On Tuesday, November 15, 2016 at 12 p.m. in the Digital Scholarship Lab at the Rockefeller Library, Dr. Tony Martin and Anandi Salinas of Emory University will give a talk, “Reimagining the Online Monograph: Welcome to the Georgia Coast Atlas.” This event is free and open to the public. A reception will follow the talk.

This talk is a part of the Library’s ongoing series, “The Future of Scholarly Publishing,” which presents perspectives from scholars, publishers, and experts in the field of digital scholarship.

In their talk, Dr. Tony Martin and Anandi Salinas will speak about their collaboration on a dynamic digital publication project that explores the ecology and geography of this unique coastal environment. Speaking from the points of view of a researcher and a web developer, Martin and Salinas will share their perspectives on the advantages and challenges of digital publishing in a collaborative, media-rich future.

The Georgia Coast Atlas

As traditional printed manuscripts move online, content creators and technology experts must think creatively about how to balance the demands of user experience, website functionality, accessibility, and aesthetics. Such points must be considered while also highlighting content that forms the foundation of the site. As an example of such balance, the Emory Center for Digital Scholarship and the Department of Environmental Sciences have come together to create the innovative and interactive Georgia Coast Atlas, which seeks to change the way we think of peer-reviewed multimedia content and atlas interactivity online. This talk showcases the Georgia Coast Atlas website prototype and will highlight the user experience and technological considerations that went into creating the site.

The final version of the Atlas will combine long form, multidisciplinary, peer-reviewed multimedia content with multiple map layers, 360 degree panoramas, and video guides to the Georgia-coast barrier islands. The thematic emphasis of the Atlas is to demonstrate the integrated natural and human histories of these places, which have been continually occupied and modified by people for more than 4,000 years. To simulate the exploratory nature of a traditional printed atlas, the team decided to use a map of the Georgia coast as the central navigation avenue of the website, while maintaining traditional menu navigation features, which allows the user multiple nonlinear entry points into the website content. After the prototyping phase, the team will move the website into a WordPress platform to promote efficient and user-friendly publication of peer-reviewed content by an editorial team. The Georgia Coast Atlas will provide users a new interactive atlas experience, but will also provide an avenue for ongoing additional publications and multimedia content publishing without the need for heavy code development.

 

Anthony J. Martin

Anthony (Tony) Martin is a Professor of Practice in the Department of Environmental Sciences at Emory University. He has a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Georgia and is a geologist and paleontologist. His research specialty is ichnology, which is the study of modern and ancient traces caused by animal behavior, such as tracks, trails, burrows, and nests. He has published more than 150 research abstracts and articles on a variety of modern and fossil traces and is the author of six books, including Dinosaurs Without Bones: Dinosaur Lives Revealed by Their Traces Fossils (2014, Pegasus Books) and Life Traces of the Georgia Coast (2013, Indiana University Press). He has conducted research on and taught about the Georgia barrier islands since 1998. In 2014, in recognition of his accomplishments in scientific exploration and public outreach, he was elected a Fellow in The Explorers Club and a Fellow in the Geological Society of America.

Anandi Salinas

Anandi Salinas is a Training Specialist at the Emory Center for Digital Scholarship where she manages the Digital Scholarship Internship Program for graduate students at Emory University. Her work at ECDS includes active production in digital publishing and multimedia projects, like the Georgia Coast Atlas. Anandi is also a doctoral candidate in the Graduate Division of Religion at Emory and received her MA at Duke University in Religion. Her dissertation research focuses on the intersection of phenomenology, daily religious practices, and visual anthropology in Hindu traditions of the Southeastern United States and India. Her interests in visual anthropology and its use in the study of lived religion alongside her interest in digital publishing led her to becoming the current Editorial Assistant to the Visual Anthropology Review.

Date: Tuesday, November 15, 2016
Time: 12 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Location: Patrick Ma Digital Scholarship Lab, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, 10 Prospect Street, Providence