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CSMC
CSMCCentre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures

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Data Linking Infrastructure

Foundations and Architecture

2019–2025

RFF01

The Data Linking research field has developed an innovative infrastructure to support humanities scholars across all research areas of the Cluster of Excellence Understanding Written Artefacts (UWA). The core research question addressed how diverse types of research data, from textual, visual, and spatial data to materials-science and spectral analyses, can be systematically connected, enabling new forms of interdisciplinary research questions. The datasets considered originate from UWA and affiliated projects on written artefacts and include digitised images and videos, textual transcriptions (including OCR-derived texts), analytical measurements (e.g., FTIR), as well as descriptive temporal and spatial research data. The overarching goal has been to build a robust interoperable data linking infrastructure that supports the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles and fosters new research perspectives through linking heterogeneous datasets. To achieve this, the Data Linking field has implemented methods for data harmonisation, automated ingestion, and federated access across project-specific information systems. The resulting infrastructure enables integrated searches and Large Language Models (LLMs)-assisted analyses through the Humanities-Aligned Chatbot (ChatHA), which provides natural-language interfaces for querying research data and related publications. These developments support interoperability and reuse of data in accordance with the FAIR principles and promote cross-domain collaboration between the humanities, social and computational sciences. By combining robust data management, semantic linking, and LLMs-based tools, the research field significantly contributes to the Cluster’s goal of establishing a sustainable, interoperable digital research environment for the study of written artefacts.

People

Project lead: Ralf Möller

Research Associates: Thomas Asselborn, Marcel Gehrke, Florian Marwitz, Silvia Melzer, Simon Schiff