Preservação e Inovação: Uma Oportunidade de Acesso Digital e Imersivo à Litotecas Científicas

Abstract

The practice of digitizing scientific and cultural collections has become increasingly widespread as a strategy to preserve, democratize, and expand knowledge, reaching diverse audiences. Academic institutions around the world have invested in technologies that enable the transformation of physical collections into digital repositories, facilitating teaching and research at a distance. In this context, the present study uses as an illustrative example of a scientific lithotheque, in this case, the lithotheque of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP), analyzing how this type of collection could be digitized to expand access to its scientific content through the development of an interactive and intuitive digital prototype. The study begins with the recognition of the limitations of physical access to collections in general, which restrict their use to on-site users due to barriers such as travel, restricted hours, and the need for scheduling. Inspired by common challenges encountered in such contexts, as exemplified by the FCUP lithotheque, a digital prototype was developed to organize scientific information and provide multimedia resources that enrich the user experience. Through an empirical investigation in the form of a questionnaire, the platform was evaluated by students, professors, and researchers, who highlighted its ease of use, the quality of sample visualization, and the expanded accessibility compared to the traditional physical model. The results confirm that the digitization of collections can contribute to democratizing access to scientific knowledge, promoting a more inclusive and interactive experience.