Computing Applications    

               in the Humanities

An Introduction to Digital Humanites


Writing Assignments



Final Exam

Due 12 December at 3:00 pm!
Don't be afraid of clicking the heading above-- but you can also download the assignment by clicking on the word "here".

Interpretive Critique II

Due 15 December at 12 noon!
Don't be afraid of clicking the heading above-- but you can also download the assignment by clicking on the word "here".

MidTerm Exam

Due online, Dropbox & Discussion, by noon on 22 October
Don't be afraid of clicking the heading above-- but you can also download the assignment by clicking on the word "here".

Interpretive Critique I

New!! Revised Due Date of 29 October at 11:59 am!
Don't be afraid of clicking the heading above-- but you can also download the assignment by clicking on the word "here".

Assignment V

Due Monday, 1 October at 12 noon

This unit of our course critically considers the acts of reading and writing in electronic spaces-- screen reading and screen writing.

The NEA's 2007 report argues that reading is of critical importance to our society, yet reading is at risk.

For this assignment, I want you to look critically at one of the data points used in the first 45 pages (Summary, Intro, and Chapters 1-3).

Pick one discrete data point (survey, analysis, data collection, etc) used to suggest the decline of reading, and critically analyze it. What problems might complicate your chosen data?

Your analysis should consist of two distinct paragraphs, between 150 and 250 words total. The first paragraph should state a thesis that takes issue with the data presented, and the second paragraph should explain and support the assertion.

Place a copy in the dropbox on D2L as well as in the discussion forum devoted to assignment 5.

Assignment IV

Due Wednesday, 26 September at 12 noon

This unit of our course critically considers the acts of reading and writing in electronic spaces-- screen reading and screen writing.

In order to critically consider these practices, we must first map the landscape: just what is reading and writing in electronic spaces?

For this assignment, I want you to analyze your own electronic reading and writing, over a 48 hour period.

Pick a discrete 48 hour period and collect as much data as possible about your practices of reading and writing online during that period. Make a spreadsheet with three columns: venue (what websites, programs, etc), Reading, Writing, or Mixed (X, Y, or Z), and Duration (time). All screen reading, of any sort, and any writing done on a device with a screen, should be noted.

Your analysis should consist of two distinct paragraphs, between 175 and 300 words total. The first paragraph should state a thesis that posits the significance of your experience of reading and writing in electronic spaces. The second paragraph should consist of evidentiary support, drawn from your spreadsheet, etc.

Place a copy in the dropbox on D2L as well as in the discussion forum devoted to assignment 4.

Interpretive Critique I

Due on D2L's Dropbox and Discussion forum no later than 11:59 am Wednesday 10 October

Don't be afraid of clicking the heading above-- but you can also download the assignment by clicking on the word "here".



Assignment III

Due Monday, 17 September at 12 noon

Anderson's essay proposes that acces to big data and computational methods renders the scientific method obsolete. Write a well-ordered, thesis-driven analysis that argues the reverse: that no amount of data or computational method can render the human testing mode of English obsolete.

In order to do this, you must have a why, as in what the human does with the analysis of data that the computer can't. And you need to have examples.

Your analysis should consist of two distinct paragraphs, between 250 and 350 words total. The first paragraph should state your thesis and explain that thesis. The second paragraph should consist of evidentiary support, drawn from your examples, etc.

Place a copy in the dropbox on D2L as well as in the discussion forum devoted to assignment 3.

Assignment II

Due Sunday, 09 September at 6 pm

This assignment has two parts:

First, I'd like you to research two different representations of Digital Humanities from within the DH communitiy. Try looking at DH Centers, googling "What is Digital Humanities", etc.

Then I'd like you to write a well-ordered, thesis-driven analysis that compares the two representations of DH. What are the meaningful differences, what do they mean, and why? Select your sources well (DH is lots of different things to lots of different people!) and your task will be greatly simplified in this endeavor.

Your analysis should consist of two distinct paragraphs, between 250 and 350 words total. The first paragraph should suggest that there is a difference between representations of DH, specify what that difference is, and suggest what it means. The second paragraph should consist of evidentiary support, drawn from your research.


Option 2 (new!!)
On page 4 of the Manifesto, the authors list the "strong" response of "guerrilla action items" as "pirate and pervert materials by the likes of Disney". What are the authors getting at? Why is Disney relevant to this point in the text? Using between 250 and 350 words, explain the role of Disney in the study and use of the Digital Humanities. Make a claim (a thesis) and support it with outside research. Google is your friend!

A Scavenger Hunt for F.H.Green Library, due via Dropbox at 11:59 pm, Sunday 02 September
                         available as .docx or .pdf