Visualizing uncertainty and perspectives: Netherlands eScience Center, project number 027.014.402 (April 01, 2015 – April 01, 2016)

Strengthening the methodology of digital humanities

Subjectivity and uncertainty form an integral part of Humanities research, sometimes even of the research object. Topics include subjectivity of authors (this chronicle’s writer is pro Burgundian), the nature of data (this chronicle likely mentions battles, but unlikely mentions raping and pillaging) and the time in which the data was created (‘a lot of people’ usually is summarised as ‘10.000 people’ in the late Middle-Ages). Text dominantly reflects interpersonal and subjective points of view rather than objective facts. In addition, language is often imprecise or underspecified resulting in another level of subjectivity (for example spatial information is not well captured in language and perceptual values are expressed through scalar and relative words). Even humanities scholars aiming to be objective generally bring their own perspective and view of the past, a text tradition or painting.

This project develops a tool that visualizes subjectivity, perspective and uncertainty to make them controllable variables. The tool allows users to compare information from different sources representing alternative perspectives and visualize subjectivity and uncertainty. Such a visualization enables improved and comprehensive source criticism, provides new directions of research and strengthens the methodology of digital humanities.

NLeSC Announcement April 2015

The Netherlands eScience Center is pleased to announce the initiation of six new projects in the areas of Environment and Sustainability, Life Sciences & eHealth, Humanities and Social Sciences and Physics and Beyond. The projects, scheduled to start in 2015, are collaborations with research teams from multiple Dutch academic groups and represent the latest step in the continued development of NLeSC’s project portfolio. Two projects will be funded in the areas of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Visualizing uncertainty and perspectives
Prof. Piek Vossen and Antske Fokkens are co-applicants of the project “Visualizing uncertainty and perspectives”: one of the six proposals that will receive funding to the value of 125K euro. This project aims to develop a tool that visualizes subjectivity, perspective and uncertainty to make them controllable variables in Humanities research. The tool should allow users to compare information from different sources representing alternative perspectives and visualize subjectivity and uncertainty. Such a visualization enables improved and comprehensive source criticism, provides new directions of research and strengthens the methodology of digital humanities.