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Digital Storytelling#6

Coding the Past: How AI is Transforming Historical Research

In the age of technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not just revolutionizing industries but also transforming the way we uncover, analyze, and preserve the past. Historical research, often seen as a slow and labor-intensive endeavor, is experiencing a dynamic shift as AI makes its way into the world of archives, data analysis, and the work of historians. Let’s dive into this exciting transformation and explore how AI is becoming a valuable ally in the field of historical research.

1.           Digitizing the Past with AI

One of the most significant challenges in historical research has been digitizing centuries-old archives and documents. AI is playing a vital role in this transformation by automating the digitization process. Machine learning algorithms can scan and transcribe handwritten documents, decipher faded texts, and even translate languages, making historical records more accessible than ever.

2.           Data Analysis Redefined

Historians have always grappled with vast amounts of data, whether it’s census records, diaries, or newspaper articles. AI-powered data analysis tools can sift through this information, identify patterns, and generate insights at an unprecedented speed. With AI, researchers can now draw connections between disparate pieces of information, uncover hidden narratives, and gain a deeper understanding of historical events.

3.           Predictive Analytics in Historical Context

AI doesn’t just help analyze the past but can also make educated guesses about the future based on historical data. Historians can use predictive analytics to forecast social, economic, and political trends, making their research not only informative but also forward-looking.

4.           Image and Speech Recognition

AI’s capabilities extend beyond text analysis. It can recognize historical images, paintings, and photographs, helping historians identify subjects, dates, and locations. Speech recognition tools can transcribe audio recordings, unlocking the potential of oral history archives and making it more accessible to researchers.

5.           Mapping Historical Movements

With AI’s geospatial capabilities, historians can map historical events and movements more accurately. This enables a deeper understanding of the geographical context and spatial relations, adding a valuable dimension to historical research.

6.           Unearthing Hidden Stories

AI can discover overlooked or forgotten historical figures and events by analyzing vast amounts of data. These hidden stories add richness to our understanding of the past, showing that there is always more to explore.

7.           Real-time Translation

AI can facilitate international collaboration among historians by providing real-time translation during conferences and discussions. This breaks down language barriers and allows for the exchange of ideas on a global scale.

8.           Human-AI Collaboration

AI is not here to replace historians but to enhance their work. It can serve as a research assistant, providing historians with the tools and insights they need to focus on the most critical aspects of their research.

In conclusion, the integration of AI in historical research is ushering in a new era of innovation and efficiency. By automating the digitization of archives, offering advanced data analysis, and enabling predictive analytics, AI is empowering historians to uncover deeper insights and share their findings more effectively. This synergy between human intellect and artificial intelligence promises to make history more engaging, accessible, and relevant than ever before. Embrace the future of historical research, where the past and the future coexist, thanks to AI.

AI and Storytelling

Both for “Insights” and creating content

historical figures coming to life (talking to historical figures), image/facial recognition

Next, an exciting video that demonstrates fascinating possibilities for digital storytellers. A YouTube channel, Views of an AI, recently published “Blade Runner 1929”, a concise video that combines the classic 1982 film with a group of 1920s movies and styles focused on Fritz Lang’s work. It’s just over three minutes long

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Digital Storytelling#5

Case Study – Boundary Stones

https://boundarystones.weta.org/categories/virginia

Data Storytelling

Data storytelling involves using data to craft a compelling narrative, often employing mediums like infographics, data visualizations, and interactive maps. They are incredibly powerful tools for conveying complex information in a way that is easily digestible.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/extra/xsyGF2fhsL/Indonesia_new_capital

https://www.juiceanalytics.com/writing/20-best-data-storytelling-examples

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/graphics/what-500000-united-states-covid-deaths-look-like

Infographics

The main reason to create an infographic is also the most obvious: infographics are simply a great way to communicate complex information. For this reason, they’re commonly used in media publications. But now the average user can create them.

https://shorthand.com/the-craft/5-ways-to-create-infographics

https://piktochart.com

Digital Curation

Exploring the French Revolution

Digital Storytelling Trends

Today, audiences crave immersion, interactivity, and personalized journeys. So, how are digital storytellers tracking the technology trends in 2024:

1. Interactive and Immersive Experiences: From Spectator to Participant:

The linear story is fading. Audiences demand to be authors, not just readers. Imagine exploring a historical event through the eyes of different characters, shaping your own understanding of the past. This is the power of interactive storytelling – it puts the audience in the driver’s seat, forging an emotional connection that traditional narratives often struggle to achieve.

2. Micro-Stories: Bite-Sized Adventures for Busy Minds:

Attention spans are shrinking faster than our smartphones. This is where micro-stories come in – bite-sized bursts of narrative packaged in short videos, social media posts, or even text messages. They tell impactful stories in mere seconds, leaving a lasting impression without demanding hours of investment.

3. User-Generated Content: The Crowd Becomes the Composer:

Gone are the days of the singular storyteller. Today, platforms empower audiences to contribute their own voices, weaving themselves into the narrative fabric. User-generated content, in the form of comments, fan art, or even collaborative writing projects, adds a layer of authenticity and engagement that traditional narratives often lack.

Student Project Updates

What is your story? For the last class, review your story ideas, show examples, or present ideas about what story you want to tell and how you think it should be told.

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Digital Storytelling#4

Visualizing History

The use of visualization to present information is not a new phenomenon. It has been used in maps, scientific drawings, and data plots for over a thousand years. However, the introduction of the smartphone and social media has made digital images and videos ubiquitous. People today think and communicate more visually.

  • Maps
  • Drawings
  • Data

Case Study

Editing Your Story

Tips

https://www.youtube.com/@WeVideo

Case Study

Finding Music

Case Study

Data Storytelling

Data storytelling involves using data to craft a compelling narrative, often employing mediums like infographics, data visualisations, interactive maps, and feature articles. It is an incredibly powerful tool for conveying complex information in a way that is easily digestible.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/extra/xsyGF2fhsL/Indonesia_new_capital

Infographics

The main reason to create an infographic is also the most obvious: infographics are simply a great way to communicate complex information. For this reason, they’re commonly used in media publications. But now the average user can create them.

https://piktochart.com

Digital Curation

Exploring the French Revolution

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Digital Storytelling#3

Case Study – Creating a website

Digital Storytelling Process

Types of Digital Stories

  • Personal/Narrative Stories
  • Stories that Inform or Instruct
  • Stories that Examine Historical Events

Personal Stories

Informational Stories

History

Creating Your Story

What are the Six Essentials of Digital Storytelling?

First-person Pronouns. Using these pronouns will make the message more authentic. We, us, our, and ourselves are all first-person pronouns. Specifically, they are plural first-person pronouns. Singular first-person pronouns include I, me, my, mine, and myself.

Dramatic Questions. Ask a dramatic question and try to resolve it by the end of the storytelling.

Emotional Stories. Design your story in a way that evokes emotion in the audience.

Condensed Stories. Make your stories as condensed as you can so that the audience can look at them in one sitting.

Remove Unnecessary Details. Pace your story in a way that makes the most sense and remove all the unnecessary details.

Use Your Own Voice. Narrate your story in your voice to elevate the impact of the message.

Case Study – Google for Creators

Digital History and Argument

Historical interpretation depends on creating and connecting persuasive accounts of the past into a framework of understanding. This is accomplished by selecting sources that can answer a research question, and identify those that provide relevant evidence. The basis of that selection can be their judgement of the truthfulness of a source, its aesthetic qualities, its representativeness, or its uniqueness.

Selecting sources requires that historians synthesize them to find patterns and structures, which guides how they arrange those sources into an argument, narrative, or interpretation which is the composite of the sources and not merely a retelling of any one of them.

Historians may elect to arrange sources chronologically, geographically, topically, or along any other axis that reveals causation, experience, or consequences. Arrangement along those axes is part and parcel of contextualization, which might also be called comparison. The most basic form of historical contextualization is to understand a source by comparing it to other sources from the same period, place, or topic.

How does one write a Historical Argument?

A historical argument explains how or why an event occurred in the past. The argument is presented by a thesis statement, which must be specific, proven, and argued. The thesis statement is the main argument of the story and is supported by quality, relevant, and credible evidence to make a strong argument.

The components of a historical argument are:

  • The thesis (specific, provable, arguable),
  • The evidence (the information provided that supports the thesis statement), and
  • The conclusion (the decision or deduction rendered that clarifies the position of the thesis).
  • Other factors include previous arguments made by other historical scholars, how this particular piece of history impacts the understanding of the past or the present, and what processes and sources were used to come to any conclusions.

Case Study – Wilson Blvd.

Case Study – Your Story, Our Story

Digital Curation

Exploring the French Revolution

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Digital Storytelling #2

Review

Digital technology has changed how historians research, write, and publish stories. These technologies are making local history more accessible by providing opportunities for community collaboration and engagement.

Digital storytelling is a communication technique that utilizes various forms of multimedia to create a compelling narrative. An easy and accessible way to share historical content.

Case Study

Other Examples

Definition

Digital history is an approach to examining and representing the past using information technologies. It draws on databases, hypertextualization, and networks, to create and share historical knowledge.”

Digital storytelling is a communication technique that utilizes various forms of multimedia to create a compelling narrative. An easy and accessible way to share historical content.

Changing the way historians “argue history”

Digital history is an approach to examining and representing the past using information technologies. It uses databases, hypertextualization, and networks to create and share historical knowledge.

Democratizing History

Arlington Historical is a free mobile app that puts Arlington, Virginia’s history at your fingertips. Find interesting stories about people, places, and events in Arlington history, and enjoy curated historical tours. Each point on the interactive location-enabled map includes historical information about the site along with historical images. Arlington Historical is a collaborative project with stories published by local historians, community members, and other history-focused organizations.

Survey of Digital Platforms & Tools

Online Platforms

Case Studies

Tools

Case Study – Google

Digital Storytelling Process

Case Study

Research Tools

Writing for History

What are the Six Essentials of Digital Storytelling?

First-person Pronouns. Using these pronouns will make the message more authentic. We, us, our, and ourselves are all first-person pronouns. Specifically, they are plural first-person pronouns. Singular first-person pronouns include I, me, my, mine, and myself.

Dramatic Questions. Ask a dramatic question and try to resolve it by the end of the storytelling.

Emotional Stories. Design your story in a way that evokes emotion in the audience.

Condensed Stories. Make your stories as condensed as you can so that the audience can look at them in one sitting.

Remove Unnecessary Details. Pace your story in a way that makes the most sense and remove all the unnecessary details.

Use Your Own Voice. Narrate your story in your voice to elevate the impact of the message.

Digital History and Argument

Historical interpretation depends on creating and connecting persuasive accounts of the past into a framework of understanding. This is accomplished by selecting sources that can answer a research question, and identify those that provide relevant evidence. The basis of that selection can be their judgement of the truthfulness of a source, its aesthetic qualities, its representativeness, or its uniqueness.

Selecting sources requires that historians synthesize them to find patterns and structures, which guides how they arrange those sources into an argument, narrative, or interpretation which is the composite of the sources and not merely a retelling of any one of them. Historians may elect to arrange sources chronologically, geographically, topically, or along any other axis that reveals causation, experience, or consequences. Arrangement along those axes is part and parcel of contextualization, which might also be called comparison. The most basic form of historical contextualization is to understand a source by comparing it to other sources from the same period, place, or topic.

How does one write a Historical Argument?

A historical argument explains how or why an event occurred in the past. The argument is presented by a thesis statement, which must be specific, proven, and argued. The thesis statement is the main argument of the story and is supported by quality, relevant, and credible evidence to make a strong argument.

The components of a historical argument are:

  • The thesis (specific, provable, arguable),
  • The evidence (the information provided that supports the thesis statement), and
  • The conclusion (the decision or deduction rendered that clarifies the position of the thesis).
  • Other factors include previous arguments made by other historical scholars, how this particular piece of history impacts the understanding of the past or the present, and what processes and sources were used to come to any conclusions.

Project Review

Case Study

Media Resources

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Internship Post #8

Post 8:  Reflect on your internship and complete this sentence: “Because of my internship, I am….”

In response to the post #8 assignment, I have three observations to make.  First, “I am grateful” for the opportunity to have worked for the Smithsonian Institution’s (SI) Folklife and Cultural Heritage Department. Having lived in Washington DC for over 40 years, working for the Smithsonian has always been high on my bucket list. Second, “I am more aware” of how digital humanities and information technologies are transforming organizations.  And finally, “I am better prepared” to assist other organizations with this transformation. 

The George Mason University’s digital public humanities program taught me that that “digital tools and resources are transforming the ways in which organizations research, interpret, and communicate.” Today, the Internet and social media overshadow almost all other traditional public media. However, with all transformations there are often many challenges to overcome. For example, with the introduction of new digital tools, there is often a hesitancy to make a complete break with legacy processes.

As a result of my internship, I have learned that organizations need to orchestrate new strategic approaches that encourage their workforce to experiment with and ultimately adopt new digital tools.  In the past, information technology was centrally managed, and new digital tools were introduced cautiously. But today, mobile apps and cloud-based applications are being created with breath taking speed. In addition, large organizations are having a difficult time preventing various departments and individuals from purchasing and deploying new digital tools.

During the past academic year, I was able to participate in two SI projects; one called American Ginseng: Local Knowledge, Global Roots and the other called Earth Optimism.

The Smithsonian is involved with a variety of interesting educational projects and is a leader in adopting new information technologies.  The institution was a wonderful environment for a digital humanities student to gain work experiences.  According to the Smithsonian’s strategic plan, its goal is to “build on its unique strengths to engage and to inspire more people, where they are, with greater impact, while catalyzing critical conversation on issues affecting our nation and the world.” In regard to the office I worked for, Folklife and Cultural Heritage, its mission is the following: “through the power of culture, we build understanding, strengthen communities, and reinforce our shared humanity.”

The best part of being an intern at SI was observing and learning from a wide and diverse group of dedicated staff.  At the Smithsonian, digital humanities is playing a major role in how information is collected, stored, and shared.  One of my responsibilities was to assist with the launch of a new website “American Ginseng: Local Knowledge, Global Roots.” Since the project was already well underway, there was not much I could offer in the way of web development. However, by arriving at such a late stage in the project, I could provide user experience with the site and offer some objective perspectives.

American Ginseng presents the shared stories of a wide variety of people with intimate knowledge of the harvest, cultivation, trade, medicinal use, and conservation of this fascinating plant. I also assisted with the development of a social media strategy and toolkit to help with the promotions of the launch of American Ginseng. The toolkit included the graphic presented above, #GinsengFolklife hashtag, and suggested language for Facebook groups to post links to the new site.  In addition, I was able to produce an introductory video that highlighted a Ginseng conference held in Ohio. The video also provided an audio-visual component to marketing the website.

I witnessed how challenging it can be to introduce new technologies, especially in an organization with established procedures and process. I was able to demonstrate the use of a new artificial intelligence (AI) based technology to extract metadata from video content.  I leveraged the AI process to transcribe text from the video taken at the event. The transcriptions saved time in identifying sound bites and determining what video to use in the editing process.

In addition to the American Ginseng project, I also worked with SI’s Earth Optimism (EO) team. EO is a rebranding of the original Earth Day which dates back to April 22, 1970 and was intended to generate awareness of the need for environmental protection. In 2017 the Smithsonian launched Earth Optimism to refocus the world’s attention away from the gloom and doom associated with climate change to a more positive message. At this year’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall, Earth Optimism will be featured for the first time. The EO team is planning many activities and displays including a small tent theater, where visitors will be able to watch videos on Earth Optimism projects from around the world. One of my assignments has been reviewing recently produced SI videos on climate change and the environment.  I prepared a spreadsheet with criteria to determine which videos are of high quality and reflect EO themes, as well as transcribed or captioned to meet current accessibility standards.

As part of this process, I learned a lot about the need for federal agencies to ensure that videos are “open captioned.”  This includes burned in captions, with descriptive text including audio context.  I realized that the Smithsonian currently contracts out this service, but the fact that a number of videos were not captioned reflects the budgetary constraints on ensuring all produced videos meet current standards.  I determined that recent advances in AI technology now make video transcribing and captioning more economical for the Smithsonian. I recommended to the EO team to consider testing this technology to determine feasibility.   

I also learned that the success of adopting a new technology usually comes from the organization’s perceived value of a new digital tool versus a legacy system, or an older process. In the case of burning in captions, the Smithsonian’s legacy process required contracting out the service. But I was able to demonstrate that existing online applications could accomplish the task at a drastically reduced cost and quicker turn around. It is clear that employees need to know that they will not be penalized for experimenting with or introducing new digital tools. In the future, the need to adopt new digital public humanities technology will only grow. Especially if organizations are going to keep up with their mission to “research, interpret, and communicate.”

My internship experience demonstrated that there is an evolutionary process in adopting DH technologies. For example, the Smithsonian embraced content management technologies, especially digital asset management years ago. But for the most part this has been more text based. Today, there is a demonstrable need for media asset management, especially with the exponential growth of audio and video files. As a result, the need to automate the process of summarizing media content by extracting metadata, is becoming a high priority.

In conclusion, my internship helped me understand that after forty years, digital humanities is no longer about the technology.  Rather it is what an organization can do with technology, and who ultimately can have access to the information.  What I learned from the Smithsonian, is that all organizations are challenged by their role as a gatekeeper of knowledge. However, I was glad to see that the Smithsonian recognized the need to constantly reevaluate its strategic approach to new technologies, especially artificial intelligence.  I believe this will assist them in their mission to share information and to engage with audiences.

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Internship Post #7

Post# 7:  What insights do you have about working in digital public humanities as a result of this experience? What new questions or ideas do you have as a result of this experience?

In response to the question above I’ll start by referring to George Mason University’s description of its digital public humanities program. It states that “digital tools and resources are transforming the ways in which organizations research, interpret, and communicate.” As a result of this transformation there is a growing interest in digital humanities. Organizations are keenly aware of the need to change the way they digitally communicate to the public. In fact during the past several years the digital media transformation has been amazing. Today, the Internet and social media overshadow almost all other traditional public media. However, with all transformations there are often many challenges to overcome. In regard to the introduction of new digital tools there is often a hesitancy to make a complete break with legacy processes. As a result organizations need to orchestrate a strategic approach that encourages their workforce to experiment with and ultimately adopt new digital tools.

My internship experience at that the Smithsonian Institution (SI) exemplifies this transformation. As an educational organization, the Smithsonian is recognized for its public facing and adoption of new digital technologies. But like most large organizations, the Smithsonian faces several challenges in managing this change. For example, in the past information technology was centrally managed, and new digital tools were introduced cautiously. But today, mobile apps, and cloud based applications, are being created with breath taking speed. In addition, large organizations are having a difficult time preventing various departments and individuals from purchasing and deploying new digital tools. As a result today’s workforce is growing weary of the introduction of new technologies.

Organizations are facing a significant technology fatigue. Many new technologies are disruptive (challenging the status quo) and end-users are becoming resistant to change. Especially if the perceived value of a new tool diminishes the value of an employee’s knowledge of a legacy system or process.

This semester I have been working with SI’s Earth Optimism (EO) team. EO is a rebranding of the original Earth Day which dates back to April 22, 1970 and was intended to generate awareness of the need for environmental protection. In 2017 the Smithsonian launched Earth Optimism to refocus the world’s attention away from the gloom and doom associated with climate change to a more positive message. As a result, during the past several years there has been a multitude of videos produced on the subject.

This year’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall will feature Earth Optimism for the first time. The EO team is planning many activities and displays including a “pocket cinema”, or small tent theater, where visitors will be able to watch videos on Earth Optimism projects from around the world. The challenge is that many of the videos have not been transcribed or captioned, and do not meet current accessibility standards. As a result, the EO team needs a digital tool that can easily extract from the audio the necessary text, transcribe it, edit it, and then “burn” the captions into the video.

While this type of AI based, natural language processing technology has existed for sometime, the Smithsonian EO team is just now “discovering” the need for it. An interesting insight is that without a defined strategic plan to research, test, and adopt new technologies organizations will continue to have challenges with their digital transformations. When an organization has a strong enough business case they can accept the disruptive nature of a new digital tool and eventually it will organically be introduced. However the adoption rate is going to be somewhat chaotic or even random.

What I have learned so far is that the success of adopting a new technology usually comes from the organization’s perceived value of a new digital tool versus a legacy system, or an older process. In the case of burning in captions, the Smithsonian’s legacy process required contracting out the service. But I was able to demonstrate that existing online applications could accomplish the task at a drastically reduced cost and quicker turn around. It is clear that employees need to know that they will not be penalized for experimenting with or introducing new digital tools. In the future, the need to adopt new digital public humanities technology will only grow. Especially if organizations are going to keep up with their mission to “research, interpret, and communicate.”

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Internship Post #6

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Post #6: What skills or knowledge from your coursework are you using in your internship?  Have you noticed a difference between theory and practice?  Why or why not?  

When discussing my studies at the Digital Humanities (DH) program at George Mason University, and my internship at the Smithsonian Institution, the difference between theory and practice becomes evident. The coursework has been very valuable in defining the field of Digital Humanities and its potential applications. But the internship, while reinforcing the importance of DH, especially in capturing, and sharing knowledge, has also pointed out the struggle many organizations face in leveraging advances in computing technologies in the workplace.

In looking back at some of my earlier class assignments, I came across this paragraph I wrote defining DH.

“While all fields of academia have been – digitized – the Humanities appears to have gone through a more contorted transformation.  This is a direct result of the impact computing has on digitizing text, and the corresponding development of taxonomies, ontologies, and metadata.  Early definitions of DH primarily focused on the collection of data, initially textual, that enabled academics to “objectify” their thoughts and concepts and to make them more public.  This reflects the early digital technologies that leveraged word processing.  The ability to search large corpus of text and analyze and research patterns of information was groundbreaking.”

My internship experience, on both American Ginseng, and now the Earth Optimism project, demonstrates that there is an evolutionary process in adopting DH technologies. For example, the Smithsonian embraced content management technologies, especially digital asset management years ago. But for the most part this has been more text based. Today, there is a demonstrable need for media asset management, especially with the exponential growth of audio and video files. As a result, the need to automate the process of summarizing media content by extracting metadata, is becoming a high priority.

The Earth Optimism Project over the past several years has developed large quantities of informative environmental videos, many linked on Smithsonian websites. But with no process of extracting metadata from these stored media files the organization faces a significant problem, how to make them more discoverable, and accessible? So far, my internship has taught me, that most people can define what the problem is that needs to be solved, but not how their organization can solve it. From other work experiences it is certain that the very nature of large, bureaucratic organizations, prevent agile procurements and adoption of new technologies and processes. As a result, the Smithsonian, while demonstrating its strength in developing and producing educational content, also recognizes that it has a significant gap in their processes of distributing and repurposing this media. Especially in today’s social media environment that leverages metadata, tagging, and content integration.

The major skills or knowledge that I am drawing upon from my coursework is that the broadening definition of Digital Humanities encompasses the reality that it is no longer about the technology but rather what an organization can do with it and who ultimately can have access to the information.  What I am learning from the internship is that the Smithsonian, like other organizations, is challenged by their traditional role as a gatekeeper of knowledge. But recognizing that information technology, especially Social Media, requires them to transforms the way the way they interact with audiences. As a result, the Smithsonian needs to reevaluate its strategic planning and the introduction of computing technology, especially artificial intelligence, to assist in sharing information and engaging with people seeking media content.

The Smithsonian obviously recognizes the need for investing in cognitive services like media indexing, tagging, transcribing, and translation technologies to automate content summarization and integration. However, in the past these services were expensive and difficult to integrate with existing applications. But today these cloud based technologies have become quite common, especially in the entertainment industry. For example, Netflix and other streaming providers use content summarization to assist audiences with searching and selecting programs. Finally, and most importantly, the cost of these services is dramatically decreasing. So the return on the investment (ROI) becomes more evident when comparing the human hours required to extract metadata from media files versus an automatic process. I expect in the next several years, the Smithsonian will introduce cognitive services across the enterprise and automate their metadata extraction. It will be another evolution of the impact that digital humanities is having on the workplace.

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Internship Post #5

Post #5: What about your internship has been an eye-opening (new or unexpected) experience? What were your initial expectations? Have these expectations changed now that you are half-way through? How? Why?  

Last week I started the second semester of my internship at the Smithsonian Institution’s Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage. My assignment for the next several months will be working on the Institution’s “Earth Optimism” project which will be on display at the Folklife Festival on the National Mall June 22–26 and June 30–July 4, 2022. Earth Optimism, a Smithsonian led movement started several years ago to recognize the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, focuses on changing the narrative from doom-and-gloom to hope, inspiring action and mobilizing a global community.

According to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch, “Earth Optimism shows us how to find hope in the face of odds that might seem overwhelming. It reminds us that change happens when we focus on what works—when we collaborate to find solutions and celebrate our successes.”

The concept of Earth Optimism is in itself “eye-opening” since it is an attempt to re-frame or redefine the global debate over climate change. For most people, the constant stream of negative stories about the world’s climate is forcing them to tune out the message. As a result the media needs to balance their climate change reporting. More positive or “optimistic” stories can help.

For example, Climate Scientist Katharine Hayhoe during a recent Ted Talk addresses the problem of “How do you talk to someone who doesn’t believe in climate change?” She reminds us that you can’t rehash the same data and facts that has been reported on for years. Instead, Hayhoe suggests that the key to having a real discussion is to connect over shared values like family, community and religion — and to prompt people around the world to realize that they already care about a changing climate.

For the past several years the Smithsonian’s Earth Optimism project has been accumulating an extensive collection of video material on climate change. Dozens of video files are available on the Earth Optimism website. However the problem lies in the fact that this compelling content is not easily “discoverable”. Video titles and brief descriptions are listed. Unfortunately, the necessary metadata tagging, and indexing of transcripts is non-existent. I find this “eye opening” as well. My expectation is that large organizations like the Smithsonian should already have in place more efficient “cataloging” or media search functionalities on their websites.

Since the public has grown accustomed to streaming sites like Hulu and Netflix, the Smithsonian is at risk of not reaching their intended audiences. These popular sites are rich in metadata and assist viewers in their search for content. As a result the Smithsonian needs to review its long term media strategy. It is evident that the value of any media content is diminished by its lack of visibility. In addition, there is a lot that can be learned from social media like Youtube and TikTok. These sites employ sophisticated algorithms that learn from user’s preferences.

For the next several months I am hoping to make the Smithsonian staff more familiar with new digital tools and applications that aid in media indexing. In addition, I will suggest that a Earth Optimism “media tool kit” be developed. I believe this tool kit would be able to provide a comprehensive index of available stories and interviews. This will assist journalists in becoming more familiar with current and future Smithsonian stories and media resources regarding climate change. It will also help promote the Earth Optimism exhibit this Summer at the Folklife Festival.

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Internship Post #4

Post 4:  What are you doing that seems to be successful in the internship?  Challenging? How can you address these challenges?

In response to the question – what am I doing that seems to be successful? – I have been able to introduce a video component to the American Ginseng project. While only a brief video, it provides an easy to watch overview of the website and encourages visitors to explore the site.

The American Ginseng project is about sharing the stories of people with expert knowledge of this fascinating plant. So far, the site’s collection of dozens of stories are text based. But for visitors not familiar with the subject, they may find it difficult to determine where to start or what to search for. As a result an overview video of the project serves several important purposes. It provides a visualization of the overall theme of the site that can easily be shared and translated. It also becomes a key focal point of any social media strategy. Finally, the video serves as a template, on how to produce and develop future multimedia components.

The project team designed the website as a digital collection of “American Ginseng stories”. Individuals are encouraged to upload their stories in a text based format. But like a library full of books, visitors to the site might not know where to start. So there is a need for some resource that permits visitors to get an overview of what is available and where to find it.

Sharing stories, especially oral and written stories, is rooted in the Smithsonian’s mission to preserve folklife traditions. For decades the institution has been a leader in capturing America’s heritage on both audio and video. But the challenge facing the site’s production team was sustaining the Smithsonian’s high production standards while producing videos economically.

Since the site is designed for a broad audience familiar with multimedia, it became apparent that further consideration for including some video components was necessary. The opportunity came when a production team was able to video a wide selection of American Ginseng experts talking about the plant and the Smithsonian’s project. The challenge was how to produce a short video from the available material on a very limited budget.

The solution was to use my background in video editing and leverage a low cost media tool, Apple’s “iMovie.” I was able to demonstrate that a short length, high quality video can be produced economically. The final video addresses the challenge of what is sustainable within the project’s restraints. But most importantly it provides a visible template for future Smithsonian web based projects.

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