Engaging with the Digital Humanities in Scotland

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Lisa Otty

Our third and final project workshop was held on 12 September 2014 and focused on the topic ‘Research and/as Engagement.’ Considering the overlaps between digital research and public engagement, the conversation focused on successful cross-over research/engagement projects, and explored specific ways in which projects can be designed to maximise public engagement (videos of the presentations will be available shortly, to accompany the event report). Following the workshop we hosted the launch of a new initiative, a Digital Humanities Network for Scotland, which has in part grown out of the connections made at the workshops over the course of the year. Network membership is open to anyone with interests related to the digital Humanities, and as well as collecting information about relevant events across the country, it will seek to generate knowledge exchange, training and networking opportunities for its members. Please do visit the site to learn more: we hope lots of people will share information about their interests and projects on line, and join us at future events!

Travel Bursaries Available

Posted on August 21, 2014 by Lisa Otty

We are delighted to announce that we have some funding available to support the travel costs of early career professionals and researchers who would like to attend the project’s Research and/as Engagement workshop in September.

As one of the overall aims of the project is to foster collaboration across the educational and cultural sectors, these bursaries are not restricted by sector/affiliation. However, we would like to direct funding to those coming from areas of the country that are remote from Edinburgh, to those early in their career, or to those who would otherwise find travel costs prohibitive. To request support please contact Dr Tara Thomson at Tara.Thomson@ed.ac.uk.

The workshop aims to consider the overlaps between digital research and public engagement: to what extent do digital humanities projects, often collaborative processes conducted on-line and in public, lend themselves to innovative forms of audience engagement? And what are the implications of this overlap for researchers and collections? It features invited speakers who have led successful cross-over research/engagement projects and explore specific ways in which projects can be designed to maximise and capitalise on public engagement. Full details are available on this site, along with details of previous events and participating institutions are also hosted there.

Research and/as Engagement

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Lisa Otty

The programme for our September event is almost complete.

The final workshop will be a more practically focused event addressing our final research question and designed in response to the first two sessions. We will invite speakers that have led successful cross-over projects and together we will explore specific ways in which the kinds of research project ideas explored in sessions one and two might be usefully thought of in terms of public engagement and how this might affect their design.

Please get in touch with the team if you would like to be kept informed of developments with this project.

Working with Data

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Lisa Otty

This project’s second workshop will be held on 2nd May 2014, on the topic ‘Working with Data.’ Focusing on the conceptualization of humanities data this event reflects on how the data needs of humanities researchers might map onto the digital ambitions and resources of the cultural institutions that hold and preserve Scotland’s cultural collections.

What kinds of holdings, information and material might constitute ‘data’ for digital research, and how might the different ways in which we conceptualize data shape the kinds of research questions we can ask? It concludes with a roundtable focused on the ethical issues involved in working with data and offering the opportunity to discuss the social, historical, political, and policy dimensions of digital research and dissemination.

For a preview of the event programme, please visit the event page here.

Digitisation and Digital Research in Scotland

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Lisa Otty

The first project workshop, held on 14th February 2014, brought together digital humanists, academics, archivists, librarians and curators from across Scotland with varying degrees of expertise and experience. The range of participants represented many different roles in higher education institutions, national collections, and libraries from many regions of the country, including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth, Aberdeen, the Shetland Islands, and others. Participants were invited to introduce their own digital/digitization projects, practices and ambitions, as well as proposing topics for discussion by the group as a whole. Together we aimed to explore the requirements, potential benefits and potential challenges of digital research resources and methods, forge new relationships, explore and capture collaborative ideas for digital humanities projects, and reflect on the particular challenges and opportunities of doing this kind of work within Scotland.

Two guest speakers delivered presentations about established digital research projects. The keynote speaker, Professor Andrew Prescott of King’s College London, shared some of his projects and discussed access, which is at the heart of the dialogue around digitisation, and argued for the necessity of open access materials to new types of scholarly research. Matt Ramirez of the University of Manchester spoke about the SCARLET project (Special Collections using Augmented Reality for Learning and Teaching), and showed us the many ways that augmented reality can enhance pedagogy, particularly in the context of increasing mobile technology use.

Nineteen participants also volunteered to give short flash presentations about digital projects and plans in their institutions. As the presentations progressed, common themes began to emerge, such as challenges with funding and balancing knowledge exchange with institutional demands for revenue. We heard about all kinds of great initiatives, including websites, multi-media archives, MOOC’s, social media strategies, digital interfaces in galleries, and digital analysis of manuscripts and objects. We then held facilitated discussions on a variety of topics chosen by participants. Participants were able to spend time at three of the four discussion tables, to debate and share about each of the topics and to meet a wide variety of other participants.

The day was reported to be a great success. Researchers, archivists, and curators from across Scotland had the opportunity to meet, to share their work, and to share strategies for digitisation, outreach, and overcoming challenges in their digital programmes. We wrapped up the day with an announcement that a network of digital researchers across Scotland will be established, and invited all to join.

To see the full event programme and videos and slides from the invited speakers’ talks, as well as slides from the participants’ flash presentations, please click here.

Research as Engagement

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Lisa Otty

In September 2014, we will host a third and final event for this project on the topic ‘Research as Engagement.’ This event will be a more practically focused workshop designed in response to the first two sessions and focused on exploring specific ways in which digital research projects might be usefully thought of in terms of public engagement, and how this might affect their design. Further details will be posted here as the date draws nearer.