Digital Humanities Research Articles

An STS analysis of a digital humanities collaboration: trading zones, boundary objects, and interactional expertise in the DECRYPT project

A widely shared recognition over the past decade is that the methodology and the basic concepts of science and technology studies (STS) can be used to analyze collaborations in the cross-disciplinary field of digital humanities (DH). The concepts of trading zones (Galison, 2010), boundary objects (Star and Griesemer, 1989), and interactional expertise (Collins and Evans, 2007) are particularly fruitful for describing projects in which researchers from massively different epistemic cultures (Knorr Cetina, 1999) are trying to develop a common language. The literature, however, primarily concentrates on examples where only two parties, historians and IT experts, work together. More exciting perspectives open up for analysis when more than two, more nuanced and different epistemic cultures seek a common language and common research goals. In the DECRYPT project funded by the Swedish Research Council, computational linguists, historians, computer scientists and AI experts, cryptologists, computer vision specialists, historical linguists, archivists, and philologists collaborate with strikingly different methodologies, publication patterns, and approaches. They develop and use common resources (including a database and a large collection of European historical texts) and tools (among others a code-breaking software, a hand-written text recognition tool for transcription), researching partly overlapping topics (handwritten historical ciphers and keys) to reach common goals. In this article, we aim to show how the STS concepts are illuminating when describing the mechanisms of the DECRYPT collaboration and shed some light on the best practices and challenges of a truly cross-disciplinary DH project.

Visualization as irritation: producing knowledge about medieval courts through uncertainty

Visualizations are ubiquitous in data-driven research, serving as both tools for knowledge production and genuine means of knowledge communication. Despite criticisms targeting the alleged objectivity of visualizations in the digital humanities (DH) and reflections on how they may serve as representations of both scholarly perspective and uncertainty within the data analysis pipeline, there remains a notable scarcity of in-depth theoretical grounding for these assumptions in DH discussions. It is our understanding that only through theoretical foundations such as basic semiotic principles and perspectives on media modality one can fully assess the use and potential of visualizations for innovation in scholarly interpretation. We argue that visualizations have the capacity to “productively irritate” existing scholarly knowledge in a given research field. This does not just mean that visualizations depict patterns in datasets that seem not in line with prior research and thus stimulate deeper examination. Complementarily, “irritation” here consists of visualizations producing uncertainty about their own meaning—yet it is precisely this uncertainty in which the potential for greater insight lies. It stimulates questions about what is depicted and what is not. This turns out to be a valuable resource for scholarly interpretation, and one could argue that visualizing big data is particularly prolific in this sense, because due to their complexity researchers cannot interpret the data without visual representations. However, we argue that “productive irritation” can also happen below the level of big data. We see this potential rooted in the genuinely semiotic and semantic properties of visual media, which studies in multimodality and specifically in the field of Bildlinguistik have carved out: a visualization's holistic overview of data patterns is juxtaposed to its semantic vagueness, which gives way to deep interpretations and multiple perspectives on that data. We elucidate this potential using examples from medieval English legal history. Visualizations of data relating to legal functions and social constellations of various people in court offer surprising insights that can lead to new knowledge through “productive irritation.”

Digital ethnography: A qualitative approach to digital cultures, spaces, and socialites

This paper introduces principles for the application and challenges of small data ethnography in digital research. It discusses the need to incorporate ethics in every step of the research process. As teachers and researchers within the digital humanities, we argue for the value of a qualitative approach to digital contents, spaces, and phenomena. This article is relevant as a guide for students and researchers whose studies examine digital practices, phenomena, and social communities that occur in, through, or in relation to digital contexts.

Digitalization of Religious (Islamic) Education

This research explores the impact of digital methods in religious studies on students' global and community engagement within a liberal arts education. The university's Religious Studies department pioneers digital practices to promote civic awareness, global integration, and student empowerment through interactive learning. Small-scale community projects foster global skills, enhance learning, and promote diversity appreciation. One such project, "Digital Methods to Raise Awareness of Domestic Violence & Social Justice," involves creating and disseminating digital messages promoting environmental cleanliness. Insights from interdisciplinary experts, including those from Forman Christian College University, refine these practices. The study aims to standardize effective digital methods for liberal arts education, fostering community-centered individuals and contributing to the digital humanities field. Through experiences at Forman Christian College University, it enriches discussions on integrating digital methods in liberal arts education, fostering future teaching innovations.

Exploration of English Professional Talent Cultivation under the Perspective of Computer Training System and Digital Humanities

That use of electronic developments within speech instruction for that promotion of multidisciplinary study was explored within the context of a computerized training curriculum for the modern humanities. This technique may help individuals improve their analytical pondering, interaction, and crisis solution abilities, which will make them more marketable in today's competitive, international professional environment. In order to succeed in today's tech-driven society, professionals working with the English language should make use of computer-based educational methods and digitized antiquities. Its research provides an integrated example of the potential effectiveness of using such an exploratory educational package to help ESL university students acquire business interaction skills with an entrepreneurial mentality. Main research examines how pupils' involvement attitudes and perspectives regarding respect topic "workplace attitudes of thought" are affected by a one-time education situation, using the 5E cognitive method for its educational basis. The five-step framework consists of the following steps: introduction, investigation, presentation, development, and assessment. Further, every stage of education utilized education practices including academia-industry joint imparting a business outdoor journey, self-reflection, and task-based presentations to place an emphasis on the growth of pupils' interpersonal, shared, and ability to solve problems. Students' opinions on the usefulness of interaction exercises have been collected quantitatively and qualitatively via monthly diary entries and conversations with small groups of students. The research found that using an inquiry-driven method of education and studying helped pupils improve their involvement and practical and abstract abilities, including reasoning, teamwork, and language.

History of Education Meets Digital Humanities: A Field-Specific Finding Aid to Review Past and Present Research

ABSTRACT Research in the field of History of Education has experienced a remarkable increase in recent decades. Resulting publications are referenced in generalist databases that do not catalogue academic works according to the specific characteristics of History of Education. Seeking to give response to this bibliographic gap, we are developing a database catered for historians of education that aims to map out present, past, and future research. Conceived within the framework of Digital Humanities/Digital History, Hecumen is being designed, with the aid of Artificial Intelligence, as an open access finding aid that permits (1) conducting specific and multilevel complex engine searches, (2) having a panoramic view of publications; (3) mapping out relevant/missing areas of research, and, ultimately, (4) keeping up to date with the research produced by historians of education. This paper presents, contextualises, and problematises Hecumen – a digital tool that will facilitate and boost History of Education research.

Every Thing Can Be a Hero! Narrative Visualization of Person, Object, and Other Biographies

Knowledge communication in cultural heritage and digital humanities currently faces two challenges, which this paper addresses: On the one hand, data-driven storytelling in these fields has mainly focused on human protagonists, while other essential entities (such as artworks and artifacts, institutions, or places) have been neglected. On the other hand, storytelling tools rarely support the larger chains of data practices, which are required to generate and shape the data and visualizations needed for such stories. This paper introduces the InTaVia platform, which has been developed to bridge these gaps. It supports the practices of data retrieval, creation, curation, analysis, and communication with coherent visualization support for multiple types of entities. We illustrate the added value of this open platform for storytelling with four case studies, focusing on (a) the life of Albrecht Dürer (person biography), (b) the Saliera salt cellar by Benvenuto Cellini (object biography), (c) the artist community of Lake Tuusula (group biography), and (d) the history of the Hofburg building complex in Vienna (place biography). Numerous suggestions for future research arise from this undertaking.

Rethinking Plagiarism in the Era of Generative AI

The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, such as large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, has precipitated a paradigm shift in the realms of academic writing, plagiarism, and intellectual property. This article explores the evolving landscape of English composition courses, traditionally designed to develop critical thinking through writing. As AI becomes increasingly integrated into the academic sphere, it necessitates a reevaluation of originality in writing, the purpose of learning research and writing, and the frameworks governing intellectual property (IP) and plagiarism. The paper commences with a statistical analysis contrasting the actual use of LLMs in academic dishonesty with educator perceptions. It then examines the repercussions of AI-enabled content proliferation, referencing the limitation of three books self-published per day in September 2023 by Amazon due to a suspected influx of AI-generated material. The discourse extends to the potential of AI in accelerating research akin to the contributions of digital humanities and computational linguistics, highlighting its accessibility to the general public. The article further delves into the implications of AI on pedagogical approaches to research and writing, contemplating its impact on communication and critical thinking skills, while also considering its role in bridging the digital divide and socio-economic disparities. Finally, it proposes revisions to writing curricula, adapting to the transformative influence of AI in academic contexts. 

Are Digital Humanities platforms facilitating sufficient diversity in research? A study of the Transkribus Scholarship Programme

Abstract To what extent do Digital Humanities (DH) platforms support access to diverse user cohorts? We take, as a case study, the Automated Text Recognition (ATR) platform Transkribus and its Transkribus Scholarship Programme (TSP), which provides free processing credits to eligible users. Using a mixed methods approach we address the following questions: What are the demographics of those using the TSP scheme? What work is enabled by such a scheme? How can this inform more equitable access to DH platforms? The findings demonstrate how ATR tools are currently used and made accessible. TSP applicants are overwhelmingly students (n = 111/156, 71.15 per cent) drawn from universities and research institutes, mostly in Europe, but are globally distributed; representing institutions that do not hold shares in Transkribus, and indicating a diverse user pipeline. Further work is required to increase potential benefits of the scholarship and to ensure sustainability. Increased dialogue between the Recognition and Enrichment of Archival Document-COOP and applicants would assist in the calculation of processing costs. We show financial—or in-kind—support is necessary to increase access to paid-for platforms, ensuring a diversity of DH research. We also provide recommendations for platform providers and funding bodies regarding access and the impact this can have, including locating a sustainable balance between absorbing the costs of maintaining DH or digital scholarship tools and providing sufficient support and training to further enable diverse research.

"ECHOES OF THE FUTURE: BRIDGING TRADITION AND INNOVATION IN DIGITAL HUMANITIES AND ENGLISH LITERATURE"

Digital Humanities (DH) has emerged as a transformative field that integrates computational methods with humanities disciplines, including the study of English literature. This paper explores the evolving landscape of Digital Humanities and its impact on English literature studies. Through a comprehensive literature review and analysis of case studies, it examines the various ways in which digital tools and technologies are revolutionizing the study, analysis, and interpretation of literary texts. The paper also addresses challenges and opportunities presented by the intersection of Digital Humanities and English literature studies, highlighting potential for interdisciplinary collaboration, innovative scholarship, and enhanced understanding of literary works in the digital age.

Understanding the history of 1930s musical migrants to Britain through minimal computing-led digital humanities

Abstract This article explores how historical musicology can use computational methods within a minimal computing framework, recovering the performance histories of three migrant musicians, producing valuable new information about their careers. Líza Fuchsová, Maria Lidka, and Paul Hamburger all left Nazi-occupied Europe during the late 1930s and settled permanently in the UK. Fuchsová (1913-1977) was a Czech pianist who became an advocate for Czech musical culture as well as an important piano soloist; Hamburger (1920-2004) was an accompanist and teacher who left Vienna for London and became a senior figure in BBC radio and Guildhall professor; and Lidka (1914-2013) [Marianne Liedtke], was a violinist, orchestra leader and later Royal College of Music professor. Their careers have been underexplored, but machine-read digitised archives have opened new possibilities for finding and sorting what can seem like an overwhelming amount of performance data. This article uses a minimal computing led approach to demonstrate building a robust and accessible structure to interrogate performance data and establish performance histories. This article will demonstrate the value of this framework and will show how it can be applied to historical musicology work.

QUEERING DIGITAL LITERATURE AND DIGITAL WELL-BEING IN JEFF GARVIN’S SYMPTOMS OF BEING HUMAN

The development of digital technology and communication has brought about rapid transformation in the field of literature. Books, articles, blog posts, tweets, and conferences, that constitute the digital humanities have grown exponentially in the 21st century. The emergence of the digital space has received a quick response from various literary genres, and in no exception, queer literature, which ranges from online book publications to documenting queer experiences through blogs and more generic social networking sites like Facebook and Instagram, has not only become a popular and affordable space for the queer community but more than a socializing space across the globe. Queer literature on digital space can now be seen as the fastest-growing genre of literature that evolved. Jeff Garvin’s Symptoms of Being Human, which is written in the form of blog posts, explores the way in which this digital space has provided an opportunity for queer literature and the community to thrive by curating their identities online, reaching out to like-minded people across the globe, documenting their experiences, and educating the public about their unacknowledged identity and sexuality. The paper examines how this new mode of communication paved the way for digital well-being by maintaining a balance between the digital and the real world, accommodating and acculturating social space, acting morally and responsibly, and effectively managing digital and real-life interactions, as demonstrated in Jeff Garvin’s Symptoms of Being Human.

Plato’s Theaetetus end logos of the digital humanities

The specifics of the humanities are the study of the human and its offspring, already recalled by Socrates in the “Theaetetus”. The dialogue marks a substantial shift in Plato — the discovery to be attributed to Wincenty Lutosławski, the author of the chronology of Plato’s works — that is, from pre-existent and transcendental ideas to the categories of reason, from philosophy as the “love of wisdom” to the “love of knowledge”. Thus, contrary to the widely held view of the so-called lack of the definition of knowledge in the “Theaetetus”, I argue that the quest for knowledge refers to the logic of thinking — the theme related to Charles S. Peirce’s logic of discovery and still distinct from “technology” — and provides the constitution of the humanities of the information and communication age as the digital humanities.

Mapping Memphis: A Geospatial Analysis of the Records of the T. H. Hayes and Sons Funeral Home in Memphis, Tennessee

“Mapping Memphis” is a spatial humanities project that analyses how historic geographic data can offer new insights into urban heritage and community. It does so using a primary source largely underrepresented in digital humanities research: funeral home ledgers. From 1904 to 1929, T. H. Hayes and Sons Funeral Home, the oldest African American owned business in Memphis, Tennessee recorded demographic and funereal information for over 4,000 African American individuals. This project focuses on the physical locations recorded in each entry that inadvertently offer a glimpse into the decedents’ homes, offices, and community spaces in early twentieth century Memphis. “Mapping Memphis” plots these individual locations onto a digital map, creating a visual representation of Memphis’ social and physical layout a century ago. This paper explores how demographics gathered after an individual’s death can help commemorate their life. It discusses the depths of information that can be pulled from this unique resource, and what applications and challenges of tracking historic data in modern systems exist. Finally, the paper argues that vital records contain unique, largely unexplored demographic data that can help fill gaps in archival silence and urban change.

When the homo deamon went digital: writing Africa’s transgender refugee diaspora

Abstract From an online African lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) news and information website, launched in 2000, called Behind the Mask (BtM) to Sokari Ekine’s foundational 2004 blog Blacklooks, the digital has been crucial to queer African studies and, indeed, queer Africa. In this brief exploration, I navigate through the realms of queer African studies, African digital humanities, and African literary studies, using them as my guiding framework to uncover the digital emergence of an African transgender refugee diaspora. I suggest that this diaspora is producing content explicitly aimed back at the African continent to shape and deploy the reality of what it means to be transgender and African. In so doing, they are actively authoring themselves into existence.

AIGC Fusion Exploration: The Intersecting Path of Digital Humanities and Artificial Intelligence

The burgeoning field of Digital Humanities has experienced remarkable growth, catalyzed by advances in computing technology and the increasing digitization of cultural artifacts. This paper delves into the dynamic interplay between digital humanities and artificially intelligent generated content (AIGC), exploring their intersection and transformative potential. Through a comprehensive literature review, we highlight the multifaceted landscape surrounding AIGC, including biases, ethical considerations, technological advances, and societal implications. Drawing on insights from cutting-edge studies, we propose a methodology for fusion exploration that aims to elucidate the synergies between digital humanities and AIGC. Our proposed methodology integrates an overview of AIGC with copyright issues, emphasizing the ethical dimensions and regulatory frameworks necessary for responsible content creation. We also delineate the intersection of digital humanities and artificial intelligence, focusing on two key aspects: the ideographic qualities of literary language and the expression of literary language through digital rhetoric. By synthesizing insights from the diverse scholarly endeavors, we underscore the transformative potential of integrating Digital Humanities and AIGC, paving the way for innovative research paradigms and collaborative engagement in academia and beyond.

Spatial Hypertexts or Hypermaps: A Proposal for using Maps as Hypertexts in Geo-Spatial Archives

Geo-spatial archives, especially in the context of DH, are seldom defined and studied. Though there are works on geo-spatial archives in DH (Foley, 2015), a proper definition and characteristics of the same are not covered in the existing works. This general lack of attention to geo-spatial archives also means that the multitudes of opportunities that this area can offer are left unexplored. Spatial hypertext is an important possibility in geo-spatial archives where digital maps serve as hypertexts within the larger text (the latter which can either be a base map or a text). Spatial hypertextual tools such as Tinderbox and Storyspace have long been in use for hypertextual writing. Along similar lines, in this paper we propose using digital maps as spatial hypertext in DH geo-spatial archive which in turn will facilitate a deeper spatial analysis of the geolocation visualized. The first part of this paper therefore attempts to define and establish spatial geo-spatial archives in DH, along with its characteristics by citing and examining the existing projects on the same. The second part of the paper moves one step ahead to propose digital maps as spatial hypertexts within a geo-spatial DH archive which can further the deep mapping of the geolocation under study. This section will also contain a prototype of an upcoming geo-spatial archival DH project on massacres that is being developed as part of doctoral dissertation. The final section will substantiate the methods, tools, and the pedagogical opportunities of using spatial hypertext within DH geo-spatial projects. The main aim of the study is therefore to capture the attention of the spatial digital humanists to the developing field of geo-spatial archives and to initiate discussions on the possibilities of the same through the proposal of digital maps as spatial hypertexts.

Algorithmic Frontiers in Global English Literary and Cultural Studies: Navigating the Digital Shift

This article delves into the profound impact of algorithms on the landscape of Global English Literary and Cultural Studies. It meticulously examines how these computational processes are not merely altering but fundamentally reshaping various facets of research, publication, and the dissemination of literary works. With the rise of digital humanities and computational text analysis, algorithms have emerged as indispensable tools in unraveling novel insights within literary texts and cultural phenomena. Employing quantitative analyses as its methodological backbone, this study meticulously explores the algorithmic curation of literary content, discerns the discernible influence of algorithms on literary trends, and scrutinizes the mechanisms facilitating the global dissemination of English literature. Drawing upon data extracted from diverse sources including digital libraries, social media platforms, and publication databases, the research underscores the transformative role of algorithms in fostering a more inclusive and diversified comprehension of Global English literature. In essence, this study illuminates how algorithms are not only shaping the present but are poised to significantly influence the trajectory of literary scholarship in the digital age, heralding a new era of exploration and understanding.

Digital Humanities at the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute

This Dialogues is a curated discussion of Latinx digital humanities emphasizing digital visual culture and the digital visualization of culture by scholars and artists with diverse backgrounds and projects. Envisioned as a foundational text in the growing Latinx visual digital humanities field, this Dialogues is not striving to be comprehensive. Instead, through its discussion, participants define Latinx digital humanities and visual culture broadly, with authors and artists finding common ground through their decolonial practices and community-based methods, as well as sharing concerns about and resistance to inevitable co-option by capitalism as their respective Latinx digital humanities projects work against community erasure and toward visibility. Contributors also map antecedents and futures for Latinx digital humanities projects of visual culture.

Post-Internet Latinx Art

This Dialogues is a curated discussion of Latinx digital humanities emphasizing digital visual culture and the digital visualization of culture by scholars and artists with diverse backgrounds and projects. Envisioned as a foundational text in the growing Latinx visual digital humanities field, this Dialogues is not striving to be comprehensive. Instead, through its discussion, participants define Latinx digital humanities and visual culture broadly, with authors and artists finding common ground through their decolonial practices and community-based methods, as well as sharing concerns about and resistance to inevitable co-option by capitalism as their respective Latinx digital humanities projects work against community erasure and toward visibility. Contributors also map antecedents and futures for Latinx digital humanities projects of visual culture.