Data Formats | History

In 1998 a group of SAS instrument scientists from some of the leading synchrotron and neutron facilities gathered in Grenoble to discuss what could be done to help the worldwide SAS community share and streamline the treatment of its data (and thus improve the number and quality of scientific publications arising). Three main objectives were identified: better publicising of available data treatment software, the need for a 'standard data format', and enhanced interaction between facilities and SAS scientists.

The group named itself CanSAS - Collective Action for Nomadic Small-Angle Scatters - and it has been reasonably successful, if a little anonymous.

There have been five CanSAS conferences to date: ILL/ESRF, Grenoble (1998); Brookhaven National Laboratory (1999); ILL/ESRF, Grenoble (2001), ISIS/Diamond, Oxford (2004), and most recently at NIST, Washington DC (2007).

CanSAS has a number of Working Groups. Further information can be found on the CanSAS Wiki at:

http://www.smallangles.net/wgwiki/index.php/canSAS_Working_Groups


Documents