Page 163 - Building Digital Libraries

CHAPTER 6

<relators:pma rdf:about=“http://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/relators/pma”>Permitting Agency</
relators:pma>
</dc:contributor>
<dc:type>text</dc:type>
<dc:publisher>Washington : Blair and Rives, Printers,</dc:publisher>
<dc:date>1845.</dc:date>
<dc:language>eng</dc:language>
<dc:description>The Astronomical and Meteorological observations of the 1842 expedition,
which form p. 585–693 of the Senate edition (Senate ex. doc. 174) are not included in this.</
dc:description>
<dc:subject rdf:about=“http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85038366”>
Discoveries in geography
</dc:subject>
<dc:subject rdf:about=“http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85097123”>
Paleontology
</dc:subject>
<dc:subject rdf:about=“http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85015976”>
Botany
</dc:subject>
<dcterms:spatial rdf:about=“http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79021953”>
Oregon
</dcterms:spatial>
</rdf:Description>
</rdf:RDF>

Utilizing semantic concepts, we can begin to construct smarter data that
begins to support the self-description of the data. In this case, we utilize URIs
to embed actionable data into our metadata. This shifts our metadata from
a collection of strings to a collection of strings paired with their objects, and
these objects provide information that can be acted upon to not only keep data
fresh and valid, but to build additional relationships to additional vocabularies
and concepts. By utilizing semantic data principles in our own metadata and
in the systems that we build, we enable the data to be meaningful beyond
our repositories, ultimately supporting better discovery for our users.

Schema.org
With the ability to embed semantic metadata directly into one’s metadata
and create deep links between systems online, libraries can immediately
begin to take advantage of a lightweight method of embedding existing
data into a semantic format that web browsers currently understand and are
using in building their own linked knowledge bases: schema.org. Schema
20
.org is a structured markup language that was developed by large search
engine providers to replace the traditional meta-tagging syntax with more
structured data. Within the format, schemas are used to define different
types of things, like people, places, events, and so on. Within these schemas,
there have been extensions like the bibliographic extension, which improve
on the core schema entry. The bib extension, for example, extends the core
books schema. The format allows organizations to utilize this “micro lan-
guage” to better describe the content on their websites, and to allow search
engines like Google to provide “cards” about specific topics. For example,
when you search for a public library, it might return information about
specific hours or related library branches.
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