Linked Data Technologies Research Articles

Archival Description Turns Truly Collaborative: an Exercise in Records in Contexts Standard

This paper presents an exercise and research conducted by the author at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Zagreb University. It aimed to teach archival description subjects to his BA students and link results using the Records in Contexts (RIC) standard, RDF Turtle standard, and a graph database. The exercise spanned five weeks, during which students had to create the archival description of an exemplary records aggregation of notable historian Jaroslav Šidak, provided by the Faculty Archives. This exercise aimed to examine the potential of RIC and linked data technologies to facilitate collaboration among archivists, reduce the description-related work through decentralization, enable re-using and linking descriptions, and visualize results. The author offers a conclusion regarding collaborative work and creating new knowledge from archived heritage. Finally, some further directions regarding these subjects are being proposed.

Teaching Linked Data Principles through Virtual Wikidata Edit‐a‐thons

ABSTRACTCataloging and metadata professionals in libraries have an interest in learning about the Semantic Web and Linked Data technologies. However, with limited release time and funding for continuing education, professional development opportunities need to be designed with learner needs in mind: free, flexible, and fun. Our regional Linked Data interest group approached this challenge by developing an annual program in the form of a five‐day edit‐a‐thon, providing training and hands‐on experience in creating and editing Wikidata. The flexible format makes use of synchronous video conferencing, detailed online documentation, independent editing days for hands‐on learning, and opt‐in community discussion via Slack. Individual and project progress was tracked with the Wikimedia Event Dashboard. This poster proposes the Wikidata edit‐a‐thon as an ideal method to fulfill a professional development need of library staff by introducing participants to the principles of Linked Data through this flexible and interactive event.

An Exploration of IFLA LRM for Literature Data Representation

The digital humanities have witnessed a clear development in recent years due partly to their adoption of Semantic Web and linked data technologies and the creation of knowledge bases. In this work, we target the creation of an ontology and knowledge base for literature data representation based on the IFLA Library Reference Model (LRM). IFLA LRM is the main model for book-related data, allowing for a fine representation of the various layers that constitute a book. However, by design, it doesn’t deal with some aspects usually available in literature databases, such as information about authors, literary awards or book themes. As a result, LRM requires some extensions to be able to represent ancillary data. Another challenge is the querying of IFLA LRM knowledge bases, with a performance cost that comes with the fine-grained expressivity of the LRM model, which creates longer and therefore typically slower SPARQL queries. In this work, we propose an extension to the IFLA LRM ontology called IFLA LRM* that targets these limitations including a connection to the vocabulary Schema.org and to the taxonomies Thema and Dewey Decimal, and the representation of literary awards. We also present a practical case study on using our extended model to create a Quebec literature knowledge base, discussing the interest of our extensions.

Linked Data Technology and Linked Open Data in Academic Libraries in Nigeria: Level of Integration, Challenges and Potential Solution

Linked Data Technology and Linked Open Data in Academic Libraries in Nigeria: Level of Integration, Challenges and Potential Solution

The Level of Awareness, Knowledge and Perception of Linked Data by Library and Information Science Professionals in Nigeria

The internet is the most compelling capacity building tool, as it exposes various forms of human knowledge. This has resulted into an overwhelming use of the search engines by digital generation in their social, education and research activities. Surprisingly, only a very little fraction of libraries’ digital collections are available on search engine results. Linked Data (LD) is an emerging set of standards and technologies that can potentially enable information systems such as libraries to publish their highly treasured wealth of knowledge, and interlink their hidden data on the web for better global accessibility. Linked Data having been presented as the future for library and information data management has triggered many institutions to experiment with it, and to learn more about the technology. Although technical challenges are paramount obstacles to the spread of LD across libraries, but the biggest issue can be attributed to lack of awareness on its potentials. This research focused on investigating the level of awareness, knowledge and perception of linked data by library and information science (LIS) professionals in Nigeria. The study made use of Survey research design, consisting of structured and open ended questions, distributed to LIS professionals in Nigeria. A total of 71 LIS professionals that spread across 17 institutions in Nigeria formed the participants for the study. The study portrays that LIS professionals in Nigeria perceive LD technology as a welcome innovative idea to facilitate records accessibility, and further move librarianship in Nigeria to the global best practices. But there is a drastic low level of knowledge on the subject of LD amongst the professionals, which is an impediment to the speedy implementation. To this effect, every institution in Nigeria needs to escalate discussions and trainings on the subject of Linked Data in order to foster the development of this powerful tool in shaping libraries collections’ management.

Leveraging the Power of Crowdsourcing and Linked Open Data: Transformation of the Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts and the SDBM Name and Place Authorities

Linked data technologies are natural fits for building and managing controlled vocabularies and authorities, especially in a crowd-sourced environment where managing data integrity can be a challenge. This paper considers the role of researchers in contributing to the health and maintenance the Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts, particularly as it relates to its local Name Authority. It will also demonstrate how applying Linked Open Data technologies and processes in the SDBM can facilitate the symbiotic relationship between the SDBM user community–the “crowd”– and its data as well as prepare the data for reuse in other LOD contexts like Wikidata.

Impediments to and readiness for Linked Data application in libraries: Pakistani information professionals’ perspective

Findings revealed that there is little evidence that exists of the implementation of LD technologies by libraries in developing countries. This study aims to examine the willingness of information professionals along with their perceived barriers to the implementation of LD technologies in Pakistani libraries. Data was collected from Pakistani librarians in an online questionnaire survey. There is broad interest and willingness to implement Linked Data technologies in Pakistani libraries while perceptions of the presence of barriers remain. Participants are willing to explore and learn more about LD technologies as well as advocate and promote the adoption of these technologies. They also want to attend events about LD technologies and their applications in libraries. Though they identified the existence of different potential barriers that have to do with themselves (e.g. lack of awareness of basic LD concepts), their institutions/libraries (e.g. they lack best practices regarding applications of LD in libraries), and the technology itself (e.g. new, complex, costly). These dynamics have implications for LD applications in libraries, especially those in developing countries. The current study is a valuable addition to the literature as no study has been conducted regarding the willingness to adopt LD in libraries and barriers to its implementation. Findings regarding barriers to implementation would helpful for policymakers and IT experts consider these challenges and work to minimize these challenges for the implementation of LD in Libraries.

Report on the 2nd Linked Archives International Workshop (LinkedArchives 2022) at TPDL 2022

The 2nd edition of the International Workshop on Archives and Linked Data ran in conjunction with the 26th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Digital Libraries (TPDL 2022). TPDL 2022 was an in-person event in Padua with an online-only registration for non-speakers. Archives, the guardians of large volumes of historical and current information, are showing a growing interest in linked data and semantic web technologies. These technologies can be used to link archives' information with data from other cultural heritage institutions and more informal sources. In a world of linked data, users can access richer interfaces where the archival records are available in their context, with explicit metadata. The workshop gathered about 20 researchers and specialists engaged in initiatives crossing linked data technologies, archives, and cultural heritage in general, discussing advances and challenges in this area. The workshop was a successful event, with active participation in the discussions that followed the presentations. The participants found the workshop interesting (40%) or extremely interesting (60%), and everyone who answered a post-workshop survey would be interested in another edition of the workshop. Date: 20 September, 2022. Website: https://linkedarchives.inesctec.pt/.

Scientific Bibliography in the State Public Scientific Technological Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences: Stages of Development, Modern Realities and Prospects

The article objective is to show the bibliographic activity development on information research support in the State Public Scientific Technological Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (SPSTL SB RAS). Namely, changes in the technology of creating information resources of own generation due to computers and software; to represent the product types created by employees during 1958–2021; to highlight topics of traditional bibliographic current and retrospective indexes, bibliographic and full-text databases. The paper presents quantitative characteristics of the generated electronic resources; shows the forms of bibliographic services: information selective dissemination, differentiated services for managers, electronic thematic exhibitions of literature based on the databases; gives a brief description of bibliometric research. The authors determine prospects to develop the number of SPSTL SB RAS information and bibliographic complex. They are growing the authoritative data files in bibliographic databases, expanding the repertoire of Open Access sources to select information for regional bibliographic resources, developing interactive forms of information services for scientists and specialists; participating the semantic web through linked data technology based on authoritative files as an object (predicate), improving the service capabilities of the information search system (access to full texts).

Semantic Web Application: Tourist Assisting Web Application

Abstract: In addition to traditional web technologies, semantic web technology allows the implementation of the "web of things" and "web of linked data," enabling both machines and humans to access the web. The ultimate objective is to allow machines to do increasingly complex tasks and to design systems that can support network interactions. This goal may be realized by merging several linked data technologies, such as RDF, SPARQL, OWL, and SKOS (W3C Org, 2014). In this project, the authors integrated semantic web technologies into the software to illustrate their use. This study describes in detail the design and functionality of the apps, as well as how the semantic web technology principles were implemented. The authors followed the principles and best practices outlined in W3C documents and directed by the first author. The authors exerted a great deal of work to evaluate the acquired data and have begun the project by locating suitable datasets from various data sources (heterogeneous data sources). Following this, more attempts were made to cleanse and verify the data. This generated dataset was subsequently pushed to the selected triple store on application start-up. The ontology design and project architecture are described in full in this study. The project's stack and implementation has been discussed in this report.

Researching in Times of Crisis: Toward Information‐Resilient Societies

AbstractThis panel features four experts in Library and Information Science (LIS) research who will present findings from major projects conducted during the COVID‐19 pandemic from national and international contexts. These include: a) a mixed‐methods study of virtual reference services in academic libraries during the pandemic's beginning, b) semi‐structured interviews with 29 global library leaders about library models that emerged in response to changes caused by the pandemic, c) a questionnaire survey of information professionals from the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) regarding linked data technologies, and d) a mixed‐methods approach to study newcomers and (mis)information during the pandemic including in depth interviews and content and sentiment analyses of social media platforms. The panelists will describe obstacles and challenges encountered during the pandemic, and efforts to overcame these. They will provide an overview of major findings and share research‐based implications for building and maintaining information‐resilient societies.

Research on Knowledge Management of Intangible Cultural Heritage Based on Linked Data

At present, the protection of intangible cultural heritage has received more and more attention from all levels of society. Intangible cultural heritage is a treasure of national culture. It is an indispensable part of Chinese civilization, the crystallization of the wisdom of Chinese civilization, and represents the country’s soft power. The effective organization and management of intangible cultural heritage knowledge is the premise and foundation for the protection, dissemination, and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage. Ontology and linked data technology provide a new method and realization path for the organization and management of intangible cultural heritage knowledge. In this paper, the intangible cultural heritage knowledge is organized reasonably semantically based on the method of linked data, and the purpose is to use the structure of linked data to express the resource data of different structures in a structured manner. This paper first introduces the meaning and background of the research and analyzes the relevant research at home and abroad. Second, it introduces the related knowledge of linked data, analyzes and sorts out the elements and semantic relationship of knowledge in the field of intangible cultural heritage, and designs and constructs the ontology model of intangible cultural heritage knowledge, Finally, based on linked data technology, the process of intangible cultural heritage knowledge organization and linked data set construction is studied, including key steps such as entity to RDF, entity association, linked data storage, and publication. The application of linked data technology in the field of intangible cultural heritage knowledge organization and management can promote the standardization and standardization of intangible cultural heritage knowledge management and is of great significance to the protection and inheritance of my country’s intangible cultural heritage culture.

DIGITISATION IN ROAD CONSTRUCTION: AUTOMATION OF AS-BUILT MODELS

Abstract. The construction industry is still one of the least digitised sectors worldwide and digitisation in the road construction sector in particular is even more dire. To improve the efficiency of the sector, it is of the utmost importance that construction monitoring tasks, i.e. progress, quality and quantity analyses, are automated. The goal of the presented framework is the automation of the following three vital interconnected subjects: (1) The systematic capture of remote sensing data with low-cost UAVs, (2) the information extraction from survey data and (3) the interlinking and exchange of interoperable BIM data (design, survey and extracted information) using Linked Data technologies. In this paper, the needed data for proper road construction digitisation and the desired data structure is discussed. Additionally, the automation of Real Time Kinematic (RTK)-flight processing is presented. The feasibility of the proposed workflow is examined based on real-life test cases. As a consequence of automation, the homogeneity of data across projects will increase. This will form the basis for further automation in road construction.

TheyBuyForYou platform and knowledge graph: Expanding horizons in public procurement with open linked data

Public procurement is a large market affecting almost every organisation and individual; therefore, governments need to ensure its efficiency, transparency, and accountability, while creating healthy, competitive, and vibrant economies. In this context, open data initiatives and integration of data from multiple sources across national borders could transform the procurement market by such as lowering the barriers of entry for smaller suppliers and encouraging healthier competition, in particular by enabling cross-border bids. Increasingly more open data is published in the public sector; however, these are created and maintained in siloes and are not straightforward to reuse or maintain because of technical heterogeneity, lack of quality, insufficient metadata, or missing links to related domains. To this end, we developed an open linked data platform, called TheyBuyForYou, consisting of a set of modular APIs and ontologies to publish, curate, integrate, analyse, and visualise an EU-wide, cross-border, and cross-lingual procurement knowledge graph. We developed advanced tools and services on top of the knowledge graph for anomaly detection, cross-lingual document search, and data storytelling. This article describes the TheyBuyForYou platform and knowledge graph, reports their adoption by different stakeholders and challenges and experiences we went through while creating them, and demonstrates the usefulness of Semantic Web and Linked Data technologies for enhancing public procurement.

Interoperability and Integration: An Updated Approach to Linked Data Publication at the Dutch Land Registry

Kadaster, the Dutch National Land Registry and Mapping Agency, has been actively publishing their base registries as linked (open) spatial data for several years. To date, a number of these base registers as well as a number of external datasets have been successfully published as linked data and are publicly available. Increasing demand for linked data products and the availability of new linked data technologies have highlighted the need for a new, innovative approach to linked data publication within the organisation in the interest of reducing the time and costs associated with said publication. The new approach to linked data publication is novel in both its approach to dataset modelling, transformation, and publication architecture. In modelling whole datasets, a clear distinction is made between the Information Model and the Knowledge Model to capture both the organisation-specific requirements and to support external, community standards in the publication process. The publication architecture consists of several steps where instance data are loaded from their source as GML and transformed using an Enhancer and published in the triple store. Both the modelling and publication architecture form part of Kadaster’s larger vision for the development of the Kadaster Knowledge Graph through the integration of the various linked datasets.

Awareness of Linked Open Data Among the Employees of Polish Libraries, Archives, and Museums

Purpose/Thesis: This article presents the results of a survey conducted in January 2021 among employees of Polish libraries, museums, and archives, examining their awareness of open linked data technologies. The research had a pilot character and its results will be used to improve the questionnaire and to conduct research on a wider scale.
 Approach/Methods: The survey method was used in the study.
 Results and conclusions: On the basis of answers received, it can be concluded that open linked data is not yet very well-known among employees of Polish libraries, museums, and archives. Those most aware of technologies allowing for machine understanding of content shared on the Web are doctorate degree-holders employed in research libraries. Furthermore, awareness of the projects using LOD technologies does not correlate with awareness of these technological solutions.
 Research limitations: The number of respondents (415) constitutes 1% of all the people employed in libraries, archives, and museums in Poland (based on data provided by the Central Statistical Office of Poland). This is not a large number, but considering the variety among the respondents, the sample can be considered representative.
 Originality/Value: The awareness of Linked Open Data among employees of Polish libraries, archives, and museums has not been the subject of any study so far. In fact, this type of research has not been conducted in other countries either.

Ontology and Linked Data of Chinese Great Sites Information Resources from Users’ Perspective

Great Sites are closely related to the residents’ life, urban and rural development. In the process of rapid urbanization in China, the protection and utilization of Great Sites are facing unprecedented pressure. Effective knowl­edge organization with ontology and linked data of Great Sites is a prerequisite for their protection and utilization. In this paper, an interview is conducted to understand the users’ awareness towards Great Sites to build the user-centered ontology. As for designing the Great Site ontology, firstly, the scope of Great Sites is determined. Secondly, CIDOC- CRM and OWL-Time Ontology are reused combining the results of literature research and user interviews. Thirdly, the top-level structure and the specific instances are determined to extract knowl­edge concepts of Great Sites. Fourthly, they are transformed into classes, data properties and object properties of the Great Site ontology. Later, based on the linked data technology, taking the Great Sites in Xi’an Area as an example, this paper uses D2RQ to publish the linked data set of the knowl­edge of the Great Sites and realize its opening and sharing. Semantic services such as semantic annotation, semantic retrieval and reasoning are provided based on the ontology.

Bridging the Gap

The year of COVID-19, 2020, brought unique experiences to everyone in their daily as well as their professional life. Facing many challenges of division in all aspects (social distancing, political and social divisions, remote work environments), University of South Florida Libraries took the lead in exploring how to overcome these various separations by providing access to its high-quality information sources to its local community and beyond. This paper shares the insights of using Linked Data technology to provide easy access to digital cultural heritage collections not only for the scholarly communities but also for those underrepresented user groups. The authors present the challenges at this special time of the history, discuss the possible solutions, and propose future work to further the effort.

Report on the 1st linked archives international workshop (LinkedArchives 2021) at TPDL 2021

The International Workshop on Archives and Linked Data was a satellite event of the 25th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Digital Libraries (TPDL 2021). TPDL 2021 was an online event with free registration, and the same applied to the workshop. Linked Data and Semantic Web technologies offer new possibilities for digital curation and preservation. The growing interest in archival records and the availability of technologies that can take large volumes of data and process them leads archives into the world of Linked Data. The workshop gathered almost 100 researchers and specialists engaged in initiatives crossing Linked Data technologies, Archives, and Cultural Heritage in general, discussing advances and challenges in this area. Overall, the workshop was a very successful event, which may require in the future more than the two two-hour sessions we dedicated to it this year. Date : 13 September, 2021. Website : https://linkedarchives.inesctec.pt/.

Efficient distributed path computation on RDF knowledge graphs using partial evaluation

A key property of Linked Data is the representation and publication of data as interconnected labelled graphs where different resources linked to each other form a network of meaningful information. Searching these important relationships between resources – within single or distributed graphs – can be reduced to a pathfinding or navigation problem, i.e., looking for chains of intermediate nodes. SPARQL1.1, the current standard query language for RDF-based Linked Data defines a construct – called Property Paths (PPs) – to navigate between entities within a single graph. Since Linked Data technologies are naturally aimed at decentralised scenarios, there are many cases where centralising this data is not feasible or even not possible for querying purposes. To address these problems, we propose a SPARQL PP-based graph processing approach – dubbed DpcLD – where users can execute SPARQL PP queries and find paths distributed across multiple, connected graphs exposed as SPARQL endpoints. To execute the distributed path queries we implemented an index-free, cache-based query engine that communicates with a shared algorithm running on each remote endpoint, and computes the distributed paths. In this paper, we highlight the way in which this approach exploits and aggregates partial paths, within a distributed environment, to produce complete results. We perform extensive experiments to demonstrate the performance of our approach on two datasets: One representing 10 million triples from the DBPedia SPARQL benchmark, and another full benchmark dataset corresponding to 124 million triples. We also perform a scalability test of our approach using real-world genomics datasets distributed across multiple endpoints. We compare our distributed approach with other distributed and centralized pathfinding approaches, showing that it outperforms other distributed approaches by orders of magnitude, and provides a good trade-off for cases when the data cannot be centralised.