Challenges lie everywhere and, with them, opportunities to once again make explicit the value of humanistic modes of inquiry, thought, and creativity.
Burdick et al. “One: Humanities to Digital Humanities,” in Digital_Humanities (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012), 9.
As computers become more ingrained in our lives, the need to interrogate their role in our society has arisen. This page from the readings stood out to me as a whole because something that I’ve been reflecting on recently, particularly with the rise of generative AI, is my use of digital tools. Historically, the STEM and humanities fields are considered in opposition with each other. From my understanding so far, it appears that Digital Humanities aim in part to dismantle that conflict by incorporating digital tools in humanistic pursuits. It’s clear that a lot of progress was made on that front with the general acceptance of many such tools in spaces like the arts and archival. In particular for myself, learning about the different applications (and practice) of 3D design and modeling seem interesting. I think about the utility that some might jump to, things like 3D printing components of machines to save costs or time, and compare those to what a historian might find valuable in a 3D model of an artifact in a museum on the opposite side of the world. As someone who has used 3D modeling for both utility and art, they hold the same importance in my mind. I also see, however, far too often the dismissal of the humanities as valuable fields. Many judge fields of study by their ability to generate wealth and look for tangible, materialistic accomplishments to justify their existence. I believe part of the problem is a general lack of the skillset required to evaluate humanistic works. It’s easy to make assessments with numbers and metrics: you ask the good numbers to go up and the bad ones to go down. It doesn’t come as naturally to make judgments about humanistic endeavors. This reading brought to the forefront of my mind “the value of humanistic modes” which easily get lost in the commodification of technology. I cherish the creations which enhance our culture, and I hope to continue finding ways that technology can assist those endeavors.
