Aiden - What is DH

Based on what I have learned to this point and both "DH Manifesto 2.0" and the assigned reading, Digital Humanities to me relates to any form of art/media that is expressed via digital means. I did not have much of an idea about what it meant prior to this course, so rather than changing my view, the materials I have read/observed to this point have shaped my understanding altogether.

I feel that the definition is left intentionally ambiguous, but my key takeaway is balance; maintaining the balance between the human element AND technological means (rather than just letting technology take the reigns like we are beginning to see with AI).

Based on the materials, I don't feel like a definition is any clearer to me now than on day one of the class, and again I think that is because Digital Humanities is open-ended by design. The first part of the "DH Manifesto 2.0" definition is what really sticks out to me: "Digital Humanities is not a unified field but an array of convergent practices that explore a universe in which: a) print is no longer the exclusive or the normative medium in which knowledge is produced and/or disseminated; instead, print finds itself absorbed into new, multimedia configurations." To me this supports the concept that Digital Humanities is about pushing boundaries and about constantly redefining itself because, in the end, it is defined by humans, who's way of thinking as a species is constantly evolving and changing -- particularly in the media space, which is a huge part of DH.

One example I've seen that keeps coming up in research is the concept of data mining; using internet tools to extract information about any sort of subject (music, sports, etc.) to help recognize trends and indifferences in data. To me this is a prime example of Digital Humanities because it uses technology to collect information, while combining that with the human element of breaking it down and analyzing it.