Rome Wasn't Digitized in a Day - Council on Library and Information ...

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“calculat<strong>in</strong>g and document<strong>in</strong>g degrees of probability <strong>in</strong> architectural reconstructions.” The authors
stressed that the data used <strong>in</strong> such models must be carefully evaluated and coord<strong>in</strong>ated. At the same
time, virtual models can both be updated more quickly than traditional models or draw<strong>in</strong>gs when new
<strong>in</strong>formation becomes available and represent alternative hypotheses. The authors argued that the
creation of a website thus supports a more sophisticated form of publication that allows for rapid
dissem<strong>in</strong>ation of scholarly <strong>in</strong>formation that can be cont<strong>in</strong>uously updated.
The ability to represent multiple hypotheses and to provide different reconstructions, the authors also
concluded, supports the “liberation” of readers, so they can “<strong>in</strong>terpret and exploit the comprehensive
data accord<strong>in</strong>g to their own needs, agendas and contexts.” The nature of this work is also <strong>in</strong>herently
<strong>in</strong>terdiscipl<strong>in</strong>ary, and <strong>in</strong>volves scholars <strong>in</strong> multiple discipl<strong>in</strong>es as well as various technicians. Beacham
and Denard argued that digital reconstructions are <strong>in</strong>herently a new form of scholarship:
The very fact that this work is driven by the aim of creat<strong>in</strong>g a three-dimensional reconstruction
of the theatre has, itself, far-reach<strong>in</strong>g implications. The extrapolation of a complete, threedimensional
form from fragmentary evidence, assorted comparanda and documentary evidence
is quite different <strong>in</strong> character to the more frequently encountered project of only document<strong>in</strong>g
the exist<strong>in</strong>g rema<strong>in</strong>s of a structure (Beacham and Denard 2003).
The authors also warned, however, that digital reconstructions must avoid the lure of the “positivist
paradigm”; <strong>in</strong> other words, digital models should never be presented as “reality.” All reconstructions
must be considered as hypotheses with different levels of probability, and this must be made very clear
to the user; otherwise, the utility of these models as teach<strong>in</strong>g and scholarly communication tools is
dubious at best. 271
The utility of reconstructions and models <strong>in</strong> teach<strong>in</strong>g has been explored extensively by the Ashes2Art
project, 272 a collaboration between Coastal Carol<strong>in</strong>a University <strong>in</strong> South Carol<strong>in</strong>a and Arkansas State
University <strong>in</strong> Jonesboro, where students create 3-D computer models of ancient monuments based on
excavation reports, build educational and fly-through videos, take on-site photographs of architectural
details, write essays, create lesson plans, and ultimately document all of their work onl<strong>in</strong>e with
primary- and secondary-source bibliographies (Flaten 2009). The Ashes2Art collaboration provides an
<strong>in</strong>novative example of undergraduate research, faculty-student collaboration, and the development of
an onl<strong>in</strong>e resource for both specialists and the general public.
While the first iteration of the course had students work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> all the different areas, the <strong>in</strong>structors
soon realized this was overly ambitious for a one-semester course. Subsequently, the students were
grouped by area of <strong>in</strong>terest (e.g., develop<strong>in</strong>g models, design<strong>in</strong>g or updat<strong>in</strong>g the Web platform, writ<strong>in</strong>g
essays and prepar<strong>in</strong>g bibliographies, prepar<strong>in</strong>g teach<strong>in</strong>g materials, creat<strong>in</strong>g videos). All the groups
depended on each other for the f<strong>in</strong>al product. At the end of the semester, a panel of external scholars
reviewed all the models. Although the development of models was the end goal of the Ashes2Art
project, the course also addressed larger issues regard<strong>in</strong>g digital models and the reconstruction of
archaeological artifacts. As summarized by Flaten:
The opportunity to visualize complex dimensional data has never been greater, but digital
reconstructions and models are not without their critics. Questions of accuracy, methodology,
271 The need to visualize and represent uncerta<strong>in</strong>ty or levels of probability <strong>in</strong> virtual models of ancient architecture and landscapes has received an
extensive amount of discussion with<strong>in</strong> the discipl<strong>in</strong>e of archaeology and is not a new topic to the field. See, for example, Miller and Richards (1994), Ryan
(1996), Strothotte et al. (1999), and Zuk et al. (2005).
272 http://www.coastal.edu/ashes2art/projects.html