ORCiDs (Open Researcher and Contributor IDs) - what and why

Is that author the same Jane Doe? Look to the ORCiD to know! The ORCiD (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is a unique 16-digit identification code for scientists to use (in addition to their name) to associate with their work. This avoids the same-name confusion. It sticks with you life-long even if you change last names, affiliations, etc. and integrates with an increasing number of systems so computers and people won’t get confused about what is and isn’t published by you.
The ID is associated with a page you can personalize your page with affiliations, links, a bio, etc.
They’re completely free, but only started in 2012, so you’re often still out of luck for those older references.
But you can help make things better moving forward!
You don’t need to have any publications yet to register for one and you can completely control how much or little info you want to share on your public record page
* I got mine in 2015 when I learned about them when applying for an NSF GRFP grant, so I’m a fairly early adopter!
Speaking of confusion, it’s completely normal to have a number end in X, even if it looks weird. It’s just a randomized checksum thing to help ensure data integrity or something. They range from 1-10 but in one digit, so X not 10.
In their FAQ’s words: “ORCID identifiers are all randomly assigned and cannot be changed. The last character in an ORCID identifier is a checksum. It ranges in values from “0” - “10,” with X representing the value “10.” The checksum ensures the other 15 digits of your identifier form a coherent iD.” info.orcid.org/ufaqs/why-do-s...
You can learn more about ORCiDs here: info.orcid.org/what-is-orcid/
And more about the global nonprofit organization behind it:
info.orcid.org/orcid-first-de...
Along similar lines, I previously made a A “Quick Start Guide” for starting off in research with good habits. Some things I recommend you do/learn/etc. as early as possible in your training… blog: bit.ly/quickstartscience RUclips: • A "quick start guide" ...  
see links or bit.ly/practicalposts or for more information about each; uploads at bit.ly/bumbling_uploads ) 
        
more about all sorts of things: #365DaysOfScience All (with topics listed) 👉 bit.ly/2OllAB0 or search blog: thebumblingbiochemist.com