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e-Arts and HumanitiesScoping an e-Science Agenda

Sheila Anderson

Arts and Humanities Data Service

King’s College London

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e-Arts and Humanities• e-Science is about an enabling infrastructure –

tools , technologies, computing power etc. – supporting research

• We have defined it as: the development and deployment of a networked infrastructure and culture through which resources – be they processing power, data, expertise, or person power – can be shared in a secure environment, and in which new forms of collaboration can emerge, and new and advanced methodologies explored

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Aims and Objectives• Raise awareness and understanding of e-

science, and how e-science might relate to and support the different disciplines within the arts and humanities

• Enable scholars engaging with ICT in their research practice to find about and take advantage of the outputs and tools arising from the e-science and e-social science programmes

• Assist the AHRC in the development of an arts and humanities e-Science research agenda

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The Scoping Survey• Scoping survey methodology

– Identify, collate and analyse information on e-science technologies, projects and outputs

– Match these against methods and challenges for research practice in the arts and humanities – this done through a series of expert seminars

– Dissemination to a wider community for comment and to raise awareness

– Create an on-line information base for consultation by arts and humanities scholars

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Expert Seminars key to this process

• Exchange ideas and knowledge• Identify use of ICT in research practice and ‘grand

challenges and opportunities’• Identify e-Science potential• Identify priority areas for research and practice• Recommendations for future action

– Priorities for research

– Priorities for tools development

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Based around subject domain

• Library and Information Studies – Melissa Terras• Archaeology – William Kilbride• Literary and Textual Studies – Peter Robinson• History – Mark Greengrass• Visual Arts – Sue Gollifer• Performing Arts – Angela Picini • Linguistics and Languages – Paul Rayson

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Format of the Seminars

• Driven from research needs and research practice• Identify ICT use• Identify ‘Grand Challenges’• Identify where e-Science might help address the

grand challenges• Identify needs, priorities, and recommendations• Wish list – tools and projects

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Outputs

• Report from each seminar – circulated more widely for comment and suggestions

• Final report drawing out common themes and priorities and unique requirements

• On-line information resource as part of AHeSSC – maintained and updated

• Draft report end July• Final report mid-August

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Early thoughts

• Must come from, and be embedded in, research practice and research needs

• Be innovative and push barriers• BUT, be sensitive to those less engaged• Re-imagine the concept of ‘e-Science’ (and

even the name); challenge existing e-Science technologies

• International, scalable, sustainable

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Early thoughts

• Content:– Highly dispersed content joined up through the grid and

appropriate tools – ontology connectors– Deep mining (inc. image and sound) using different

methods – deep log analysis for connecting; folksonomies; data and text mining

– Large scale images, moving images, sound, etc. managed and accessed through the grid

– Capturing the creative process– Annotation, collation, visualisation, simulation– Content from across disciplines

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Early thoughts

• Collaboration:– Strong possibilities– New forms of critical editions– New forms of curation– Democratisation– Dynamic, interactive BUT secure and trusted -

provenance– Push the access grid further for collaborative research

and teaching– Across disciplines