Network Report: A Structured Description for Network Datasets
The rapid development of network science and technologies depends on
shareable datasets. Currently, there is no standard practice for reporting and
sharing network datasets. Some network dataset providers only share links,
while others provide some contexts or basic statistics. As a result, critical
information may be unintentionally dropped, and network dataset consumers may
misunderstand or overlook critical aspects. Inappropriately using a network
dataset can lead to severe consequences (e.g., discrimination) especially when
machine learning models on networks are deployed in high-stake domains.
Challenges arise as networks are often used across different domains (e.g.,
network science, physics, etc) and have complex structures. To facilitate the
communication between network dataset providers and consumers, we propose
network report. A network report is a structured description that summarizes
and contextualizes a network dataset. Network report extends the idea of
dataset reports (e.g., Datasheets for Datasets) from prior work with
network-specific descriptions of the non-i.i.d. nature, demographic
information, network characteristics, etc. We hope network reports encourage
transparency and accountability in network research and development across
different fields.