Blog Post #1

During this first week of class, I have learned many useful and interesting topics surrounding digital Humanities. First, many ideas surrounding technology are just copied from previous ideas in history. For example, in the 1920s, the radiophone dance centered around people surrounding a radiophone and listening to music or speeches. They were required to wear headsets because it was too loud to be able to hear from the radiophone. In class, we discussed the photo about the radiophone in which the dance was held at an Atlanta social club in May 1920 to listen to a band that was playing across town (Dancing by Radiophone). This idea has been carried on in recent years through the new phenomenon known as silent discos. This requires people to gather together and each person has an individual radio and headset. They all dance together, but each person is listening to different genres of music, so the idea is that they are together but each person is happy because they are listening to what they like. Additionally, another interesting topic is in the 1950s when Alan Turing cracks the enigma code and designs the Turing Test. This ultimately leads to the end of World War II, because we were now able to break the German code and understand their movements and goals. Lastly, I find it quite interesting that the New Deal saved IBM from going bankrupt and made the company millions of dollars because now all government jobs were using their products. 

            I hope to learn more about the unique technological ideas that we copy and reuse from our history. For example, the idea of silent discos and eBooks. Secondly, I would like to learn about the effects that Bonnie and Clyde had on the government during the Great Depression and if the people saw them as role models or criminals.

            For this project, I was assigned “Historypin: Connecting communities with local history”. This project focuses on storytelling by partnering with organizations and sharing over 365,951 stories across 2,600 cities (About). They pride themselves in bring people and communities together through the stories and shared experiences of people. I followed Miriam Posner’s philosophy and started at the “about” page to understand the website and ideas it is trying to create. Personally, I feel this project focuses on the map aspect in which people can enter their address and find out the stories about the area and connect to their community or other people. Their process is connecting, equipping, and measuring. First, they use cultural heritage institutions, civic organizations, and community groups to connect people and communities. Secondly, they equip organizations to increase their impact by knowing their area and people. Lastly, they measure and keep statistics for their partners, so they can gain support and knowledge about their project.

(n.d.). About. Retrieved from https://about.historypin.org/about/

(n.d.). “Dancing by Radiophone”. Retrieved from 

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