Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Cloud Architectures and Cultural Memory
Clifford Lynch
Executive Director, Coalition for Networked Information (CNI),
21 Dupont Circle, Suite 800, Washington, DC, 20036, USA
cliff@cni.org
Abstract.
The emergence of cloud-based architectures and information services
are changing the nature and contents of our cultural record, and simultaneously
altering the framework within which our memory organizations can manage
and provide access to this record. Of course, many of these issues are not
unique to memory organizations but are echoed across all types of government
or corporate settings where substantial data and information resources are made
available to the public.
In this talk, I explore some of the challenges of provisioning various types of
access and use of cultural materials, and ways in which cloud storage and
computational utilities interact with these challenges. Current debates about
issues such as how to effectively implement emerging national policies about
open access to data and publications resulting from government funding within
the scholarly world offer interesting case studies of some of these issues. I will
look at some of the potential roles of storage clouds and computational clouds
as infrastructure for memory organizations. These developments are coupled in
ways that are more complex than generally recognized today: the patterns of
connectivity and peering among underlying networks establish new borders and
privileged pathways for the various groups who want to make use of
computationally intensive tools to analyze cultural materials. National
consumer broadband policy and deployment are also significant factors in
access to these resources; telecommunications and networking market evolution
and market failures may require libraries to take on new or expanded roles in
facilitating access. I also briefly examine a few of the developments that are
reshaping cultural memory and our ability to capture and preserve it, such as the
recent attempt to migrate from desktop software to software as a cloud service
in both consumer and commercial marketplaces, and the continued evolution of
social media platforms.
Keywords:
Cloud computing, cloud architectures, cultural memory institutions.
1
Introduction
It is a pleasure to be here and to have an opportunity to open this conference and to
reflect on some of the themes that I think will be explored in depth over the next
