Progress update, 11 to 17 May 2013

Welcome along to the Transcribe Bentham progress update for the period 11 to 17 May 2013, during which time further good progress has been made by volunteer transcribers. 8,526 words of Bentham text have been transcribed this week, along with 3,469 words of TEI mark-up.

5,585 manuscripts have now been transcribed or partially-transcribed, which is an increase of 16 on last week’s total. Of these transcripts, 5,303 (94.9%!) are complete and locked. We are achingly close to reaching a completion rate of 95%.

The more detailed state of progress is as follows

• Box 2: 409 manuscripts transcribed of 753 (54%)
• Box 27: 350 of 350 (100%)
• Box 35: 281 of 439 (64%)
• Box 41: 6 of 528 (1%)
• Box 50: 135 of 198 (67%)
• Box 51: 359 of 940 (38%)
• Box 62: 53 of 565 (9%)
• Box 70: 267 of 350 (76%)
• Box 71: 663 of 663 (100%)
• Box 72: 608 of 664 (91%)
• Box 73: 151 of 151 (100%)
• Box 79: 198 of 199 (99%)
• Box 95: 120 of 147 (81%)
• Box 96: 526 of 539 (97%)
• Box 97: 55 of 296 (18%)
• Box 98: 213 of 499 (42%)
• Box 100: 149 of 422 (33%)
• Box 107: 324 of 538 (60%)
• Box 115: 276 of 307 (89%)
• Box 116: 404 of 864 (46%)
• Box 139: 38 of 38 (100%)
• Overall: 58% of the 9,497 manuscripts currently uploaded to the website have been transcribed thus far.

One interesting find from the last week was JB/107/117/001, entitled ‘Expressing an image by colours’ (or ‘painting’, for the non-Benthamic among us). In this manuscript, Bentham offers tips on how various objects should be represented by artists, including how lighting, distance, opacity and so on (or ‘Opticks’) have to be taken into account. Particular attention is paid to where the ‘image to be expressed is of animated matter’, and that the artist must account for anatomy, movement, and the ability to discriminate ‘the effect produced upon the body by the general character of the mind of the individual’. The manuscript concludes by suggesting that a painter ‘should be a naturalist & a phisiologist [sic]’. Thanks to Jonathan Targett for transcribing this one!

Thank you, as always, to everyone who has given their time and effort to Transcribe Bentham over the past seven days. It remains greatly appreciated by us all.