Applying digital technology to illuminate history

Through the Center for Digital Humanities Research at Rowan University in the Ric Edelman College of Communication, Humanities & Social Sciences, researchers are creating digital maps, timelines, archives, and virtual tours to help people visualize history and change over time, according to Jessica Mack, Ph.D., assistant professor of digital history and center director.

For example, in her research on the urban history of Mexico City, Mack has used progressive aerial images to show how construction of the National Autonomous University of Mexico in the 1950s transformed the region.

“Like so many universities, including Rowan, this campus was a real engine for economic development in Mexico City, and this digital project allows us to visualize that process,” she said. 

Collaborating with April Patrick, deputy director of the center and associate professor of English, Mack helps students enrolled in digital humanities courses and a Certificate of Graduate Study program learn new methods to build websites, databases, and digital collections, preparing them to use tools of the future. Moreover, she brings a humanistic lens to technologies such as generative artificial intelligence and machine learning to understand how they impact society, the ethics of technology, and the sociological and political implications.

“With digital humanities, teaching and research feed into each other,” she said. “A lot of students who study digital humanities with me go on to work on a research project in our center.”

Mack reassures those intimidated by digital technology. “You can do digital humanities research without being a computer expert,” she said. “It’s really about asking the right questions and thinking about how we can use digital technology in new ways to answer those questions.”