Crowd-fuelled archaeology and history online: An introduction to MicroPasts

Crowd-fuelled archaeology and history An introduction to MicroPasts

Chiara Bonacchi Adi Keinan-Schoonbaert UCL Institute of Archaeology MicroPasts Conference 31 March 2015 Royal Geographical Society

Old problems becoming more pressing…

•  Sustainability •  Diversification of funding •  Generalised trends across EU

–  Reduced employed workforce –  Reduced public funding –  Greater reliance on grant-financing

+£25 mil in income from 2009 to 2010

+18% funding applied for in ‘13-14 from ‘12-13

-30% employed workforce in ‘12-13 than ‘07-08

Chiara Bonacchi

New trajectories?

•  Web technologies •  Collaborations •  New ‘ecology’?

Chiara Bonacchi Chiara Bonacchi

In archaeology

•  ‘Light’ methodologies •  Open data/practices •  Big data? •  Public Archaeology

Chiara Bonacchi

MicroPasts

•  Establishing and studying collaborations between institutions and members of the public to: –  Crowd-sourcing open datasets (e.g. CC0, CC-BY) –  Co-designing new research into archaeology, history and

heritage (sometimes involving crowd-sourcing) –  Crowd-funding those new collaborative projects

Chiara Bonacchi

Crowdsourced.micropasts.org

•  Crowdsourced.micropasts.org •  Launched 16 April 2014 •  Different and modular kinds of applications •  Research-orientated / pop-up

Chiara Bonacchi

•  Community.micropasts.org •  Launched 16 April 2014

Chiara Bonacchi

crowdfunded.micropasts.org

•  Crowdfunded.micropasts.org •  Launched 16 October 2014 •  Community archaeology and history

Chiara Bonacchi

Phases

Show the members and the tasks – with par6cipants, par6cipa6on and outreach

Dates

New

mem

bers

05

1015

2025

3035

16 April 2014 18 August 2014

New active members 04/14-03/15

Task runs submitted 04/14-03/15

Online publicity Targeted comms

Contributory

Mainly CS platfrom

Mainly BM UCL

1

+ National press

Contributory Collaborative Co-creative

Hosted

CS platform Forum

CF platform

Mainly BM UCL Community

groups Dialogue for new

collaborations

2

/

Contributory Collaborative Co-creative

Hosted

CS platform Forum

CF platform

BM UCL & new

institutions/research groups

3

Chiara Bonacchi

Citizen archaeologists

•  931 registered & +670 anon. •  N=53 contributors of 25 tasks

–  68% women vs. 46% visiting micropasts.org

–  University degree / above (+80%) –  In employment / retired –  Skill sets

IT

communication

editing archaeology

history

photography

arts

curatorship

3D modelling

management business

Chiara Bonacchi

Participation

•  3 groups (kind & intensity) –  Fleetingly involved –  Lighter participation sustained

through time –  Intense participation sustained

through time

110

100

1000

10000

Min 1sr Qu. Median 3rd Qu. Max

1 2 4.5 16 1,0070

Chiara Bonacchi

Motivations of +25 tasks contributors

•  Learning / training opportunity for collaborators

•  Learning opportunity for their family / friends

•  Relaxation / gaming / flow experience

•  Aesthetic pleasure

•  Helping out / giving back •  Making valuable use of own

knowledge / skills •  Maintaining a connection with own

area of studies •  Advance scientific knowledge •  Competition

•  Archaeology •  History •  Specific collections •  Specific periods •  Museum and HE institutions •  IT /web-based methods /crowd-

sourcing •  Photography

Chiara Bonacchi

Crowd-funding

•  TDP over £2,000 •  Small amounts •  Not from a crowd •  Hybrid model •  Not from citizen

archaeologists •  Motivations

Motivations

Research agenda

Participating in the proposed research Family history/genealogy Interest in hearing the results*

Interest in a specific historical period/context/topic**

Engaging with research process Engaging with research outputs

Place-making agenda

Living locally/improving local area Connection with/interest in a

specific place/its history

Sense of place

Social agenda

Supporting friend(s)

Belonging to/supporting the community group

Support to personal network

Documenting/preserving/opening up heritage Supporting a worthwhile initiative

Benefiting society

Chiara Bonacchi

Value

•  Skill building / career development

•  Acquisition of new knowledge

•  Discovery of new interests •  Personal sense of

achievement •  Change of attitudes /

behaviour (competition) •  Enjoyment •  [only 2 / 55 state not to

have gained anything in particular

•  47 applications completed •  Over 46,000 task runs •  Over 2/3 of NBAI

transcribed •  66 models •  Open source platforms •  New research proposals

with potential new posts •  Knowledge useful for policy

and practice

Chiara Bonacchi

Data Consolidation

Adi Keinan-‐Schoonbaert

Photo-masking Data


Photo-masking Apps


Collaboration Workflow for 3D Models


Data Centre


Sketchfab


Quality Control

✓

✗ Adi Keinan-‐Schoonbaert

Quality Control


Data Accessibility

Crowdsourcing platform

Amazon S3

Flickr Adi Keinan-‐Schoonbaert

Data Uses


Community-led Sustainability


Thank you!

@Chiara_Bonacchi [email protected]

@Adi_Keinan [email protected]

Crowd-fuelled archaeology and history online: An introduction to MicroPasts

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