Interning on the MANTO Myth Digitisation Project – the importance of machine readability
Written by Jarrod Ballesty
One of the most important lessons one can learn while delving into the mythic story world for the collection of data for the MANTO project is that what you gather is machine-readable.
While working with other Macquarie University students as part of my PACE MQU unit this fact I learnt stands out the most as all the works of the past that survive to this day are in a form that can be referred to as human readable. It is one thing to read a passage but the task here was to make that passage information machine readable within the MANTO public interface.
The Oxford Learner’s Dictionary defines machine-readable as an adjective that means “in a form that a computer can understand”. Machines cannot fully understand or interpret information the same way we do. They require information to follow a clear pattern, often in a form we could call a computer language, that is structured in the form of a mathematical equation or ontology. One could attempt to visualise this as like a tree and the branches of that tree interconnect to create the mythic story world in an open and searchable form.
Tree of Life – An 1847 depiction of the Norse Yggdrasil as described in the Icelandic Prose Edda by Oluf Olufen Bagge
The MANTO project has its own unique language which is based on the Semantic Triple Subject, Predicate and Object. This structure creates a system in which all data entered in the form of ties can be found by searching through the public interface. In order to maintain its structure and integrity, it is essential that data collectors follow the method laid out within the manual for Data Collection. This is commonly referred to as the Bible for Data Collection for MANTO. Through learning and applying this unique machine-readable system it enables multiple people to input data in the same ethos.
This internship has challenged me to think in new ways and has been rewarding. I have been able to discuss concepts and ideas with Greta Hawes, Scott Smith, fellow interns and other members of the MANTO data collection team that I’ve previously not discussed. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with them and hope my input has been of assistance and beneficial to the MANTO project.
It is amazing how ancient texts from the past still traverse time and can now be adapted to communicate and inform us today through machine readable systems that make this data available in the digital age!
This is the second in a series of blog posts from students at Macquarie University who answered the call for PACE interns this semester