Code the Collection

The Centre for Digital Scholarship (Bodleian Libraries) is hosting a two-day open cultural data hackathon. Join us for the opportunity to build and develop your own digital projects and unlock hidden stories in the collections. This could be through digital forms such as mapping, games, interactive exhibitions or data visualisations. Take part and experiment with datasets provided by University of Oxford’s libraries and museums and the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation) from Berlin. This free event is open to all University of Oxford staff, students and researchers.  

What is a hackathon? 

A hackathon is an event where people from a variety of backgrounds come together to build digital projects. The format of hackathons can vary, and some can last several days. For this hackathon, we have allocated two days, and we are inviting participants to create digital projects from open cultural data. By collaborating in groups, each participant brings a unique perspective to the development of their project. It invites people with different technical abilities and collection content knowledge to work together. Whilst they are time-bound events, it does also provide an opportunity for digital projects to develop and grow after creation.   

The hackathon in the Berlin State Library: culture.explore(data) 

In collaboration with the Stabi Lab, we hosted a 1.5 day hackathon in the Berlin State Library titled culture.explore(data). This brought together 30 participants to explore and experiment with datasets provided by the Stabi Lab and the Centre for Digital Scholarship. Participants created a range of digital projects and proofs of concepts, here are some example projects: 

• Newspaper Explorer: This team developed a toolkit for exploring large newspaper datasets. 
• Uncertainties in the Archives: This team created a quiz to explore uncertainties and ambiguities in geographical data.  
• Menu-Music-Mix: This project created an immersive, interactive digital archive that explores cultural life in Berlin between 1900-1914. 

Datasets 

Some of the datasets can be found here. This includes type, format and size. Dataset information will be sent to participants in advance of the hackathon. 

You can also find a detailed FAQ within this page. 

Who is this for and what experience is needed? 

This event is aimed at students, staff and researchers within the university, especially those who would like to explore accessing and experimenting with open cultural heritage datasets. It’s an opportunity to get started and experiment with coding and digital scholarship skills. We welcome all levels of experience and support will be provided throughout the two days. 

What do you need? 

• An interest in working and experimenting with open cultural data. 
• Laptop ideally with Eduroam access, though Weston Library wifi is available. 
• Optional software which will be provided in a toolkit. 

About the project: Exploring collections as data: a cross-cultural GLAM labs approach 

This project aims to advance the publication of collections as data and the development of data services by investigating how and why diverse user groups use cultural heritage data. As digital technologies and research methodologies become more diversified, demand for collections to be made accessible for computational use continues to grow. The rise of artificial intelligence has further intensified interest in large-scale datasets, while the historical nature of cultural heritage data presents challenges in providing access to sensitive or contested materials. By collecting use cases from a broad spectrum of users in Oxford and Berlin, this project will evaluate needs and requirements to inform user-centred curation and dataset publication practices. Working across the Stabi Lab (Berlin State Library) and the Centre for Digital Scholarship (Bodleian Libraries), it aims to develop best practices for making cultural heritage data more accessible and responsive to user needs.