= Open Science Framework
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The <Open Science Framework> is infrastructure developed by the <Center for Open Science> for creating and linking inspectable research records. It supports registration of study plans, community-run preprint services and connections to related data, materials, code and publications. These records can connect several stages of an investigation rather than leaving only its final paper visible.<The Open Science Framework by Center for Open Science>[Tools and Services, current description of transparent research records, OSF Registries and OSF Preprints]{ref}
For example, an investigator can register a planned analysis before collecting data, then link the resulting paper and analysis code to that plan. Comparing the records helps distinguish the prespecified analysis from subsequent <exploratory analysis>. Registration provides evidence of what was recorded at a particular time; it does not itself show that the study design is sound or that a result is correct. <Research transparency> and <computational reproducibility> answer different questions from the truth of a scientific claim.
In his account of the project's history, <Brian Nosek> describes a failed 2007 grant proposal, <Jeff Spies>'s renewed development effort in 2011 and the opening of the service for public use in 2012. His August 2026 explanation of a change in direction also illustrates an infrastructure constraint: the long-term value of linked research records depends on which services an organization can sustainably maintain.<OSF Changes: A Note to Users by Brian Nosek>[11 August 2026, Part 1, origins and public launch; Part 2, sustainability and the reduced service scope]{ref}
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