Data Science & Humanities Symposium

Friday, March 7, 2025

Join us for an interdisciplinary symposium exploring the intersection of data science and the humanities. This event will feature renowned scholars who utilize computational methods to address key questions in the humanities, as well as opportunities for networking and discussion.

Event Details

📍 Locations:

Speakers 1-3: Center for British & Irish Studies (M549)
Speaker 4: Chancellor’s Auditorium (Center for Academic Success and Engagement - CASE)

🥗 Lunch & Networking: Provided for attendees who register and indicate they will be eating lunch.

�� Speakers & Topics:
Leading experts will discuss how digital tools, big data, and computational approaches are shaping the humanities.

Symposium Schedule

📅 Fri, March 7, 2025

12:00 – 1:00 PM | Lunch & Welcome
1:00 – 2:15 PM | Speaker 1: Katherine Elkins – Introduction & Talk
2:15 – 2:30 PM | Coffee/tea break
2:30 – 3:45 PM | Speaker 2: Jo Guldi – Introduction & Talk
3:45 – 4:00 PM | Coffee/tea break
4:00 – 5:15 PM | Speaker 3: Katherine Bode – Introduction & Talk
5:15 – 5:30 PM | Walk to Chancellor’s Auditorium (CASE)
5:30 – 6:45 PM | Speaker 4: Dr. Safiya U. Noble – Introduction & Keynote

Speakers

Speaker 1: Katherine Elkins

NEH Distinguished Teaching Associate Professor of Humanities & Comparative World Literature, Kenyon College

Katherine Elkins is a leading scholar in digital humanities, integrating computational tools into literary studies and research. She has developed innovative AI-assisted literary analysis techniques and teaches courses that explore the relationship between literature, machine learning, and emerging digital technologies. Her work examines how artificial intelligence can be used to model human creativity and narrative structures, helping to redefine our understanding of storytelling in the digital age.

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Speaker 2: Jo Guldi

Distinguished Teaching Associate Professor of History, Emory University

Jo Guldi is a historian specializing in the history of capitalism, property, and infrastructure, using big-data methodologies to uncover long-term historical patterns. She applies machine learning, natural language processing (NLP), and statistical analysis to historical archives, revealing insights into power structures, land reform, and economic policy across centuries. Guldi is also the author of The History Manifesto, a book advocating for the use of big data and computational history in shaping public policy.

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Speaker 3: Katherine Bode

Professor of Literary & Textual Studies, Australian National University

Katherine Bode's research bridges the worlds of literature and computation, developing methods that merge computational analysis and literary criticism. She is a pioneer in distant reading, an approach that uses data analysis to examine literary trends across vast collections of texts. Bode’s research applies digital methods to explore questions of authorship, literary history, and cultural influence, shedding new light on how literature evolves in different sociopolitical contexts.

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Speaker 4: Dr. Safiya U. Noble

Professor, UCLA | Director, Center on Race & Digital Justice | Co-Director, Minderoo Initiative on Tech & Power

Dr. Safiya U. Noble is a groundbreaking researcher in algorithmic bias, race, and digital justice. Her bestselling book, Algorithms of Oppression, exposes how search engines and AI systems reinforce racial and gender biases, shaping perceptions of marginalized communities. As the Director of the Center on Race & Digital Justice, she works to ensure that digital technologies promote fairness and accountability. Dr. Noble’s research is crucial in an era where artificial intelligence increasingly influences everything from hiring practices to criminal justice.

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Join Us!

This symposium offers an exciting opportunity to explore how data-driven approaches are transforming the humanities. Whether you're a researcher, student, or just curious about digital humanities, we invite you to attend, engage in discussions, and connect with leading scholars in the field.

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