Hellenic OCR Team
Est. 11111100001members and counting...
documents processed...
Gigabytes of data...
Cups of coffee...
In late 2017, a unique crowdsourcing platform was born. The Hellenic Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Team represents the first scientific crowdsourcing initiative that aims exclusively at the processing and study of parliamentary textual data. It builds on the plain idea that a decentralized group of people can be more than the mere sum of individuals.
Our team members are virtually linked through an online exchange platform and gather regularly for monthly meetings, where problems are discussed and best practices are exchanged. Newcomers receive basic training on entering the group, while more experienced members, called ‘mentors’, provide peer-to-peer advice and support. Text processing follows a well-defined streamlined process, which is developed in order to build quality corpora of parliamentary relevance. The resulting content is brought in an open and structured format, such as XML (eXtensible Markup Language), and enables the use of novel tools and methods from the exciting field of computational linguistics.
The opportunities that arise from the study of the aforementioned corpora are tremendous, as they allow for interlinking of several – formerly distant – areas of research, such as history, political science and linguistics, thus opening up new horizons in the understanding of parliamentary data and discourse. The Hellenic OCR Team is rapidly expanding and we are looking for interested individuals to further enhance our dynamic interdisciplinary team.
We need..
- A bit of your spare time
- A lot of scientific curiosity
- Your engagement and support
We offer..
- Certified training
- Opportunity to join an international scientific network
- Early access to scientific projects
- Hands-on working experience on state-of-the-art tools and methods
Contact the Hellenic OCR Team - Become a Member
The Team
Dr. Fotis Fitsilis
Co-Founder and Team Leader
Digital policy expert
Prof. Giorgos Mikros
Co-Founder and Science Lead
Prof. Iasonas Lamprianou
University of Cyprus
Prof. Ioannis Armakolas
Comparative Politics
University of Macedonia
Marina-Eirini Kousta
International Health Policy
London School of Economics
Alexandra Fiotaki
Computational Linguist
University of Ioannina
Katerina Tzortzi
Computational Linguist
University of Crete
Polytimi Mountanea
International Political Economy
Eleni Zisioglou
Legal expert
Ioannis Gianniadis
Digital Identity Specialist
Panagiotis Papantonakis
Electrical and Computer Engineering student
Prof. Christos G. Alexopoulos
Academy of Applied Preschool Teaching and Health Studies
Vasileios Kesidis
Trainee
Dr. Ilias Spais
Senior Research Associate
Helen Papastrati
Thesis π Schools (Founder/Director)
Chiara Spiniello PhD
Legal professional
Maria-Eleni Georgoulea
Student of Law
Antonino Nielfi
parliamentary researcher
Anna Maria Zikou
Legal professional
Democritus University of Thrace
Spyridoula-Anna Pappa
Italian Philology
University of Athens
Dr. Michael Fitsilis
Software developer
RWTH Aachen
Sotiris Leventis
Director
Dimitris Garantziotis
Legal expert
University of Athens
Dr Maria Kamilaki
Linguist
Alexandros Tsomarelis
Technical Solutions & Crypto Enthusiast
Vasileios Anastasiou
Software developer
Dr Afroditi Giovani
Linguist
Dr. Vasilis Tountopoulos
Senior ICT consultant
Luís Kimaid
Political Scientist
Bruce Todd
Specialist in justice & home affairs
Antonia Becou
Graphic designer
Dora Kallipolitou
Expert in circular economy
Natasa Theochari
Italian Philology and Literature
University of Athens
Alexandros Fikas
Italian Philology
University of Athens
Eleni Tsaireli
Contemporary European Studies
Foteini Kakaitsa
Postgraduate studies Italian Philology
Konstantinos Tsiaras
Computer Science
University of Athens
Ioanna Asanakidi
Linguist
Evangelos Dimiou
Undergraduate Student of Political Science
Elias Tsironis
Cloud architect
Panagiotis Patalas
Electrical Engineer, Sustainable Energy Solutions
Leonidas Kallipolitis
Senior Software Engineer
Prof. Enrico Borghetto
Political & Social Sciences
Prof. Jörn von Lucke
The Open Government Institute
Yiannis Armenakis
Legal advisor and investigator
Athanasia Pliakogianni
Political Science
University of Bamberg
Anna Karampali
Computational Linguistics Lab
University of Athens
Sotiris Kranias
Computational Social Science
Franco Gatti
PhD Student in Italian Linguistics
Paraskevi Tsimpouki
Linguist
University of Athens
Apostolos Dalas, M.Sc.
Electrical and Electronics Engineer
Prof. Juan de Dios Cincunegui
Parliamentary Law and Diplomacy
Irene Theodoropoulou
Associate Professor of Linguistics
Dimitris Koryzis
Systems Engineer & art curator
Prof. Vilelmini Sosoni
Translation and Linguist
Prof. Renato Ibrido
Legal Sciences
Dr. Muhamad Sayuti Hassan
Senior Lecturer of Law
Prof. Stéphane Gagnon
Government and Legal Informatics
Institutional Members
Member Locations
Athens
– Hellenic Parliament
– National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
– SW development, private sector
Komotini
Democritus University of Thrace
Nicosia
University of Cyprus
Thessaloniki
University of Macedonia
Coventry
Warwick University
Padova
Padova University
London
London School of Economics
Friedrichshafen
SW development, private sector
Doha
Hamad Bin Khalifa University
Huddersfield
Hansard at Huddersfield
Patras Science Park
Kavala City
Krusevac City
Montreal City
Luxembourg
Organization
La Universidad Austral
Bússola Tech
BitNomos S.R.L.
Università degli Studi di Firenze
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
POPVOX, INC.
Université du Québec en Outaouais
Institute of Parliamentarism
Uxabay
Our Blog
hellenicOCRteam.gr/blogParticipation to the 2019 Google Summer of Code
Google Summer of Code (GSoC) is a global program focused on introducing students to open source software development. In Greece, the Open Technologies Alliance participates in GSOC 2019 with more than 25 open source projects. The Hellenic OCR Team has provided a highly intresting project proposal, which is presented below. We invite students who wish to participate to contact us in order to be guided through the process.
Hellenic OCR Team Newsletter #4: January 2019
Happy New Year! Check out our latest (#4) newsletter. Featured topics include the establishment of a sub-group on Linked Open Data, the progress towards organizing a hackathon for parliamentary open data and our prospective participation to the Google Summer of Code.
Happy birthday Hellenic OCR Team!
The Hellenic OCR Team, a novel crowdsourcing initiative for the processing and analysis of parliamentary data, celebrates its first birthday. What started as a confined experiment within the Hellenic Parliament and Greece’s oldest academic institution, the National Kapodistrian University of Athens, has now evolved into an international cooperative platform.
Cooperation with Patras Science Park
The Patras Science Park, a prominent Technology Park in the Greek ecosystem of research, technology and innovation, and the Hellenic Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Team, an innovative crowdsourcing platform for the processing and analysis of parliamentary data, are pleased to announce the launch of their cooperation.
Hellenic OCR Team Newsletter #3: October 2018
The third newsletter (October 2018) of the Hellenic OCR Team is out, featuring the latest news from our team as well as the results of our recent visibility offensive. read more…
Blackjack! Hellenic OCR Team reaches 21 members
The Hellenic OCR Team has now reached 21 members! Dedicated to science and innovation, our ever-expanding platform is utilizing crowd sourcing to process and analyse textual parliamentary data. Thirty (30) members is our next milestone. read more…
Collaboration with Scienceview
The Hellenic OCR Team has joined forces with Science View, the Hellenic Association of Science Journalists, Communicators and Writers, in order to reach out to a wider audience and potential new members. As a first step to foster cooperation, the Hellenic OCR team is presented in the 20th issue of the Science View newsletter (7/2018).
Hellenic OCR Team presentation at the IFLAPARL July 2018 newsletter
The IFLAPARL July 2018 newsletter just came out with an official announcement and presentation of the Hellenic OCR Team! The newsletter is a publication of the Library and Research Services for Parliaments section of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA).
The Hellenic OCR Team web site is now online!
The Hellenic OCR Team has now its own website! Following our presence on Linkedin, our website shall present our crowdsourcing activities and extend our visibility to interested third parties. Information science professionals, data scientists, linguists and students from a wide spectrum of fields are hereby invited to participate to an one-of-its-kind cooperative platform for the processing and study of parliamentary data. More details may be found in our open Call for Members.
Linkedin page
The Hellenic OCR Team just got its dedicated Linkedin page! A presence in the Linkedin universe provides a reach out to a wide business-oriented audience and -at the same time- added-value to connected team members and supporters. Below one may found a series of screenshots from the Linkedin page, but why not visit it directly and build your own opinion?
Hellenic OCR Team Newsletter #2: May 2018
This is the May 2018 newsletter of the Hellenic OCR Team. Overall, it is the second one and the first one drafted in English. It is also the last one before the hot Greek summer. However, work within the team never stops! The next newsletter will appear in late September with more insights on team development, collaboration with related organisations and more information the processing and analysis of parliamentary texts.
Hellenic OCR Team Newsletter #1: April 2018
Το πρώτο newsletter της Eλληνικής Oμάδας OCR (Hellenic OCR Team) είναι γεγονός! Σε αυτό ενημερώνουμε τα μέλη μας για την εξέλιξη των εργασιών μας, τη διεύρυνση της ομάδας και πολλά άλλα ενδιαφέροντα θέματα. Η Eλληνική Oμάδα OCR, πρώτη στο είδος της, είναι μια ανοικτή πρωτοβουλία για την επεξεργασία και μελέτη κοινοβουλευτικών δεδομένων. Περισσότερες πληροφορίες μπορείτε να βρείτε εδώ.
Hellenic OCR Team reaches milestone!
The crowdsourcing initiative Hellenic OCR Team reaches an important milestone. After less than three months of operation, the team has now expanded to 10 members. The members are originating from the private, the public and the academic sector. Currently, team members are resident in Greece and in France. They are virtually linked through an online exchange platform and regularly gather for monthly meetings, where problems are discussed and best practices are exchanged.
Hellenic OCR Team
Interdisciplinary science at its best – Be part of it!
On the eve of 2018 a new crowdsourcing platform came to life. The Hellenic Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Team represents the first scientific crowdsourcing initiative that aims exclusively at the processing and study of parliamentary data. Naturally, the application, handling and further development of OCR processes stand in the core of our endeavor.