Announcing New Software Peer Review Editors: Beatriz Milz and Margaret Siple

We are excited to welcome Beatriz Milz and Margaret Siple to our team of Associate Editors for rOpenSci Software Peer Review. They join Laura DeCicco, Julia Gustavsen, Anna Krystalli, Mauro Lepore, Noam Ross, Maëlle Salmon, Emily Riederer, Adam Sparks, and Jeff Hollister. rOpenSci has been running a rigorous and collegial software peer review system since 2015. Editors manage the review process, performing initial package checks, identifying reviewers, and moderating the process until the package is accepted by reviewers as part of rOpenSci’s software suite. To address the scope and volume of packages submitted for review, it’s critical that we have a team of editors with complementary expertise. Beatriz brings her experiences in environmental science and active community engagement. Margaret improves open data science and software development practices at the US Government’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Meet our new editors!

🔗 Beatriz Milz

Beatriz Milz received her PhD in Environmental Science from the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil. Her research is related to water resources management, transparency, and open data. She is an R-Ladies co-organizer of the São Paulo chapter in Brazil. She is organizing the translation to Portuguese of the second edition of the book “R for Data Science” (this translation is being done voluntarily by people from the community). Beatriz has contributed to packages available on CRAN, including dados, odbr, and geobr. She reviewed the qualR and frictionless packages for rOpenSci. She was a mentor in the first cohort of the rOpenSci Champions Program.

Beatriz on GitHub, Website, rOpenSci.

I first heard of rOpenSci in 2019, at Latin-R, during a community panel. I got interested because rOpenSci was aligned with things that are important to me, and started to follow its activities on social media and explore some of the packages. In 2022 I was first invited to review a package, and I was really excited: that was the first time that I had the opportunity to contribute to this community! rOpenSci represents to me not only a great community but also a way to contribute to the R ecosystem, encouraging best practices of code and Open Science. Now I am very happy to have the opportunity to contribute as an editor!

🔗 Margaret Siple

Margaret is a Research Fish Biologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center. She has a PhD in Aquatic and Fishery Sciences from the University of Washington. Her research focuses on advancing ecosystem-based fisheries management by improving the statistical models used to assess marine fish stocks and identify important habitat. She also works on advancing open data science practices within NOAA and improving the accessibility, documentation, and review of NOAA’s internally-developed software packages through the Fisheries Integrated Toolbox. She developed the R package mmrefpoints.

Margaret on Twitter, GitHub, website, rOpenSci.

I found my way to rOpenSci during graduate school and since reviewing my first R package for them, I have seen rOpenSci’s approach as a “north star” of R package development and documentation. rOpenSci’s rigorous (and well-communicated!) standards and open-source format set an example that we follow in my groups at NOAA, and the supportive and active rOpenSci community has been an inspiration to me throughout my career. I am honored to be able to contribute as a member of the editorial board.

🔗 Submit your package!

Are you considering submitting your package for review? These resources will help.

• About rOpenSci Software Peer Review;
• Browse the online book rOpenSci Packages: Development, Maintenance, and Peer Review;
• Read public software review threads on GitHub