DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10569675
title: DISCOMPOSE Dataset

description: The Discompose project is aimed at studying the “disaster records” of the Early Modern Age in Southwestern Europe: thousands of texts and images scattered among libraries and archives across Europe will be digitized, transcribed and collected in a database. The methodology combines researches of distant reading (based on analysis of large amounts of data) and close reading (close and deep analysis of a single text and its production context). This way it will be possible capture transformations and specificities in texts usually standardized and inspired by ancient models, and highlight the ways how exceptional events were experienced, communicated and addressed.The dataset is composed of transcriptions and summaries of and metadata related to texts and images dating back to the 16th, 17th and 18th century, collected in Italian, Spanish and other European and American libraries and archives.The dataset is the base of the Digital Archive, one of the main research output of the project, accessible through the project website http://discompose.unina.it (http://discompose.unina.it/discompose/public/search/grid)
description: SUMMARY

DisComPoSe has studied the “disaster records” of the Early Modern Age in Southwestern Europe: 

thousands of texts and images scattered among libraries and archives across Europe have been digitized, transcribed and collected in Digital Archive of disaster texts. 

This is a crucial research tool to analyse, compare and search through a large and heterogeneous corpus of texts written in different territories, at different times. This database allows researchers to create, consult, and modify records related to documents concerning the disastrous events considered within the timeframe studied by the research group. 

The Digital Archive of disaster texts not only did it prove to be a crucial tool for research and data sharing, but it is in itself a research output, as it provides the international scientific community with a vast corpus of sources, many of which unknown or little-known, covering a time span of almost three centuries. Texts and images concerning disasters occurred in the 16th 18th centuries have been collected from European, North American and Latin American libraries, archives and museums; they have been classified, described, referenced, summarised, and described by metadata such as production date, location, producer, potential/actual recipient, transcription, preserving institution, link to the digitized document, relationships with other documents, and a summary. 

These metadata result from an interdisciplinary selection and debate process conducted during the initial phases of the research, aimed at creating a product that is as accessible as possible to scholars from various disciplines. Our metadata has enabled the members of the research team to process and analyse massive amounts of data, and to combine research of distant reading (based on analysis of large amounts of data) and close reading (close and deep analysis of a single text and its production context). This way, it allows to capture transformations and specificities in texts usually standardized and inspired by ancient models, and to highlight the ways how exceptional events were experienced, communicated and addressed. 

By the end of the project, the Digital Archive (which is hosted on the web servers of the Host Institution and will continue to be expanded) gathers more than 2500 sources (that is, roughly 500 images, 1000 printed texts and 1000 handwritten texts), many of which were previously unknown. 

In order to achieve the collection of data, the research team has made use also of already published and online resources. 

Additionally, the database is integrated with an application that allows public access via the website www.discompose.unina.it. Here, users can access the entire documentary corpus and download records of individual selected documents. 

These collected data are as open as possible, in accordance with conditions and restrictions imposed by libraries and archives. They are saved or converted in standard formats, such as pdf (portable document format). 

The data from the Digital Archive is also exploited by another digital platform: DisComPoSE Routes, a web-app based on an interactive map, which makes it possible to visualise the geographical incidence of disasters and the dissemination of documents that narrate and explain these disasters. ‘Routes’ is primarily designed for a broader audience of non-specialists interested in history, literature and the visual arts, and is publicly accessible via the project website. 

The gathered texts and images, and the related data, will be useful not only to Historians, but also to Philologists and Art Historians, in that they will be allowed to access a vast sample of lesser-known texts and images, which have so far received scarce scholarly attention. Moreover, it offers the potential for being of use to scholars of Environmental and Earth Sciences, in that it will provide important information on historical earthquakes, eruptions, floods and storms. 




 
description: MAKING DATA FINDABLE

The DisComPoSe Digital Archive of disaster texts is fully accessible through a Zenodo repository, which ensures that it adheres to the FAIR principles. Indeed, the possibility offered by Zenodo to search for the uploaded dataset using keywords allows potential future users to find and adapt it to their needs. 

In order for data to be easily discoverable, it has a unique and persistent identifier. Our database assigns a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) to each record, ensuring that the data can be easily and consistently identified and cited in publications. 

We also ensure that our data is described with rich metadata. This metadata includes information about the data, such as the author, the date of creation, and the type of data. We make sure to include all the mandatory and recommended terms from DataCite's Metadata Schema, as well as additional information that we consider useful. This ensures that our metadata is detailed and comprehensive, making it easier for users to find the data they need.

Additionally, we ensure that our metadata clearly and explicitly includes the identifier of the data it describes. The DOI for each record is included in the metadata, making it easy to link the metadata to the data it describes. This makes it easier for users to find and access the data they need, even if they only have the metadata.

Finally, our data is registered and indexed in searchable resources, making it easily discoverable by users. Our database is indexed and searchable, allowing users to easily find and access the data they need. We also ensure that the metadata for each record is indexed in DataCite, making it discoverable through their search engine as well.

 
description: MAKING DATA OPENLY ACCESSIBLE

In order for data to be accessible, the digital archive is retrievable by its identifier using a standardized communications protocol. Our database uses the OAI-PMH protocol and a public REST API, allowing users to easily retrieve metadata for individual records as well as record collections. 

We ensure that the protocol we used is open, free, and universally implementable, making it easy for users to access the data they need. The OAI-PMH and REST protocols are open, free, and universal protocols for information retrieval on the web, ensuring that our data is accessible to as many users as possible. 

We also ensure that our metadata is accessible, even when the data is no longer available. Our data and metadata will be retained for the lifetime of the repository, which is currently the lifetime of the host laboratory CERN. This is currently defined as at least the next 20 years, ensuring that our data remains accessible for a long time to come. The data, once downloaded, can be accessed with any software for viewing or manipulating .SQL file formats. 

About the identity of a person accessing data, this can typically be ascertained through their user account. Users are usually required to log in or create an account before accessing datasets or other content. This process helps track who accessed the data and provides accountability.
description: MAKING DATA INTEROPERABLE






In order for data to be interoperable, the Digital Archive of disaster texts uses a formal, accessible, shared, and broadly applicable language for knowledge representation: it uses JSON Schema as the internal representation of metadata and offers export to other popular formats such as Dublin Core or MARCXML. This ensures that our data can be easily integrated into other systems and platforms, making it interoperable with a wide range of tools and services. 

Since the dataset is in SQL format, it is easily interoperable, modifiable, and updatable by anyone who downloads it. In fact, SQL is a widely used standard for managing and manipulating relational databases, making it compatible with various software applications and facilitating data exchange and reuse between researchers, institutions, organizations, and countries. 

We also ensure that our metadata uses vocabularies that follow FAIR principles. For certain terms, we refer to open, external vocabularies, such as license (Open Definition), funders (FundRef), and grants (OpenAIRE). This ensures that our metadata uses standard vocabularies that are widely recognized and used in the research community. 

Finally, our metadata includes qualified references to other metadata, ensuring that our data can be easily integrated with other systems and platforms. Each referenced external piece of metadata is qualified by a resolvable URL, ensuring that other systems can easily find and access the metadata they need. 
description: INCREASE DATA RE-USE

Our dataset, aimed at enabling the widest possible reuse, has been distributed under the Creative Commons 4.0 license. Additionally, to avoid copyright issues, the images have been simply linked directly to the institution's website that holds any potential rights. 

In order for data to be reusable, it is richly described with a plurality of accurate and relevant attributes. Each record in our database contains a minimum of DataCite's mandatory terms, as well as optionally additional DataCite recommended terms and Zenodo's enrichments. This ensures that users have access to comprehensive information about the data, including its origin, creator, format, and usage rights. 

Furthermore, in order to facilitate reuse, our database ensures that (meta)data is released with a clear and accessible data usage license. License is one of the mandatory terms in our metadata and refers to an Open Definition license. This means that data downloaded by the users is subject to the license specified in the metadata by the uploader. 

In addition to being richly described and licensed, (meta)data in our database is associated with detailed provenance. All data and metadata uploaded is traceable to a registered user, which ensures transparency and accountability. Additionally, metadata can optionally describe the original authors of the published work. 

Regarding data quality, this was ensured at all stages of collection, systematization, and entry by the researchers. Additionally, for each of these stages, cross-checking was performed by researchers not involved with the specific data. In the end, a comprehensive check was conducted just before uploading to Zenodo, verifying all fields of the dataset entered. 

Finally, in order to ensure that our database meets domain-relevant community standards, we strive for compliance with DataCite's Metadata Schema, which is one of the broadest cross-domain standards available. While our database is not domain-specific, this ensures that the metadata meets the highest standards of quality and consistency.

 
description: ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES and DATA SECURITY 

The database has been implemented by the members of the research team: P.I., senior staff, post-doc researchers and PhD students. However, it was also necessary to make use of the technical expertise of external professionals. 

Consequently, the cost for the digital archive creation and maintenance during the course of the work is €7,755, that is €4,500 for the development of the digital archive (relational database design, data import, web-based application development) and €3255 for database data transfer and technical support. To this sum another figure must be added: € 15000 for the recording of the documents and data input made by the members of the research group. 

The principal investigator has had overall responsibility for data management over the course of the research project and monitored compliance with the plan. The entire team supported the PI in this task. 

The dataset is stored in the Host Institution digital repository. The research data is deposited in ZENODO (https://zenodo.org), a research data repository created by OpenAIRE and CERN to provide a place for researchers to deposit datasets. Data and metadata will be retained for the lifetime of the repository. This is currently the lifetime of the host laboratory CERN, which currently has an experimental programme defined for the next 20 years at least. Metadata are stored in high-availability database servers at CERN, which are separate to the data itself. 

Since this depository is supported by public money, no fee has been charged to the project for the data preservation.  
description: DATA SECURITY






Regarding the data security of the digital archive hosted on www.discompose.unina.it, whose dataset is the one uploaded to Zenodo, it is ensured by a partial backup performed every 4 days and a weekly one by the institution of the University of Federico II of Naples. Additionally, researchers also perform a monthly backup via SFTP access, which is stored in duplicate on two Hard Drives completely disconnected from the network. 

As for the data security of Zenodo, this can be viewed at https://about.zenodo.org/infrastructure/