Exploring Text on Maps:  from machine learning to user annotations

Machines Reading Maps project

Discover new ways to explore and experience digital map collections through machine and manual text annotation.

<p>This one-hour event will introduce soon-to-be-released experimental features in the David Rumsey Map Collection that enable users to search digitised maps by their full text. Through a combination of machine learning, semantic technologies, and digital annotation, we aim to introduce a new way to use and experience digitised maps.</p><p>Join us for this brief demo, to discover what’s new in one of the largest and most beloved online map collections in the world. We will show you how to use the new search  functionalities, explore the machine-generated annotations, and interact with them; and we’ll explain some of the technological solutions behind them. </p><p>After exploring a few different searches, we will discuss with all participants the possible research applications of these new kinds of results. What would you look for if you could search any text on maps? And why? We want to hear about your research ideas and case studies,  dream searches, and favourite place names.</p><p>This free event is part of the <a href="https://www.seadda.eu/?p=1808" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Linked Pasts VIII Symposium</a>. Everyone is welcome</p><h3></h3><h3>M﻿ore info</h3><p>The <a href="https://www.davidrumsey.com/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">David Rumsey Map Collection</a> is one of the largest and most visited libraries of digital maps worldwide. Thanks to the collaboration with the <a href="https://github.com/machines-reading-maps" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Machines Reading Maps</a> project, new experimental features are being developed to enhance the ways in which the maps are accessed, searched, investigated, and, generally, experienced as digital objects. </p><p>About 60,000 maps have been processed by a machine learning algorithm called <a href="https://github.com/machines-reading-maps/mapkurator-system" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer"><em>mapKurator</em></a> (developed by Yao-Yi Chiang and the <a href="https://knowledge-computing.github.io/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Knowledge Computing Lab</a> at the University of Minnesota - learn more about this work <a href="https://www.turing.ac.uk/news/new-collaboration-promises-enrich-data-60000-historical-maps" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">here</a> &amp; <a href="https://cse.umn.edu/college/news/university-minnesotas-knowledge-computing-lab-turns-location-data-time-saving-tools" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">here</a>). All results will be made available by the new data visualisation implemented by <a href="http://www.lunaimaging.com/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Luna Imaging</a>. Last, a light-weight customisation of <a href="https://recogito.github.io/annotorious/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer"><em>Annotorious</em></a> (by Rainer Simon) will enable users to edit and enrich the automatically-generated annotations. Gazetteers and other semantic technologies will also play a key role in the process of disambiguating and enhancing the digitised maps. </p><p>While these features are not yet available to the public, we would like to share their current state, gather feedback and discuss possible applications or collaborations.</p><p>The outcome of this activity will be a collection of feedback and comments on this new way of accessing maps that will be made publicly available for the benefit of all other institutions who may consider using machine learning and semantic technologies to enhance their collections. Attendees who are willing to become early users will be also invited to write a short blog post on their user case, some of which will be featured  on the David Rumsey blog.</p><p></p><h3>P﻿ROGRAMME</h3><p>13:30-13:35 Welcome</p><p>13:35-13:45 Bringing Machine Learning and Semantic Technologies to the David Rumsey Map Collection: a brief introduction</p><p>13:45-14:00 Demo: searching maps by text</p><ul><li>Search for place names in annotations vs catalogue metadata</li><li>Move between the views and options</li><li>Search for compound place names</li><li>Disambiguate results</li><li>Edit automatic annotations</li><li>Create new annotations</li></ul><p>14:00-14:30 Q&amp;A and discussion</p><ul><li>What kind of searches would you perform?</li><li>How would this be useful to your research?</li><li>In what way would you like to be able to download the data?</li><li>What would you do with this new kind of corpus?</li></ul><p></p><h3>C﻿redits</h3><p>T﻿his event is organised by the Machines Reading Maps project. The collaboration between Machines Reading Maps and the David Rumsey Map Collection has been generously funded by David Rumsey.</p>

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Exploring Text on Maps: from machine learning to user annotations

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