The document describes Martha Beatrice Webb, a British social reformer born in 1858. It provides biographical details about her life and work, including her involvement in socialism, labor politics, and founding the London School of Economics. Uniform resource identifiers (URIs) are assigned to Webb and related people and archives to connect the data to broader networks. The goal is to express relationships between individuals and sources to build understanding across different information spaces on the web.
4. Martha Beatrice Webb, 1858-1943, social reformer
is the creator of some archive collections
5. Each of these is about
an archive collection
Each of these is a
description
Each of these is a
document
6. Each document has
lots of useful
information
Each is formatted so
a human reader can
understand it
But let’s give each
document an
identifier that
works on the Web…
The Web works
with http://
10. Martha Beatrice Webb, 1858-1943, social reformer
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/nra/webbmarthabeatrice1858-1943socialreformer
11. Now we can make the statement:
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/nra/ Martha Beatrice Webb
webbmarthabeatrice1858-1943socialreformer
<creator-of> is the creator of the archive
http://archiveshub.ac.uk/data/gb227msda865.w4 Beatrice Webb: A summer
holiday in Scotland, 1884
…identifiers for the Web (for a machine) …labels for humans
12. http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/ncarules/ George Bernard
shawgeorgebernard1856- Shaw, 1859-
1950irishdramatistcriticandnovelist 1950, playwright
<creator-of> is the creator of the archive
http://archiveshub.ac.uk/data/gb0097sr0293 George Bernard Shaw Diaries
…identifiers for the Web (for a machine) …labels for humans
13. We can start to say things about relationships…
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/nra/webb
marthabeatrice1858-1943socialreformer
<knew>
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/ncarules/sha
wgeorgebernard1856-
1950irishdramatistcriticandnovelist
14. We can start to say things that go beyond what is known within our
own space…
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/nra/webb
marthabeatrice1858-1943socialreformer
<is the same as>
http://viaf.org/viaf/86607236/
15. We can start to find different sources about the same person…
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/ncarules/shawgeorgeb
ernard1856-1950irishdramatistcriticandnovelist
<is the same as>
http://viaf.org/viaf/121884166/
<is the same as>
http://dbpedia.org/page/George_Bernard_Shaw
16. We can put these ideas together…
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/nra/webbma
rthabeatrice1858-1943socialreformer
<knew>
http://dbpedia.org/page/George_Bernard_Shaw
<also known as>
http://data.archiveshub.ac.uk/id/person/ncarules/sha
wgeorgebernard1856-
1950irishdramatistcriticandnovelist
19. Martha Beatrice Webb
Image
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and
historian
Family name: Webb
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan
d
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social reformer, writer, historian, diarist.
Wife, collaborator and assistant of Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to
the radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour Party.
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist. Married to Sidney
Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved in many spheres of political and social activity
including the Labour Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into poverty, development
of socialism, the foundation of the National Health Service and post war welfare state, the London
School of Economics, and the New Statesman.
….read more….
20. Martha Beatrice Webb
Image
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and
historian
Family name: Webb
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan
d
?
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social
reformer, writer, historian, diarist. Wife, collaborator and assistant of
Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to the
radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour
Party.
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist.
Married to Sidney Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved
in many spheres of political and social activity including the Labour
Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into
poverty, development of socialism, the foundation of the National
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28. Martha Beatrice Webb
Image Works
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and Our Partnership
historian My Apprenticeship
Family name: Webb The case for the factory acts
Beatrice Webb’s diaries; edited by Margaret Cole
The Diary
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan
d
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social
reformer, writer, historian, diarist. Wife, collaborator and assistant of
Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to the
radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour
Party.
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist.
Married to Sidney Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved
in many spheres of political and social activity including the Labour
Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into
poverty, development of socialism, the foundation of the National
29. Martha Beatrice Webb
Image Knows
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and
historian
Family name: Webb
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan http://dbpedia.org/page/George_Ber
d
nard_Shaw
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social
reformer, writer, historian, diarist. Wife, collaborator and assistant of
Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to the
radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour
Party.
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist.
Married to Sidney Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved
http://dbpedia.org/page/Sidney_Web
in many spheres of political and social activity including the Labour b,_1st_Baron_Passfield
Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into
poverty, development of socialism, the foundation of the National
30. Persistence?
Martha Beatrice Webb
Image Works
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and Our Partnership
historian My Apprenticeship
Family name: Webb The case for the factory acts
Beatrice Webb’s diaries; edited by Margaret Cole
The Diary
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan
d
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social
reformer, writer, historian, diarist. Wife, collaborator and assistant of
Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to the
radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour
Party.
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist.
Married to Sidney Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved
in many spheres of political and social activity including the Labour
Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into
poverty, development of socialism, the foundation of the National
31. Trust?
Martha Beatrice Webb
Image Works
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and Our Partnership
historian My Apprenticeship
Family name: Webb The case for the factory acts
Beatrice Webb’s diaries; edited by Margaret Cole
The Diary
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan
d
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social
reformer, writer, historian, diarist. Wife, collaborator and assistant of
Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to the Data from: The Archives Hub
radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour
Party. Created by: Hub contributors
Date: 08/05/2012
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist.
Married to Sidney Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved
in many spheres of political and social activity including the Labour
Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into
poverty, development of socialism, the foundation of the National
32. Understanding?
Martha Beatrice Webb
Image Works
Life dates: 1858-1943
Epithet: social reformer and Our Partnership
historian My Apprenticeship
Family name: Webb The case for the factory acts
Beatrice Webb’s diaries; edited by Margaret Cole
The Diary
Place of birth:
Gloucester, England
Place of death:
Liphook, Hampshire, Englan
d
Biographical Notes
from: Beatrice Webb letters
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943). Fabian Socialist, social
reformer, writer, historian, diarist. Wife, collaborator and assistant of
Sidney Webb, later Lord Passfield. Together they contributed to the
radical ideology first of the Liberal Party and later of the Labour
Party.
from: Beatrice Webb, A summer holiday in Scotland, 1884.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943), nee Potter, social reformer and diarist.
Married to Sidney Webb, pioneers of social science. She was involved
in many spheres of political and social activity including the Labour
Party, Fabianism, social observation, investigations into
poverty, development of socialism, the foundation of the National
33. This story was brought to you by…
The story continues at…
http://archiveshub.ac.uk/linkinglives/
Lee Baylis…………………………………Software Developer
Pete Johnston………………………….Metadata Specialist
Adrian Stevenson…………………….Technical Innovations Coordinator
Jane Stevenson…………….............Archivist and Archives Hub Manager
Mimas……………………………………..National Data Centre (mimas.ac.uk)
The University of Manchester….Location
JISC………………………………………….Funder (jisc.ac.uk)
Other parts were played by members of Mimas National Data Centre
34. This presentation is available under creative
commons Non Commercial-Share Alike:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/uk/
Notas del editor
A name what does this represent? You may know who I am referring to – but how can you be sure? Usually need context. But if the context is not given, or if it will vary….?Need to be sure who this is – need more than a name.
This is more like it – unique surely? Identifiable in any context. Dates and a description. May seem obvious, but even when creating standard archival description the importance of a unique name entry is not always thought about
OK, so we want to talk about this person in the context of archives. As a creator of archives. This is a nice clear human-readable statement.
On the Archives Hub are a number of descriptions of collections where Beatrice Webb is the creator. Descriptions are documents – the Web has largely been about the idea of documents – accessing documents and linking thorugh to other documents through hypertext links. This has led us to think in terms of an archive description being a document – being presented as a whole, just as it would be pre-internet when it was printed out and available in the search room.
The documents are designed to be easily readable by humans. But they are on the Web. We need to identify them in this context. The web identifies things by using the http URI identifiers.
So here are all the identifiers for each of these collections, making them identifiable on the Web. They can be bookmarked, linked to, cited, and they are searchable via Google.
So, the identifier is an integral part of the description. This identifier follows good practice – uses a clear, short URI that will be unique (should be unique!) because it includes the archive collection reference and the repository code and countrycode.
Back to our name, which is included a number of times within the document.
Thinking along the same lines as for the description itself, we need to identify the person in a web context – so she needs a URI as well.
it starts to get interesting – providing URIs enables statements to be made in a machine-readable way. Here we have not included the URIs for the properties (that’s another story) but the principle is clear: there is a human readable version of the statement and a machine-readable version.
Statements can be made based on this principle across all the data.
So we get to the heart of the matter – it is all about connections, relationships and context. In isolation the identifier for a person is not useful, but we can start to refer to relationships with other people.
When you talk about linked data, the real power lies in going outside of your own world – if other things have URIs then you can link to them.
Researchers want to bring information together, so that’s what we should strive to do. We should strive to break down barriers between data sources. Documents tend to maintain barriers, or at least provide only narrow gates between them. A hyperlink from one document to another to another….
These connections can be built up, we can start to link data sources in so many ways.
Linking Lives aims to take this linked data and see what can be done with it in terms of an end user interface.
Here is some core information – the top left box taken from the Archives Hub data. The second box below taken from other data. The image is from Wikipedia – drawn into our interface because we have made a link to it (from the Hub to Viaf to DBPedia).
A sub-plot in all this linking and breaking out of the document-centric view of the world is this attempt to bring the biographical histories from all these Beatrice Webb collections together. Does this work? Will it be useful for researchers?
Our idea is that we can continue to explore data sources – linked data allows us to do this – we can bring other data into our interface.
This project has required looking at different datasets and gathering information about what they offer. We have created a wiki to document this.
We’ve looked at various sources. They don’t all provide the data that you might imagine from looking at the end user interface. It is a learning process to figure out what they do provide and how best to link to them.
VIAF is a key hub for us – our main link is to VIAF through those ‘same as’ links.
Wikipedia (DBPedia) is probably the most popular linked data hub and we’ve drawn data from here – the image in particular.
The RDF view is the view that shows the properties and values that the data provides.
New datasets are being added to the linked data space all the time, and this means the opportunities grow.
Here we’ve added a list of works authored by Beatrice Webb, taken from one of our external data sources.
Relationships are key. This is where the end user can start to go on their own journey.
Unstable URIs are a big risk. External data brings external dependencies.
Incorrect data is a risk. Provenance information can help. Does the end user need to trust the provider of the interface? Does the provider have responsibility for the accuracy of the data?
Will the end user understand what they are looking at? How can we evaluate the impact of a new interface like this?