Connecting RDA and RDF

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Connecting RDA and RDF Linked Data for a Wide World of Connected Possibilities Ashleigh Faith & Michelle Chrzanowski Ashleigh N. Faith, MLIS is an Adjunct Instructor at the University of Pittsburgh Information School, anp114@pitt.edu Michelle Chrzanowski, MLS is a Reference Librarian at the Tidewater Community College Norfolk Campus Library, mchrzanowski@tcc.edu

Libraries have struggled with connecting a plethora of content and the metadata stored in catalogs to patrons. Adding more value to catalogs, more tools for reference librarians, and enriched patron search, linked data is a means to connect more people with more relevant information. With the recent transition to the Resource Description and Access (RDA) cataloging standard within libraries, linking data in library databases has become a much easier project to tackle, largely because of another standard called Resource Description Framework (RDF). Both focus on resource description and both are components of linked data within the library. Tying them together is the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) conceptual framework. Acknowledging that linked data components are most likely new to many librarians, this article seeks to explain what linked data is, how RDA and RDF are connected by FRBR, and how knowledge maps may improve information access.

Introduction Interest in linked data has been growing. Recently, a search of the abstract databases Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar show “linked data� as a search term an average of 45,633 times from 2010 to July 2015. From January to July 2015 alone, "linked data" was searched an average of 3,573 times. It is therefore no wonder that more people are paying attention to data and how it can be linked to other data. Libraries in particular have started investing resources in linked data. From widely used sources like the Library of Congress Subject Headings and Authorities to more specialized resources like the Getty Vocabularies, linked data has become a popular, if little understood, tool within the library. The basic concept of linked data is at the core of the Semantic Web. Both are synonymous with making things easier to find through multiple access points for a diverse user base. Although it is in the interest of the technical services, metadata, or cataloging librarians to know, linked data can also significantly Vol. 3, No. 2 (Fall 2015) DOI 10.5195/palrap.2015.106 New articles in this journal are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 United States License. This journal is published by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press.

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