The document discusses the need to reform archaeological publication practices. It notes that new forms of publication are needed to address information overload, and that new models are required to overcome this issue. It also discusses issues around ethics, commodification, and the politics of sustainability as they relate to archaeological publication. The document advocates for more open access to information to address these challenges.

1. in Archaeologyin Archaeology
Eric C. Kansa
UC Berkeley / OpenContext.org
Unless otherwise indicated, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution
3.0 License <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/>

2. 2003 Berlin Open Access Declaration2003 Berlin Open Access Declaration

3. Key Distinctions:
●
“Free as in Beer”
(gratis, cost-free)
●
“Free as in Speech”
(libre, freedom of
expression)
Key Distinctions:
●
“Free as in Beer”
(gratis, cost-free)
●
“Free as in Speech”
(libre, freedom of
expression)
Image credit: Joebeone via Flickr (CC-BY) <
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joebeone/353021060 >
Image credit: Joebeone via Flickr (CC-BY) <
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joebeone/353021060 >

4. New ModelNew Model

5. Two important drivers:
●
Distributing & copying (digital)
content is now almost free
●
Creating quality information
remains expensive
Two important drivers:
●
Distributing & copying (digital)
content is now almost free
●
Creating quality information
remains expensive

8. …but no money for open access, nor
open data (more problematic)
…but no money for open access, nor
open data (more problematic)

9. IntroductionIntroduction
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”

10. IntroductionIntroduction
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”

11. “Gold Standard” of
professional contribution
“Gold Standard” of
professional contribution

12. Symbolic Capital
●
Attracts Nobel prize winning
authors
●
Harold Varmus (Nobel prize
winner, former NIH director)
helped found
●
No analog in archaeology
Symbolic Capital
●
Attracts Nobel prize winning
authors
●
Harold Varmus (Nobel prize
winner, former NIH director)
helped found
●
No analog in archaeology

13. Dysfunctional incentives (and
poorly constructed metrics),
limit scope, diversity of
publications
Dysfunctional incentives (and
poorly constructed metrics),
limit scope, diversity of
publications

14. My Precious DataMy Precious Data
Image Credit: “Lord of the Rings” (2003, New
Line), All Rights Reserved Copyright

15. Data Sharing as Publication
• Started in 2007
• Open data (mainly CC-By)
• Archiving by California
Digital Library
• Part of a broader reform
movement in scholarly
communications
Data Sharing as Publication
• Started in 2007
• Open data (mainly CC-By)
• Archiving by California
Digital Library
• Part of a broader reform
movement in scholarly
communications

19. EOL Computable Data
Challenge
●
12 different sites
●
34 zooarchaeologists
●
Decoding, cleanup, metadata
documentation
●
Linked Data annotation (EOL,
UBERON, biometrics)
●
Collaborative analysis (as very
rigorous peer-review)
EOL Computable Data
Challenge
●
12 different sites
●
34 zooarchaeologists
●
Decoding, cleanup, metadata
documentation
●
Linked Data annotation (EOL,
UBERON, biometrics)
●
Collaborative analysis (as very
rigorous peer-review)

20. Data Publishing

21. ●
Referenced by US National
Science Foundation and
National Endowment for the
Humanities for Data
Management
●
New White House “open
data” policies
●
Referenced by US National
Science Foundation and
National Endowment for the
Humanities for Data
Management
●
New White House “open
data” policies

23. “The Shelby White and Leon Levy
Program (WLP) for Archaeological
Publications recognizes that publication
may take many forms and follow
different models. Digital data plays an
increasingly important role in scholarship
and the WLP encourages applicants to
consider innovative modes of digital
dissemination as a primary or
secondary outcome of publication
projects.”
“The Shelby White and Leon Levy
Program (WLP) for Archaeological
Publications recognizes that publication
may take many forms and follow
different models. Digital data plays an
increasingly important role in scholarship
and the WLP encourages applicants to
consider innovative modes of digital
dissemination as a primary or
secondary outcome of publication
projects.”

24. IntroductionIntroduction
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”

25. Image credit: Pop-Tech via Flickr (CC-BY)
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/poptech2006/2968666297>
Image credit: Pop-Tech via Flickr (CC-BY)
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/poptech2006/2968666297>
Clay Shirky: “It's Not
Information
Overload. It's Filter
Failure.”
Clay Shirky: “It's Not
Information
Overload. It's Filter
Failure.”

26. Data source: Arif Jinha (2010). Article 50 million: an estimate of the number of scholarly
articles in existence Learned Publishing, 23 (3), 258-263 DOI: 10.1087/20100308.
Image Source: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~comar/open-science/
Data source: Arif Jinha (2010). Article 50 million: an estimate of the number of scholarly
articles in existence Learned Publishing, 23 (3), 258-263 DOI: 10.1087/20100308.
Image Source: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~comar/open-science/

27. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain)
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Archives_entreprises.jpg

28. What’s relevant to
my needs, where I
can find it?
What’s relevant to
my needs, where I
can find it?

29. Text-mining increasingly
needed
●
Metadata extraction (search,
discovery, visualization)
●
Summarization (“compression”)
●
Analysis (“text as primary data”)
Text-mining increasingly
needed
●
Metadata extraction (search,
discovery, visualization)
●
Summarization (“compression”)
●
Analysis (“text as primary data”)

30. Turning Texts to DataTurning Texts to Data

32. Turning Texts to DataTurning Texts to Data
2010 (renewed 2012) Google Digital Humanities Awards: with
Elton Barker, Leif Isaksen, Kate Byrne, Nick Rabinowitz
2010 (renewed 2012) Google Digital Humanities Awards: with
Elton Barker, Leif Isaksen, Kate Byrne, Nick Rabinowitz
Text-mining literature to identify
references to ancient places
Text-mining literature to identify
references to ancient places

33. Project limited to public domain
(pre-1920) resources
Project limited to public domain
(pre-1920) resources

35. Copyright & “terms
of service” imposed
by publishers prohibit
or complicate
text-mining
Copyright & “terms
of service” imposed
by publishers prohibit
or complicate
text-mining
Blocking Text-MiningBlocking Text-Mining
©

36. IntroductionIntroduction
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”

37. Who Owns the Past?Who Owns the Past?

38. Image Credit: Copyright Carabinieri T.P.C. Italia

39. Who Owns the Past?
(Published archaeological record)
Who Owns the Past?
(Published archaeological record)

41. Expanding scope
of copyright:
“The best laws
money can buy”
– P Samuelson
Expanding scope
of copyright:
“The best laws
money can buy”
– P Samuelson ©

42. Expanding scope
of copyright:
“The best laws
money can buy”
– P Samuelson
Expanding scope
of copyright:
“The best laws
money can buy”
– P Samuelson ©
Number of Works under
US Copyright that
entered the
Public Domain in 2012:
Zero

43. Expanding scope
of copyright:
“The best laws
money can buy”
– P Samuelson
Expanding scope
of copyright:
“The best laws
money can buy”
– P Samuelson ©
Potential personal
copyright liability for 1
year of routine
instructional & research
activities:
$4.5 billion
Source: Infringement Nation: Copyright Reform and the
Law/Norm Gap
by John Tehranian.
Utah Law Review, Volume 2007, Number 6 - 3 2007
Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1029151

44. Image Credits: WikiMedia Commons

45. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons (CC-By-SA)
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Three_Surveillance_cameras.jp
g

46. WikipediaWikipedia

47. Aaron Swartz at an Anti-SOPA rally
(Wikimedia Commons)
Aaron Swartz at an Anti-SOPA rally
(Wikimedia Commons)

48. Who Owns the Past?
(Published archaeological record)

49. Who Owns the Past?
(Published archaeological record)
Who Owns the Past?
(Published archaeological record)

50. Source: The Occasional Pamphlet - Harvard University
(http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/pamphlet/2013/01/29/why-open-access-is-better-for-scholarly-societies/)
Source: The Occasional Pamphlet - Harvard University
(http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/pamphlet/2013/01/29/why-open-access-is-better-for-scholarly-societies/)

51. Source: The Occasional Pamphlet - Harvard University
(http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/pamphlet/2013/01/29/why-open-access-is-better-for-scholarly-societies/)
Source: The Occasional Pamphlet - Harvard University
(http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/pamphlet/2013/01/29/why-open-access-is-better-for-scholarly-societies/)

52. What are the costs of perpetual,
absolute, and commodified intellectual
property?
Is this too close to looting?
What are the costs of perpetual,
absolute, and commodified intellectual
property?
Is this too close to looting?

53. What are the costs of perpetual,
absolute, and commodified intellectual
property?
Is this too close to looting?
What are the costs of perpetual,
absolute, and commodified intellectual
property?
Is this too close to looting?

54. IntroductionIntroduction
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”
We need to reform
archaeological publication
●
Need new forms of publication
(more information)
●
New models needed to overcome
“information overload”
●
Ethics and commodification
●
Politics of “sustainability”

55. Heather Morrison
notes enough money
in academic libraries
to sustain Open
Access.
Political question: how
to redirect funding?
Heather Morrison
notes enough money
in academic libraries
to sustain Open
Access.
Political question: how
to redirect funding?
Economics of scholarly communication in
transition
by Heather Morrison.
First Monday, Volume 18, Number 6 - 3
June 2013 doi:10.5210/fm.v18i6.1062

56. Europeana raises hard sustainability
questions for Open Access.
Europeana raises hard sustainability
questions for Open Access.

57. Sustainability ConcernsSustainability Concerns

58. Sustainability ConcernsSustainability Concerns
Negative Externalities:
Legal risks, costs are
someone else’s
problem
Negative Externalities:
Legal risks, costs are
someone else’s
problem

59. Sustainability at what cost?Sustainability at what cost?

60. versus

62. Pay-walls
perpetuate an
ideology of
commodification?
Pay-walls
perpetuate an
ideology of
commodification?

63. Sustainability at what cost?
●
Big problem for professional
societies!
●
Harsh legal risks of pay-walls +
strong IP ($3 million Georgia
State case, Swartz affair)
●
Sustainability strategies harm
stakeholders (professionals
outside universities, libraries,
funders)
Sustainability at what cost?
●
Big problem for professional
societies!
●
Harsh legal risks of pay-walls +
strong IP ($3 million Georgia
State case, Swartz affair)
●
Sustainability strategies harm
stakeholders (professionals
outside universities, libraries,
funders)

64. Contingent EmploymentContingent Employment
Source: Washington Monthly (
http://ecleader.org/2012/02/21/nation-wide-trend-towards-adjuncts-threatens-higher-ed/)
Source: Washington Monthly (
http://ecleader.org/2012/02/21/nation-wide-trend-towards-adjuncts-threatens-higher-ed/)

65. Contingent EmploymentContingent Employment
Lack of consistent (legal) access:
(1)Loss of expertise in discipline (brain-drain)
(2)Harms teaching
Lack of consistent (legal) access:
(1)Loss of expertise in discipline (brain-drain)
(2)Harms teaching
Source: Washington Monthly
http://ecleader.org/2012/02/21/nation-wide-
Source: Washington Monthly
http://ecleader.org/2012/02/21/nation-wide-

66. Sustainability ConcernsSustainability Concerns
“Clear Cutting”: No
Sustainability
“Clear Cutting”: No
Sustainability

67. Image Credit: “Crustmania” via Flickr (CC-By)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/crustmania/233523196/

68. Thankfully, universities pass those
salary savings on to students.
Right?
Thankfully, universities pass those
salary savings on to students.
Right?

69. Wrong.Wrong.

70. Image Credit: “Brainchildvn” via Flickr (CC-By)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brainchildvn/3957949195

72. Source: Washington Monthly
<http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/blog/college_pricing_one_big_red_li.php>
Source: Washington Monthly
<http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/blog/college_pricing_one_big_red_li.php>

73. “Sustainability” strategies
that fail to address
underlying problems work
like this:
“Sustainability” strategies
that fail to address
underlying problems work
like this:

74. Sustainability ConcernsSustainability Concerns
Monoculture: Short-
term cost-effective, but
not resilient
Monoculture: Short-
term cost-effective, but
not resilient

75. Who Will Own the Past?Who Will Own the Past?

76. Who Will Own the Past?Who Will Own the Past?

77. Who Will Own the Past:Who Will Own the Past:

78. Who Will Own the Past’s Metrics:Who Will Own the Past’s Metrics:

79. Who Will Own the Past?Who Will Own the Past?
Monoculture of over-
centralization
●
While cost-free (“free
as in beer”), not libre
(“free as in speech”).
Not legal to copy into
other repositories
●
Lock-in and risks of
favoritism
Monoculture of over-
centralization
●
While cost-free (“free
as in beer”), not libre
(“free as in speech”).
Not legal to copy into
other repositories
●
Lock-in and risks of
favoritism

80. Who Will Own the Past?Who Will Own the Past?
Governance questions with more
open repositories?
Governance questions with more
open repositories?

81. Sustainability ConcernsSustainability Concerns
Diverse Ecosystem:
Expensive but more
resilient
Diverse Ecosystem:
Expensive but more
resilient

82. Thousand FlowersThousand Flowers
Sustainability of particular interests should
not be an end to itself.
Sustainability of particular interests should
not be an end to itself.

83. Thousand FlowersThousand Flowers
Should we emphasize “sustainability” (for a few)
or “resilience” (for a community)?
Should we emphasize “sustainability” (for a few)
or “resilience” (for a community)?

84. Thousand FlowersThousand Flowers
Can Libre (“free as in speech”) promote
resilient knowledge stewardship without
lock-in to particular set of institutions or
practices?
…we need to think of sustainability in
larger terms (not just a matter of clever
business models!)
Can Libre (“free as in speech”) promote
resilient knowledge stewardship without
lock-in to particular set of institutions or
practices?
…we need to think of sustainability in
larger terms (not just a matter of clever
business models!)

85. Final ThoughtsFinal Thoughts
Open Access (and open
data) are key challenges
for 21st century
archaeology
●
Legal and institutional
changes need to be faced
●
Sustainability as much
political and ideological as a
financial issue
Open Access (and open
data) are key challenges
for 21st century
archaeology
●
Legal and institutional
changes need to be faced
●
Sustainability as much
political and ideological as a
financial issue

86. Thank you!Thank you!
Special Thanks!
Mappa Project, University of Pisa, and
the conference sponsors