MITH News & Events
10/27 MITH Digital Dialogue: Mark Sample, “The Open Source Professor: Teaching, Research, and Transparency”
October 21st, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, October 27, 12:30-1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“The Open Source Professor: Teaching, Research, and Transparency” by MARK SAMPLE

What happens when the scholarship of teaching meets Web 2.0? Professor Sample argues the ideal result is the open source professor, a teacher and scholar who applies the tenets of the open source software community to his or her own professional life. This means sharing, conversation, collaboration, and reflection at every step in the teaching and research process, not just with the final product. Technology plays a key role in making open source professing possible, and Professor Sample will discuss the philosophical and practical implications of such a transparent approach to pedagogy and scholarship, as well as possible pitfalls for untenured faculty.

PROFESSOR MARK SAMPLE teaches and researches contemporary American literature and Digital Culture at George Mason University. His most recent publication, in Game Studies, explores the interplay between video games, the War on Terror, and the production of knowledge. Professor Sample can be found blogging at http://www.samplereality.com.

Coming up @ MITH 11/3: Ben Bederson, Nick Chen, & Matt Kirschenbaum, “The Great Ebook Throwdown”

View MITH’s complete Digital Dialogues Schedule here:
http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks are free and open to the public!

Contact Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927)

An Evening with Bruce Sterling
October 17th, 2009

The Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH), College Park Art Scholars, Honors Humanities, and the Honors College are very pleased to present an evening with author and futurist . . .

B R U C E S T E R L I N G

“Tomorrow Now: Envisioning the Next Fifty Years”

Monday, October 26
7:00 pm
Van Munching 1524
University of Maryland, College Park

FREE and OPEN to the PUBLIC

Bruce Sterling is an Austin-based science fiction writer and futurist, internationally recognized as an authority on digital culture and technology. His novels, including Involution Ocean, The Artificial Kid, Schismatrix, Islands in the Net, and Heavy Weather helped define the cyberpunk genre. With William Gibson, he co-authored the definitive steampunk yarn The Difference Engine. He is one of the founders of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, editor of Mirrorshades, and co-editor of The Cyberpunk Anthology; currently he blogs and reports for WIRED.com. Other books: Shaping Things; Zeitgeist; Distraction; Holy Fire; The Hacker Crackdown; Tomorrow Now. Come join us for a face to face with one of cyberspace’s most resonant voices.

For inquiries or further information please contact Matthew Kirschenbaum, mgk at umd dot edu or 301-405-8505.

10/20 MITH Digital Dialogue: Doug Reside, “If/Then 101: Teaching Programming at Maryland”
October 14th, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, October 20, 12:30-1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“If/Then 101: Teaching Programming at Maryland” by DOUG RESIDE

How is programming taught at the University of Maryland? Are there
any substantive difference in the way faculty and staff in different
departments communicate the core ideas of the practice? This round
table discussion will gather members of the campus community from
different disciplines and colleges to publicly compare notes and
discover whether there are any surprising disciplinary differences or
similarities in programming pedagogy.

Doug Reside is Assistant Director of the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH). In addition to undergraduate degrees in English
and Computer Science from Truman State University, he holds a PhD in
English from the University of Kentucky and his dissertation,
completed in 2006, proposes a theory for textual criticism and editing
of musical theater texts and included an electronic edition of the
1998 musical Parade. Reside directs all programming work at MITH and
has taught three courses on programming for humanities students.

Coming up @ MITH 10/27: Mark Sample (George Mason), “The Open Source Professor: Teaching, Research, and Transparency”

View MITH’s complete Digital Dialogue schedule here:
http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks free and open to the public!

Contact Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-9827)

10/13 MITH Digital Dialogue: Sayeed Choudhury, “An Abundant Humanities Library”
October 7th, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, October 13, 12:30–1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“An Abundant Humanities Library” by SAYEED CHOUDHURY

One of the most exciting and potentially transformative aspects of digital humanities is an inflection from dealing with scarcity to dealing with abundance. Traditionally, humanities libraries have been defined by their emphasis on rare materials or special collections. What are the implications of having an abundant humanities library?

As a greater amount of these materials becomes available in digital format, there is growing evidence that humanists might adopt data-driven research or teaching methods that are typically common in the sciences. The multi-institutional “Digging into Data” request for proposals represents an example of this new frontier. The Roman de la Rose Digital Library led by the Johns Hopkins University represents a useful case study in this realm. Choudhury will discuss the implications of the Rose Digital Library for digital librarians and scholars and offer ideas about how humanists might consider developing and leveraging cyberinfrastructure across domains.

SAYEED CHOUDHURY is the Associate Dean for Library Digital Programs and Hodson Director of the Digital Research and Curation Center at the Sheridan Libraries of Johns Hopkins University. He is also the Director of Operations for the Institute of Data Intensive Engineering and Science (IDIES) based at Johns Hopkins. He is also a Lecturer in the Department of Computer Science at Johns Hopkins, a Research Fellow at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Senior Presidential Fellow with the Council on Library and Information Resources.

Coming up @ MITH 10/20: Doug Reside, “Teaching Programming at Maryland”

View MITH’s complete Digital Dialogue schedule here:
http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks free and open to the public!

Contact Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927)

10/6 MITH Digital Dialogue: Brad Pasanek, “A Dictionary, A Database, A Desultory Reader: Metaphors for the Mind in Eighteenth-Century Literature”
October 2nd, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, October 6, 12:30 – 1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“A Dictionary, A Database, A Desultory Reader: Metaphors for the Mind in Eighteenth-Century Literature” by Brad Pasanek

BRAD PASANEK is the Assistant Professor of Eighteenth-Century Literature and Digital Humanities at the University of Virginia. Brad received his B.A. from the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. from Stanford University. He recently published two Literary and Linguistic Computing works: “Meaning and Mining” & “Mining Millions of Metaphors.”

Coming up @ MITH 10/13: Sayeed Choudhury (Johns Hopkins), “An Abundant Humanities Library”

View MITH’s complete Digital Dialogues schedule here:
http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks are free and open to the public!

Contact: Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927)

Job: Assistant Director
September 30th, 2009

The Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) is seeking to hire an Assistant Director to join our management team, which currently consists of Neil Fraistat, Matt Kirschenbaum, and Doug Reside.

Made possible by a major Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) is a collaboration of the University of Maryland’s College of Arts and Humanities, Libraries, and Office of Information Technology. In the ten years since its founding, MITH has become internationally recognized as one of the leading digital humanities centers in the world. As the host of the 2009 Digital Humanities conference and the co-organizer of centerNet (an international network of similar centers), MITH is one of the centers at the heart of the now burgeoning international field of digital humanities.

MITH is generously supported by the University administration and enjoys productive collaborations with allied campus units, including the University Libraries, the College of Information Science, and the Human Computer Interaction Lab. Geographically situated within the Washington DC Beltway, MITH is perfectly positioned for its frequent collaborations with the world-class libraries, museums, and cultural institutions in the metropolitan area, but our partnerships have also extended around the world. Recent projects include a collaboration with several major libraries in the U.K. and the United States to create an online archive of all extant pre-1642 quartos of Shakespeare’s plays and participation on a national research team charged by the Library of Congress with the preservation of virtual worlds (e.g. Adventure, DOOM, and Second Life). This latter project is part of MITH’s larger focus on the preservation of born digital creative work, also represented by our hosting of the Electronic Literature Organization and the Deena Larsen Collection–one of the world’s largest publicly held collections of electronic literature.

The Assistant Director will bear primary responsibility for project management and oversight of all MITH projects, including creation of deadlines for all deliverables and project tracking; the supervision of MITH’s development team, that includes programmers, web designers, graduate assistants, and interns; and computer programming services, data, and application architecture design and modeling for MITH projects. We are therefore seeking a web programmer experienced with web scripting languages (JavaScript, PHP, Ruby) and with some knowledge of compiled languages (Java, C++). Ability to work with Unix/Linux based applications is required, and preference will be given to candidates with database and XML expertise. Strong organizational and project management skills are also mandatory, as are excellent communication skills. A humanities background is especially desirable. Bachelor’s degree required; MA, MLS, or Ph.D. preferred.

The Assistant Director is a full-time, 12-month staff position at the University. Salary is commensurate with experience, ranging from $51,304-$64,131. The University also offers a competitive benefits package. To apply, please send a letter of application, CV, and contact information for three references to Doug Reside, Search Chair, via email: dreside@umd.edu. For best consideration, apply by close of business on October 9, 2009. The University of Maryland actively subscribes to a policy of equal employment opportunity and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant because of race, age, gender, color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, religion, national origin, or political affiliation. Women and Minorities are strongly encouraged to apply.

9/29 MITH Digital Dialogue: Zita Nunes (English and Comparative Literature), “The Harlem Renaissance in Second Life.”
September 23rd, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, September 29, 12:30-1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“The Harlem Rennaisance in Second Life”
By Zita Nunes

This talk will address various aspects of teaching in Second Life. Drawing on their two-year experience co-teaching courses on the Harlem Renaissance that have brought together students from the University of Maryland, the University of Central Missouri, and the Sorbonne, Bryan Carter and Zita Nunes will discuss the pedagogical opportunities afforded “in-world.”

Bryan Carter is an Associate Professor of literature at the University of Central Missouri. He specializes in African American literature of the 20th Century with a primary focus on the Harlem Renaissance and has a secondary emphasis on visual culture. He has published numerous articles on his project, Virtual Harlem, an educational sim in Second Life representing Harlem as it existed during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, and has presented it at locations around the world.

Zita Nunes is Associate Professor of English and Director of the Comparative Literature Program at the University of Maryland. She is the author of Cannibal Democracy: Race and Representation in the Literature and an organizer of the Digital Humanities and African American/African Diaspora Studies Conference.

Coming up @ MITH 10/6: Brad Pasanek (Virginia), “A Dictionary, a Database, and a Desultory Reader: Metaphors for the Mind in Eighteenth-Century Literature.”

View MITH’s complete Digital Dialogues schedule here:
http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks are free and open to the public!

Contact: Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927)

MITH co-PIs centerNet Start Up
September 10th, 2009

We are pleased to announce that the centerNet steering committee has received a Digital Humanities Start Up Grant from the U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities to help it develop a robust and sustainable organizational infrastructure and to run a World Summit of digital humanities centers directors and funders this July in London, immediately preceding DH 2010. centerNet currently has over 200 members from centers across the globe. The grant will enable it to play a larger role on the world stage beginning with the Summit, which is intended to facilitate collaborations on a global level among centers, among funders, and between both groups–with the ultimate goals of building international cyberinfrastructure for the digital humanities and developing centerNet regional affiliate groups in other parts of the world. More information about the Summit and centerNet’s other new initiatives will be forthcoming on this list.

The co-chairs of the centerNet steering committee, Katherine Walter (CDRH, University of Nebraska-Lincoln) and Neil Fraistat (MITH, University of Maryland) are co-principal investigators for the grant. Other members of the steering committee are Dan Cohen (CHNM, George Mason University); Julia Flanders (Brown University Women Writers Project); Matt Kirschenbaum (MITH); Dean Rehberger (Matrix, Michigan State University); Geoffrey Rockwell (TAPoR, University of Alberta); Raymond Siemens (SDH/SEMI, University of Victoria, British Columbia); and John M. Unsworth (University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign).

September 15th Digital Dialgoue: Rachel Donahue, “A Glance at the Current State of Video Game Preservation”
September 8th, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, September 15, 12:30-1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“At Glance at the Current State of Video Game Preservation”
by RACHEL DONAHUE

A number of cultural institutions have begun to take an interest in videogame preservation–but before materials make it to the archives, they are managed by their creators. Understanding what the videogame industry itself is doing with the concept art, tools, and other records they create is an important step to ensure that these increasingly important artifacts are preserved for future generations. In this talk Donahue will discuss findings from her preliminary survey of videogame industry (and player community) preservation and records management practices.

RACHEL DONAHUE is a doctoral student at the University of Maryland’s iSchool, researching the preservation of complex, interactive digital objects. She received a BA in English and Illustration from Juniata College in 2004, and an MLS with a specialization in archival science from UMD in 2009. Rachel is a Research Assistant at the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities, currently supporting the Preserving Virtual Worlds and Computer Forensics and Born-Digital Content in Cultural Heritage Collections projects . Additionally, she supports the research and communications activities of the National Archives and Records Administration’s Center for Advanced Systems and Technology.

Coming up @MITH 9/29, Zita Nunes (English and Comparative Literature), “The Harlem Renaissance in Second Life”

Note: there will be no talk next week so as to avoid conflict with the university town hall.

View MITH’s complete Fall Speakers Schedule here:

http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks free and open to the public!

Contact: Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927).

Upcoming Digital Dialogue Lecture
September 2nd, 2009

A MITH Digital Dialogue
Tuesday, September 15, 12:30-1:45
MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“A Glance at the Current State of Videogame Preservation”
by Rachel Donahue

A number of cultural institutions have begun to take an interest in videogame preservation — but before materials make it to the archives, they are managed by their creators. Understanding what the videogame industry itself is doing with the concept art, tools, and other records they create is an important step to ensure that these increasingly important artifacts are preserved for future generations. In this talk, Rachel Donahue, doctoral student at the iSchool, will discuss her findings from a preliminary survey of videogame industry (and player community) preservation and records management practices.

RACHEL DONAHUE is a doctoral student at the University of Maryland’s iSchool, researching the preservation of complex, interactive digital objects. She received a BA in English and Illustration from Juniata College in 2004, and an MLS with a specialization in archival science from UMD in 2009. Rachel is a Research Assistant at the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities, currently supporting the Preserving Virtual Worlds and Computer Forensics and Born-Digital Content in Cultural Heritage Collections projects. Additionally, she supports the research and communications activities of the National Archives and Records Administration’s Center for Advanced Systems and Technology.

Coming up @MITH 9/29: Zita Nunes (English & Comparative Literature), “The Harlem Renaissance in Second Life”

View MITH’s complete Digital Dialogues schedule here:

http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks free and open to the public!

Contact: Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927).