Preserving and Re-using

Burial Spaces data

Centre for
Digital
Heritage

DEBS Workshop Julian Richards

The King’s Manor, York with Gareth Beale, Tim Evans,
27 March 2018 Katie Green & Nicole Smith

http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk
Outline Outline
• Challenges:
• Storing data – which data and how?
• Finding data & joining up fragmented and diverse
data sets
• Opportunities:
• Digital dissemination
• Open data
• Citizen Science – community-driven research

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 Storing Data

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 Information Entropy

Michener, W.K., Brunt, J.W., Helly, J.J., Kirchner, T.B. and Stafford, S.G. 1997. Nongeospatial
Metadata for the Ecological Sciences. Ecological Applications. 7: 330-342.

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 Digital Data Challenges

• Digital data are fragile

• They are often still archived as
objects rather than computerised
information
• Digital data standards
• What are the significant properties
of our data?
• Data licensing – Creative
Commons framework

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 Losing things: Digital Preservation

Media Types
4mm Tape

• Experience rapid change DVD-ROM

G2000 Tape
9-Track Reel

DC4_120
8" Floppy Smart Media

3.5" Floppy QIC DC600 Punch Tape

CD-ROM
xD Picture Card
Rectangular Hole
Punch Card Floptical Disk
IBM 3480 5.25" Floppy Travan

DG90M Tape
Memory Stick

Sparq Disk Cartridge

5.25" Optical Disk 8mmD-eight Cassette tape Click!

12" Optical Disk Ditto Max

DLT Tape
MultiMedia Card SD Memory Card
CompactFlash
Zip Disk
Jaz Disk

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 Trusted Digital Repositories:
NASA - Open Archival Information System
Accession Delivery preparation Release
OAIS
Interface
Preservation
Research Publish

SIP
AIP
Delivery
system

DIP

Deep Storage Nearline backup

Picture from DLib

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http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk
 Finding things: Resource Discovery

My gravestones
database here, on
floppy disc

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What is OASIS/HERALD?
OASIS is a data
collection form for historic
environment
investigations – above
and below ground
HERALD is the project to
redevelop OASIS
http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk
Post-excavation
specialists

Community
groups
e.g. cemetery
More projects from
recording more widespread
Archaeological sources
contractors
Church Heritage
Record?
Historic building
specialists
Museums/Archi
ves
Academics
HERs
 Levels of OASIS data collection
Environmental

Human
Bones

OASIS OASIS OASIS

Geophysics
LITE BASIC PLUS

Graveyards

C14

Bibliographic record Constitutes a Creates a rich metadata record for

& Report uploaded by basic HER specialist / project specific
HERs or contractors record recording
HIAS: Heritage Information Access Strategy
 The Library of Unpublished
Fieldwork Reports
▪ Currently 46000+
reports in the
library.
▪ They are linked to
by HERs and
libraries
▪ Every report has a
DOI
▪ Available via ADS
Library

http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk
 TheisPreservation
Who Using and Re-use of Archaeological Data
the ADS?

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.ac.uk
 Research Value
ADS: % respondents
• 84% - ADS has had an impact
on data sharing
• 79% - reduced time required
for data access and processing
• 51% - New intellectual
opportunities
• 56% - Permitted new types of
research
• 94% - Data very or quite
important for their research

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 Further information

Thank-you for listening

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E-mail: julian.richards@york.ac.uk
Website: http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/

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