Register to participate fNIRS Open Dataset Contest 2026

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The SfNIRS Standardization and Open Science Committee cordially invites researchers in the areas of fNIRS, neuroimaging, DOT, and NIRS to participate in the fNIRS Open Dataset Contest 2026. Details for the contest can be found on the announcement page.

Submissions will open in January 2026 and close on September 1, 2026. Submitted datasets will be evaluated by a panel of experts combined with votes from SfNIRS members. The top three contributions will receive awards of up to $2,000 USD each and will be announced at the fNIRS 2026 conference in Macau, China, October 16–19.

All dataset authors are strongly encouraged to consider submitting a Data Paper for the Special Issue of Neurophotonics entitled "fNIRS Commons: Datasets and Tools for Open, Reproducible Science". Publication charges are waived for all Data Papers in this special issue. Guest editors include Dr. Qianqian Fang (Northeastern University, USA), Dr. Meryem A. Yücel (Boston University, USA), Dr. Alexander von Lühmann (Technical University of Berlin, Germany), and Dr. Adam T. Eggebrecht (Washington University in St. Louis, USA).

To participate in this contest, please complete the form below to indicate your intent to contribute.

We are also excited to announce that the NIH-funded NeuroJSON project will serve as a strategic partner for this contest. The NeuroJSON project will provide free data hosting services and individualized assistance in converting your datasets to BIDS and NeuroJSON/JSON formats, as well as uploading your datasets for wide dissemination via NeuroJSON servers. Please use the form below to indicate your interest in receiving support from the NeuroJSON team. Any questions, please

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Schema

{
  "title": "fNIRS Open Dataset Contest 2026 Participant Registration",
  "type": "object",
  "required": ["basic", "dataset"],
  "properties": {
    "basic": {
      "type": "object",
      "title": "Basic Information",
      "required": ["name", "title", "inst", "email", "research"],
      "properties": {
        "name": {
          "title": "Your full name",
          "type": "string",
          "minLength": 2
        },
        "title": {
          "title": "Your current position",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "PhD student",
            "MS student",
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            "Postdoctoral fellow",
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        "inst": {
          "title": "Your institute/company (please provide full name, no acronym), and country",
          "type": "string",
          "minLength": 4
        },
        "email": {
          "title": "Your work email address",
          "type": "string",
          "pattern": "[a-z0-9._%+-]+@[a-z0-9.-]+\\.[a-z]{2,}$",
          "format": "email",
          "description": "Please verify your email address. It may be used for follow-up communications.",
          "minLength": 6,
          "maxLength": 127
        },
        "research": {
          "title": "Check all research areas that are related to your work (at least 1)",
          "type": "array",
          "format": "checkbox",
          "uniqueItems": true,
          "minItems": 1,
          "items": {
            "type": "string",
            "enum": [
              "Imaging",
              "MRI/fMRI",
              "EEG/iEEG",
              "MEG",
              "fNIRS",
              "Neuroscience",
              "Biophotonics",
              "Spectroscopy",
              "Diffuse optics",
              "Microscopy",
              "Photoacoustics",
              "Modeling",
              "Image processing",
              "AI",
              "Data science",
              "Clinical",
              "Other (use the Additional Comments box below)"
            ]
          }
        }
      }
    },
    "dataset": {
      "type": "object",
      "title": "Describe Your Dataset",
      "required": [
        "ownership",
        "dataPaper",
        "priorPublication",
        "subjectType",
        "modalities",
        "dataFormats",
        "bidsConvert",
        "datasetSize",
        "hostOnNeuroJSON",
        "requestConversion"
      ],
      "properties": {
        "ownership": {
          "title": "1. Do you have the ownership or have the permission to share this dataset?",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "Yes, I own the dataset",
            "Yes, I have permission to share",
            "No, I do not have permission",
            "Unsure, need to verify"
          ],
          "default": "",
          "minLength": 1
        },
        "dataPaper": {
          "title": "2. Are you interested in submitting a \"Data Paper\" based on your dataset for the \"fNIRS Common\" Neurophotonics Special Issue (publication charge is waived)?",
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          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "Yes, I am interested",
            "Maybe, I would like more information",
            "No, I am not interested"
          ],
          "default": "",
          "minLength": 1
        },
        "priorPublication": {
          "title": "3. Is the dataset previously described in any publication, including web pages?",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "Yes",
            "No"
          ],
          "default": "",
          "minLength": 1
        },
        "priorPublicationDetails": {
          "title": "If yes, please provide the publication reference or URL",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "textarea",
          "description": "Please include DOI, citation, or web link if available",
          "options": {
            "dependencies": {
              "priorPublication": ["Yes"]
            }
          }
        },
        "subjectType": {
          "title": "4. Does the dataset contain measurement raw data from human subjects or animals?",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "Human",
            "Animal",
            "Both human and animal",
            "Phantom/simulation only",
            "Other"
          ],
          "default": "",
          "minLength": 1
        },
        "subjectNum": {
          "title": "5. How many subjects are included in this dataset?",
          "type": "integer",
          "minimum": 0
        },
        "modalities": {
          "title": "6. What are the imaging modalities used in this dataset? (check all that apply)",
          "type": "array",
          "format": "checkbox",
          "uniqueItems": true,
          "minItems": 1,
          "items": {
            "type": "string",
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              "EEG",
              "Non-fNIRS DOT/NIRS data",
              "Physiological data",
              "Microscopy data",
              "Mesh data (surface or tetrahedral)",
              "Synthetic dataset (such as simulation)",
              "Other (please describe in Additional Comments)"
            ]
          }
        },
        "dataFormats": {
          "title": "7. What data formats are your current data files stored in? (check all that apply)",
          "type": "array",
          "format": "checkbox",
          "uniqueItems": true,
          "minItems": 1,
          "items": {
            "type": "string",
            "enum": [
              ".snirf",
              ".nirs",
              ".mat",
              ".json / binary JSON",
              ".hdf5 / .h5",
              ".nii / .nii.gz / .dcm",
              ".csv / .tsv / .xls / .xlsx",
              "Other (please specify in Additional Comments)"
            ]
          }
        },
        "bidsConvert": {
          "title": "8. Do you want to convert the dataset to the BIDS format?",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "description": "Please note that BIDS format is focused on raw data; for processed datasets, they may not be supported by BIDS.",
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        "datasetSize": {
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          "type": "string",
          "description": "Please specify in MB or GB (e.g., '500 MB', '2.5 GB', '100 GB')",
          "minLength": 1
        },
        "hostOnNeuroJSON": {
          "title": "10. Do you want to host your dataset on NeuroJSON.io (free hosting) for disseminations across the community?",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "Yes",
            "No",
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          "title": "11. Do you request the NeuroJSON team to help convert the datasets to BIDS and NeuroJSON formats?",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "radio",
          "enum": [
            "Yes, I need assistance with conversion",
            "No, I can handle the conversion myself",
            "Maybe, depending on the complexity"
          ],
          "default": "",
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        },
        "contactInfo": {
          "title": "12. Provide contact information for the NeuroJSON developers to set up a follow-up meeting",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "textarea",
          "description": "This information will not be published. Please include preferred contact method and time frame if applicable.",
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        },
        "comment": {
          "title": "Additional Comments",
          "type": "string",
          "format": "textarea",
          "description": "Please provide any additional details about your dataset, including descriptions for 'Other' selections above."
        }
      }
    }
  }
}