[en] Bibliographic Translation Data: Invisibility, Research Challenges, Institutional
and Editorial PracticesLisa Teichmann, Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur les humanités numériques (CRIHN) at Université de Montréal; Karolina Roman, McGill University
Abstract
[en]
In this article, we discuss the main challenges in finding and extracting translation data from national library
catalogues and the literary press and propose solutions for researchers to access and analyze bibliographic data
for translations. To illustrate these issues, we present two case studies: the first being dedicated to translation
invisibility in the literary press, i.e., specialized and general literary journals and magazines, discussing
overall trends in the Canadian literary press and giving specific examples from the Quill
& Quire and the Montreal Review of Books. The second deals with the
institutional practices of collecting and cataloguing translations according to metadata standards at three
national libraries: the German National Library (DNB), the Austrian National Library (ÖNB), and the Bibliothèque et
Archive nationales du Québec (BAnQ). By doing so, we problematize how the cataloguing, collecting, and reviewing of
translated material can be viewed as a systemic issue, highlighting the parallels between these different types of
practices. We hope to broaden the understanding of translation invisibility by looking at how institutional,
cultural, and editorial practices inform the cataloguing, collecting, reviewing, and publishing of
translations.
[en] Manuscript Catalogues as Data for Research: From Provenance to Data DecolonisationHuw Jones, Cambridge University Library; Cambridge Digital Humanities; Yasmin Faghihi, Cambridge University Library; Cambridge Digital Humanities
Abstract
[en]
This paper discusses a recent project which applied computational methods to catalogue data in an attempt to generate new information on the
provenance of Islamicate manuscripts in UK repositories. Using a subset of records taken from the Fihrist Union
Catalogue as a dataset, we analysed and grouped together manuscript descriptions which shared selected physical features, then examined
the occurrence of records with secure provenance within those groups to see if information on the place of origin could be extrapolated across
them. While we gained useful information regarding the provenance of manuscripts, the chief conclusion of the project was that catalogue data,
in its current state, poses serious challenges for quantitative analysis. This is partly due to the various purposes for which data has
traditionally been collected (in contexts where codicological descriptions had a different purpose) and partly due to inconsistencies in the
dataset. In our conclusion we put forward strategies for working with inconsistent data, make suggestions for changes to cataloguing practices to
answer the requirements of digital methods, and propose new research questions addressing the history of catalogues and cataloguing practices
which came into focus during the project. We also make a case for the potential of digital methods to enable new approaches to decolonisation,
focusing on data modelling, data provenance, and accessibility.
[en] Conceptual Modeling of European Silk Heritage with the SILKNOW Data Model and
ExtensionMarie Puren, LRE, EPITA Paris; Pierre Vernus, Université Lumière Lyon 2, LARHRA
Abstract
[en]
Silk holds significant historical importance in European history, fostering economic growth, innovation in weaving
techniques, and the creation of exceptional artifacts. Despite the conservation efforts of numerous institutions,
silk heritage remains at risk due to its fragile nature. This paper outlines the methodology employed by the
Horizon 2020 SilkNow project aimed at enhancing the promotion and preservation of silk-related cultural heritage
collections. We present the development of a CIDOC CRM-based data model for the creation of a comprehensive
knowledge graph. We also introduce the SilkNow extension, designed to encapsulate the intricate semantics
associated with the production processes of silk fabrics. Our results demonstrate the potential of Semantic Web
technologies in safeguarding and enriching the visibility of silk heritage through improved data interoperability
and accessibility.
[en] Towards a differentiated digital-hermeneutic
analysis tool for the detection of short quotations using the example of the Church Father JeromeFranziska Schropp, University of Konstanz; Thomas E. Konrad, University of Konstanz; Marie Revellio, University of Konstanz; Barbara Feichtinger, University of Konstanz
Abstract
[en]
Late Latin literature is characterized by numerous references to classical texts and authors. For Jerome of
Stridon in particular, manual-hermeneutic research has revealed various intertextuality phenomena usually published
in encyclopaedic collections of quotations. In this paper, we present a digital-hermeneutic analysis toolkit
primarily designed to detect short text-text congruencies that have a high chance of being evaluated
as an intentional quotation. We favour a mixed-methods approach, which is based on findings from manual-hermeneutic
research. Our aim is to focus on Jerome's citation technique: Based on hermeneutic analysis of confirmed
quotations, we formulate differentiated criteria that lead to a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of quoting
and thus also have the potential to optimize our toolkit.
[en] A Network Analysis of Figurative Topic Classification: The Case Study of
Timon of AthensGilad Gutman, Tel-Aviv University; The Open University of Israel
Abstract
[en]
This article suggests a computational method for the analysis of figurative language as a network, using methods from natural
language processing (NLP), particularly topic classification and network analysis. The analysis of figurative language plays a major
role in literary criticism and, to varying degrees, in other fields of the humanities and social sciences whose orientation is
textual. The analysis of figurative language, rather than literal language, poses certain difficulties due to the very structure of
figurative expressions. The suggested method in this articles offers a way to overcome these difficulties. By taking as a case study
the play Timon of Athens by Shakespeare and Middleton, the article examines
the method's ability to provide insights into the thematic concerns of a text, assess existing interpretations, and develop a close
reading.
[en] libEscansión: A Recursive Precedence Approach to
Metrical ScansionFernando Sanz-Lázaro, Austrian Academy of Sciences
Abstract
[en]
In recent years, there has been impressive progress in the automatic analysis of
Spanish verse. However, despite the excellent results of previous attempts,
there is still room for improvement, as this article shows. It presents
libEscansión, a new automatic scansion tool that, although initially designed
for analysing the verses of plays, outperforms all its predecessors in the
scansion of fixed-meter poetry. The library uses two novel approaches to achieve
this result: linguistically, it uses Castilian syllabification instead of the
more diphthong-prone American syllabic division. It uses a dedicated module that
can also be run independently. Methodologically, the library resolves metrical
ambiguities using a perceptibility-based recursive prioritisation system. The
combination of both allows libEscansión to perform a scansion 0.78% more
accurately than the best of its peers against a gold standard corpus, reaching
an accuracy of 97.01% (99.50% discarding non-erroneous disagreements).
[en] Sustainability and Swedish Women's History: Digitizing Photographs from the KvinnSam
ArchivesRachel Pierce, KvinnSam, National Library for Gender Studies; Humanities Library, Gothenburg University
Abstract
[en]
Digitization has traditionally been viewed as a method of preservation and accessibility facilitation. This definition has resulted in
a sense that objectives of sustainability are somehow built into the process of digitization, allowing institutions to not thoroughly
or systematically consider what digitization and digitized collections are, how to ensure access over time, and how these groupings
of digital files relate to larger collection management. This paper redefines digitization as part of collections development, a
broader set of processes with a long history within archival institutions. This definition allows for the use of
Michel-Rolph Trouillot's framework for understanding historical production, placing digitization within an ongoing
process that shapes access to and thus alters the historical record. The paper calls for a queering of the understanding of archival
sustainability to enable the use of paradata in the development of digital archival description practices. This approach demands an
understanding of archive collections as shifting and overlapping processes that interact with one another to form the malleable
boundaries of what a cultural heritage institution calls its archives.
[en] The Model is the Message: Modelling and the Future of Humanities ScholarshipAmanda Furiasse, Nova Southeastern University
Abstract
[en]
The increasing prevalence of computer models within humanities research has raised a number of challenges for humanities scholars. Chief
among them are the ways in which computational modelling fundamentally transforms the conventional methodologies and epistemological
frameworks that have long defined research within the humanities. In Modelling Between Digital and Humanities:
Thinking in Practice (2023), Arianna Ciula, Øyvind Eide, Cristina Marras, and
Patrick Sahle evaluate the impact of this paradigm shift on humanities scholarship and varying strategies for addressing
the challenges that it presents. In particular, the authors take up the idea of formulating a new digital humanities mode of thinking
that can enable the humanities to adapt and thrive in the digital age while retaining their core values.
[en] Gestured Labor: A Review of Proxies (2021)Sarah Potvin, Texas A&M University
Abstract
[en]
Dylan Mulvin's Proxies: The Cultural Work of Standing In (2021) argues that because proxies
maintain a fiction of representativeness, we must be attentive both to their function as stand-ins and to the human labor and bodies that
sustain their status.
