CULTURAL RESEARCH IN THE CONTEXT OF «digital humanities»
Saint-Petersburg October 3-5, 2013
Organized by: Russian State Herzen University
Co-organized by: Scientific and Information Technologies Center “Asterion”
What is “digital humanities”?
Whereas humanities can be described as the investigation of different forms of human experience, digital humanities with respect to the subject of research, represent the way humanistic research exists in the digital age providing novel possibilities for information storage, transfer and dissemination. Digital humanities can be seen as a synthesis of several major research areas and practical activities.
Firstly, it is the use of digital technologies in human research, foremost to process large arrays of information, from ancient manuscript analysis («digital paleography») to the research of literary works and documents of various epochs («distant reading» or «digital reading» as referred to by Franco Moretti). These are digital means of space and time data visualization, that are able to depict the most diverse types of processes, for example, a city architectural history, ethnic groups translocations, language transformations and the geographical expansion of an artistic style.
Secondly, DH are the new forms of accumulation and transfer of knowledge, and structuring of academic and educational societies. We currently live in the age of information, the so-called post-literate (M. MacLuhan) and post-print (R. Darnton) society. DH is the research of particular qualities of the new age, sociocultural consequences of digital technologies’ implementation and critical analysis of their potential and restrictions. Research and project activity within DH is necessarily interdisciplinary and collaborative. DH educational framework inspires new modes of thinking, combining the achievements of the IT and humanistic field.
Thirdly, it is a format of creative work, journalism, enlightenment and interaction with cultural heritage: «digital art», new media, formation of digital libraries, archives, cultural heritage and museum collection databases, digital reconstructions involving the combined efforts of scholars and IT experts; this also includes issues with copyright and intellectual property.
Digital humanities do not reject or replace traditional landscape of humanities, but become a superstructure over it. The border between scholars, who do not take the world of digital culture into consideration and those, who are already used to it, becomes clearer.
The conference welcomes papers organized around the following topics:
- Subject and methods of cultural research in the context of digital means of coding and de-coding information, new algorithms for information analysis and synthesis, and digital modeling technology;
- Cultural history of digital technologies, ethics and esthetics of digital communications, network forms of interaction and the Internet.
- Prospects of digitizing libraries, museums, archives, and cultural and natural heritage;
- Digital technologies in research and the educational activity of cultural researchers.
- Transformation of cultural research and humanitiesin the digital age, functioning of internet communities and periodicals;
- Transformation of the essence and methods of humanitarian pedagogy in the digital age; challenges with new forms of cultural research disciplines;
- Artistic practices and curator activity in the digital age.
The conference will combine traditional and unconventional formats, including panels with paper discussions, workshops, presentations, and poster sessions.
Publication: Conference materials will be published prior to the conference.
Working languages of the conference are English and Russian.
Participation in the conference is free of charge.
- Send an application to [email protected] with a copy to the chair coordinator [email protected]containing the title of the paper and your personal data (name, surname, institutional affiliation, telephone, and e-mail) by 15 June 2013.
- You will be notified of your participation by 30 June 2013.
- Participation in absentia is also available.
Full text (10000 to 40000 printed characters) should be sent before 15 August 2013, tables and illustrations may be attached if needed.
Address: 197046 Saint-Petersburg, 26 Malaya Posadskaya Street, room 304, Department of Theory and History of Culture, Herzen University.
Organizing Committee telephone: +7(812) 232-34-95
E-mail: [email protected]
Chairman Coordinator: Dr. Larisa Nikiforova.