Reflections onCultural Heritage and Digital

Humanities:

Modelling in Practice and Theory

Dr Arianna CiulaUniversity of Roehampton

UK

arianna.ciula@roehampton.ac.uk

Dr Øyvind EideUniversität Passau

Germany

oyvind.eide@uni-passau.de

Scope and Aims

• Compare modelling traditions in Cultural Heritage and Digital Humanities

• Our paper today → investigation into some modelling practices

• Longer term: comparing the communities• What is meant by modelling and models?

• How are modelling languages and theories created and used?

Background on Modelling

● Ambiguity of term 'data model' in digital modelling

– from database models to conceptual model● Process (dynamic nature and epistemic value) vs.

products (data models)

– modelling vs. model● Models of vs. models for

● Theoretical background

Object → Model → Object

0

Model RelationSemiotic Structure

RepresentationObject

Oi =1….n

Model

Omod

Kralemann and Lattmann (2013)

Context (theory, language etc.)

Modelling in DH (textual) → TEI

• Textual features • No assumption on reference function

• Overview• From 1987 Research Project, first release 1990, from

2001 TEI Consortium

• One part ISO standard

• XML formalism

• Organisation

• Community

• Modelling as document analysis • reflects semantics of the standard and contingent

theories/practices

Modelling in cultural heritage (museum documentation) → CIDOC CRM

• Real world objects as represented in museum information systems

• Overview• CIDOC established 1950: museum documentation standards• From 1996: Conceptual Reference Model, first release 1999• ISO standard• Openness with respect to formalism• Organisation• Community

• Ontology or conceptual model• Modelling as mapping

• reflects semantics of the standard and contingent theories/practices

Pragmatic links between the two standards

● TEI SIG ontologies● To facilitate mapping and integration● Established in 2004● Focus on links between TEI and external ontologies● Previous comparisons between TEI and CIDOC-CRM at

class level

● Projects to account for and process textual mobility

• TEI XML• Physical and logical

structure• Semantic content

• RDF/OWL ontology• Network of associations• Additional statements

and interpretative layers

<rs key="abjuration" type="subject">on the day he abjured the kingdom<persName key="rumberue_de_thomas">Thomas de <placeNamekey="rumberue">Rumberue</placeName></persName></rs>

<persName key="ashford_de_william">William de<placeName key="ashford1">Ashford</placeName>

</persName>

Henry III Fine Rolls Project

03/06/14

TEI doc…<persName> Oliver Avenel</persName>…

PersonOliver Avanel

isWifeOf

PersonOdo of Wanstraw

isDaughterOf

PersonAgnes Avanel

Relational Model

Models for and models of

● Main purpose of these standards● Models for (users)

● Less evident to users● Models of (creators - but affects use)

● Both perspectives are needed in order to understand differences between the standards● how they are presented● how they are formalised● how they can be used

Comparison in practice

The example of place names

TE

XT

S

text as idea, intention, meaning, semantics, sense, content

TEXTL text as linguistic

code, as series of words, as speech

TEXT Dtext as document: physical, material,

individual

TEXTV

text as a visual object, as a complex sign

TE

XT

G

text as a version of ..., as a set of graphs, graphemes, glyphs, characters, etc. (... having modes ...)

TEXT W

text as a work, as rhetoric structure

Sahle (2012)

Pluralistic model of text

TEX

TS

TEXTLTEX

T

D

TEXTW

TEX

TG

TEXTV

[image]

<placeName @facs=...>

<placeName @key=...>

rdf: ...

Pragmatic links - Place name in TEI

<placeName @rend=....>

<placeName @nymRef=...>

Pragmatic links - Place name in TEI

• Name as reference vs. name as source for onomastic studies, linguistic analysis, etymology etc.

• Semantic aspects (comparable with CIDOC-CRM)

Madrid

<p>A conference in <placeName>Madrid</placeName>.</p>

<nym> <form>Madrid</form></nym

<place> <placeName>Madrid</placeName></place

CIDOC-CRM

participate in

E39 Actors(persons, inst.)

E55 Types

E28 Conceptual Objects

E18 Physical Things

E2 Temporal Entities(Events)

E41

Ap

pel

lati

ons refer to / refine

refe

r to

/ id

enti

fie

have location

within

E53 PlacesE52 Time-Spans

at

affect or refer to

Classes in CIDOC-CRM

Place names in CIDOC-CRM

LondonE48 Place Name

the place LondonE53 Place

P87 is identified by

P87 identifies

Place names in TEI and CIDOC-CRM

TEI:

● Usually located in the context of other words and marked up “on location”

● Can also be data driven

● Hierarchy of content objects

● Links crossing hierarchy: from tree to graph

CIDOC-CRM:

● Located in the context of an information system

● Class hierachy with multiple inheritance

● Object graph

TEI CIDOC-CRM

Modelling scope expansive focused

Modelling components Descriptive and interpretative encoding at same level

Division between the model as a set of statements about reality and interpretative argument

Modelling discourse Loose and flexible stucture, mostly structured by natural language

Formal ontology, strict (but multiple) iheritance, multiple instanciation

Presentation Scopenotes for each element, narrative texts describing use as processes, examples

Scope notes, short examples, graphical presentation of class and object hierachies

Playing different games

Thank you!

Dr Arianna Ciula

University of Roehampton

UK

arianna.ciula@roehampton.ac.uk

Dr Øyvind EideUniversität Passau

Germany

oyvind.eide@uni-passau.de