Claudia Berger maintains a Zotero “physical data viz” group library containing nearly 100 articles, datasets, and other relevant reads.

I added several items to that library this past week, and wanted to capture my Bluesky thread about them for the blog:

Personal stress data as commentary on stress-impacted health issues

Laurie Frick’s “Stress Inventory” uses leather discs on stretched linen, piled and colored to record daily irritation levels & highlight stress’ contribution to chronic health issues. (HT Laura Miller)

Weaving data analysis of speculative fiction

Quinn Dombrowski’s “The Locked Loom 1: Gideon the Ninth” discusses a weaving text visualization and analysis based on elements of everyone’s favorite “lesbian necromancers in space” fantasy novel (the Locked Tomb Series; highly recommend, it is not silly/pulp despite that being a fitting descriptor, but rather epic, page-turning speculative fiction/sci fi).

Baking data-displaying cakes for climate change advocacy

An interview with “baker-turned-glacier guide” Rose Mcadoo on her “Cakes for Climate Change” combating climate demise through educational cakes and desserts that explain the natural processes behind glaciology and climate change.

Workflow for turning ambient audio data into 3D prints

Audrey Desjardins’ and Timea Tihanyi’s “ListeningCups: A Case of Data Tactility & Data Stories” documents a workflow for capturing data, creating 3D printed porcelain cups embedded with datasets of everyday ambient sounds; and shares reflections around experiences such as “data accidents” (HT Beth Mitchell)

Reflections from installing a data physicalization exhibit

Claudia Berger and Chris Alen Sula’s piece on lessons learned from installing a data physicalization of a HASTAC conference’s metadata, published in Nightingale (the journal of the Data Visualization Society).

Building data intended for (sometimes physical) art

“Datasets as Imagination” by Lisa Shroff argues for collectively built datasets shaped specifically for reuse by artists for art, including for physical data exhibits. (HT Zoe LeBlanc)

Library research guide for data physicalization

“Data Driven Creativity: Making Data Physicalizations” is a library guide by Ariel Ackerly, Sarah Reiff Conell, and Ofira Schwartz, gathering datasets, projects, and writing about data physicalizations.

(“HT” is shorthand for “hat tip”, a minimal-characters way people say “I found this link via this other person sharing it in the past; thanks to them”.)

The ACH is leaving Twitter: we’re locking our Twitter account, and will no longer post, read, nor reply there. ACH members and the broader digital humanities community can find us on Bluesky (bsky.app/profile/ach.bsky.social), Mastodon (hcommons.social/@ach), our website (ach.org); and for ACH members, our newsletter (members.ach.org/join).

Why we’re leaving Twitter

We leave Twitter because of its rapidly increasing harms—both policies that are explicitly racist, sexist, transphobic, and harmful in many additional ways; and policy (non)implementation and culture that make the space harmful or impossible for many to use. This is in keeping with the ACH’s mission, which states:

“ACH recognizes that this work is inherently and inextricably sociopolitical, and thus advocates for social change through the use of computers and related technologies in the study of humanistic subjects.”

We recognize this is not a decision everyone can make—for example, unemployed and precarious community members can’t afford to miss anywhere jobs might be posted. If we don’t put opportunities and other info on Twitter, people don’t have to expose themselves to the most blatant harms to get that info. We leave Twitter to contribute toward ending that lock-in. Please let the organizations you’re part of know, if their moving off Twitter would help you be able to leave too. If you’re an organization or individual who can safely do so, we encourage you to help everyone leave Twitter by leaving yourself.

A proactive approach

The ACH is delighted to announce our support of a newly convened ACH Working Group: (Re)connecting DH on Social Media! Watch this blog for a future post on its plans for proactively improving and (re)connecting DH social media community. (You can also read more about, and consider proposing, ACH Working Groups on other topics yourself.)

We want to not only help folks get off Twitter—we’re planning to actively support other platforms becoming safer and better, and support DH community in participating and finding community there. See below for info on how to move off Twitter, and options for where you can go.

How do I use other platforms & rebuild my networks?

1. Choosing a platform
   1. ACH is active on both Mastodon and Bluesky. There are other options we’re not currently active on, including Meta’s Instagram and Threads; see the “Where can I find DH community online?” section below for a list of platforms as well as ways to find DH within platforms (e.g. servers, feeds, hashtags).
   2. Bluesky is closest to the Twitter experience, so may be an easier switch. You currently need an invite code, but luckily there’s a quick way for DHers to receive one.
   3. Mastodon has some differences from Twitter that give it a learning curve, but it also gives you more control over your content ownership and the politics/policies impacting what you post. You do not need an invite code to get started.
2. Moving to Bluesky
   1. Fill out Quinn Dombrowski and Brandon Walsh’s quick form to get a Bluesky invite code sooner than through the official waitlist. Thanks to Quinn and Brandon for running this effort, and to all the folks who have contributed invite codes to help colleagues make the move to Bluesky!
   2. See Amanda Visconti’s DH Bluesky Guide to quickly get started, followed by friendly in-depth discussion of more advanced Bluesky use (when/if you’re ready for it)..
   3. Follow Mark Sample’s DH Community Feed.
3. Moving to Mastodon
   1. See Quinn Dombrowski and David Weisley’s Notes on  Switching to Mastodon to learn how to start. Many communities are listed here. You can interact across communities unless the community of users decides not to connect.
   2. As ACH joined hcommons.social, we recommend you become part of the community to be connected to other humanities scholars and DH practitioners.
   3. To learn more about Mastodon, Quinn Dombrowski’s essays are useful: “A Week with Mastodon” and “A Second Week with Mastodon.” You can find additional guides here.
   4. More easy steps to getting started on Mastodon
4. Ping the ACH to say you’ve made the move to Mastodon and/or Bluesky, and we’ll follow you there!

Where can I find DH community online?

If you know of a platform, hashtag, feed, or other place DHy folks are gathering online (or using to find one another on large platforms), please let us know so we can add it to our list by visiting this quick form (or resharing the link with others: https://forms.gle/yxa9W1cmdPezXc7x7). Below are communities we’re aware of, and we’ll be adding more as we hear suggestions.

1. Bluesky
   1. Mark Sample’s DH Community Feed
   2. the “For You” feed (algorithm that will expose you to new folks/posts that are similar to the communities you interact with on Bluesky)
   3. Feed: Lit/Culture Studies
   4. Feed: Skybrarians (librarians)
   5. Feed: GLAMS (galleries, libraries, archives, and museums)
   6. Feed: Academic Sky
   7. Feed: Team Rhetoric (rhet/comp folks)
   8. Feed: medievalists
   9. #DHmakes (DHy folks doing crafting and makerspace projects, DH-related or not)
      1. Feed: #DHmakes posts containing media
      2. Feed: All #DHmakes posts
2. Mastodon
   1. Hcommons.social server (HT @gonzalo@hcommons.social!)
   2. #DHmakes (DHy folks doing crafting and makerspace projects, DH-related or not)
   3. List of accounts at frederik-elwert.github.io/Mastodon-Digital-Humanists
   4. #digitalhumanities hashtag
   5. fedihum.org
   6. The glammr.us server (HT @sbecker@glammr.us!)
3. One digital humanist suggested the platform Threads: “interaction not too lively—but a decent alternative for the tech news that is still better-represented on X than bsky”
4. Discord
1. Latent Reading Discord Server (comp lit studies centered discord community): HT Artjoms Šeļa on Bluesky (who might be able to point you how to join?)
5. [We’ll add other places here, as we hear of them! Last updated 2/12/2024.]

This call is now closed, but we’re leaving the post up for archival purposes.

The ACH seeks someone to participate in ACH’s leadership and the broader work of the ACH Executive Council, while serving as a key contributor to keeping the ACH running as ACH Deputy Secretary/Secretary.

You are very likely eligible! Our key needs are willingness to contribute effort, and enthusiasm for involvement with DH and the ACH—whether or not you’ve been involved in the past, or are keen to get started. We benefit from the perspective of folks new to DH or academia, just as much as folks who can bring past DH experience to the role. We hope for a set of applicants diverse as to race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, ability, profession (including students, folks in non-academic jobs), citizenship, nationality, and other identities and backgrounds. You’re encouraged to apply yourself, or to nominate folks you’d like to see involved in shaping the ACH.

The role. This role is a good fit for someone who enjoys organizing information, writing documentation, looking for and initiating new ways to make communities and infrastructures become better, or is comfortable acting on opportunities for improving social justice and care through administrative, infrastructural, and community design work.

Benefits. In addition to recognition as an appointed officer of the U.S.-based DH scholarly/professional organization, you’ll participate in leadership work guiding a large, international membership of digital humanists and influencing the field; get to regularly collaborate with a diverse array of fantastic DH colleagues; and gain further experience with DH and administrative leadership skills. If you’re interested in running for the ACH Council elected roles in the future, this could be a good way to get to know the org.

You will receive free registration for our annual conference, but this is a volunteer role, without pay. We know that limits who can take it on, and strive to keep this work scoped and flexible in consequence.

The work:
* You’ll need to either be a current ACH member, or willing to join if appointed
* During 9 months/year, attend most of our monthly Zooms (1.5hrs/month)
* A couple hours of work each of those months (some of which can happen during our monthly meetings, which scope discussions to prioritize coworking time)

You’ll work with the Secretary to divide a short list of the functions your roles must cover for the ACH to work (e.g. scheduling, note-taking, sharing info, answering member emails). Beyond those, you’ll be welcome to initiate or join other Exec projects matching your interests, skills, and availability.

This role has a 4-year term. The first two years, you’ll serve as Deputy Secretary in partnership with the current Secretary (Amanda Visconti); the second two years, you’d become the full Secretary and partner with a new Deputy Secretary.

Apply or learn more
To apply yourself or nominate someone else, please email the following to secretary@ach.org by January 15th, 2024:
1. Full name of applicant or nominee
2. Their email address
3. Is this a self-nomination, or are you nominating someone else?
We will be considering applications starting 1/15, and will be back in touch then regarding your application and to answer any questions you might have.

Applications/nominations will be accepted on a rolling basis until a good match of candidate and ACH needs is found. To ask questions, please contact ACH Secretary Amanda Wyatt Visconti (secretary@ach.org).