Dublin Core

DUBLIN CORE ASSIGNMENT

Element #1

1.Coverage

2. It seems that Dublin Core recommends that this attribute be used to connect the object of the record with a place or time (or range of either). The spatial or temporal period should be relevant to the overarching themes of the record, and does not need to be expressed in numbers (for example, one could use a time period like “classical era” for music). In my opinion, Dublin Core means for this attribute to be used to define larger themes or areas that encompass what is being cataloged, and to provide more flexibility than a date or location field. For example, if one was cataloging a cat, coverage could be used to define the life span of the animal, rather than the birth date or adoption date. Similarly, if one was cataloging an artifact found at a dig, coverage could be used to identify the country of origin, rather than where it is sitting currently (though the element could be used in that manner). In short, I think that coverage is meant to provide broader context to the object.

3. Coverage could be used in two ways to describe an event. It could be used to describe the total time period of the event, from start to finish, including any aftermath. This should not to be used as a creation date; rather, it should describe the overall time period of the event. Coverage could also be used to describe the location of the event pinpointing the exact location of an event if there is one (either by name or by coordinates), or by defining a geographic area (such as Asia, or San Francisco). Another use of coverage could be to use it to define the scope of the event. For example, in a natural disaster, coverage could be used to describe the area affected (by defining a “blast radius” or other delimitation).

4. I would recommend that coverage be included in this metadata assignment. It encompasses extremely important information that, in the case of the geographic coverage, does not have another home in any of the other metadata elements. The type of information stored in coverage is information that a patron my search by, or use to hone down a results list.

5. I propose that coverage be used to describe the location of the disasters being cataloged. To keep the vocabulary consistent, Dublin Core recommends using a controlled vocabulary from which location terms can be drawn. I suggest that we use their recommended vocabulary, the Thesaurus of Geographic Names, to make the data in this element consistent. Granularity of data coverage will be at the cataloger’s discretion, as will be entering multiple locations. However, the preferred term for the location must be used, and entered as seen in the thesaurus. Therefore, the entry format will be free text. The hierarchy of terms will not be represented in one element entry – if more than one entry on the location’s hierarchy is needed to fully explain the geography of the event, the element should be duplicated and the second (or third, etc) location should be added as a separate element.

6. Coverage should be used to describe the geographic location or locations of the event being cataloged. The level of specificity needed is left to the cataloger’s discretion, but it should provide a reasonable level of detail in relation to the event. Vocabulary for this element will be drawn from the Thesaurus of Geographic Names, and only the preferred term for locations should be used. The entry mode will be free text, but the locations should be entered as they appear in TGN. The element can be repeated should more than one term from TGN be needed to fully describe the geographic location.

Element #2

1. Language

2. Dublin Core recommends that the language element be used to express the language of the item being cataloged, whether it is a written, spoken, or signaled. There are numerous sub-tags that identify primary and secondary languages, region, and many other features of a language. It is also highly recommended that a controlled vocabulary be used to identify both the language and its features.

3. For cataloging events, the language tag could be used to describe the language used, particularly if it is a concert, lecture, or other performance-based event. In the context of the metadata record assignment, the language tag could identify the languages of the people affected by the disasters that we are cataloging, or the predominant language of the area.

4. I would not recommend that the language element be used for the metadata assignment. The disasters that we are cataloging are not performance-based, so defining the language of the event becomes very difficult. Many of the disasters take place in low-income areas (which are traditionally more diverse), or else over giant areas of continents. Each poses difficulties defining all the languages used during the disaster. Though the dominant language could be used, it doesn’t fully represent the population effected. Finally, the information contained in the field is arguably unimportant from a cataloging and retrieval point of view – very few people will be searching for the disaster based on its predominant language.

5. n/a

6. Language should not be used as an element in this metadata assignment. Disasters do not inherently have language, and to try and catalog all the languages of the people affected is virtually impossible. Additionally, cataloging the languages associated with the event would add little to the record, as the completeness of the information would be dubious, and very few people would search according to the language of the disaster.