aAh! Magazine
You are here: Home / News / Critical Decisions for Digital Humanities
News

Critical Decisions for Digital Humanities

22nd February 2013 By 0 164

Digital Humanities, Monday, 18th February, 6pm, Geoffrey Manton Building, MMU

Photographs by Storm Rannard
Words by Kathleen Menzies


THE latest event in the Digital Humanities series saw Dr David Berry of Swansea University deliver a lecture to academics, students and the public.

‘Critical Digital Humanities’ was the latest in a series of events brought to MMU by the Institute of Humanities and Social Science Research (IHSSR) and hosted by Dr David Berry, Associate Professor of Digital Media at the University of Swansea (pictured). Open to the public, the audience also included students and academics from MMU.
“If you haven’t heard of Digital Humanities, you’ve done well – it’s created quite a buzz on the internet and at seminars,” Berry told the audience. “It could well be the case that this is the year for Digital Humanities, especially in the UK – there’s been a lot of interest surrounding it.”
Although positive about the future of Digital Humanities, Berry took a critical approach during his lecture, raising a number of issues and problems surrounding the cross-disciplinary subject as both an academic discipline and as a brand.
Berry stated that the nature of code and software can often be overlooked by advocates of Digital Humanities. Lost within computational formalisms, Berry feared academics could lose sight of the true interactive purposes of merging humanities and digital technology.
The take-home message of the evening was that the Digital Humanities must accommodate all aspects of traditional humanities including social science, politics and the economic and cultural. Some humanities researchers have already done this, as Berry made clear, but he urged all scholars to not forget the core concern of the field – the human subject – as they adapted into computational methods.
The next event in the IHSSR series is a talk by Professor Joanna Hodge on the right to philosophy, and the philosophy of right. This takes place on Monday 25th February 2013.

About the author / 

aAh!

aAh! Magazine is Manchester Metropolitan University's arts and culture magazine.

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More News Stories:

  • 4th March 2026

    Lights Up cycling film to premiere at The Savoy for International Women’s Day

    Featured image: Isabelle Dargue A powerful new film documenting Manchester’s Lights Up movement will premiere at The Savoy Cinema on 9 March as part of International Women’s Day celebrations. Lights Up is a free, community-led event organised by Bee Pedal Ready and Station South in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University, We Are Cycling UK, MCRActive,…

  • 19th February 2026

    A Mural for Mani – Manchester music legend to be immortalised with mural in his hometown

    Following the passing of iconic Stone Roses and Primal Scream Bassist Gary ‘Mani’ Mountfield, there have been growing calls for him to be immortalised in a way that reflects both his cultural impact and the deep affection shared between the musician and his home city. GRIT Studios has answered the calls from fans, announcing plans…

  • 19th February 2026

    London Fashion Week A/W 2026: The new designers shaping tomorrow

    Featured image: Evie Peattie  Often overshadowed in popular narratives by the heritage houses of Paris or Milan, London’s fashion ecosystem has long traded on creative freedom. As London Fashion Week prepares for its 42nd year, running from the 19 to 23 February, the British capital is poised to reaffirm its reputation not simply as a…

  • 19th February 2026

    “It’s easy to lose yourself to this music”: Deptford Northern Soul club lead new wave of Northern Soul

    Featured image: Sebastian Garraway Beats vibrate through a polished floor. Bodies move with a swinging grace, surrendering to the rhythm without hesitation. An instinctual sliding jig sways wide-legged jeans cut just above the ankle. Sweat drips from sharp scissor-cut hairstyles onto porous Fred Perry polos. You’ve guessed it: Northern Soul. The late 1960s phenomenon is…

Latest Articles