The Web has made it possible to freely access data and documents that were previously unavailable.
Data
Data is for machines. It is the basis on which new knowledge is produced. Being able to access raw data is the fundamental prerequisite for science and scholarship. In the STM this means being able to access to the raw data that comes from experiments, in the SSH it means being able to access primary sources (manuscripts, paintings, first editions…). Data can be effectively crunched and manipulated by machines.
Documents
Documents are for human readers. They are the basis on which knowledge can be disseminated. Being able to access documents is a fundamental prerequisite for the freedom of knowledge.
Muruca = Semantic Web + Open Access
The convergence between the Open Access movement, which aims at making documents more accessible to humans, and the Semantic Web initiative, which aims at making data and metadata more accessible to machines, can radically change the way in which science is done and disseminated.
Muruca = Meaning + Linking
When confined within closed systems, like the ones we used everyday on the Web 1.0 and 2.0, data and documents lose part of their value. They miss context. The goal of researchers is to discover new connections and paths, new points of view, new interpretations. They do so by linking, remixing and reinterpreting data and documents that come from a myriad of different, heterogeneous sources and by organising them into specific contexts.
Our Goal
Our goal is to explore the new opportunities opened by Open Access and Semantic Web. We want humans and machines to stand on the shoulder of giants!
