Antarctic Legacy of South Africa (ALSA) preserving historical human interaction records; is there a need for digital humanities?

Abstract

Subtitle:How can official documents, personal diaries, letters and images be exploited to enhance a better understanding of the humanities and the environment they try to understand under extreme conditions? ABSTRACT: The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) is an interdisciplinary committee of the International Science Council (ISC), and was created in 1958. Humanities form part of this interdisciplinary research. ALSA’s main aim is to digitally preserve material collected of South Africa’s involvement in the Antarctic region. This will be done by maintaining a digital data repository. This poster will show the criteria for assessment and selection of historical data of personal and official nature for the digital repository. The following questions will be answered; do human personal experiences add any value and significant meaning to environmental research? Is access to digital material such as narratives, log‐books, maps and diaries easy?; will the material add to the visualization and interpretation of information? A few examples is shown on the poster to illustrate the value of human experiences and emphasise the importance to ensure that personal experiences are documented and preserved for the legacy of a country, but also to preserve it for the substantial amount of scientific deductions and analysis that can be gained from preserving the information. Therefore, personal data has to be discovered, retained and be made accessible for mining of information. This linked with the Standing Committee on Antarctic Data Management (SCADM) that facilitates cooperation between scientists and nations with regard to scientific data, and advises on the development of the Antarctic Data Directory System. The contributions of human involvement therefore are much more than just a few pictures and diaries left behind, their work and lives can enhance our perceptions of the environment in the Polar Regions to preserve the future.