11 @@ \section{Introduction}
 This definition is broader than in~\autocite{FAIR4RS} and is the outcome of a recent discussion in~\autocite{Gruenpeter2021}.\\
 \textbf{Research software engineers:}\\
 People who create or improve research software and/or the structures that it interacts within the computational ecosystem of research domains.
-They are highly skilled team members who may also choose \todo{Is choose the right word here? Does not the employer usually dictate this?} to conduct their own research as part of their role.
+They are highly skilled team members who may also conduct their own research as part of their role.
 However, we also recognise RSEs who have chosen to focus on a technical role as an alternative to a traditional research role.\\
 \textbf{Researchers:}\\
 RSEs might also be researchers.
-However, for the lack of a proper term and to avoid many “non-RSE researchers” within the text, we will refer by “researchers” to all non-RSEs involved in research or in research supporting organisations such as in \eg{} \todo{I find it much easier to read “for example” than “\eg{}”. Could we use that consistently instead?} libraries, hence those that are at most sporadically performing RSE actions.\\
+However, for the lack of a proper term and to avoid many “non-RSE researchers” within the text, we will refer by “researchers” to all non-RSEs involved in research or in research supporting organisations such as in \eg{} libraries, hence those that are at most sporadically performing RSE actions.\\
 \textbf{RSE Hub}:\\
 This is our general term for the central RSE team throughout this paper.
 These RSE Hubs can take the form of, \eg{} full RSE units, smaller RSE groups, Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs), virtually across multiple units or combined under single leadership,
@@ -100,18 +100,19 @@ \subsection{Pooling: a necessary ingredient}
 This is comparable to commercial/industry R\&D departments, where key software architects and developers establish a knowledge hub and consult with as many projects as necessary \todo{Does that exist in reality? Isn’t it just that people, on average, stay longer?} [REF].
 % side-note: it's also similar to “inhouse consulting” in management\autocite{moscho_inhouse_consulting_2010}. They even formed a national network to raise awareness about the internal consultant role (https://inhouse-consulting.de/).
 Subject matter experts like software architects, database administrators and other tooling specialists are organised centrally and share their knowledge by consulting with decentralised projects.
-It makes economically sense to organise such personnel centrally since not every project can afford or needs such RSE FTEs.
+It makes economic sense to organise such personnel centrally since not every project can afford or needs such RSE FTEs.
 Most academic research organisations have established centralised tooling, \eg{} storage or High-Performance-Computing\ (HPC), but only a few consider software development and consultancy a relevant service yet.
-RSE units act as knowledge hubs in a network of academic developers within an organisation~\autocite{Elsholz2006}.\todo{Move to next paragraph?}
 
 A second and equally important pooling is that of \textbf{diverse knowledge}.
+RSE units act as knowledge hubs in a network of academic developers within an organisation~\autocite{Elsholz2006}.
 Groups of RSEs with tasks spanning the entire organisation necessarily have to offer diverse knowledge.
 Obtaining such diversity can also be a challenge, but once it has been established it quickly becomes an asset to the organisation.
-RSEs in centralised groups are interdisciplinary specialists due to their experience working on diverse topics, \todo{I do not properly understand this last clause.} as well as overlaps in methodology across disciplines and research software in general.
+RSEs in centralised groups are interdisciplinary specialists due to their experience working on diverse topics, \todo{FLO+PMS: should be reformulated, guess: RSEs know diverse research methodologies + general RSE knowledge} as well as overlaps in methodology across disciplines and research software in general.
 They are assumed to be able to suggest the most appropriate tools/frameworks and design or architecture patterns for certain research challenges.
 Their diversity in skills (languages, frameworks, front/back-end, UX, management) is welcomed, especially for short-term needs in projects.
-\todo{This should be moved to the previous paragraph.} This will save money otherwise spent in duplication of efforts.
-It \todo{might is a weak word. I would like to reformulate the whole sentence to sound more positively.} might mean that a central RSE unit has a portfolio that is too broad for most individual research groups, but it also means that involving RSEs from these central groups automatically brings in new ideas and becomes a catalyst for interdisciplinary collaboration within the organisation.
+This will save money otherwise spent in duplication of efforts.
+That means a central RSE unit has more RSE competencies than any individual research group in the institution.
+This allows members of that unit to bring in new ideas or transfer them from other collaborations to these groups.
 
 The third kind of pooling is visible most of all from a users perspective: a \textbf{single, central contact point} for digital challenges is valuable to researchers, whose first problem often is not knowing whom to contact, partially because while they know what they want, they might not know what they need.
 A central RSE team can, due to its proximity to research, much better listen to the wishes expressed by researchers and then help formulate needs and act as a channel to either fulfil it themselves or reformulate and redirect the request.
@@ -126,15 +127,15 @@ \subsection{Pooling: an already tested idea}
 \subsubsection{Research data management}
 Both data and software play a fundamental role in almost all of research.
 Over the past decades, Research Data Management (RDM) has evolved into a topic of national interest with NFDI consortia for all disciplines and a research data law.
-Federal state RDM initiatives\footnote{\url{https://forschungsdaten.info/fdm-im-deutschsprachigen-raum/deutschland/}}\todo{Make footnotes proper citations?} have established the topic further and provide regional training, networking and other supporting services.
-Many research organisations have \todo{established … established} established central RDM groups that support research projects in all aspects from grant proposals to hands-on support and maintaining Data Management Plans (DMPs).
+Federal state RDM initiatives\footnote{\url{https://forschungsdaten.info/fdm-im-deutschsprachigen-raum/deutschland/}}\todo{PMS: Make footnotes proper citations?} have established the topic further and provide regional training, networking and other supporting services.
+Many research organisations have set up established central RDM groups that support research projects in all aspects from grant proposals to hands-on support and maintaining Data Management Plans (DMPs).
 Funding agencies acknowledge the importance of research data and have started to make RDM mandatory in research projects.
 
 The most recent funding guidelines suggest “data stewards” in data-driven research.
 Such experts are to be employed in advanced research projects like “Collaborative Research Centers” (CRC)\footnote{Sonderforschungsbereich (SFB)} or “Clusters of Excellence”\footnote{Cluster der Exzellenzinitiative}.
 These data experts support research projects in several aspects including DMPs, grant applications, data availability for journal publications, compliance, FAIRification and more.
 Similarly, central RSEs will encourage other RSEs to publish software with rich metadata and will support journal publications with code submission requirements.
-With the increasing recognition of software as a research \todo{maybe product instead of object/result} object/result, it is easy to see how projects will require and benefit from support in software development needs in the near future.
+With the increasing recognition of software as a research product, it is easy to see how projects will require and benefit from support in research software management in the near future.
 
 Due to the similar nature of both, data and software, and their importance in today's digital research, it is reasonable to expect a similar trajectory in the development of research software as a topic, as we have witnessed for research data.
 %such output has become more important over the last two decades. Since research software can be considered valuable research output as well, we expect a similar trajectory for software.
@@ -145,7 +146,7 @@ \subsubsection{Research data management}
 
 \subsubsection{Existing RSE efforts}
 The concept of central RSE teams is also not untested.
-Examples \todo{Do we want to mention all? DLR has something similar.} of organisational RSE teams in Germany are for instance
+Examples \todo{FLO+PMS: Do we want to mention all? DLR has something similar. So far it’s only the authors’ group.} of organisational RSE teams in Germany are
  the Helmholtz HIFIS group\footnote{\url{https://events.hifis.net/category/4/}}\autocite{haupt_hifis_consulting_2021},
  the Scientific Software Center in Heidelberg\footnote{\url{https://www.ssc.uni-heidelberg.de/en}}\autocite{ulusoy_heidelberg_ssc_2024},
  the Competence Center Digital Research (zedif) in Jena\footnote{\url{https://www.zedif.uni-jena.de/en/}},
@@ -167,17 +168,17 @@ \subsubsection{Existing RSE efforts}
 %Such code often requires long-term maintenance, support, new features or bug fixes.
 %The decision of curation is commonly based on measures that involve quality, academic or societal impact among many others.
 
-\todo{But not not what we describe here.} The Carpentries\footnote{\url{https://carpentries.org}}\autocite{Wilson2006} exemplify a similar success story\footnote{Carpentries25 Testimonial Series: \url{https://carpentries.org/blog/tag/carpentries25/}}.
+\todo{FLO+PMS: They are not an example for an institutional RSE structure. We can scrap this, paragraph starting here} The Carpentries\footnote{\url{https://carpentries.org}}\autocite{Wilson2006} exemplify a similar success story\footnote{Carpentries25 Testimonial Series: \url{https://carpentries.org/blog/tag/carpentries25/}}.
 \todo{Assertion-citation mismatch.} Requests or suggestions for even more training show the need for such services\footnote{Carpentries Incubator and Carpentries Lab: \url{https://carpentries.org/lesson-development/community-lessons/}}.
-RSE services which benefit all disciplines/departments may represent a unique selling point for organisations competing for the brightest minds, see the examples from leading German universities above.\todo{Scrap whole paragraph except for first sentence?}
+RSE services which benefit all disciplines/departments may represent a unique selling point for organisations competing for the brightest minds, see the examples from leading German universities above.\todo{PMS: Scrap whole paragraph except for first sentence?}
 
 %Given that RDM training or coordination is a centralized effort in most organisations, the time has come to implement a similar structure for research software services.
 %Such a group may extend or include RDM or collaborate with such service teams.
 %See the Vision and Realization sections below for more details.
 
 In the UK, for example, many universities started initiating dedicated RSE units about a decade ago~\autocite{Crouch2013}.
 The successful establishment of such staff is a role model for similar academic organisations worldwide.
-A range of already-existing RSE units can be seen in this map: \url{https://society-rse.org/community/rse-groups/}.
+A range of already-existing RSE units can be seen in this map: \url{https://society-rse.org/community/rse-groups/} \todo{FLO+PMS: mention that this map is not current and add further data.}.
 In the UK, for example, almost all grant applications include software development in their budget.
 This allocated money can then be utilized to delegate/dispatch a central RSE person or group into a research project for a few weeks or months as necessary.
 
@@ -187,7 +188,7 @@ \subsection{External expectations}
 
 The latest DFG grant application templates require discussion of both, data \textbf{and} software management (in line with their GWP guidelines~\autocite{dfg_gsp}).
 %We also see the first grant applications [REF wellcome trust (seems to require an OutputMP that includes software, but only how/when it will be published, not how it will be created/maintained)? or others] requiring Software Management Plans (SMP).
-In addition, as dedicated DMPs have become mandatory in several funding calls, we expect to see a similar development for Software Managment Plans (SMPs) in the future. \todo{So put it in and provide ref, or leave it out. No parentheses.} (There have been funding calls in the UK that required a SMP. [no ref?])
+In addition, as dedicated DMPs have become mandatory in several funding calls \todo{REF}, we expect to see a similar development for Software Managment Plans (SMPs) in the future. \todo{REF} There have already been funding calls in the UK that required an SMP.
 % See https://www.forschungsdaten.org/index.php/Data_Management_Pl%C3%A4ne#Anforderungen_von_F%C3%B6rderorganisationen
 % See https://www.researchdata.uni-jena.de/information/datenmanagementplan