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10 New Years Resolutions for Budding Digital Humanists | HASTAC

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10NewYearsResolutionsforBudding DigitalHumanists
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:12/31/20111:18am Topics:DigitalHumanities Tags:2012,NewYear'sResolutions In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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Ajustforfunposttoringin2012,hereare someideasfordigitalhumanitiesrelated NewYearsresolutions.Organizedfrom perceivedeffortneededtoaccomplishthe potentialresolution.Feelfreetoaddmore inthecomments! Easypeasy 1)FindlikemindedcolleaguesonTwitteror Google+. Follow Befollowed(gopublic!) Microblogdaily Engageinconversationsatleastonceperweek 2)Startthatresearchblogyouvebeenenvisioning WordPresscanbuildasimpleselfpublishingwebsite Bloggerservesbasicbloggingfunctionsandeasyforthosewho alreadyhaveaGoogleaccount Tumblrmakesforeasyrebloggingandmicrobloggingthroughonline socialnetworks Needanarchivesbasedexhibitiononlinespace?CheckoutOmeka. 3)Hugadeveloper(whoneedsanexcuse?) Moderate 4)LearnwhattheheckmakespeopleloveTumblrorPintrest(a.k.a. exploreanothersocialmediatoolconducivetomeetingnewcolleagues pseudonymouslyorrealnamedandnewideas.) 5)Fleshouttheinformationarchitectureofyournewresearchblog Whattabsorbasicnavigationdoyouwant?Doyouanswerthose basicjournalisticquestionsofWho,What,Where,When,andWhy? Doyougiveyourselfenoughcreditwithoutbecomingatargetfora Humblebrag?(Wedontneedtoknowaboutyour4.0,buttitles, honors,andfellowshipsarenewsworthyenough.) Doyouidentifywhatitisthatinterestsyouandwhoyourelookingto engagewith? 6)FollowalongwithanAcademicEarthclassaboutprogramming.Have accesstoLynda.comclassesthroughyouruniversity?TryoutaXML tutorial!
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Master'scandidateina SchoolofLibraryand InformationScience program...
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HASTACscholars RT @mkgold: Johanna Drucker on the @uminnpress blog: "Representation and the digital environment" bit.ly/JevGvJ #dhdebates
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HASTACscholars Still thinking abt post by @NazcaTheMad "What Remains: Collaboration & Knowledge at a Non-Digital Unconf" bit.ly/JeDIPx #transformDH
HASTACscholars @adelinekoh @moyazb @anitaconchita woo! i'm gonna have a party at my place during MLA. fun!!
adelinekoh our panel on #race & #dh has been accepted for #mla13! featuring @alondra @anitaconchita @moyazb & more! #transformdh adelinekoh.org/blog/2012/04/0
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7)Blogaboutyourresearchonceperweek TimeandEffortRequired 8)Feelingambitious?EnrollinafreeStanfordUniversityonlinecourse likeNaturalLanguageProcessingorHumanComputerInteraction.You maygetastatementofaccomplishment! 9)LearnGephifordatavisualizationexperiments 10)SubmitandpresentyourDHresearchataconference!Microblogging andbloggingaregreatwaystogetfeedbackasyourworkdevelops,but presentingIRLtocolleaguesraisestheante.
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AmandaPhillips 25weeks4daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
LovethislistwhileitfillsmewithanxietyaboutallofthethingsIneedtoaccomplishin thenext,oh,30days,it'sstillfuntoseeDHresolutionsupontheHASTACblog. OneresolutionIhopemanyDHerswillsharewithmeistocontinuetofindcultureinour technologyandtokeeptheorizingand/orexperimentingwithwaysthatDHcanbecome atoolforsocialjustice.Thisisthinkingoutsidetheboxforalotofus,soit'sworthytoput itdownonthelist. Comingfromaqueer/feministperspective,oneofmyNewYears'resolutions,for example,willbetointegratemorecriticalraceanddisabilitystudiesintomyownwork! Happynewyear,y'all!
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Greataddition!
MelodyDworak 25weeks22minago Loginorregisterto postcomments
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Youmighthavealreadyimaginedthatthislistcametogetherfrommyownideasof whatIshouldbedoing.Ihavefounditveryhardtoblogonceeachweek,even thoughthat'swhat'srecommendedtostayonpeople'sradars.Somepeopledoit daily,sowhat'sfromkeepingmefromdoingitweekly?Honinginonone'sown challengesisagreatplacetostartforsettingthisyear'sgoals. Ilikeyourpointaboutbringingcriticalperspectivestotheforefrontofourwork,as well.Thoseareareasofstudythatyouknowbelonginthework,butthatdon't alwaysinterlockasperfectpuzzlepieces.Perhaps"engageininterdisciplinary discussionsatleastoncepermonth"couldgoonthelist?
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CathyDavidson 25weeks4daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Lovethelistandthecomment.Thankyouboth!
Thankyouforyourcomment!
MelodyDworak 25weeks12minago Loginorregisterto postcomments
It'sbeenveryinspiringtoseeallthediscussionsonhere.Theblogsareagreat placetothrowoutideas,getfeedback,andtoseewherepeopleareintheirown thinking.
themicrobloggingchallenge
KirstynLeuner 25weeks4daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Melody,Iloveyourideaofmicrobloggingaboutyourresearchonceaweek.Ihavetried, andfailed,tomicrobloginthepast.Butthemicroblogs*always*turnintomacroblogs (justcheckoutmyhastacblogforexamples).AndthenIpolishexcessively,becauseit's alongpostandbecauseitrepresentsmeinmoretextualrealestatetothecommunityof scholarswhomightreadmywork.AndthenI'vespenthalfadayonablogpostthatis helpfulformythinking,butthattookmeawayfromwhatIreallymustgetdone (dissertate,grade,etc.). Iassignmicrobloggingtomystudentsonceaweek,andthis,Ithink,isagreat opportunitytolearnfromthem.Theygetitdoneandtheyhavetoldmethatit'sworthwhile onthewhole.Igivethemaverygenerousquestionthatrelatestothereading,andthey eitheransweritorwriteaboutsomethingelsethatsuitstheirfancy(andideallyrelatesto
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thereading).300wordsistheminimum.ButIwonderifIwouldbeabletoturnthetables, formyownassignment,andmakeitmymaximum.HASTACblogwouldbeagreatplace totrythisout:300words,1x/week.It'samicrobloggingchallenge.
Microblogsvs.responsepapers
KyleMcAuley 25weeks3daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
I'llaskthecurmudgeonlyquestion:Whymicroblogsinsteadofresponsepapers?As bothanundergraduateandagraduatestudentI'vehadmanyclasseswhere responsepapers,bothshortandlong,werepostedonlineinadvanceofclass meetings. Iaskbecausea300wordminimumandhighlypolishedwritingsoundslikea responsepapertomeperhapsjustwithembeddedlinksinsteadoffootnotesor parentheticalcitations.
Weekly/DailyBlogging
StevenBerg 25weeks4daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
EtenaSaccavajjenaismyteachingblog.Mygoalistopostanessayaboutoncea week.IhaveaclearfocusofmyperspectivewhichIbrieflydescribeontheblogshome page.Blogpostscurrentlyrun600800words. LikeKirstynLeuner,Ifoundthatthetimeforapostingwasequivalenttohalfadays workormoreforwriting,editing,publishing,anddistributingnotifications.However,I findthetimetobewellspentbecauseIthinkabouttheblogdaily.EvenwhenIdont writeaboutthem,IoftenprocessexperiencesintermsofhowIcouldwriteaboutthem. Asaresult,Iremainmindfulofkeyvalues(specificallythefourBrahamaViharas)Itryto incorporateintomylifeasaprofessor.Theconstantreflectionhasimprovedmy teaching.Sharingonaweeklybasisalsobuildsconnectionswithstudentswhodoread andoftenciteinclassesorconferenceswhatIhavewritten. Duringthepastcoupleofmonths,IamfindingthatIamwritingquickerinpartbecause topicsarefrequentlyinmind.IamalsolearningthatIdonotneedtopolishexcessively whichdoesnotmeanthatIdonotpolishblogentriesortakemyonlinepersona seriously.(IrealizethatIaminaverydifferentcareerpositionthanisKirstyn.) MelogyDwarakssuggestiontomicroblogdailyisfascinating.However,Iamnotsure thatIwouldputitintotheEasypeasycategory.Yesterday,Ipurchasedanewjournal which,inpart,isintendedtobeapersonalmicroblog.Whiletherearepartsofthe journalfornotes,sketches,andsoforth,Iamintriguedbytheideaofpublicly microbloggingonadailybasisandwanttothinkaboutitmore.
AudienceforDailyBlogs?
Melody, Whodoyouseeastheaudienceforthedailymicroblogs?AsImentionedyesterday,I amintriguedbytheideaanddecidedtobeginbloggingtoday.(Iwasn'tgoingto announcethebloguntilIwascomfortablewithitandwasconfidentthatIplannedto continueit.)However,IranintodifficultybecauseIwasnotsureoftheaudienceforsuch postings.Withoutunderstandingaudienceandpurpose,Iseenoreasonformeto publishthebloginsteadofjustputtingthenotesinaprivatejournal. Becausecommentsdonotincludenonverbalcues,Iwanttoassureyouthatthisisa legitimatequestionaskedinkindnessbyonewhowantstounderstand.Throughoutthe day,Ihavegiventhequestionthoughtandhavesomeideasastopossiblebenefitsof thedailyblog.ButIwouldbeinterestedinyoursaswell. SteveBerg
Fairquestion!
JohnCarter McKnight 25weeks2daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Steve,that'sagoodquestion,andIthinktheanswermayvarygreatly. Oneapproachmightbetoask,whatwouldyougainbykeepingitprivate? Changingyourdefaultassumptionsmightgenerateinterestinganswers. Forme,I'vebeenrunningAporiafornearlyfouryears.Itstartedasaplacetopost bookreviewsforanindependentstudy:atfirstthesoleaudiencewasmy supervisingprofessor,butIchosetoblogratherthanturnin"papers"inorderto maintainacentralandcomprehensivelocusformywork.Iusedtheblogfor assignmentsinseveralsubsequentclasses. Ididn'tactivelypublicizetheblogforyears:Isawitasaplacetopractice,witha
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smallaudienceoffriendsandfellowstudents.AsI'vegrowninconfidence,my networkofpeershasgrowninpace,andI'vegottencommentsfromanumberofthe authorswhoseworkI'vereviewed. Inshort,thebloghasgrownalongwithme,andhavingacentralrepositoryofmuch ofmyworkhasbeenagreatconveniencealongtheway. Ireadalotofothergradstudentblogs:theychallengemetostepupmygame,give meinsights,andprovideasenseofbeingpartofacommunityofscholarsextending farbeyondmyhomeinstitution.Ithinkthat'saninvaluablegiftfrommypeers.
ChangingAssumptions
StevenBerg 25weeks1dayago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Oneapproachmightbetoask,whatwouldyougainbykeepingitprivate? Changingyourdefaultassumptionsmightgenerateinterestinganswers. John,Ijustdiscoveredthatmyresponsetoyourpostingisntactuallyhere.Im notsurewhatIdidwrong,butIwilltryagaininamodifiedversionbecauseI havecontinuedtothinkaboutthisissuesinceIpostedmyresponse yesterday. Youarecorrectthatchangingthedefaultassumptionsdoeschangethe answer.AssoonasIreadyourquestion,myimmediateresponsewas Nothing.Thisthencausedmetoreconsiderwhatcouldbegainedbymicro blogging. Themaindifferencebetweenthejournalandthemicroblogisthatisgivesthe possibilityforfeedbackanddiscussion.Thereisalsotheincentivetokeepon publishingthemicroblogbecauseofitspublicnature. BecauseIamupforevaluationthisyear,fortwomonthsIrecordedmyactivities astheyrelatedtoserviceandprofessionaldevelopmentinablog.However, thepurposeofthiswastosimplyrecordfactsnottodoanyreflection.And reflectionisakeycomponentofamicroblog/journal. IhaveexperiencedthebenefitsofbloggingwhilewritingEtenaSaccavajjena inwhichItrytopublishapproximatelyoneessayaweekduringtheregular academicyear.IhavealsocreatedanauthorpageonFacebookwhereIcan shareteachingthoughtswithstudentsandothers.Andmywebsite(whichis beingmassivelyrevisedduringsemesterbreak)hasincludeddetailed informationaboutmyteaching.Therefore,thethoughtpublicsharingdoesnot botherme. IamnowthinkingthatifIweretobeginamicroblogthatIwouldneedtobe comfortablethatIamnottryingtoreachalargereadershipthatIamdoing moreofapublicjournalthatfewpeoplewouldread.Eventhoughtherewillbe fewreaders,therewillbemorethanifIconfinedmythoughtstoaprivate journal.Itwouldalsobepossibleformetopublicizeindividualentriesinthe microblogwithstudentsorothers.Forexample,Imightreflectonsomething fromclassandaskstudentstovoluntarilyrespond.OrIcouldsendthelinkto anentrytoselectedcolleaguesandaskthemforfeedbackonsomeissue. TherearetwootherissueswhichIthinkareimportantforadailymicroblog. First,itdoesnothavetobewrittenindaily.Thatisasetupforfailure. Thesecondisthatreflectionsdonotnecessarilyneedtobepostedontheexact daytheytakeplace.Forexample,wereItobeginthemicrobloglatertoday,I couldstillpostyesterdaysnotesandgivethemaJanuary2date. Thankyouforyourresponsewhichhelpedclarifymythinking.
MicroBlogStarted
IbeganamicroblogcalledMicroblogtowhichIhavepostedsixofthepastsevendays.I amnotyetcommittedtokeepingtheblogrunningbutIthinkitwillmeetmyneeds.What Iseeasthereasonfortheblogisdetailedonthe"Home"andthe"PostingGuidelines" pages. Ididpostalinktomymostrecentblogentrytitled"MultiAuthorBlogsintheClassroom andBetweenClasses"inFacebook.Ialsosentoutacoupleofemailstoindividuals whomightbeinterestedingivingresponsestohelpmedevelopandtoclarifymy thinking.OnepersonhaspostedacommentinFacebookandIamawaitingher
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responsetomyrequestthatshereposthercommentorallowmetorepostonher behalfintheblogitself. IdonotseethemicroblogreplacingorcompetinginwritingtimeorcontentwithEtena Saccavajjena,myteachingblog. Nowtoseehowitgoes...
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Video: Digital Humanities for Museums and Archives | HASTAC

Video:DigitalHumanitiesforMuseumsand Archives
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:11/1/201112:56am Topics:Arts&Humanities,HASTAC Scholars,InformationScience& Archiving,History,Digital Humanities more... Tags:archives,CivilWar,collaboration, crowdsource,Diaries more... In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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OneoftheadvantagesofbeingaHASTACScholaristhatyoucanpull peoplefromdifferentdepartmentstogethertohaveaconversation.This showedupinmylastpost,andit'sshowingupagainintoday's. OnWednesday,October19,wetalkedwiththreeprofessionalswho provideduswithcriticalinsightsintomuseumsandarchives.Andwe captureditonvideotoshare.This10minutevideofeaturesGreg Prickman,headoftheUniversityofIowaSpecialCollections,Kathrine Moermond,educationandoutreachcoordinatorattheUI'sOldCapitol Museum,andNickiSaylor,headofDigitalLibraryServices.Theydiscuss whatthey'velearnedfromtheirrecenteffortsinutilizingdigitalmediato enhancetheirexhibitionsandcollections. Spoileralert:NickiSaylordescribeshowonewomantranscribed400 documentsintheirCivilWarDiariesTranscriptionProject,andhowthat kindofpublicengagementwith"citizenscholars"canrevitalize collections.(You'llhearmyshocked"WOW!"inthebackgroundthere.) Thismomentcompletelychangedmyopinionabouttherole crowdsourcingplaysinthesetypeofprojects.I'vebeenthinkingaboutita bitpessimistically,thinkingthat'sawayforcommercialventurestoexploit unpaidlabor(thinkYelp!andfoodreviewsbeingwrittenbyamateur journalists).Thewayit'stalkedabouthereinspiresmetoconsiderhow thistypeofeffortcanenrichaperson'slifethroughmeaningfully contributingtohistory'sdocumentation.Thisisnocrabbyrestaurant review.Thisisanexperiencethatpeoplewilltakewiththem,connecting withhistorythroughdiscoveryandlearning. ThevideopanelwasinspiredbytheeffortsofNealStimler,asscociate coordinatorofimagesattheMetropolitanMuseumofArt,andhis questionsposedfortheMusuemComputerNetwork'sannualconference. Thisyear'sconferencethemeisHackingtheMuseumandtakesplace November1619inAtlanta,Georgia.
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EricHoyt 32weeks5daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Thanksforsharingthisvideo,Melody.Lotsofinterestingideasinsidehere.Iespecially likedthepointaboutarchivistsandlibrariansneedingtonotbeafraidtoplayan interpretiverole.Therearealwaysvariouslevelsofmediationatplayinanarchive.I thinkacceptingthatweplaymediatingandinterpretiverolescanleadtobetterinterface designwhetherthatinterfaceisaGUIorabricks&mortarreadingroom. Eric
Interpretation
MelodyDworak 30weeks2daysago
Thatwasoneofmyfavoritepointsaswell.There'sdefinitelyalinebetween interpretationtoexploremeaningandinterpretationtoinfluencemeaning.Avoiding thelattergivesusgreatercredibilitythroughanattemptatobjectivity,whileavoiding
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theformerislazyscholarship.Andisn'tacorepurposeofarchivestopreserveand sharestories?Interpretationisapartofanygoodstorytelling. Sorryittooksolongtoreply!Thismonthhasbeencrazybusy.
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DavidMeurer 31weeks5daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
ThankyoufortheInsightfulinterviewMelody!Ishareyourreluctancetoblindlyvalorize orendorsethemotivationsbehindmanycrowdsourcinginitiatives.Thesuccessstoryof thecivilwardiarytranscriptionsmentionedintheinterviewoffersfreshperspectiveson howengagingaudiencesinculturalandhistoricalscholarshipcanbebeneficialall around. Inbestcasescenariostheaudiencehastheopportunitytoworkwithmaterialsfirsthand andmakemeaningfulcontributions,thegeneralpublicgainsthroughincreasedonline availabilityofsharedculturalresources,institutionscandisseminatemoreworksand raiseawarenessoftheirprograms,andstudents,researchersandscholarsareableto accesscorporaandmultimediacollectionsforstudy. Iworkonaprojectthatistakingacomparableapproachtotheproblemoforphanworks. WeadaptthefairdealingexceptionsinCanadiancopyrighttouserinterfacesfor capturinginformationaboutrightsholdersincompositeculturalworks.Withthesetools, usersoftheonlinearchivecanclearlyviewrightsholderinformationandeasilysubmit additionsoramendments.Iwillpostaboutthesetoolssoon(wearecurrentlywrapping upthelastphaseofdevelopment)butitwasnicetoseeaconnectionhere.
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MelodyDworak 30weeks2daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
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Thanksforsharingyourproject!I'mkeepingthisontheradar.Iamapartofanother projectthatcouldmakegreatuseofmediatedcrowdsourcing,onewiththegoalof collectingmetadataaboutaliterarymovement.(It'snotupandrunningyetaswe're stillexploringmethodsandlayingbigideasoutonthetable.) WhatinspiresmesomuchabouttheCWDsuccessisthattheengagementisreal. Contributorsinvestthemselvesinthematerialandcaresomuchthatthelearning thathappensissomethingthat'sgoingtostaywiththem.Ihadtheopportunityto workwithprimarysources,researchingaquestiononbehalfofsomeonewho couldn'tcometothearchivesinperson.Theresearchwasonrailroadhistoryand diggingthroughthematerialsleftmepersonallyinvestedintheoutcomeoranswer tothequestion.Itwasaveryfulfilling(learning)experience.Seemslikethereare greatpedagogicalimplicationshere. FilterbyTopic
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Crowdsourcing,History,andLearning...
LoriSteuart 31weeks5daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Ireallyenjoyedtheinterviewthanksforpostingthis,Melody!I'msortofpickingupon whatDavidandyoubothmentionaboveregardingcrowdsourcinganditsmotivations todayInoticedapostonCNetabouttheDARPA"ShredderChallenge,"whichproposes todiscovernewwaysto"processanddecodeshreddeddocumentsconfiscatedinwar zones,aswellastestvulnerabilitiesintheshreddingmethodsusedbytheU.S.national securitycommunity"throughcrowdsourcing(accordingtotheCNetarticle).Itstruckme asaninterestingintiative,giventheultimatemotivationforthechallenge(andits $50,000prize).Anyway,itjumpedoutatmeinthecontextofyourpost.Thanksagainfor thevideoIhopetosee/readmoresoon!
Thanksforthelink!
Thisisfascinating.Itmakesmewonderifmypuzzlelovinggrandmotherwerestill alive,wouldshebeanexpertatputtingtheseshredsinorder?Shewouldpiece togetherpuzzlesofthehardestvariety2'x3'imagesofpoppedpopcorn,gumballs, younameit.Themoreredundantthebetter(oratleastharder). Thisispotentiallyanotherexampleofanontraditionalscholaranotherstimulating questionposedbyNealStimlerinhispitchforvideos.Inatraditionalacademic setting,IwouldneverthinktoaskaretiredgrandmawithnoPh.D.andnothingbut timeonherhandstomakeameaningfulcontributiontoabodyofknowledge.But withacrowdsourcedwebbasedproject?Whynot??
Moreoncrowdsourcingforinstitutions
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ElizabethCornell 31weeks3daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments

Thanksforsharingthis,Melody.YourpostinspiredmetowriteabouttheNYPL's"What's OntheMenu?"crowdsourcingproject.
Thanksforcrossposting
Thanksforcrosspostinghere!Givingitareadforsure.
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Announcing THATCamp Iowa City, March 30-April 1, 2012 | HASTAC

AnnouncingTHATCampIowaCity,March 30April1,2012
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:11/30/20113:19pm Topics:Collaboration,DigitalHumanities Tags:community,THATCamp, THATCampIowaCity In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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DearHASTACCommunity: IwantedtousethisposttosharewhatmyfellowUniversityofIowa HASTACScholar,KatherineF.Montgomery,andIhavebeendoingwith ourfreetimelately.WehavebeeninspiredbyourrolesasHASTAC ScholarstoconveneaTHATCamp(TheHumanitiesandTechnology Camp),withtheincrediblesupportofoursponsoringorganizations,the CenterforTeachingandtheObermannCenterforAdvancedStudies.The ObermannCenterhasbeenapartofthePublicHumanitiesinaDigital Worldinitiative,andisanadvocateofthedevelopingDigitalStudiofor PublicHumanities. Alotofthingsareconvergingforushere.First,thetimingoftheabove mentionedinitiativesmaycoincidewithagreaterdigitalhumanities movement,butitssomeonesomanyarealreadypayingattentionto.The pessimisticthingtosayisthatclaimingdigitalhumanitiesononesCVis thewayforahumanitiesPh.D.togetafacultypositioninahumanities hating,monographhatingclimate,thatthisisawaytocopewithchange ratherthantospuriton. Thefactthatdigitalhumanitiesasanareaishardtodefinedoesnthelp itscasewhenhavingtocombatthatcharge.Ifanyonecanclaimtodo digitalhumanitieswork,doesthatmeanthebarrierofentryissolowit isntworthanything?Ifevenlibrarianscanbeinvolvedindigital humanitieswork,howprestigiouscanthatbe? Ofcourse,Ivereadmorearticlespraisingdigitalhumanitiesworkthan questioningit,evenifthecommunityinvolvedissmallerthanthesetof traditionalscholars.Justtheideaofpotentialisexciting.Thepotentialof usingdigitaltoolstoinvestigatenewquestionsandoldassumptionsno matterwhatthosequestionsareorwhoisaskingthemisthecore reasonImspendingsomuchofmyfreetimethesedaysengagedwith somethingthatdoesntclearlyfitwellwiththerestofmywork. AndyetIkeeprunningintofriendswhomightrelatetotheliteratureIve beenreading.IhaveafriendwhowasusingArcGIStomapareasofNew OrleansaffectedbyHurricaneKatrina.Anotherfriendjusttookajobasan evaluatorofamuseumseducationprogramming.Ihadtoaskhim whethertheywereusingQRcodes.AndlongbeforeIhadeverheardof HASTAC,mypartnerwascullingdatafrompolicerecordstobuildamap ofcrimeinmycity,tovisualizethroughmapmarkerswhetherfearsabout certainneighborhoodswereexaggerated. Thesepeersofminedonothavedoctorates.Theyareengagedascitizen scholars.Iunderstandthatthereisadifferencebetweenanempirical studygroundedintheoryonanacademiclevelandexperimentingwith codetoansweraquestionthatmatterstoyoupersonally(thelatterof whichcanbestoppedatanytime,butifyourworkisfundedbyagrant, youdbetterdeliver).However,ignoringthatpeopleoutsideacademic establishmentshavethepowertomanipulatedigitaltoolsforthe bettermentoftheircommunityerectsafalsebarrierandrisksmissing
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Announcing THATCamp Iowa City, March 30-April 1, 2012 | HASTAC

opportunitiestoexploreotherpeoplesrealities. THATCampsaredesignedtoremovethesebarriersandflattenthese hierarchies.Thelackofaheadoftimeprogrammingmeansthosewho haveregisteredandshowupdeterminewhattheyregoingtotalkabout. Itsscarytodoitthiswaybecauseyouwantpeopletoleavehavinghada thrillingconversationandwithoutadvancedplanning,howcanyou controlforthat?Butbygivingupcontrol,youopenthespaceupto opportunity. AsHASTACScholars,wevebeentoldtogoout,findwhatdigital humanitiesthingsarehappeningatIowaandintheregion,andreport back.Butgiventheelasticityofthedefinitionandbroadnessofthe communitywedontknowwhomwedontknow. ConveningTHATCampIowaCityallowsustoreachfartherandwider thanwecanthroughouruniversityslistserv.Ifyouareinthearea, considerregistering.Ifyouarenotbutstillwanttoparticipate,beonthe lookoutforwayswereabletoextendTHATCampIowaCitytoonline participants(Twitterhashtags,collaborativeGoogleDocs,maybeeven sessionstreaming??). RegistrationbeginsearlyJanuary.Formoreinformation,visit iowacity2012.thatcamp.orgorfollow@THATCampIConTwitter.Toread moreaboutTHATCamps,visittheorganizationsAboutpage.
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Defining Terms: My First Step in Visualizing DH Crowdsourcing Models | HASTAC

DefiningTerms:MyFirstStepinVisualizing DHCrowdsourcingModels
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:1/31/20126:45pm Topics:HASTACScholars,Digital Humanities Tags:crowdsourcing,data,definitions, digitalhumanities,digitalhumanities projects In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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AccordingtoLuisVonAhn,professoratCarnegieMellonand developerofDuolingo,onemillionpeoplecantranslatethe entiretyofEnglishWikipediaintoSpanishinjust80hours.He callsthatHumanComputation,notingthatotherscallit crowdsourcing. IwenttoaTHATCampAHAsessionfacilitatedbyBen Brumfieldwherethoseintheroomposedquestionstokey playersontwodifferentprojectsthatusedcrowdsourcing strategiesinverydifferentways,bothachievingsuccess. GalaxyZoo,representedbyChrisLinet,isanexampleofa crowdsourcingprojectusinghighlytechnicalmeanstogather andverifydata,whiletheCivilWarDiaries&Letters TranscriptionProject,representedbyJenWolfe,uses technologymostlyastheconduittosharetheinputfrom manuallaborwiththequalitycontrolofprofessionallibrarian labor.Afterhearingthecomparisonofthesetwoprojects,I wonderedhowelsewemightbeabletopulloutsimilarities anddifferencesfromDigitalHumanitiesprojectstoseewhats workingforwhom.Dowehaveenoughexamplesof successfulprojectstocreatecrowdsourcingmodelsthat couldinformfutureinitiatives?* Ireallylikethisasapotentialresearchquestion,butdefining keytermstolimitthescope,surveyingthefieldforqualifying projects,andanalyzingtheircrowdsourcingstrategiesthat areuniquebutalsotransferableisanimportantfirststep. Soletsstartwithdefiningsometerms.Clarifyingthreemain conceptswillhelpnarrowthescopeofthisinquiry.Whatdo wemeanbycrowdsourcing?Whatdoweincludeunderthe umbrellaofdigitalhumanitiesandextendthattowhatcounts asadigitalhumanitiesproject? Thatlastquestionmaysoundunneccesarywithoutknowing whatkindsofinitiativesfellonmyinitiallistofprojects. Brainstorming,IlistedalltheinitiativesIcouldthinkoffrom theGalaxyZooandCivilWarDiariesexamplestothingslike theGoogleBooksdigitizationeffortsanduniversity partnershipslikeHathiTrust.TheGoogleBooksdigitization effortshavehugeimplicationsforwhatspossibleto accomplishthroughdigitalhumanitiesinvestigations,butthe crowdsourcingthatledtothatmassdigitizationmaystretch howIwanttodefinetheterm. Soletsbacktrack.Whatiscrowdsourcing?Astrategy showingupmuchmoreinbusinessthaninacademiaand especiallyincreatingdatabasesforsmartphoneandtablet appscrowdsourcingistheprocessofthesumofitsparts
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beingmoreimportantthanthesizeoftheindividualpart.The successful2008fundraisingbytheObamapresidential campaigntolddonorsthatcontributing$5wasjustas importantascontributing$1000.Theoutcomewasraising bothfinancialinvestmentsaswellaspersonalinvestmentsin thepoliticalcampaign.Organizerscreatedbuyin,andbuyin canplayasignificantroleinsuccessfulcrowdsourcing efforts,aswell. Butbuyinisntrequired.Minoreffortsbyalargenumberof peoplearerequired.Theycanbemajorefforts,too,butdont havetobe.Soletsstartbydefiningcrowdsourcingasthe effortsofanumberofpeoplecontributingtoasignificant outcome.Onedefinitiontakencareof. Nowtodefinedigitalhumanitiesbeforelimitingthescopeof whatcountsasadigitalhumanitiesproject.Themost expansivedefinitionIvethoughtofforthetermcanbestated asusingtechnologytoteachussomethingnew.Using digitaltoolsfordiscoveryfitsthisdefinition,asdoesparsing bigdataforthepurposeof(re)tellingstories. Forthepurposeofthisresearch,Imgoingtosayprojectsare scholarlypursuits,whereanagendatofillaknowledgegap trumpsanagendatomakeprofits.Thereisthistrendof universitiespartneringwithindustriesasonewaytomakeup forbudgetsslashedbystates.Formetowanttoconsidera digitalhumanitiesprojecthere,ithastobemoreforthe bettermentofhumansthanitisforabusinesssbottomline. YouTube,Flickr,Facebook,andTwittercouldallbeseenas utilizingcrowdsourcingstrategies.Iftheforprofitworld contributestothebodyofknowledgeaboutourworld,thenit mayhaveaplaceamongtheseotherinitiatives,butIdont thinkwecanjustifyusingthetermdigitalhumanitiesunless itinvolvesdiscoveryaboutourselvesashumans. TwoexamplesthathelptestthesedefinitionsaretheGoogle Booksdigitizationeffortsmentionedaboveandthearchiving ofpublictweetsbytheLibraryofCongress.Theformerhas createdamassiverepositoryandthelatteramassive database.Contributionstotheformerinvolveuniversity partnerspresumablyundersomekindofcontractor memorandumofunderstanding,whilecontributionstothe latteraremadebymembersofthepublic,eitherknowinglyor unknowingly.Andthedigitizationinitiativeexiststodigitally archiveworkscontributingtohumanknowledge,whilethe archivedtweetsrepresentmomentsofhumanexpression. Ifeelasifthosecharacteristicsqualifythesetwoinitiativesas crowdsourcinginitiativesthatcancontributetothefieldof digitalhumanities,butIcantquitecallthemprojectsyet withouttheinfluenceoftheinterpretationbyscholarsto discoversomethingnew. 825wordslater,hereiswhereIbegin.IfIhopetovisualize somemodelsthatcaninformthecrowdsourcingprojectIam workingon,mynextstepistostartcullingthewebfor projectstofindwhatcharacteristicscanbegroupedtogether. BeinginaLibraryandInformationScienceprogram, classificationisrightupmyalley.Bringonthegruntwork! *Tobetransparent,Ihavebeenpursuingthistopicasa researchinquiryasofmidJanuary2012.
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Digital Humanities for all? | HASTAC

DigitalHumanitiesforall?
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Ihaveaproblem.Iwanttotalkaboutthedigitalhumanitiesinthemost relatableterms.Iwanttomakeitsoaccessiblethatahighschoolstudent couldgraspthefantasticpossibilitiesofusingdigitalmeanstodescribe theworld.IwantgreatauntswhohavejustlearnedhowtoSkypewith theirgreatnephewsandgettoseetheirgreatgrandniecessmiletobe abletoposttraditionalrecipestoafamilywebsite,awebsitethat transformsintoadigitalarchivethroughtherichnessofitscontent. Myinstitutionisinvolvedwithnationalmovementsthatriskbeingclosed offfromthepublicengaginginthem.Digitalhumanitiesandpublic scholarshiparetwotermsthathavethepotentialtobeaccessibletoa widegroupofpeople,buttheacademelaysclaimtothetermsmoreoften thanthepublicdoes.Ivefoundmyselfwonderingaloud(againthrough Twitter),whatistheequivalenttermforthehumanitiesthatpeople outsidetheacademeidentifywith?Isitlife?Ihaventgottenthe impressionthetermiswellunderstoodoutsidetheacademe. SeveralacademicarticlesIvereaddefinepublicscholarsquarelywithin therealmoftheacademe,whileatleastoneopenedituptoinclude membersofthepublic.However,usingthetermwithlibrarians,archivists, andmuseumprofessionals,thementalpictureconjuredislessofthe tenuredacademicworkinginthefieldandmoreabouttheamateur researchersquattinginthestacks.Itsthetenaciouscollectorwhoknows everythingthereistoknowaboutRonPerlmanandhisroleinthe1980s televisiondramaBeautyandtheBeast.Thelocusofmeaningisinthe wordpublicovertheacademicdefinitionofscholar. ItsalsotellingthatIcantspeakofmembersoftheacademeand membersofthepublicasiftheyreoneinthesame.Itslikethespaghetti andpastaexample,whereallspaghettiispastabutnotallpastais spaghetti.Membersoftheacademecanbemembersofthepublic,but membersofthepublicmightnotbemembersoftheacademe.The distinctionbetweenthetwogroupsisimportantwhenitcomestodeciding whocanteachwhominformalinstitutionalsettings,butitdoesntcarrythe sameweightwhenitcomestousingdigitaltoolstopursuepersonal researchgoals. Sobacktomyproblem.HowdoItalkaboutdigitalhumanitiesto everyone?Howdootherscholarstalkabouttheirfieldtoabroad audience?Howcanscholarswithintheinstitutionworkwithscholars outsidetheinstitutionformutualbenefit? Imverymuchtakenwiththeideaofbeingascholarinpublic,whether youidentifyasamemberofthepublicornot.Digitaltoolsfacilitatebeing public.Thecommongoodreliesoncommongoals.
Author:MelodyDworak Posted:1/24/201211:37pm Topics:HASTACScholars,Digital Humanities Tags:#digitalhumanities,citizenscholar, humanities,language,lexicon more... In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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Archives, Access, and Gwendolyn Brooks (The Digital Kind) | HASTAC

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Archives,Access,andGwendolynBrooks (TheDigitalKind)
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:9/2/20111:22pm Tags:audio,authors,digitalarchive, digitallibraries,Gwendolyn Brooks more...
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WhenIreceivedthenewsIwaschosentorepresentThe UniversityofIowatothenationaldigitalhumanities communityasaHASTACScholar,Icouldntcontainmy excitement.Iaminmysecondandfinalyearofthemasters programintheSchoolofLibraryandInformationScience here,whichmeansIhaveaninterestinjustaboutevery possiblesubjectrelatedtodigitalforumsforlearningand growing.Librarieshouseadiversityofknowledge,whether theyrepresentphysicalbuildingsfilledwithbooksand journalsordigitalenvironmentsconnectingremoteusersto PDFsandeBooks. Librariesarethussituatedbetweenthehumanitiesand technology.Thetraditionalmissionhasbeentoarchiveand provideaccess,buttheseroleshavebeenchangingas technologyadvancesandneedsforinterconnectedness, collaboration,andcreativityincrease.Iamhonoredtobea partofthecohortoflibraryandinformationscience professionalsredefiningrolesinthisprofession. Ivehadtheprivilegeofworkingasagraduateassistantfor theVirtualWritingUniversityArchive,spendingayear learningaboutdigitallibrariesinresearchuniversities.Weve dealtwiththetraditionalquestionsofwhattoarchive,butnow withatwist.Virtualstorageallowsaseeminglyunlimited amountofspacefordigitalformats.Thisdigitalagehas promptednewquestionsforarchivistsandcaretakersof knowledgedeliverysystems. Heresadigitizedrecordingofa1980readingbyGwendolyn Brookswhowantstoknowaboutthisandhowcanwelet themknowwhereitis?Whenthemajorityhasaccesstovast storagespace,theressomuchpotentialforfindingthemost fascinatingorthemostbanalitems.Librarieshavent traditionallybeenpositionedtoshowcasecollectionsonan internationalscale.Now,physicalboundariesdontboxusin. Ortakethequalityofpreservationquestion.Wemighthavea digitizedconversationbetweenanauthorfromZimbabweand apoetfromSingaporediscussingtheirperspectivesontheir respectivepoliticalregimes,buttheoriginalrecordercaptured thesoundofthewindmorethanthesoundoftheirvoices. Whomightstillbeinterestedinthat?Youhavetolovethe dedicateddocumentarianswhoseehowpreciousthese presentmomentsareandwhattheymightlendtoourfuture fascinations,nomatterwhatobstaclescomeup. Thesearenotterriblycomplexquestions,buttheydohave implicationsforhowweconnectseekersofinformationwith
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Archives, Access, and Gwendolyn Brooks (The Digital Kind) | HASTAC
haversofinformation,whichisacorepurposeofourefforts here.Digitalhumanitiesinitiativeshavethepotentialto connectlikemissionedindividualswithdifferentexpertiseand expandthepossibilitiesforlearning.Withsuchdiversetalent, optionsbecomeopportunities. Iamthrilledtobeapartofthis.

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Collaborations and Digital Humanities Centers | HASTAC

CollaborationsandDigitalHumanities Centers
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:11/28/2011-11:10pm Topics:Data&Information,HASTAC Scholars,InformationScience& Archiving,DigitalHumanities,Higher Education Tags:collaborations,digitallibraries, HathiTrust,libraries, partnerships more... In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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OnWednesday,November9,2011,theCenterforHistoryofPrintand DigitalCulturalattheUniversityofWisconsinatMadisonhostedDr.John Unsworthforthe2011WisconsinDistinguishedLectureinLIS.Dr. UnsworthisthedirectorfortheIllinoisInformaticsInstituteandthedeanof theGraduateSchoolofLibraryandInformationScienceatUrbanaChampaign.ThefollowingishowthelecturewasdescribedinanemailI received,andwhatpiquedmyinterestaboutthetalk: "MerchantsofLight,Depredators, andPioneers:I'lltakemyDigital HumanitieswithBacon! (Or,DigitalHumanitiesand Librarianshipinthe21st-Century ResearchUniversity)" Thistalkwillconsidersome computationalmethodsthatopen newavenuesforhumanities research,andsomeexamplesof thekindsofquestionsscholars pursueinthatresearch.Those questions,inturn,suggestwaysin whichthedigitalturnmightbring usclosertouniversitycolleaguesoutsidethehumanities,andcloserto non-academicaudiences,atthesametime.Thesamequestionsalso suggestnewrolesforlibrarians,aspartofaresearchteam. MyearsperkupanytimeIhearaboutlibrariesanddigitalhumanities projects,andthiswasnoexception.AlthoughIwasunabletoattendthe lectureinperson,AnnaPalmer,acoordinatorfortheCenter,waskind enoughtosendalinktoanon-publicvideotosharehispresentationthat way[torequestaccesstothevideo,emailherat printculture(at)slis(dot)wisc(dot)edu].IdliketosharealittleofwhatI learnedbywatchinghispresentationviavideo. Dr.Unsworthcenteredthefirstpartofhistalkaroundtheburgeoning movementofuniversity-establisheddigitalhumanitiescentersandthe differentrolestheycouldplaywithintheinstitutionalframework.Hebegan bydiscussingareportbyDianeZorich,ASurveyofDigitalHumanities CentersintheUnitedStates[PDF],butproblematizedwhathesawasthe roleZorichfavoredforsuchcenters. Hedescribedherreportassplittingcentersintotwofunctions:servingas collaboratorsandcatalystsfordigitalhumanitiesinquiries,andcreating digitalresourcesforawidercommunity.ThelatteriswhathesaysZorich favorsinherreport,whichhechallengesbyaskingwhatgoodresources arewithoutthescholarswhousethem.Byresources,hesreferringto repositoriesanddatabasesthatholdpublishedknowledgelikeHathiTrust DigitalLibrary.Imsomeonewhoisinvestedinthesuccessofdigital librariesasasourceforinformationaccessibleonagranderscale,andas awayformorepublicinstitutionstotakethereinsaspublishers.ButI havealwayswondered,whoistheaudienceandhowdoyoulinkPerson AupwithResourceB?
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Thecenter-focusedapproach,asIunderstoodit,isaboutforming partnershipstohelpdeliverfirsttheinterfaceforthehumanities researcherandthentheresearchtoitsaudience.MyinvolvementatIowa asaHASTACScholarhasallowedmetobeprivytosomeofthe conversationsgoingonasourownuniversityworkstodevelopand establishitsversionofadigitalhumanitiescenter,theDigitalStudiofor PublicHumanities.Idonthavefulldetailsintheinnerworkingsofthe DigitalStudio,butIdoknowconnectingscholarswiththetoolstheyneed toexploretheirresearchanddisseminateitmorewidelyisaprimarygoal. Inaddition,mycolleagueandIhavebeendiscussingwhatkindof conversationsourfellowIowaDHenthusiastsareinterestedinbeinga partof.Howfacultymembersandotherscholarscanworkwithlibrarians onjointprojectshascertainlycomeup. BecauseIminmyownLISprogram,Igettoaskquestionsspecifictothe kindsofcollaborationsandpartnershipsweretalkingabouthere:What arethebestwaystomakeuseoflibrariesfordigitalhumanitiesefforts? Whatdoyouwantoutofstaffmemberswhoareatthereadytoassistyou inwhateverwaystheycan(andaresanctionedbytheorganizational infrastructure)? PartofwhatdrewmetoHASTACwasthefocusoncollaborationsand intersections,thenotionthatwearestrongertogetherthanweareasa lone(unread)monographgatheringdustonashelfinthebasement.How canweseekoutandcementthosepartnershipstoexploreideasand researchtobuildnewknowledge? Note:Theimageabove,ofSirFrancisBacon,isofakeyplayerinDr. Unsworthstalk.Heinspiredmetodownloadthee-bookofTheNew Atlantis,whichisthebasisforanextendedmetaphorforthepresent-day researchuniversity.Ididntwanttoattemptreproducingeachpartofthe metaphorwithoutthespeakersslides,butifIgetaholdofthem,Iwill certainlypost!Alwaysgoodtothinkaboutourrolesandpurposesinany organization. *Edit*:Dr.UnsworthmadethePowerPointpresentationslidesavailable. Downloada.pptfilehere. FilterbyLastName
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Librarians&Audiences-VitalforSuccessfulDHProjects
EricHoyt 30weeks22hours ago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Thankyou,Melody,foranotherstimulatingpostandforsharinglinkstobothUnsworths PowerPointandDianeZorichsCLIRReport.Ifoundbothveryinterestingand compellingintheirownways.Ultimately,Unsworthsvisiondoesnotstrikemeas incompatiblewithZorichsrecommendationsaboutmaximizingimpact.Iwonderifhe couldhavemademostofhissamepointswithoutusingZorichasarhetoricalstrawman (orstrawwoman). Ithinkyourownpost,though,synthesizesthebigpicturechallengesandopportunities verywell.YoulayoutsomeofthesamequestionsIvebeenconsideringinmyownwork. Iamcurrentlypreparinga10-minutelectureontheMediaHistoryDigitalLibrarys collaborativemodeltogivethisweekendatHASTAC.AsIreadyourpost,herearea coupleoftheideasthatsprangtomymind. Howfacultymembersandotherscholarsworkwithlibrariansonjoint projectshascertainlycomeup.Whatarethebestwaystomakeuseof librariesfordigitalhumanitiesefforts?Whatdoyouwantoutofstaff memberswhoareatthereadytoassistyouinwhateverwaystheycan (andaresanctionedbytheorganizationalinfrastructure)? LibrarianscanandshouldplayanimportantroleinanyDigitalHumanitiesendeavor. WendyHagenmaier,aMastersstudentinUT-AustinsSchoolofInformation,hasbeen aninvaluablecollaboratorindevelopingtheMediaHistoryDigitalLibrary.Amongother things,Wendyishelpingusmakegooddecisionsaboutextensibleandexportable formatstostoredataandmetadata. OneideaUnsworthpointstowardinhisdiscussionofBaconishowtheroleofthe librariancanexistoutsidetheframeworkofatraditionallibrary.Theskillsandexpertise ofcollecting,navigating,andinterpretinginformationarevitalinanynumberofcontexts. Granted,librarianswillprobablycontinuetoneedhomeinstitutionsinordertoearna
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living.Butweneedtothinkbeyondtheresourcesandcollectionsofthehomeinstitution. Howdowedigitallymakeavailableourinstitutionsmaterials?,isthewrongquestion. ThisiswhatleadstothesilosyndromeandredundancythatZorichidentifies.Instead, thequestionneedstobe:Howdoweleverageourinstitutionsmaterialstocreatea networkthatbestservesabaseofscholarlyandpublicusers? TheMediaHistoryDigitalLibrarymaybeanextremeexampleofleveragingasmall collectiontobuildsomethinggranderinscale.Asidefromasmallnumberofbooks ownedbytheprojectsfounder,DavidPierce,allofthematerialswehavedigitizedhave beenloanedbyinstitutionsandprivatecollections. Imsomeonewhoisinvestedinthesuccessofdigitallibrariesasasource forinformationaccessibleonagranderscale,andasawayformore publicinstitutionstotakethereinsaspublishers.ButIhavealways wondered,whoistheaudienceandhowdoyoulinkPersonAupwith ResourceB? Whoistheaudience?issuchavitalquestion!FartoomanyDigitalHumanitiesprojects consistofwebsitesthatnoonevisits.Scholarsdontspendtimeusingthem.Neither doesthepublic. Unsworthhitsthenailontheheadwhenhewrites,Whatscompellingtofacultyistheir ownresearch,andifthatresearchinvolvesuseorcreationofdigitalresources, collaborationwithothers,computationalmethods,etc.,thentheyllengagewiththose thingsnotfortheirownsake,butforthesakeoftheirresearch.Scholars,onthewhole, tendtobeefficientwiththeirtime.Theyspendtimeseekingouttheresourcesthatthey thinkwillbenefittheirwork.Anarticleordissertationcanbequicklydiscovered, skimmed,and,ifrelevant,cited.Sometimesacreativewebinterfaceororiginal navigationdesignmakesitharderforscholarstofindmaterialusableintheirresearch. Ironically,theseinnovationscanhavetheunintendedconsequenceofdrivingawayyour potentialuserbase. ThedesignoftheMediaHistoryDigitalLibraryismeanttofeelfamiliaranduser-friendly. Toenhancethewebsitesusabilityandresearchvalue,wearepreparingtobetatesta full-textsearchtoolthatwebuiltwithSolr(moreonthissoon).TheMHDLisalready popularwithfilmhistoriansanddevotedfanswhowerepreviouslyfamiliarwiththe historicperiodicalsonthesite.Wearehopingthefull-textsearchengineopensupthe projecttoamuchlargergroupofstudentsandfanswhoarepassionateaboutfilmand mediabutwhowerenotpreviouslyawareoftheexistenceoftheperiodicalslikeThe FilmDailyandPhotoplay.Becausefilmandmediaholdsomuchpopularinterest,we probablyhaveabroaderbaseofnon-academicusersthanotherimportantfieldsofthe humanitiesthatdonthavecableTVchannelsdedicatedtothem.Iwouldbecuriousto hearthethoughtsofscholarsworkinginotherHumanitiesfieldsabouttheopportunities anddifficultiestheyhaveencounteredinengagingnon-academicusers. Still,thequestionremains:Whoistheaudience?Whenascholarwalksthroughyour doorproposingaDigitalHumanitiescollaboration,Iwouldencourageyouasa librariantoforcethescholartotruthfullyanswerthatquestion.Justtobeclear,it doesnthavetobeabigaudience.Ifaprojectaddsvaluetothelivesofasmallbut dedicatedcommunityofusers,thenthatsgreat.However,youneedsomeidentifiable user-base.Onceyouidentifythatuser-base,designtheprojectinawaythatbest engagesthoseusers.Ifascholarcantanswertheaudiencequestion,thenthebest thingyoucandoisstarthelpinghimorherbrainstormanewdigitalproject.
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Databases & Digital Humanities: Whose Power? Whose Peril? | HASTAC

Databases&DigitalHumanities:Whose Power?WhosePeril?
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:10/20/201110:51pm Topics:Data&Information,HASTAC Scholars,InformationScience& Archiving,DigitalHumanities,Research &Methodologies more... Tags:datacuration,databases,digital archives,digitallibraries In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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ThispastTuesday,KatherineMontgomeryandIfacilitatedaconversation amongnineUniversityofIowa(UI)facultyandstaffwhoareallinvolved withdigitalresearchordigitalhumanitiesinitiativesinonewayoranother. Onethemeexpressedwastheimportanceofdatabasesinanyworkthat movesforward.Databasesruneverything,saidDr.JimElmborg,adding thattoEdFolsom,thedatabaseisthenewnarrative. Dr.ElmborgsprojectthatIhavethehonorofworkingonasagraduate assistantisaplantoinvestigateamid20thcenturyliterarymovement throughthetoolofadatabase.Theaimistocollectmetadataonthis literatureforthoseapproachingthetooltomanipulatefortheirown researchandlearninggoals.Dr.Elmborgbelievesthatcreatingdigital projectstodrivetheseschangestraditionalpracticesinthehumanities. Itsnolongertheprofessorgoddeterminingimportanceitsbottomup, potentiallygrassrootsknowledgediscovery. PaulDilley,whoisapartoftheUIsDHclusterhire,spokeofchallenges hesencounteredintryingtobringattentiontounknownEgyptianartand inscriptions.Histoolofchoice?Adatabase.Issuesarisingforhiminclude bibliographiccontrolandcopyrightroadblocksintryingtomakethese workspublic. Imayhavebeenprimedtoseetheimportanceofdatabasesasthebig takeawayfromTuesdaysdiscussionbecauseofhowimmersedIvebeen intheideaofthemsincespring.TherearethingsIunderstandandthings Idontunderstand.Theythriveatboththebigvisionlevelaswellasthe minutedetaillevel. Databasesarenotonlycriticaltomycurrentprojectbutalsoshepherdmy onlineexistencefromonegrowingpaintothenext.WhatdoesFacebook andGoogleandTwitterstoreaboutme?HowmanyblogshaveIreadand learnedfrom?AndhowwouldmyHASTACScholarblogworkwithout one? OfthemanyideasfromTuesdaysdiscussionthatIneedtofollowuponis theideathatdatabasesaretiedtoculturalandsocialimperatives.Thisis notsomethingIfeelconfidenttowriteaboutwithoutadditionalreferences. ThestatementcamefromDr.AndrBrock,whoholdsajointappointment withtheSchoolofLibraryandInformationScienceandtheProjecton RhetoricandInquiry.Imcurrentlytakingacoursefromhim,soitshouldnt betoohardtohavehimelaborate.Butmyhunchisthatrelyingsolelyon thistoolmaybeaculturalzerosumgame(i.e.,therewillbewinnersand losers). Formeandmyconcernsaboutdatacurationanddigitalpreservation,the pitfallshavetodealwiththelongtermaccessibilityandreliabilityofthe infrastructureassystemschange.Insomeways,digitaldataishighly fragile.Afileextensionthatworkstodaymaybeobsoletetomorrow,while acrumblingbookisstillabook.Isthisanemptyconcern? Whilelookingaroundforinformationondatacuration,Icameacrossthe DataConservancyinitiative,whichaimstopreservedatacollectedfor scientificstudy.AlthoughourdataisdifferentthedataImworkingto organizeissquarelyintherealmofthehumanitiesIhavemuchtolearn
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fromtheDataConservancysapproach.Imguessinganydata managementplanthatresultsfromthiswillinvolvedatabasesheavily. Despitecausesforconcern,potentialusesfordatabasesinDHprojects areexciting.Theirroleshouldntbetakenforgrantedortreatedasa magicalormysticalsystem.Bettertounderstandwhatdominatesus ratherthansuccumbtoitswhimsorthewhimsofitsprogrammers.
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Why Don't We Do This More Often? Co-Working Across Disciplines | HASTAC

WhyDon'tWeDoThisMoreOften?CoWorkingAcrossDisciplines
View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:2/28/2012-12:59am Topics:Academia,HigherEducation, Institutions&Organizations Tags:co-working,feedback, interdisciplinary,jelly In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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LastFriday,Iattendeda workshopintendedtobe aboutworkingwithdigital toolsinresearch.Wewound updiscussingpresentation strategiesforourresearch, andIwalkedawaywithsolid directionabouthowto combinetheconceptual backgroundofmyresearchwiththecompositionalframingfor aposterIneedtodesigninthenextmonth. Beingabletodiscussmyworkwithothersinalow-risk environmentlaunchedmeahead.Ihadnofacultymembers there,nosupervisorstoshowdeferenceto,itwasafree platformtotalkaboutwhatIwanttoachievetopeoplecoming fromtheirownresearch-drivenperspectives.Ifoundmyself point-blanksaying(succinctly)exactlywhatIwantedto accomplishwiththisresearchandwhereitfitinwiththe biggerpicture,somethingIhaventyetbeenableto accomplishinanabstract. ThatIgetit!expressiononmycolleaguesfaceisalookI wishIcouldframe.Ididntfeelthepressuretousejargonas ashibbolethtoallowmeentryintothisorthatdisciplines conversation.Itwasaboutgettingtothepoint.AndIlovedit. Theevolutionofthestudybuddyalongtheacademic continuum,thejellyfallsintothatco-workingcampwhere thepointistoputonapotofcoffeeanddosomework.Im sureImnottheonlyonewithaninconsistentscheduleand anever-expandingto-dolist.Whetheryoumeetoverteaor coffeewithanextrakick,thepointistomeetanddo.Itsnot justdigitaltoolsthatcanfacilitateworkgettingdone,people canplayapowerfulsupportroleinfiguringoutwheretogo next. InthediscussionsIvebeenapartofthispastyear,theidea ofaspaceforwhomevertocometogethertotalkaboutdigital humanities-relatedtopics,projects,orideashascomeup. Whatsthebestwaytogetpeopletogetherforthis?Host monthlymeet-upsatalocalpub?Requestthatanon-campus organizationinterestedinsupportinginterdisciplinary interactionshostseminarsfordifferentlevelsofthe institutionshierarchy?ConveneaTHATCamp?Oracrossfieldconferenceforgraduatestudents? MytimeinmyprogramistickingdownasItype.Im privilegedtobeapartofsomeoftheseinitiativesnow.Ihope interdisciplinaryco-workingmeet-upscontinuetospreadafter
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Digital Humanities Resource Guide | HASTAC

DigitalHumanitiesResourceGuide
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BecauseIminalibraryandinformationscience programandhaveadeepinterestinthedigital humanities,whenanassignmenttocreateasubject guidecameup,IhadtochooseDHasafocus.Itwas reallyinformativetoworkon,andIwoundupgrabbing resourcesthatIthoughtdemonstratedthefieldandits historywell.IalsowounduppointingtotheHASTAC blogsandforumsasaresourceforpeoplenewtoDHto findoutmore. Imadetheassignmentpubliconmyblog,butthought, whynothostacopyhere? Enjoy!
ThetermDigitalHumanities(oftencalledDHbymembersofthe DigitalHumanitiescommunity)wasnotwidelyusedonuniversity campusesuntilthe21stcentury.Nowsomeseeitasawaytorebuild thehumanitiesinatimewheregrantfundsareallocatedto innovationsinlieuofresearch.Othersseeitasanaturalfitfor theirscholarlyresearch,wheretheycombinetechniquesborrowed fromthecomputationalsciencesandapplythemtosubjectsthatteach aboutcultures,histories,andwaysoflife. FewscholarsdefineDigitalHumanitiesthesameway.TheDayof DigitalHumanitiesisaninitiativethatasksthosewhoconsider themselvesdigitalhumaniststoblogabouttheiractivitiesthroughout theday,buildingawarenessofthetypesofthingstheydo.Inorderto participateintheDayofDH,onemustdefinewhatthetermmeansto them.Answerstothequestion,HowdoyoudefineDH?rangefrom Youdont(erochest)toThedevelopment,exploration,and evaluationofcomputerbasedtechnologiesandresourcesforenabling thepursuitofresearchquestionsinthehumanities(SusanBrown). DigitalHumanitiesscholarshiphasgrowninternationallysincethe mid1980s.In1986,OxfordUniversityPresspublishedthefirstissue ofthejournalLiteraryandLinguisticComputing,whichwasanearly forayintousingcomputationaltechnologiestoadvancehumanities scholarship.TheUniversityCollegeofLondon(UCL)Centrefor DigitalHumanitiespublishedaninfographiccalledQuantifyingthe DigitalHumanities,whichbeganasablogpostwrittenbyMelissa Terrasaftershebegangatheringstatisticsonthecurrentstateof DigitalHumanitiesscholarshipindicators.Theinfographic,also preservedonWikipedia.org,displaystherapidgrowthofinterestand scholarshipinthefield.
Author:MelodyDworak Posted:4/23/20126:55pm Topics:HASTACScholars,Information Science&Archiving,DigitalHumanities, DigitalMedia&Learning,HASTAC In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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Schreibman,S.,Siemens,R.,&Unsworth,J.(2004).Companionto DigitalHumanities(BlackwellCompanionstoLiteratureand Culture).BlackwellCompanionstoLiteratureandCulture (Hardcover.).Oxford:BlackwellPublishingProfessional.Retrieved fromhttp://www.digitalhumanities.org/companion/ CompaniontoDigitalHumanitiesisoneoftheseminalworks
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thatpublishedacollectionofwritingsspanningseveral disciplines.Thistextbookprovidesthirtysevenchapterson topicsinvolvinghumanitiescomputing,atermusedbyDr. JohnUnsworthbeforethetermDigitalHumanitiesbecame morewidespread.Thetextbookisdividedintofourparts: History;Principles;Applications;andProduction, Dissemination,andArchiving.Giventheseminalnatureof thiswork,itisatextbookoftenusedingraduatelevelcourses ontheDigitalHumanities.Popularareasofresearchcovered includeLiteracyStudies,Multimedia,TextualAnalysis,and SpeculativeComputing.Atitsheart,thetextbookaimsto enlightenreadersonthelessonslearnedinapplying computationaltoolsandmethodstoresearchinquiry. Schreibman,S.,&Siemens,R.(2008).CompaniontoDigital LiteracyStudies(BlackwellCompanionstoLiteratureandCulture) (Hardcover.).Oxford:BlackwellPublishingProfessional.Retrieved fromhttp://www.digitalhumanities.org/companionDLS Anothercriticaltextbook,CompaniontoDigitalLiteracy StudiescontainschaptersusedinDigitalHumanitiescourses. Outsideoftheintroduction,ImaginingtheNewMedia Encounter,theworkissplitintothreeadditionalparts: Traditions,Textualities,andMethodologies.Thetextbook followsintheCompaniontoDigitalHumanitiesStudies footstepsbymaintainingafocusonmethodologytoteachhow computationaltoolscanbeappliedinhumanitiesscholarship contexts.Thistextbook,however,keepspacewiththerapidly changingdigitalmediarealmsthataffectlearningandmaking meaningoftheworldaroundus.Sobybeingpublishedin 2008,thistextcouldthenincludenewunderstandingsonhow newmediatoolssuchasgamesandblogscanplayarolein literacy. Balsamo,A.(2011).DesigningCulture:TheTechnological ImaginationatWork.DukeUniversityPressBooks. DesigningCulture:TheTechnologicalImaginationatWorkis apolemiconhowcultureinfluencestechnologyandviceversa. DesigningCultureanditscompanioninteractivewebsite demonstratehownewmediacanbeoneoutlettorealize DigitalHumanitiesprojects.Ofparticularfocusinthebookis recountingvisionsforthefutureofthedocument.Howwill technologychangehowweread?Havingbegunworkonthis bookanditstransmediaiterations,readingandmedia literacieshavealreadybeenexposedtothedigitalrevolutionof readingbroughtonbysmartphonesandtablets.Designing Culturemaybeanintellectuallyentertainingentranceintothe realmofnewmediaasitunfoldsinourwaysoflife.
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Fyfe,P.(2011).DigitalPedagogyUnplugged,DigitalHumanities Quarterly5(3).Retrievedfrom http://www.digitalhumanities.org/dhq/vol/5/3/000106/000106.html BecauseDigitalHumanitieshaveanintimateconnectionto institutionsofhighereducation,whereteachingplaysa similarlycriticalroleasresearch,thetopicofpedagogy interlacesitselfwithdigitalresearchquestions.Whatgoodis buildingknowledgewithoutbeingabletoshareandteachit? InDigitalPedagogyUnplugged,Dr.PaulFyfeexploresthe meaningofdigitallearningwithoutthefacilitationof instructionaltechnology.Withtheinstructionalcrutchof PowerPointbullets,theauthordescribeslearningmoments thatsubvertthenew,sometimesunproductivewaysof teaching.Byplayingwiththeideaofpullingtheplugon instructionaltechnology,theauthorurgesotherscholar teacherstoreflectontheirdigitalpedagogy.
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Gibbs,F.(2012).CriticalDiscourseintheDigitalHumanities. JournalofDigitalHumanities1(1). http://digitalhumanitiesnow.org/2012/01/criticaldiscourseinthe digitalhumanitiesbyfredgibbs JournalofDigitalHumanitiesisanew,openaccessjournal whosefirstissuewasreleasedMarch2012.Thejournal publishespieceswithanopenpeerreviewprotocolratherthan theanonymizedpeerreviewtradition.Openpeerreviewmakes apubliccallforreviewersthroughwhateverpublicitychannels availableandcommentsareattachedtothenamesofthe peoplereviewingtheitem.CriticalDiscourseintheDigital Humanitieshighlightsthelackofsuchdiscoursecurrentlyin thisfield.Thearticlewasrevisedfromatalkandisdividedinto threesections:TowardsaCriticalDiscourse,TheValueof Criticism,andNewKindsofPeerReview/Criticism.Inthat lastsection,theauthoradvocatesforasimilarsortofpeer reviewhisownpiecewentthroughtobepublishedinthisopen accessjournal.HealsohighlightshowDigitalHumanities effortsoftenrequirecollaboration,andtheresulting scholarshipwouldthrivefromsuchcollaborativereviewingas well. BucherGillmayr,S.(1996).AComputerAidedQuestforAllusionsto BiblicalTextsWithinLyricPoetry.LiteraryandLinguistic Computing,11(1),18.doi:10.1093/llc/11.1.1 http://llc.oxfordjournals.org/content/11/1/1 Firstpublishedin1986,thejournalLiteraryandLinguistic ComputingfromtheOxfordUniversityPressisoneofthe earliestjournalsthatpublishedarticlesonusing computationalmethodsinhumanitiesresearch.AComputer AidedQuestforAllusionstoBiblicalTextsWithinLyric Poetryisatitlethatdescribesexactlythat:thisisahumanities researchinquiryundertakenthroughtheaidofthecomputeras atool.Thearticledescribesmarkingtextstodiscover relationshipsbetweentwogenreswithcenturiesseparating them.Theauthorprimarilyusedtaggingandsearchmethods toreimaginemeaningswithinthepoemsstudied.Someuseof computeraidedtextualanalysishascomeundercriticismfor beingunscholarlyatitsroot.Havingthepurposeandmethods elaboratedoninarticlesallowsreaderstojudgetheresearch individually. Sweetnam,M.S.,&Fennell,B.A.(2012).Naturallanguage processingandearlymoderndirtydata:applyingIBMLanguageware tothe1641depositions.LiteraryandLinguisticComputing,27(1),39 54.doi:10.1093/llc/fqr050 http://llc.oxfordjournals.org.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/content/27/1/39.full Usingmorerobustcomputationaltoolsthanwereavailablein 1996,NaturalLanguageProcessingandEarlyModernDirty Data:ApplyingIBMLanguagewaretothe1641Depositions elaboratesonhowtheresearchersadaptedapieceofsoftware inordertoexaminearichbodyofhistoricaldocuments.This piecedescribesthestrengthsofthesoftware,thechallengesof theproject,andhowtheyhadtoadapttheprocessalongthe way.Thearticleemphasizestheamountoftestingnecessaryto ensurecomputationalmethodsaresoundandrigorous.Their aimwastodevelopamodelthatcouldbeusedonotherlarge collectionsoftexts.Thispiecedemonstrateshowdigitaland computationaltoolsmustnotbeusedcarelesslyforthepurpose offittinginwiththeDigitalHumanitiescommunityofpraxis.
ReferenceSource
MappingHistory http://mappinghistory.uoregon.edu/ (DigitalLearningToolExample) TheSpreadofCotton:17901860.(n.d.)Mappinghistory. UniversityofOregon.
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http://mappinghistory.uoregon.edu/english/US/US18 01.html ManyDigitalHumanitiesprojectsturntogeolocationaldata andmappingsoftwaretodiscoverpatternsforscholarly research.Mapsarealsousedtoteachhistoricalinformationin aninteractive,newmediaformat.TheSpreadofCotton:1790 1860isanexampleofsuchamap.Factsarerepresentedas thecombinationoftextandillustrations,andtheperson interactingwiththetooldeterminesthepathonwhichthe storyunwinds.Informationrichmapsallownewquestionsto beaskedbyenthusiastswhomayhavetraditionallybeen alienatedbybarriersintheacademy.ThroughTheSpreadof Cotton:17901860,learnersatalllevelscanengagewitha DigitalHumanitiesinterfacetoexploretheirindividual interests.
Websites
HASTAC hastac.org HASTAC(Humanities,Arts,Sciences,andTechnology AdvancedCollaboratory)isanonlinecommunityofscholars whoseresearchaccomplishmentsandinterestsspanthefields ofstudythatcompriseitsacronym.Someofthemostcurrent ideasinDigitalHumanitiesarepostedonthiswebsite. AccordingtotheHASTACwebsite,Wearemotivatedbythe convictionthatthedigitaleraprovidesrichopportunitiesfor informalandformallearningandforcollaborative,networked researchthatextendsacrosstraditionaldisciplines,acrossthe boundariesofacademeandcommunity,acrossthetwo culturesofhumanismandtechnology,acrossthedivideof thinkingversusmaking,andacrosssocialstrataandnational borders.HASTACthrivesoninterdisciplinarityofresearch andconvenesconferencesandeventsforscholarsatalllevels intheiracademiccareers.Theorganizationwasfoundedby Dr.CantyN.DavidsonandDr.DavidTheoGoldbergto advanceinterdisciplinaryinquiryandexchange. DMLCentral dmlcentral.net DMLCentralisablogfocusedontheapplicationofdigital mediainaclassroom,mostoftenK12.Thethreewordsthat makeuptheacronym(digitalmedialearning)eachfinda homeinDigitalHumanitiesscholarshipontheirown,but together,theybringanewframetoanoldquestion:Howdoes mediaaffectlearning?Theblogpublisheswritingand resourcesthatexplorethepotentialofdifferentdigitaltools anddigitalenvironmentstoenhancetheeducationalgrowthof youth.ThefocusofDMLCentralisonoriginalinquiryintothe effectsofdigitalmediaonyouthandthepotentialimpact innovativeteachingstrategiesmayhavetoadvance21st centurylearning.Inadditiontotheblogcomponentofthe website,DMLCentraldisseminatesthelatestresourcescoming outofthedigitalmediaandlearningcommunity,including reports,conferencepapers,andkeynotepresentations.In additiontobeingontheexecutiveboardatHASTAC,Dr.David TheoGoldbergistheexecutivedirectorofDigitalMediaand LearningResearchHub,theorganizationbehindtheblog.
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Feminist Hulk Goes To (My) School: Exploring the use of Twitter as a research method | HASTAC
FeministHulkGoesTo(My)School: ExploringtheuseofTwitterasaresearch method

View Comments Author:MelodyDworak Posted:9/23/20114:01pm Topics:Academia,Arts&Humanities, Gender&Sexuality,OnlineIdentity, SocialNetworks&SocialMedia more... Tags:digitalandsocialmedia,feminism, FeministHulk,twitter In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012
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@FEMINISTHULKcameoutinaninterviewwithMs. Magazine,publishedAug.22,asanEnglishPh.D.studentat TheUniversityofIowawhereIgo!Cuetheschoolpride. Threeweeksago,theresachanceIspottedthetweeter behindthehandlewaitingfortheelevatorintheuniversitys MainLibrary.Allofmyclassesmeetinthisbuilding,and anyonetraversingthroughisfairgameformycaffeine drainedwarpath,whichprobablylooksmorelikeawarlimp. Dredsupinaheadwrap,babyinaslingrestingonherbelly,I lookandthendoubletake.ArethesetheeyeglassesIve seenonline?Isthatapeekofceruleantealdyestraggling rebelliouslyoutsidetheheadwrapasifasingleclusteris readytostanduptosmashthepatriarchy?Isthereasonshe seemsfamiliarbecauseshehasmorethan46,500followers forsayingthingslike,HULKWONDERIFSTRAIGHTFOLK EVERGETASKEDIFTHEYARE"SURE"ABOUT ORIENTATION,ORNOTTOBESO"BLATANT"ABOUT IT. Inactuality,shecouldbeanywhite,vegan,queer,woman identifiedfemalePh.D.candidatehereatIowa.Butwhatif shewasthe@FEMINISTHULK?RunningintoaTwitter celebritysomeoneyouknowandyetdontknowcan happenwhenyouleastexpectit. Ihavemorehopeforthepossibilityofauniqueinteraction withanonlinecelebritythanIdoingettingapersonal responsefrommyCongressperson.Whenyourepublicly accessible,youdontknowwhoslisteningtoyourthoughts. Soyoucanmentiontheworkofsomeonewhoinspiresyou andheorshemightretweetyouandevenrespond.This happenedtomeafterIhadfinishedreadingSiva Vaidhyanathansbook,TheGooglizationofEverything,and wrotearesponseponderingaboutitonmypersonalblog.(It mayhelpifsaidauthororcelebrityissittingatanairport, waitingforaconnectingflighttogotoaconferenceforother professionalsinyourfield,buthey,ithappenedsoIma believer.) [BLANK]HulksonTwitterarentuncommon.Ifollowed @EDTECHHULKforaboutayearbeforeIgotalittlebored. Whendonewell,HulkTwittermemeprofilesprovideinsightful commentarycomingfromavoicewithinaknowledge community.Butasafriendofminesaid,Feministhulkisthe bestone.S/hesironic(identifiesasmalefortheTwitter profilebutfemaleIRL),appropriatingahighlymasculine
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comicbookcharacterforthepurposeofdisseminatinga feministmessage. Itsnotacoincidencethat@FEMINISTHULKhasafirm backgroundinfeministandliterarytheory.Seemstomethat thebest140characteronelinerscomefromadeep internalizationoftheobjectofstudy.Experimentingwith scholarlythoughtpubliclyonTwitter,whetherincharacteror not,makestheinternalexternal.Itsafantasticmediumfor lowriskdiscoursedrivenexperimentsthatcanprovide evidenceofamainstreamaudienceforanesotericsubject. AsaTwitterproject,@FEMINSTHULKisprimarilyonesided communication.Shoutoutshappen,butconversationsare hardertoobserve.Itslessaformatforcollectinginformation intheempiricalresearchtradition,butmorefordisseminating it.Withoutadocumentedbackandforth,itshardtocall whatsgoingonherecommunitybuilding.Butwhat,then,is it?Itseemslessaboutresearchthanitisaboutproduction,a productionthatfallsverymuchoutsidetheacademy.Yetits morethanentertainment. PerhapsthatswhyIfindthisTwitterprojectrelevanttothe HASTACcommunityitmaynotbeanuniversityendorsed digitalhumanitiesproject,butitisanexplorationofadigital mediumthatgleansinformationonaninter/national temperamentofascholarlydiscourse.CreatingaTwitter persona(or,youknow,justtweetingasyourself)toengagea nonuniversityaudiencehasthepotentialformeaningful feedbackonresearch.Itsaboutcultivatinganonline communitytopeerreviewyour140characters.Clickingthe Followbuttonindicatespassiveapprovalofwhatsbeing said.Andresponsesareopportunitiesforpublicengagement. Disclaimer:Imayhaveabiasedopinionaboutthisbecause myprofessionalcommunitythelibraryandinformation sciencegeekshasembracedTwitterasatoolforsharing informationwitheachother.Thismakesmethinkeveryone coulddeveloponlinecommunitiesintheirdisciplineifacritical massamasses.Iveseenotherfriendsandcolleaguesnot makeittothisstage,sothiskindofexperimentationisnot withoutchallengesandlimitations. Regardless,Iencouragethoselookingfortheirdiscourse communitytobeboldandbepublicinonlineforumslike Twitter.Somebodyouttheremaybeyearningtohearwhat youhavetosay.
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AshleyJackson 39weeks3hoursago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Twitterismostdefinitelyagreatplacetonotonlyshareyourthoughts,buttoreachoutto othersaswell.IthinksometimesIforgetthattwitterwasinititallystartedforcelebrity stalkingsotospeak,andithasbeenawayformetoconnectwithmyfriendsandtheir thoughts.HaveyoueverbeenonTumblr?Itisalsoanewmeanstocommunicateall sortsofthingssuchasfandom,thoughts,experiencesthroughthemediumofblogging.I haveone,andmyfriendshavethemtoo.Youshouldcreateoneorevenexplore someoneelse'sjusttoseewhatitislike.Thetransferofenergygetsserious. Farewell, Ashley
Tumblr,Wordpress,Blogger,OhMy!
MelodyDworak
IhaveaTumblrthatIdon'tusebecausewhenIwascreatingmyblog,Iwasgoing fortheonlineportfolio/researchblogformat.Iliketheideaofblogging(and
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39weeks2hoursago Loginorregisterto postcomments
microblogging)forthepurposeofsharingoriginalthoughts.AlotofusesofTumblr seemtoberesharingcoolthings,andthatwasn'twhatIwasgoingfor.Onething aboutsharingpubliclyviabloggingormicrobloggingisthatitcanbesuchatime investment,sochoosingformatsfeelslikeagreatercommitment!LookslikeI abandonedTumblr(andtheduckfaceprofilepic)inAugust2010. TheshortformTumblrmaybemoreconducivetothequicksharingofthoughts,tho? There'snotawholelotofthoughtorenergyexchangeonmyblog. Thanksforyourcomment!
RealConversationsonTumblr
I'dthoughtof(andamusing)Tumblrasaphotobloggingsite,butI'vefounda numberofreallygoodconversationsthere(forwhatI'vefound,atthe intersectionoffeministpolitics,minorityidentityandcomics):it'sremarkably wellsuitedtoshorterblogpostsandviralcommentary:rebloggingspreads thingsfarandwide,andallowsforthespreadofideasacrossnetworks remarkablyeffectively. It'skindoftheoppositeofGoogle+,whichconfinesthingstocircles.OnTumblr, youcanwatchsomethingspreadfromanacademichumanitiesblogtoa comicsnetworktoasustainaibilitynetworktoasteampunknetworktoafashion network...it'sgreatfortalkingtopeople*outside*thosetiresomeechochamber circles.
GreatFeedback
Thisisgreattoknow.Ishouldreallystarttouseitmorebuthavebeen concernedaboutinvestingalotoftimetodevelopmynicheandstartusing itwell.Doyouhavestrategiesforcultivatingthetypeofcommunitiesyou're talkingabout?
justgeneralwebdistraction
andsafelyassumingthatenoughpeoplewhosharemyinterestin ThingAwilalsogetmenetworkedtoThingsBthroughZ.It'sdefinitely atimesuck,andjudicioususeofthe(quitegood)searchfeaturewould havemadetheprocessmoreefficient. IuseTumblrforvisualtreats(asidefrommyownproject,whichwasa *great*selfdisciplinetoolpostoneimageadayfrommyresearchfor ayearI'maboutamonthfromdonewithouthavingmissedaday, anditgotmedoinga*lot*morework,andmoreopentoserendipity, thanIwouldhaveotherwise),soI'vegonewiththeinefficient wanderingbutonecouldbemorefocused. LetusknowwhatyoudecidetodoI'dlovetoseewhatyoucomeup with.
You'vegotmethinkingthat
You'vegotmethinkingthatperhapsTumblrisevenlowerrisk thanTwitterasaresearchtool,andonethatpotentiallyyields greaterrewards.MaybeI'llstartaDHthemedonesothatitcan beflexiblebutfocused?Thatwoulddefinitelyassisthaving inspirationandmaterialformyHASTACblog.Icuratearticles throughPearltreesandCurated.by,whichmaybesimilarbut seemstorequiremorestructure.Thosearemorepermanent bookmarkingtools,tho,andaren'tdesignedtobeas serendipitous,eventhoughtheyattempttocreateuser communities. Iaminspired!
woot!
JohnCarter McKnight 38weeks5daysago
That'sagreatplan!Keepusposted!
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Followed!
Yyyup!
Tweetingandbiologicalrhythms!
Katherine Montgomery 38weeks6daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
TwitterStudyTracksWhenWeAre:) http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/30/science/30twitter.html Iamsadlynegligentaboutmytweeting,andthisisnotquite100%relevant...but...I thoughtthismightberelevanttoyourinterests??
Thanksforthelink!
I'mterriblyinterestedinanysocialmediastudy,sothissuitsmejustfine.Myinstinct aboutthisgraphistosuggestweexpectotherswanttohearwe'rehavingagreat starttomyday!!sothatwedon'tpoisonthecrowdwithourgrumpiness.It'ssomuch aboutpublicperformance.Willreadthisarticle,thanksmuch!
BloggingasProcess
AnyaVentura 37weeks1dayago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Heyeverybody, IknowI'mabitlatetothisconversation,butIjustwanttosecondtheuseofblogsas researchprocess!Myresearchinterestshaveatendencyofbeingalloverthemap(or,at leasttheconnectionsarenotimmediatelyapparent)andtheTumblrhasalreadybeen usefultomeinhighlightingtheconnectionsbetweendifferentlinesofinquiry.Likealot ofpeople,Itendtothinkthroughthewritingprocessandbeingstringentaboutposting hasreallyhelpedmewritemoreandsolidifydifferentideas.I'malsoveryinterestedin process,documentation,andmakinglearningvisible,andtheblogisagreatwaytodo that.Ithoughtthearticle"ThinkinginTumblr" (http://observersroom.designobserver.com/alexandralange/post/thinkingin...)hadsome reallyinterestingthingstosaynotonlyaboutitsusefulnessintheresearchprocess,but asakindofhistoricaldocument:"consideringthishistoryproject,mymindreassembled itspiecesasablog,asynchronic,motley,sketchy.Roughratherthansmooth.Anarchive ofaffinitiesratherthanaresolvedhistory." Melody,whatplatformdoyouuseforyourresearchblog?Ihavefound,asyouguys havenoted,thattheTumblrisn'tbestsuitedtolongformwriting,andI'minterestedto weighsthebenefitsofwhatelseisoutthere.Suggestions? Anya
Thanksforyourcomment
MelodyDworak 36weeks18hours
I'mgladyouweren'tshyaboutrespondingafterit'sbeenupforawhile.Blog commentsdon'thavedeadlines(unlessusedinclassroompedagogy,ofcourse).
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ago Loginorregisterto postcomments
I'vebeenusingaWordPressinstallationformylongformblog.WPhasbeenvery userfriendlyeasytonavigate,plethoraoffreethemes,nostresspublishing.Itdoes haveanissuewithspamcomments,beingsuchapopularblogformat,but moderatingcommentsshouldpreventanyfromsneakingthrough. Soundslikededicatedpostingisagreatmethodtousingbloggingasaresearch tooleffectively.FeelfreetopostyourTumblrURLheresopeoplecancheckitout andfollow.Ijuststartedmyown(http://beyondthemelody.tumblr.com/)stillfiddling withit,tho.I'dlovetofollowotherresearchmicroblogstoseepeople'sapproaches. Thanksforthelinktothearticle,too!Interestingread.
Tumblr&Hulks
MariahCherem 35weeks6daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
Anya,thanksforsharingthelinkto"ThinkinginTumblr."WhenIfirststarted experimentingwithTumblr,IthoughtthatIwoulduseitmoretojotandsharequick thoughts.Astimepassed,Ifoundmyselfjustsharing/resharingcontentusingitmore likesvpplyorPinterestthanTumblr,butIdothinkthere'salotmorepotentialthere,and it'sgreattoreadthatpiece. KatherineIdigthebiorythmn/twitterchart.Itmakesmethinkofoneofmyfavorite Twitter/emotionvizualizations,WeFeelFine:http://www.wefeelfine.org And...thisisalittlebitofatangent,butreadingFilmCritHulk'smostrecentgamereview mademewishthatFeministHulkandhecoulddoatagteam review/reaction:http://bit.ly/q2ptc3
ThanksforthelinktoWe
Katherine Montgomery 35weeks6daysago Loginorregisterto postcomments
ThanksforthelinktoWeFeelFine!Ihadn'tseenitIlovevisualizations.:)
Thosepics
ThosepicsontheFilmCritHulk'spostremindmeofpressing58008onanoldschool calculatorthenturningitupsidedown.Theimageryissojuniorhigh,rollyreyes obvious.(Inotherwords,atagteamlikethatwouldbeawesome.) TakingadvantageofthecommentEditfunction:WeFeelFineisfantastic!Thevisuals arelovelyandpostsconjurethatserendipitousfeeling.Thanksforsharing!I've passediton.
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10 New Years Resolutions for Budding Digital Humanists | HASTAC

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10 New Years Resolutions for Budding Digital Humanists | HASTAC

It'sbeenveryinspiringtoseeallthediscussionsonhere.Theblogsareagreat placetothrowoutideas,getfeedback,andtoseewherepeopleareintheirown thinking.

10 New Years Resolutions for Budding Digital Humanists | HASTAC

10 New Years Resolutions for Budding Digital Humanists | HASTAC

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Thatwasoneofmyfavoritepointsaswell.There'sdefinitelyalinebetween interpretationtoexploremeaningandinterpretationtoinfluencemeaning.Avoiding thelattergivesusgreatercredibilitythroughanattemptatobjectivity,whileavoiding

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Video: Digital Humanities for Museums and Archives | HASTAC

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Announcing THATCamp Iowa City, March 30-April 1, 2012 | HASTAC

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Announcing THATCamp Iowa City, March 30-April 1, 2012 | HASTAC

Defining Terms: My First Step in Visualizing DH Crowdsourcing Models | HASTAC

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Defining Terms: My First Step in Visualizing DH Crowdsourcing Models | HASTAC

Digital Humanities for all? | HASTAC

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Author:MelodyDworak Posted:1/24/201211:37pm Topics:HASTACScholars,Digital Humanities Tags:#digitalhumanities,citizenscholar, humanities,language,lexicon more... In:Scholars,ScholarClass2012

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haversofinformation,whichisacorepurposeofourefforts here.Digitalhumanitiesinitiativeshavethepotentialto connectlikemissionedindividualswithdifferentexpertiseand expandthepossibilitiesforlearning.Withsuchdiversetalent, optionsbecomeopportunities. Iamthrilledtobeapartofthis.

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Databases & Digital Humanities: Whose Power? Whose Peril? | HASTAC

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Databases & Digital Humanities: Whose Power? Whose Peril? | HASTAC

Why Don't We Do This More Often? Co-Working Across Disciplines | HASTAC

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