In November, 2016, staff from the Library of Congress’s National Digital Initiatives division visited the University of Richmond’s Digital Scholarship Lab as part of NDI’s efforts to explore data librarianship, computational research and digital scholarship at other libraries and cultural institutions. Like many university digital labs, the DSL is based in the library, which DSL […]
Category: digital scholarship
Three ways in which digital researchers can shed light on the information politics of the “post-truth” era
Digital media played a prominent role in the recent US presidential election, with social media platforms channelling previously fringe universes of political culture, rooted in populism and post-truth politics, right into the mainstream of US political discourse. Meanwhile, traditional mechanisms, from polling to mainstream media, failed to adequately capture public sentiment around political events. Are new instruments needed to understand […]
Digital collections offer researchers opportunities to develop new skills and scholarly communications networks
Digital collections, such as those built in libraries and other cultural heritage institutions, are being used less as mere static repositories but rather as live, interactive resources. Harriett Green and Angela Courtney have examined humanities researchers’ needs for digital collections and learned that they are not only essential to scholars’ ability to access materials but also influence multiple aspects of […]
Disentangling the academic web: what might have been learnt from Discogs and IMDB
In recent years there has been huge, rapid growth in the number of online platforms and tools made available to academics carrying out their research activities. However, for many, such choice can lead to decision fatigue or uncertainty as to what is most appropriate. Andy Tattersall reflects on the success of Discogs and IMDB and considers what problems a similar […]
Persistent identifiers – building trust and supporting openness in digital scholarship
The inevitable ambiguities arising from using names can hamper our ability to reliably and transparently discover, connect, and access resources. If we’re to fully realise the potential of open, digital scholarship then automatic, resolvable connections between researchers, institutions, research outputs and funders are essential. ORCID’s Josh Brown and Alice Meadows outline how persistent identifiers are able to make these connections, […]
Book Review: Being a Scholar in the Digital Era: Transforming Scholarly Practice for the Public Good by Jessie Daniels and Polly Thistlethwaite
In Being a Scholar in the Digital Era: Transforming Scholarly Practice for the Public Good, Jessie Daniels and Polly Thistlethwaite explore how digital media can be used to support scholarship and teaching and also further the pursuit of social justice. Paul Webb recommends this fascinating book for showing how digital scholarship can help generate robust research with genuine impact and can […]
Data and Humanism Shape Library of Congress Conference
The presentations at the Library of Congress’ Collections As Data conference coalesced into two main themes: 1) digital collections are composed of data that can be acquired, processed and displayed in countless scientific and creative ways and 2) we should always be aware and respectful that data is manipulated by — and derived from — people. […]
What is the difference between ‘doing Digital Humanities’ and using digital tools for research?
Tara Thomson shares her experience attending a participant-driven ‘unconference’ for digital humanities students and scholars. The event format aims to be democratic, aligned with how the Digital Humanities has aimed to build itself on devolved authority. But disciplinary knowledge is not always equally shared. The discussions highlighted problems of access and exclusion as primary concerns for the field. Some felt excluded from the Digital Humanities as a […]
The death of the theorist and the emergence of data and algorithms in digital social research.
Computer software and data-processing algorithms are becoming an everyday part of Higher Education. How might this be affecting research in the social sciences and the formation of the professional identities of academics? Ben Williamson argues that these are important challenges … Continue reading →
Book Review: The SAGE Handbook of Digital Technology Research
The SAGE Handbook of Digital Technology Research seeks to explores the issues of rapid technological development, social change, and the ubiquity of computing technologies which have become an integrated part of people’s everyday lives. At nearly 500 pages it is more detailed … Continue reading →