This four-slide overview focuses on the content and proposed activity of the FactMiners, PRImA, and eMOP project proposal submitted to the current round of the Knight Prototype Fund. This project takes the first step of our larger research agenda by focusing on the (Part 4) “Crowdsourcing Ground Truth” component of our recent unfunded Knight News Challenge entry. In our Prototype Fund entry we envision doing this collaborative project as a two-session, two-location Open Source Hackathon where we will create a custom version of the Zooniverse crowdsourcing Citizen Science platform. Our goal is to develop a Ground Truth production and storage system to be offered by the Virtual Lab of the Internet Archive as we strive to "Turn Text Soup into Smart Data."

1. A Closer Look at
“Step 1. Crowdsourcing Ground-Truth”
FactMiners, PRImA, & eMOP’s
Knight Prototype Fund Entry
Turn Text Soup into Smart Data in
Newspaper & Magazine Archives”
Our Prototype Fund project is the strategic 1st step of
FactMiners & PRImA’s recent Knight News Challenge
entry… done via trans-oceanic Hackathons! And with a
little help from our eMOP friends. :-)

2. What is the difference between this Prototype Fund
project and the R&D agenda proposed in our recent
Knight News Challenge entry?
, PRImA, eMOP Prototype Fund entry : Step 1. Crowdsourcing Ground-Truth Knight News Challenge – “Turning Text Soup into Smart
Data in Newspaper & Magazine Archives”
• Focused on “Crowdsourcing Ground-
Truth” (Part 4) as valuable contribution to the
Internet Archive’s research collections while
also being a Proof-Of-Concept for our
larger research agenda
• We’ve expanded our research
collaborators to include Texas A&M’s
eMOP (Early Modern OCR Project)
• We’ll create the work product of the
Prototype project via a two-session,
two-location Ground-Truth Hackathon.
Welcome to the
TOC Pattern Reference Library
Please @KnightFdn folk, if we’re
ever to open the public school for
my kids at the Internet Archive,
my friends need your help.

3. How will we do a 6-month, 2-event
Ground-Truth Hackathon?
• Phase 1: Project/Event Training/Planning
• FactMiners’ Jim & Timlynn attend Prototype Fund training
• Fork Zooniverse on GitHub & Event/project planning
• CFP (Call for Participation) for Ground-Truth Hackathon
• Phase 2: Salford Hackathon & “Homework”
• 2-3 day event in UK w/ webcast participation for others
• 8 weeks “homework” design/development before…
• Phase 3: Texas A&M Hackathon & Demo
• 2-3 day event in USA w/ webcast, etc.
• 8 weeks polish, then demo prep
• Attendance at Demo Day by all Core Team members
, PRImA, eMOP Prototype Fund entry : Step 1. Crowdsourcing Ground-Truth Knight News Challenge – “Turning Text Soup into Smart
Data in Newspaper & Magazine Archives”
Month 0
Month 2
Month 4
Month 6
Ground-Truth
Hackathon
Call for Participation

4. A Research Journey begins with the
determination to take the 1st step…
• As Iowa-based Citizen Scientists, Jim & Timlynn are
determined to work with our world-class collaborators at
PRImA & eMOP to turn Text Soup into Smart Data.
• A Prototype Fund award will “start the R&D ball rolling”
• On behalf of our Core Team
• Jim Salmons, FactMiners
• Timlynn Babitsky, FactMiners
• Apostolos Antonacopoulos, PRImA
• Christian Clausner, PRImA
• Laura Mandell, eMOP (Texas A&M IDHMC)
• Jude Coelho, Internet Archive
, PRImA, eMOP Prototype Fund entry : Step 1. Crowdsourcing Ground-Truth Knight News Challenge – “Turning Text Soup into Smart
Data in Newspaper & Magazine Archives”
You don’t need to be Sherlock Holmes to
see these folks really want to work on
AMAZING stuff together!