This document summarizes a talk given by Dr. Robert Sanderson on his career path and lessons learned. It discusses his background starting in history and classics and transitioning into information science. A key lesson is the importance of collaboration, as Dr. Sanderson found that collaborative projects across institutions led to increased citations and community involvement. The talk promotes connecting information across domains to build consistent data models and computational tools to assist research.

1. @azaroth42
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@getty.edu
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@getty.edu
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The Digital Reinvention of a Medievalist
Dr. Robert Sanderson
Semantic Architect
J Paul Getty Trust
Bates College, Lewiston ME, March 11th 2019

2. @azaroth42
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So …
What is This Talk Anyway?

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@getty.edu
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This Talk is Not a Motivational Poster
Full Content
https://despair.com/
products/education

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This Talk is Not a Resumé

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@getty.edu
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@getty.edu
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This Talk is Not Meandering Theorizing
https://www.valindakimmel.com/five-simple-tips-engaging-middle-grade-students/bored-students/

6. @azaroth42
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@getty.edu
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@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Relevant Lessons Learned
Three Connected Themes:
• Research and the Academy
• Importance of Collaboration
• Humanities Research in a Connected, Digital World
Academy: Education and research institutions
Academia: The culture and community in which
education and research take place

7. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Timeline
Start B.A. (hons) University of Canterbury, NZ – History, Classics, French, Philosophy
Start Ph.D. University of Liverpool, UK – History, French (+ Information Science)
Finish Ph.D. University of Liverpool, UK (hahaha, yeah, right)
Finish Ph.D. University of Liverpool, UK
Lecturer, Department of Computer Science, University of Liverpool, UK
Research Scientist, Los Alamos National Laboratory, NM, USA
Information Standards Advocate, Stanford University Libraries, CA, USA
Enterprise Architect, J. Paul Getty Trust, CA, USA
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Software Developer, Special Collections and Archives, University of Liverpool

8. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
IIIF: Interoperabilituy
Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Research and the Academy
I left the academy to pursue my
passions: research and teaching
Tweet that I cannot find again, but resonated with me!
“ ”
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9. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Alt-Ac … Research Outside the Academy
Citations Per Year
https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=qt2ytIgAAAAJ&view_op=list_works

10. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Topics … Not a Word Cloud
Medieval History and Literature
… with a technical bent
Information Science
Search, Data Mining, Text Mining
Scholarly Communication
Annotations, Citations/Impact, Reference Rot
Web Architecture and Semantic Web
Technical Standards, Web Archives
Digital Cultural Heritage
Library, Archive, Museum digital standards
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11. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
How??

12. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
How … as a Student
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Engage with your subject,
and your professors
Learn to think critically,
write convincingly,
communicate effectively
Just Do It ™

13. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
How … as a Early Career Researcher
Be Adventurous!
Learn new skills, apply them broadly
Have strong opinions,
invite others to challenge them,
re-evaluate critically and constantly
Put yourself forward,
contribute generously
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14. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
How … as a Mid Career Researcher
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Collaborate!

15. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
No Collaboration
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(2 citations in 16 years)
*

16. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
No Collaboration
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*

17. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Led to Project Collaboration
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*

18. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Cross-Project Collaboration
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
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@getty.edu
@azaroth42
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/iiif-discuss
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2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Led to Community Collaboration

20. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Community Collaboration
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21. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Side Note: Collaboration & Research Impact
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22. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
So Is This “Digital Humanities”?

23. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
IIIF: Interoperabilituy
Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
So Is This “Digital Humanities”?

24. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
IIIF: Interoperabilituy
Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Digital … Data-Driven Humanities?
https://deepdreamgenerator.com/#gallery

25. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
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Strong Opinions,
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rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Conclusion: The 4 ‘C’s
In
Collaborative
teams across domains and institutions, we can build
Connected
open data and systems, that provide
Consistent
models and access to information, enabling
Computational
tools to assist with research, and engage the public

26. @azaroth42
rsanderson
@getty.edu
IIIF: Interoperabilituy
Strong Opinions,
Weakly Held
rsanderson
@getty.edu
@azaroth42
Thank You!
Dr. Robert Sanderson
rsanderson@getty.edu
@azaroth42