Fwd: Re: [MODS] semantic web and mads? (was MADS: XML schema for authorities)

I can respond on our behalf, but I wanted to check with y'all first and see 
if there are any particular points we should make to this group
(e.g. about the SKOS work with TGM, use of the LCNAF at OCLC, etc). Any 
comments?

MacKenzie

>Date:         Mon, 14 Jun 2004 16:07:10 -0400
>Reply-To: Metadata Object Description Schema List <MODS@loc.gov>
>Sender: Metadata Object Description Schema List <MODS@loc.gov>
>From: Barbara B Tillett <btil@loc.gov>
>Subject: Re: [MODS] semantic web and mads? (was MADS: XML schema for 
>authorities)
>Comments: To: MODS@loc.gov
>To: MODS@sun8.LOC.GOV
>
>So how do we get library authority files into the Semantic Web?  I sent
>the suggestion that authority files were "building blocks for the
>Semantic Web" back in 2001, and Eric Miller sent my presentations on to
>the Semantic Web working group in W3C, but nothing more was heard from
>them.  Anyone have suggestions?
>
>The FOAF gets quickly into privacy issues, but obviously has some basic
>parts that would help the retrieval of information.  How can we take
>best advantage of it? - Barbara
>
> >>> bdarcus@FASTMAIL.FM 6/14/2004 3:35:48 PM >>>
>On Thu, 10 Jun 2004 13:14:37 -0400, "Barbara B Tillett" <btil@loc.gov>
>said:
>
> > I've spoken and written for several years about the concepts of a
> > virtual international authority file.  One use is for international
> > displays to let the user decide the language/script they want to
>prefer,
> > while enabling the clustering/linking of variant forms to enhace the
> > precision of searches.  Other possibilities are to provide
> > links/navigation to resources by or about the entity identified by
>the
> > authority data (links to authoritative biographical references, links
>to
> > bibliographic databases for works by/about the person or corporate
>body
> > or family or on a particular subject (concept, event, place, time,
> > object)).  There are many possibilities, and I'd love to see MADS
>enable
> > more than we can do with MARC. - Barbara Tillett
>
>Yes, I was thinking about some of this sort of thing as I was thinking
>about the possiblities of MADS.  As a consumer of bibliographic data,
>I
>can envision a few years down the road an LoC-based web service where
>I
>could highlight an author name in an article I am reading onscreen,
>select an option and retreive the authority file for information on
>the
>author, including links to other references, and the ability to then
>link from there to local library catalogs.
>
>The more I think of the possiblities, the more I see parallels with
>the
>RDF/semantic web stuff.  Anyone looked at the FOAF work?  It's an RDF
>schema that represent, among other things, people and their
>relationships.
>
>Here's a rather complete example of such a file:
>
>http://norman.walsh.name/foaf
>
>Bruce

MacKenzie Smith
Associate Director for Technology
MIT Libraries
Building 14S-308
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA  02139
(617)253-8184
kenzie@mit.edu

Received on Monday, 14 June 2004 18:40:31 UTC