“But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for”Searching for

Folktales and Films in Cultural Heritage Repositories

Kathryn La BarreCIRSS Symposium, Graduate School of Library and Information Science

September 2, 2011

Overview

• Recent conversations• Where it all began• Current projects

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Recent Conversations

A Semantic (Faceted) Web?

Formal codingSKOS – OWL Ontology buildingFormal Concept Analysis

Les Cahiers du numérique Instantiation

ISKO C/US AestheticsISKO Spain/UK Geography + Tradition

Returning the (faceted) gaze

Facet Theory: Geographically Bounded - or Transcendent?

TraditionsVagaries of languageFacet AnalysisFundamental CategoriesObject vs Subject Facets

Where It All Began: Brian Vickery

A structure such as facet may validly representcertain aspects of a field, but only limited aspects.

Do we in fact need a much richer set of semantic relationships such as some ontologies are trying to achieve?

In short–what is the future of facets?

FAInformation Organization

Information Retrieval

LIS

Digital Resources

Information Architecture

Knowledge Management

(FA) =Facet Analysis

Terms

Facet A generic term used to denote any component of a compound subject,

(Ranganathan, 1967, p. 88).

Groups of terms derived by taking each term and defining it, per genus et differentiam, with respect for its parent class

(Vickery, 1960, p. 12).

Facet analysis (technique / theoretical framework)Observing the rules of logical division.

(Broughton, 2001, p. 67; Mills, 2004, p. 268).

One characteristic of division is applied at a time [conceptual analysis] Division steps should be logical and proximate Division should be exhaustive

(Mills, 2004, pp. 551).

Peeling the Onion

In Calvin Mooers’ words,

“Facet provides an analytical tool; that is, the idea of facet allows you to peel the onion of an idea.”

Brian Vickery. Faceted Classification Schemes. In Susan Artandi (Ed.) Rutgers Series on Systems for the Intellectual Organization of Information. V. 5. New Brunswick, NJ: Graduate School of Library Science at Rutgers University

Process

• Map– (Context) Examine the domain– (Content) Survey the literature– (Users) Who? Information needs?

• Label/ sort – Depth analysis – Begin analysis with a list of “standard categories” (provisional guide) – Result: set of homogeneous mutually exclusive groups (facets) – Formulate every distinctive logical category and possible relation

• Cluster /order– into arrays or groups which share a common characteristic

Collect exemplars archival sources oral histories

Analyze instantiations

Codify process practice

Evidence / Instantiations

Informed applicationFormalized processTheoretical extension

ARTICULATION

Theory > PracticePractice> Theory

Process?Application?

What is facet analysis?

Heritage

• Universal Decimal Classification– Otlet, La Fontaine -Documentalists– 1904-1907 – scheme published

• Bliss Bibiliographic Classification – Henry Evelyn Bliss – 1908 (practice) 1923-1933 (theory)

• Colon Classification – S. R. Ranganathan,– 1933 (practice) 1937-1967 (theory)

Heritage – Beyond ClassificationApplication Example Purpose

Special subject schemes (CRG)

English Electric Scheme (1958)

British Catalogue of Music (1960)

Classification of Enterprise Activities (1966)

From practice to theory (Richmond, 1988)

Cranfield Tests Faceted Scheme for Aeronautics (Cleverdon, 1962)

American Meteorological Society

(Freeman and Atherton, 1969)

FAST in early IR system testing

Audacious Test of UDC as mechanized searching language (Atherton and Freeman, 1967, 1968)

FAST in computerized indexing and retrieval

Thesaurofacet Classification and controlled vocabulary for sci/tech

(Aitchison, Gomersall and Ireland, 1969)

Vocabulary for IR

PRECIS

POPSI

PREserved Content Index System (Austin, 1974)

Postulate-based Permuted Term

Indexing (Bhattacharyya, 1979)

Generation of subject indexing terms and semantic relations

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FacetsAIP (1961-1965): LISA (1969/1963) API (1966)

PropertyObject

Method

Material

OperationSystem

Property

Material

OperationProcess Equipment

Emphasis PhenomenonOperating condition

Place Time

Place

Type of work Common Subdivision Living organism

Footer

Collect exemplars archival sources oral histories

Analyze instantiations

Codify process practice

Evidence / Instantiations

Informed applicationFormalized processTheoretical extension

ARTICULATION

Theory > PracticePractice> Theory

Process?Application?

What is facet analysis?

Contemporary Instantiations

• E-Commerce • Library Catalogs• Cultural Heritage sites• Semantic Web

– Formal coding– SKOS – OWL – Ontology building– Formal Concept Analysis

AFS Ethnographic Thesaurus

A General ethnographic concepts. B Belief and worldview C Ritual-belief manifest D Health E Migration and Settlement F Human Dynamics G Law and Governance H Education I Entertainment J Art K Language L Verbal Arts and Literature M Music

N DanceP Material CultureQ FoodwaysR WorkS PerformanceT TransmissionU BeingsV Space and PlaceW TimeX Disciplines- Fields of study.Y Research, Theory, and MethodologyZ Documentation

Current Projects

• Complex resources• Poorly described• Available in multiple formats

– Physical– Digital (repositories)

• Heterogeneous users

Current Projects

Folktales and Facets (with Tilley) Films and Facets (with Cordiero)

Folktales Records/resources/tools3 user types

Task / Facet

Development of codified process

3 films Repository practices2 cultures

Film response / Facet

Test of codified process

Folktale Obstacles

DISCIPLINARY

Tale names vary

Tale motif / theme variants (Cinderella)

ACCESS / DISCOVERY

Misunderstand use of type and motif indexes

Publication overtakes indexing

Catalogs have limited cross-references

Desired Features

• Searchable fields for source notes, cultural attributions

• Descriptor fields for characters and other motifs

• Integration of learning standards, suggested audience for performance

• Directed searching and serendipitous discovery

• Full-text or extended synopses

Folklore FACETS

AGENT author, translator, illustrator

AREA of source, of story

ASSOCIATION awards aggregations (WORK?)

CONTENT characters, illustrations,

CONTEXT age, audience, source language

GENRE tale type

ORIGIN culture, ethnic group

SOURCES bibliographies, notes

TIME of source, of story

TRANSMISSION oral, print, function

VIEWPOINT worldview, culture, ethnic group

Access in Film repositories

Film FACETS

ASSOCIATION Awards, Derivations, Collections, Ratings, Persons

GENRE Type of movie

PRODUCTION VALUES Color, length, format, rights, time of production, location of production

AUDIENCE COMMENTARY

Description, emotion, reviews, ratings, tags

MISE EN SCÈNE Character, object (in film), Location (of action), Time (in film

PLOT Action, Setting/location, Time, Theme

OBJECT culture, ethnic group

RELATION bibliographies, notes

THEME of source, of story

TIME oral, print, function

VIEWPOINT worldview, culture, ethnic group

FACETS / FACET THEORY? APPLIED CRITICAL PRACTICE

terminological vagariesvariant traditionscomparative instantiations

OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONSFUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS

Articulation Agenda

Thank you!

References

• Project homepage (dissertation): http://mypage.iu.edu/~klabarre/facetstudy.html• Hunter, Eric. (2002). Classification made simple. Gower/Ashgate.• Mills, J. (2004). Faceted classification and logical division in information retrieval.

Library Trends 52(3), 541-570.• Ranganathan, S. R. (1959). Elements of library classification. London: Association of

Assistant Librarians.• Ranganathan, S. R. (1937/1957/ 1967). Prolegomena to library science. New York:

Asia Publishing.• Vickery, B. (1960). Faceted classification: A guide to construction and use of special

schemes. London: Aslib.• Sites:

– CompUSA: http://www.compusa.com– Endeca: http://endeca.com– Images of England: http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk

Definition

Planes of work

• Idea: The work of FA takes place in the Idea plane, where an entity is analyzed into component parts

• Verbal: FA continues here as further sorting and transformation of the selected categories/facets or terms occur.

• Notational: work of FC -- translating selected terms into notation.

High level categories

Ranganathan Shera/Egan Prieto-Diaz Aitchison Aristotle

>Personality

>Matter

>Energy

>Space

>Time

>Product

>Agent

>Tools

>Act

>Object of action

>Space

>Time

>Function

>Objects

>Medium

>System-type

>Functional area

>Setting

>Entities, things, objects

>Kinds or types/ systems and assemblies

>Actions and activities

>Applications and purposes

>Space, place, location and environment

>Time

>Substance

>Quality >Quantity >Relation >Place

>Time

>Position

>State

>Action

>Affection

Classification- assigning objects to classes

Objects to be classified into a system are called elements, cases, units, exemplars,

specimens or items. They are the sources or `carriers' of properties, characteristics or variables.

A property can only be useful in a classification, if it varies within the set of objects, that is, if at least two different values (categories, states, labels) on the respective property occur in the sample.

When more than one property is used to characterize an object, the object can be described as a vector of values, a profile, a set of symptoms, or a pattern of features. The crucial assumption underlying classification is that objects are elements of a class, of a set, of a partition or-in biology-of a taxon. In other terminologies, the terms `category' or `cluster' are also used.

Classification is the process of finding classes and of assigning entities to these classes. The end product of this order-creating process, however, is often also referred to as `classification.' To stress this distinction, the term `classification system' can be used for the end-product, although in clinical psychology and biology the word `taxonomy' is more common. Identification is the assignment of a specific case or object to (usually only) one of the classes.

H. Feger (2001). Classification: Conceptions in the Social Sciences. International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, pp. 1966-1973.

PLANES OF WORKIDEA“The destiny of any idea created by one mind is the minds of the others. The others too need the ideas to be communicated to them.”

thoughts - emotions - context

VERBAL“Along with the capacity to create ideas, came also the capacity to develop an articulate language as medium for communication.”

organization - translation

NOTATIONAL“Words are often replaced by symbols pregnant with precise meaning. Ordinal numbers are used as helpful symbols. … Uniqueness of the idea represented by an ordinal number and the total absence of homonyms and synonyms are the distinctive features of the notational plane, when compared with the verbal plane.”

formalization - codingPROLEGOMENA (1967)

Folktales and Facets[P1] scholar [P2] practitioner [P3] lay user RQ1) What kinds of information seeking tasks are evident for people seeking folktales? Are tasks shared across groups?

RQ2) What characteristics of an information retrieval interface best support tasks?

RQ3) To what extent do current bibliographic records support tasks? What improvements are suggested by facet and task analysis?

Study Overview : Facet AnalysisAgent (may include author/narrator, translator, adapter etc)

Area (of source) (of story)

Association (award) (aggregations of stories) (related materials) (source) (work) (RDA = enhancements)

Content (characters) (illustrations) (language) (mood) (moral) (motif) (narrative structure)

Context (age of story) (audience) (function of story) (source language) (manner of dissemination) (style) (variant type)

Documentation (bibliographies or indexes)

Genre (tale type)

Origin (cultural) (ethnic) (geographical) (theoretical)

Time (of source) (of story)

Transmission (oral) (print) (function)

Viewpoint (cultural) (ethnic) (theoretical) orange text = elements currently found in bibliographic records