Biography in the Digital World
Clifford Lynch
Building on the case study presented by Michael Buckland in the January 24 seminar, I will make a broad case for the importance of digital representations of factual biographical information as a fundamental information object necessary to support digital humanities (and a wide range of other applications) and note a number of domains in which this is important. I'll discuss some of the requirements for interoperability and reusability of such digital biographical representations and draw a few connections to developments in identifiers, large scale biography projects, open linked data and other efforts.
While the need for functional standards and technology in this area has been clear for at least two decades, progress has been extremely slow; I hope in the discussion we can explore some of the reasons for this, and how barriers to progress might be overcome.
This seminar will be held both online & in person. You are welcome to join us either in South Hall or via Zoom.
For online participants
Online participants must have a Zoom account and be logged in. Sign up for your free account here. If this is your first time using Zoom, please allow a few extra minutes to download and install the browser plugin or mobile app.
Clifford Lynch is the director of the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) and an adjunct professor at the School of Information. Prior to joining CNI in 1997, Lynch spent eighteen years at the University of California Office of the President, the last ten as director of Library Automation. Lynch is a past president of ASIS&T and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Information Standards Organization.
Contact
If you have questions about this event, please contact Michael Buckland.
Accessibility
If you require an accommodation for effective communication (ASL interpreting, CART captioning, alternative media formats, etc.) or information about mobility access in order to fully participate in this event, please contact Heather Rapp with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7–10 days in advance of the event.
