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Subject: [humanmarkup-comment] newbie intro
Dear list, Per discussion with Ranjeeth Thunga and Rex Brooks, I have joined OASIS and am opting in as a prospective member of the HumanMarkup Language Technical Committee (TC). I'll be as brief as possible here, and provide some basic personal/professional background information. Background Summary: I have over two decades professional and academic experience in the fields of anthropology, archaeology, and cultural resources management, and more recently, about 5 years emphasis in information technology, databases, web development and distance education, and computational archaeology and anthropology. I am currently the Database Manager for the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Archaeology Technologies Laboratory (ATL) and the Digital Archive Network for Anthropology (DANA). DANA is a National Science Digital Library (NSDL) for Anthropology. It is a distributed database network for scholarly research and education in anthropology that will connect remote systems around the globe via the Internet. The DANA application interface provides the means for delivering all forms of multimedia including two-dimensional (2D) imagery (e.g., photographs, maps, and other 2D digital graphics), accurate, scalable and measurable three-dimensional (3D) models of artifacts (e.g., stone tools; adzes) and fossils (e.g., hominid skeletal remains and cranial endocasts), and streaming media, (e.g., video). Among the key goals of DANA is the creation and implementation of the Anthropology Markup Language (AnthML). Currently AnthML is in the conceptual framework development phase. Creation of AnthML is an ambitious undertaking and will require widespread cooperation and collaboration from members of the anthropology profession (and all subfields) and related fields and also computer sciences and information technology fields. For further information on DANA, I direct your attention to the ATL web site (http://atl.ndsu.edu), and also to the Journal of Digital Information (JoDI) special issue on Interactivity in Digital Libraries, Volume 2, Issue 4 (peer-reviewed) paper on the DANA project at http://jodi.ecs.soton.ac.uk/Articles/v02/i04/Clark/ Please note that our server is currently being upgraded, and due to this the DANA application is offline until later next week. I'll post to the list when it is available for access. Discussion: Relevance to Human Markup Language: The HumanMarkup Language initiative incorporates the term 'artifact' in the base schema, and there are a variety of contexts and semantic issues that effect meaning and usage of the term 'artifact.' It is my hope that I can contribute meaningfully to further qualifications and appropriate usage of the term artifact, with regard for archaeological and related (e.g., paleontological) contexts. Similarly, as DANA and AnthML will also address human and (ancestral) hominid biological and physical elements, traits and characteristics, including both fossil and non-fossil (e.g., bone) remains (e.g., skeletal remains) and associated artifacts and other specimen types (e.g., associated ecofacts) in both archaeological and paleoanthropological settings (e.g., site contexts), it is my hope that we can have meaningful discussions on these aspects as well. Ultimately, within the framework of the broader Semantic Web context, it is important for both initiatives to have agreement on definitions, descriptions and contexts in which the term 'artifact' is applied, and it is my hope that by coordinating with the HumanMarkup TC that we can establish, at a minimum, a reasonable crosswalk. I am also enthusiastic about potentials for Human Markup within the broader context of other ATL undertakings, which include development of Immersive Virtual Environments (IVE) for scholarly research education, in collaboration with the NDSU World Wide Web Instructional Committee (WWWIC; see http://www.ndsu.edu/wwwic/). For example, we are in the preliminary phase of developing the Virtual Archaeologist, and also the Fishhook Immersive Environment for Education (see http://vcell.ndsu.nodak.edu/fishhook/). We are also in the preliminary phase of development for a Diabetes health care interactive game, called Native Dancer, in collaboration with the White Earth Band Tribal Council. More on this in future posts, as this will entail deeper discussion especially with regard for motion capture and bodylocator and related items. If anyone on this list has further interest in our undertakings, or is in need of additional information about me or how we can best interface our agendas, please feel free to contact me at anytime. -- >From the desk of James [Jim] E. Landrum III NDSU Archaeology Materials and Technologies Laboratories URL = http://atl.ndsu.edu Digital Archive Network for Anthropology (DANA). DANA URL = http://atl.ndsu.edu/archive Email: <James.Landrum@ndsu.nodak.edu> Phone: 701-231-8059 FAX: 701-231-1047 Voice Mail: 701-231-4228
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