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Rethinking Libraries in the Age of AI: Impressions and Takeaways from TPDL 2025

This year, the 29th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Digital Libraries (TPDL 2025) took place in Tampere, Finland, from September 23–26. I attended the conference together with Sarah Oberbichler from the DH Lab to present our joint paper, “Studying Model Design Biases in LLMs for Multilingual Historical Newspaper Extraction; The Messina Earthquake Case Study”, in which we propose an explainability-driven framework to detect and analyze biases in large language models used for multilingual historical newspaper article extraction.

Focusing on the conference’s many LLM-related contributions, this blog post explores how digital libraries are evolving under the continuous advancement of AI and what digital humanities can contribute to the field. „Rethinking Libraries in the Age of AI: Impressions and Takeaways from TPDL 2025“ weiterlesen

From “so what?” to “what’s next?”: Joining the C²DH in Luxembourg as Visiting Researcher

by Sarah Oberbichler

There are critics who sometimes ask the “so what?” question when it comes to Digital History: what impact can these new methods and approaches make on historical arguments and how can they advance scholarship? Do they advance scholarship at all? To be fair, sometimes this critique is justified.

The “so what?” question  has long been part of the C²DH Centre’s critical approach to digital history.

I have always admired how the C²DH Centre in Luxembourg approaches this very question. Rather than dismissing the critique, they’ve made it central to their philosophy. What makes the Centre so compelling is how they address it: they recognize that digital historians are foremost historians who face the same fundamental challenges—working with complex, incomplete, messy sources full of biases and errors, then interpreting them critically to develop arguments. But digital sources add new layers of complexity: digitization processes, algorithmic biases, complex tools. This is where new skills need to be learned (digital literacy and competence), where collaboration becomes essential, and where experimentation is key.

The C²DH Centre is a place where failure is part of success.

„From “so what?” to “what’s next?”: Joining the C²DH in Luxembourg as Visiting Researcher“ weiterlesen

From Access to Ethics: Data Discussions at the DH2025 Conference in Lisbon

by Sofia Baroncini, Constanze Buyken, Judit Garzón Rodríguez, Ian Kisil Marino, Sarah Oberbichler, Cindarella Petz

The 2025 Digital Humanities Conference, held this year in Lisbon under the theme “Building Access and Accessibility: Open Science to All Citizens”, brought together a global community of researchers, developers, and practitioners to reflect on the role of openness, inclusivity, and ethics in digital scholarship. Hosted in the vibrant academic and cultural setting of Lisbon, the conference offered a rich program of keynotes, panels, workshops, and poster sessions, engaging with pressing questions around public participation, digital infrastructure, and the ethical responsibilities of working with data and digital tools in the humanities.

The conference theme built on the legacy of the Budapest Open Access Initiative (2002) and extended the conversation to contemporary challenges and opportunities surrounding Open Science. Contributions addressed a wide range of topics—from citizen humanities and inclusive digital platforms to multilingual practices, the ethics of AI, and FAIR/CARE principles—demonstrating the many ways in which the Digital Humanities community is actively shaping more equitable and transparent research practices. „From Access to Ethics: Data Discussions at the DH2025 Conference in Lisbon“ weiterlesen

Trust, archives, and history. The IEG LivArch Workshop on documenting the ongoing war in Ukraine

by Ian Marino, Thorsten Wübbena1

During the last two days of January 2025, the IEG had the pleasure of holding an online workshop in the context of the joint project “LivArch – Documenting Russia’s war against Ukraine: The challenges of living archives for historical knowledge production”. This project, which was featured on this very blog post a few months ago, focuses on the challenges posed by Russia’s war against Ukraine, where historical records are increasingly created through digital means such as social media, mobile devices, and digital repositories. Many actors are working day and night to collect, preserve, and display records regarding this sensitive event. The workshop included the participation of many individuals who are directly involved in institutions documenting aspects of life in Ukraine during the war, as well as scholars diligently trying to understand how this archival phenomenon impacts research within the discipline of history and beyond. The aim of this blog post is to report on the workshop and share the findings and insights.

„Trust, archives, and history. The IEG LivArch Workshop on documenting the ongoing war in Ukraine“ weiterlesen

  1. According to the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT), the shares in this contribution are as follows: Ian Marino (Conceptualization, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing), Thorsten Wübbena (Conceptualization, Writing – review & editing). []

“Should I do network analysis?” – Reflections on the Barcelona Past Networks Summer School 2024

And if so, how? Where to start a network research project?

Questions like these guided our week at the Barcelona Past Networks Summer School 2024, where we taught a hand-selected group of 25 graduate, doctoral, and postdoctoral delegates how to tackle a formalised network research project to study the human past — at the backdrop of the beautiful scenery of Barcelona’s eclectic architecture, the gravitas of the repurposed old church of Sant Agustí (our first venue) and the simple austerity of the University of Barcelona’s Physics department class rooms. After planning this for almost 1.5 years, countless meetings, and combining our joint experience of organising events such as the DH Lab Winter School 2022, or the series of HNR Workshops of the HNR Community, it was a feast to finally see this school unfolding! „“Should I do network analysis?” – Reflections on the Barcelona Past Networks Summer School 2024“ weiterlesen

Smells like team spirit – DH Lab retreat 2024

Over the years, the DH Lab has been working towards establishing a veritable tradition of going on a retreat every so often. Yet due to epidemics, conflicting agendas, or simply the lack of time, we haven’t been able to do so annually. Last year, for instance, we spent one day in Mainz to discuss our ongoing research projects (and had some lovely Federweißer afterwards), but that was it. This year, we ventured to Herborn to spend two days (divided over three) at its Schloss. Like in our 2022 retreat, everything took place in one venue: we stayed at the Schloss, had our meetings there, and were provided with (tasty!) meals at set times. As a result of not having to forage for food, we could devote our energy and attention to the meetings and activities that we had planned. „Smells like team spirit – DH Lab retreat 2024“ weiterlesen

Autumn Beginnings: My New DH-Season at the IEG in Mainz

by Tetiana Shyshkina

Autumn, in my mind, is like a beautiful story about the end of the year. It’s a time when things start to cool down and nature gets ready to rest. Starting in August, the leaves slowly change from green to gold and copper. At the same time, German stores fill up with Christmas treats and decorations. It’s as if they’re quietly saying that the peaceful autumn is just the beginning of something special and bright. Amidst this time of anticipatory waiting and a touch of melancholic premonition, I commence my fellowship, opening what I anticipate being one of the most productive and significant chapters of my life. „Autumn Beginnings: My New DH-Season at the IEG in Mainz“ weiterlesen

Vom Kaffeeholen zur Meisterbarista: Praxiserfahrung in den Digital Humanities

von Merle-Sophie Thoma und Teresa Wendel

Praxiserfahrungen spielen schon lange eine Rolle beim Übergang von Ausbildung zu beruflichem Alltag. Vom 16. Jahrhundert, in dem ein Praktikant noch jemand war, der sich mit fragwürdigen Praktiken beschäftigte, bis zum heutigen Verständnis der praktischen Erfahrung, das von der Ära „Generation Praktikum“ geprägt ist – das Absolvieren mehrerer, oft schlecht oder gar nicht vergüteter Praktika, ohne dass diese zu einer festen Anstellung führen. Während sich die Zeiten ändern, bleibt das Bild bestehen: Praktikant:innen als unerfahrene, ausgenutzte Arbeitskräfte, die frustrierende Büroarbeiten erledigen, Kaffee holen und Kopien machen – man denke etwa an „Der Teufel trägt Prada“.

Anstelle eines verpflichtenden Praktikums ist im Mainzer Masterstudiengang „Digitale Methodik in den Geistes- und Kulturwissenschaften“ das Absolvieren eines Praxisprojektes vorgesehen. Mit dem Blick auf die Rolle von Praxiserfahrungen, wirft das Fragen auf: Was bedeutet es, wenn im Curriculum ein Praxisprojekt verankert ist? Wie unterscheidet sich dieses von den üblichen Praktika? Welche Vor- und Nachteile bringen Praxisprojekte mit sich? Was sollte man bei der Durchführung eines Praxisprojekts berücksichtigen? Und vor allem: Welche Rolle spielen Praxisprojekte im Kontext der Digital Humanities?

„Vom Kaffeeholen zur Meisterbarista: Praxiserfahrung in den Digital Humanities“ weiterlesen

Wie Historiker:innen arbeiten. Einblicke in die Projektlehre im DigiKAR-Projektseminar

von Lara Beringer

Häufig laufen Lehrveranstaltungen nach einem bestimmten Schema ab: Die Themen der Seminare und einzelnen Sitzungen stehen bereits fest, während des Semesters werden von den Dozent:innen vorab ausgewählte Quellen und Literatur gelesen und vorbereitet, meist hält man ein Referat, eine Sitzungsleitung o. Ä., um seine aktive Teilnahme zu erlangen und am Ende des Semesters schreibt man eine Hausarbeit, die nach der Lektüre durch die Dozent:innen für immer in der Versenkung verschwindet. Während diese Abläufe bewährt sind und insbesondere am Anfang des Studiums die Grundlage für späteres wissenschaftliches Arbeiten schaffen, sind sie im fortgeschrittenen Studium immer häufiger repetitiv, frustrierend und weit entfernt von der eigentlichen Arbeitsweise von Historiker:innen.

Ganz anders lief ein von mir besuchtes Projektseminar im Sommersemester 2022 ab, das im Rahmen der Digital erweiterten Projektlehre (ModeLL-M) von Prof. Dr. Bettina Braun angeboten wurde. Der Titel war weit gefasst: Mobilität in Kurmainz. „Wie Historiker:innen arbeiten. Einblicke in die Projektlehre im DigiKAR-Projektseminar“ weiterlesen

On Learning Languages (a DH Fellowship Report)

by Ian Marino

 “My IEG fellowship experience can be summed up as a great place to learn languages.”

Emphasizing “languages” in the title of my digital humanities fellowship report may seem unusual. Yet, it has been the word resonating most during my 8-month stay in Mainz. My IEG fellowship experience can be summed up as a great place to learn languages. Let me explain. „On Learning Languages (a DH Fellowship Report)“ weiterlesen

What is a Digital History Lab? Reflections from a trip to Lisbon

by Ian Marino and Demival Vasques Filho

Being part of a DH Lab involves questioning what constitutes this type of organism: who we are, what we do, how and why we do it. A recent workshop at the Digital Humanities Lab of the Universidade Nova de Lisboa has sparked a reflection regarding the question that entitles this blog post.1 The multiple nationalities and institutions of the researchers present there added ingredients that allowed such a question to cross European national borders and even the Atlantic Ocean. „What is a Digital History Lab? Reflections from a trip to Lisbon“ weiterlesen

  1. We would like to thank to all the researchers of the DH labs that were part of this experience: the IEG’s Digital Historical Research Unit, the Centre for Contemporary and Digital History, the Digital Humanities Lab, and the Center of Digital Humanities-Unicamp. Particularly, we would like to thank the researchers Agatha Bloch, Anita Lucchesi, and Joana Paulino. Finally, an especial appreciation to Daniel Alves, who received us at the Nova University’s Digital Humanities Lab. []

Workshop in Villa Vigoni

by Jaap Geraerts

There’s a wonderful phrase in Dutch: “het nuttige met het aangename verenigen,” which means something like “to unite that which is useful (nuttig) with that which is pleasant (aangenaam).”  Although in general academia tends to be firmly tilted towards the former, occasionally it does happen that the coveted combination of utility and pleasantness is achieved. The week I spent at Villa Vigoni in Menaggio, Italy, together with a number of colleagues in late February/early March 2023, is a particularly great example thereof. „Workshop in Villa Vigoni“ weiterlesen

EuroCarto 2022 – presenting DigiKAR to the international cartographic community

DH Lab Retreat 2022: Delving into goals, tasks and values

by Jaap Geraerts

In September 2019, so in pre-pandemic times, several (former) members of the IEG DH Lab went on a retreat to Kloster Jakobsberg for a couple of days. The main goal of this retreat was to discuss the individual research projects and to discover overlap between them and encourage cooperation within the frame of the DH Lab. In other words, the focus was on putting flesh on the bones of the laboratorial dimension of our research unit. „DH Lab Retreat 2022: Delving into goals, tasks and values“ weiterlesen

Projektmanagement in den Digital Humanities – World Café auf der DHd 2022

von Fabian Cremer, Swantje Dogunke, Jonathan Geiger, Anja Gerber, Anna Maria Neubert, Julian Schulz, Thorsten Wübbena

„Interdisziplinäre Wissensproduktion innerhalb der digitalen geistes- und kulturwissenschaftlichen Forschung benötigt verschiedene Planungs-, Koordinierungs- und Steuerungselemente, um eine erfolgreiche Zusammenarbeit zu ermöglichen.“ Diese These, aus dem Selbstverständnis und der Forschungspraxis der Digital Humanities abgeleitet, liegt unserem Beitrag zur diesjährigen Jahreskonferenz der Digital Humanities im deutschsprachigen Raum zugrunde: einem „Peer-to-Peer-Workshop zum Projektmanagement in den Digital Humanities“. Im Rahmen dieses virtuellen World Café haben sich Projektmanager:innen über methodische Fragen, individuelle Erfahrungen und institutionelle Rahmebedingungen ausgetauscht. Die Diskussionen werden in diesem Blogpost zusammengefasst. „Projektmanagement in den Digital Humanities – World Café auf der DHd 2022“ weiterlesen