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Welcome, everybody.
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Kimberly Christen-Withey is an Associate
Professor and Associate Director
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of the Digital Technology Cultural
Program, in the Department of English
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and Director of Digital Projects
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at the Plateau Center
for American Indian Studies
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at Washington State University.
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Her work explores the intersections
of cultural heritage,
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traditional knowledge,
intellectual property rights,
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the ethics of openness,
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and the use of digital technologies
in and by indigenous communities globally.
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She's worked in Tennant Creek,
Northern Territory, Australia
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over the last decade with the Warumungu
community members on a range of projects
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including a book, an interactive website,
and a community archive.
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Her collaborations with the Warumungu
focused on alliance-making
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in cross cultural projects.
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Her book Aboriginal Business:
Alliances in a Remote Australian Town
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was published in 2009 by
The School of Advanced Research
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as part of their global indigenous
politic series.
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Currently, she is working on several
digital humanities projects
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that explore the ethical and practical
issues of openness and access,
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in relation to indigenous cultural
protocols and digital archives.
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These are to me crucial issues
that the bureau faces
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and I'm so happy to welcome Kim here.
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(Kimberly Christen-Withey) Thank you.
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I don't know if we want to keep the lights
on, or off, or how you want to do it?
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You just let me know how
the slides look, but.
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Oh, there you go!
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Thank you to Neil and Trevor
and everyone for inviting me here today.
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I have to confess that I have--
I present and speak in a lot of places,
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never in what appears to be a garage.
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(laughter) But this is awesome.
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Or, with a green screen behind me
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so I'm feeling very sort of Hollywood
here, this is great.
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We're in the midst of,
we don't have a physical space
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for what will eventually be something
like a digital humanities center.
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We don't even know what the name
of it's going to be at WSU yet,
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so I'm scoping out all the places I go
and this is just a fantastic space
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that you all have created here,
so it is indeed,
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as Neil sort of foreshadowed,
an exciting time to be here.
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It's an exciting time to be thinking
about the digital humanities in general.
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And more specifically, really, I think
about how we can all shape
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what the trajectory of this
still-emergent field.
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It's still pretty new, we're still
defining the contours.
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There's a lot to love about
digital humanities.
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It's exciting to be or at least sort of
imagine oneself on the cutting edge
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of humanistic scholarship.
You know, especially in universities
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we often in the Humanities get pushed
to the bottom rungs and the scientists
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are the ones doing the creative
and cutting-edge things.
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So, digital humanities brings all that.
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And digital humanities of course
is rooted in fields dedicated to things
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like textual analysis,
historical examination.
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And the present moment is filled with
DH practitioners extending these
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modes of inquiry to create visualizations
with big data, right?
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It's the thing, hot topic right now.
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Wrangling, searching, and compiling sets
of data for interpretation and analysis.
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There's also a lot of alternative mapping
projects that're really exciting,
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that bring together literature, history,
and geography to raise new questions
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about the importance of places,
nations, and cities
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in the circulation of knowledge.
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And of course, sort of one
of the bedrocks, digital archives.
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One of the things that digital humanities
started out doing and does really well
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that provide new ways of exploring,
linking, annotating, and curating content
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across and between fields of study.
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And while we're doing this, I'll use
the "we" since we're all here today
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as digital humanities practitioners.
We're not only creating things,
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we're also defining a field that's
interdisciplinary by it's nature.
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And we're asking ourselves,
what sets us apart?
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What is digital humanities or what are?
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And I'm going to move
between the two today.
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I don't like to stick in any one place.
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So, I'm not going to go down that road.
It's a persistent question though.
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Who are we?
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Who and what counts among us,
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and how does that matter
to our scholarship?
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Whether it be how we publish,
where we publish,
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the theories we extend to our data sets
and by what means we get tenure.
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There's a lot of talk and debate,
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will this digital humanities project
count, to get tenure?
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I have tenure so I have to no longer
answer that question,
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but it's a persistent question
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and it's one that we're
all grappling with.
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And this kind of self reflection
is necessary for any field.
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It inspires growth.
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It provides a fertile ground
for collaboration, I think.
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It can also often be daunting,
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this type of self reflection.
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And it can provoke some anxiety.
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And in my very quick
and very non-scientific sample
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of quotes pulled from recent publications
by thoughtful digital humanities folks,
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looking to intervene, make a difference,
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and engage a diverse audience
of scholars and practitioners.
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I see that things are critical.
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They're pivotal.
We need justification.
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There's anxiety and uncertainty here.
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Just reading these quotes
makes you a little nervous,
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just imagine reading all the articles
that led to these.
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This is an active debate
and it can sometimes be tiring,
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but it's also positive.
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One answer to this anxiety about
definitions and the state of the field
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has been the creation of manifestos,
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that seek to define a core set of ideals.
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Ok, if we're going to be
the digital humanities,
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we have to have a core set of ideals.
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We may not have to have a cannon,
but we have to have something we stand by
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and manifestos are a good way
of doing that, of staking your claim.
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The digital humanities 2.0 manifesto,
created by a group of scholars at UCLA,
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suggest that the digital humanities
bring together,
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"An array of convergent practices
that explore a universe,"
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"in which print is no longer
the exclusive or normative medium,"
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"in which knowledge is produced
and/or disseminated,"
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and, in which, "digital tools,
techniques, and media"
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"have altered the production
and dissemination of knowledge."
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So there's a lot going on there,
print has been displaced.
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We have these new production
and dissemination tools,
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and theories, and methods behind them,
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but they go on to define
the borders of this universe.
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The contours, the how we're going
to make ourselves different.
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Arguing that the digital is the realm
of "the open source open resources."
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"Anything that attempts
to close this space"
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"should be recognized for what it is..."
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"...the enemy."
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Their words.
(laughter)
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I have two boys, so this is
my enemy in my house.
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(laughter) You may have other ones.
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Certainly, as a manifesto,
some of this is inflated prose, right?
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Manifestos by their nature
are meant to inspire action.
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They want to mobilize people around
something that we need to stand for.
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And in American culture, there's no
better way to do that
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than to have an enemy,
an us and a them,
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so we know where we are.
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So, the us knows the them
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and we can mobilize resources around that.
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So part of this seemingly vigilant focus
on open access, I think,
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comes from a general and often unreflected
love affair with the ideal of openness.
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The ideal of openness
and not necessarily
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a critical apprisal of the cultural
or historical basis of openness.
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So, the ideal of openness has deep roots
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in liberal scholarship, where the
digital humanities is growing from.
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And of course, progressive notions
of academic freedom and research.
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So this is not necessarily a negative form
or connotation and it's not necessary
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to say that open access should be
something we strive for in certain cases.
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But while we're loving openness so much,
I think we have forgotten that open
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is only one form of sharing.
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There are in fact many modes of sharing,
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only one of which is complete openness.
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And we already practice these modalities
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of sharing in our everyday lives,
online and offline.
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Long before Facebook ever gave us
the choice, people had varied
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social and cultural protocols to filter
how and with whom we shared information.
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Sharing and circulating knowledge
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is an integral part
of the digital humanities,
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and Todd Presner has suggested
that there have been two waves, thus far,
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of digital humanities scholarship.
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First, large scale digitization projects
and technical infrastructure projects.
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These focus mainly on text
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and making them open
and accessible to a general public.
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So, we have a library, let's open up
some of these collections.
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Let's digitize them,
let's get them online.
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Let's create the infrastructure
to do that.
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He suggests that was the first wave
of digital humanities scholarship.
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With what he calls DH 2.0,
he suggests a move to producing,
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curating, and interacting with materials,
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particularly those that are born digital.
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So these overlap and I don't think
that he would suggest,
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and I'm not suggesting that either
of these waves are complete.
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They're still both going on.
They crash into each other.
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I don't want to suggest another wave here.
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Instead, what I'd like to suggest
and what I'd like to throw out
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is more of a beacon,
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somewhere in the distance
as these waves are crashing.
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A reminder that as the waves are going on,
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as we mingle, as we digitize,
as we create,
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as we curate, as we archive,
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that we also, and at the same time,
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unpack the underlying assumptions
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about this gaze that we are producing.
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Digital humanities project are producing
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a way of seeing and being seen
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and the act of looking as a process
of knowledge acquisition.
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We see it.
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We get the knowledge
from it, right?
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These are quite literally grounded
in a new visual field
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that we're all taking part of
and creating.
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In their recent book,
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Practices of Looking:
An Introduction to Visual Culture,
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Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright
argue that there is
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"an economy of looking,
whether tacit or explicit,
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"in all cultural practices."
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So practices of looking then,
are deeply embedded
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in our own cultural logics
and our social structures,
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and as such, I want to suggest today
that these are deeply ethical acts
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and they're worthy
of our attention because so.
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Our practices of looking tell us more
about how we understand the world
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than what we're seeing.
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We need to examine how technology,
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particularly the technological tools
that we're creating and culture,
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not only our own culture,
the various cultures interact.
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And more importantly, how these modes
and cultural practices can inform
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our uses of technology to create
various types and tools for looking.
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One way of doing this, not the only way,
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but one way of doing this is moving away
from this center of digital humanities
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that Presner and other have defined
and that I started out with.
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That's the center, that's the core
of digital humanities to date.
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If we move off to the margins,
where subaltern, post-colonial,
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and indigenous projects are asking us
to see and look differently,
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we might be able to integrate those
back into the center.
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So, in 2002 after seven years of working
with the Warumungu Aboriginal community
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in Australia's Central Desert,
together we embarked on a collaboration
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to create a digital archive
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based on their own
cultural protocols for viewing,
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circulating, and creating knowledge,
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both tangible and intangible.
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This all started when the gentleman
in the middle here, Michael Jampin Jones
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and I and a group of other people
went to the National Archives.
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So Tennant Creek, if you
imagine Australia,
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Tennant Creek is almost
exactly dead center.
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It's 500 kilometers north of Alice Springs
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and 1,000 kilometers south of Darwin.
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So it's almost right
in the middle of the desert.
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So we drove to Darwin to look
at the National Archives
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and we looked at physical collections
and then we sat and looked
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at their database of things
that they had digitized.
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As I sat with Jampin, we saw images
of deceased relatives.
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We saw pictures of sacred sites
and initiation ceremonies
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that should not be seen
by a public audience.
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Jampin and others were distressed
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at this sort of public presentation
of their cultural protocols.
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The Australian archives, like many
worldwide in the 1990's,
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embraced the possibility
of digital technologies
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to make their collections
open to the public.
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Without examining the colonial collecting
logic that populated the public domain.
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So not only in Australia but in settler
nations around the world,
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it takes some historical amnesia for us
all to forget that the public domain
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has never been a welcoming space
for indigenous peoples,
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whose cultural materials found their way
into public and private collections
236
00:13:33,244 --> 00:13:35,979
by dubious and often violent means.
237
00:13:36,587 --> 00:13:38,649
This was certainly true for the Warumungu
238
00:13:38,650 --> 00:13:42,378
and the collections we saw at
the National Museums throughout Australia
239
00:13:42,379 --> 00:13:44,671
as well as in their online databases.
240
00:13:45,257 --> 00:13:50,347
So, a lot of the museums throughout
Australia have heralded this call
241
00:13:50,348 --> 00:13:54,063
and they are bringing communities
in to look at the collections
242
00:13:54,064 --> 00:13:56,679
and if there are items that they
don't want to be seen,
243
00:13:56,680 --> 00:14:00,941
oftentimes now, there has been a change
over the last 10 to 15, 20 years
244
00:14:00,942 --> 00:14:06,315
where museums will oftentimes not display
items if communities don't want them to
245
00:14:06,316 --> 00:14:10,726
and you will see, and this is where
Australia is a little more the forefront
246
00:14:10,727 --> 00:14:14,577
than the United States, you will see
warnings on collections,
247
00:14:15,537 --> 00:14:18,004
sometimes online but also offline,
248
00:14:18,005 --> 00:14:20,504
that there's material in here
that you may not want to see.
249
00:14:20,505 --> 00:14:24,327
So the collection's not necessarily
taken down but there are warnings.
250
00:14:24,328 --> 00:14:25,647
It's a step.
251
00:14:25,968 --> 00:14:28,880
For the Warumungu community,
cultural materials and knowledge
252
00:14:28,881 --> 00:14:32,883
are shared within a set
of cultural protocols,
253
00:14:32,884 --> 00:14:36,180
driven by their relationships to places.
254
00:14:36,181 --> 00:14:39,215
Very specific places on the landscape.
255
00:14:39,216 --> 00:14:41,660
Where they were born,
where they were conceived,
256
00:14:41,661 --> 00:14:44,022
where their parents lived, etc.
257
00:14:44,022 --> 00:14:47,511
And their ancestors,
human and non-human,
258
00:14:47,512 --> 00:14:50,767
and kin, the contemporary
Warumungu people.
259
00:14:50,768 --> 00:14:53,241
These variables determine multiple types
260
00:14:53,242 --> 00:14:55,240
of information circulation.
261
00:14:55,241 --> 00:14:57,839
So they combine and move.
262
00:14:58,112 --> 00:15:02,389
In the Warumungu context, there's this
continuum between open and closed.
263
00:15:02,801 --> 00:15:05,901
There's rarely anything that's just
completely open,
264
00:15:05,902 --> 00:15:09,316
or anything that's completely closed
and shut off.
265
00:15:09,317 --> 00:15:14,859
There are several factors that go into
actually defining this continuum.
266
00:15:14,860 --> 00:15:19,342
There's death, when people die
often for various amounts of times,
267
00:15:19,343 --> 00:15:21,874
pictures, images, songs that they sung,
268
00:15:21,875 --> 00:15:25,202
everything will be taken down
but eventually it will come back.
269
00:15:26,082 --> 00:15:30,537
Ritual affiliations, so the knowledge
that you have of particular rituals.
270
00:15:32,156 --> 00:15:35,328
Country, like I said, the physical places
on the landscape.
271
00:15:35,328 --> 00:15:39,519
Your kin groups and gender
is a big influence
272
00:15:39,520 --> 00:15:41,497
in the way that information circulates.
273
00:15:41,498 --> 00:15:44,260
There's always men's business
and women's business.
274
00:15:44,261 --> 00:15:47,493
Now, this isn't a type of patriarchy.
275
00:15:47,494 --> 00:15:51,214
This isn't a form of oppression,
in fact, it's a complementary system.
276
00:15:51,215 --> 00:15:53,820
Men's business and women's business
work together.
277
00:15:53,835 --> 00:15:57,221
They don't necessarily know exactly
what the other is doing,
278
00:15:57,222 --> 00:16:01,233
but in order to ensure the growth
and continuation of the community
279
00:16:01,234 --> 00:16:03,611
and of knowledge, they both
have to do their business.
280
00:16:03,612 --> 00:16:07,054
It's interesting and that's where
the title of my book comes from
281
00:16:07,055 --> 00:16:09,682
that they chose the word
in English, "business,"
282
00:16:10,272 --> 00:16:12,779
to talk about their ritual practices
283
00:16:12,780 --> 00:16:14,919
because that's what's important.
284
00:16:15,609 --> 00:16:17,418
Right? That is what keeps things going.
285
00:16:17,419 --> 00:16:20,648
So, it's an interesting choice
in English to use that word.
286
00:16:20,649 --> 00:16:24,540
So for example, there may be some songs
that are only accessible
287
00:16:24,541 --> 00:16:27,929
and to be sung by women
from a certain kin group,
288
00:16:27,930 --> 00:16:29,451
at a certain place.
289
00:16:29,452 --> 00:16:34,179
Or there might be a water hole
that is cared for by a certain kin group
290
00:16:34,180 --> 00:16:36,532
at certain times and if someone dies
291
00:16:36,533 --> 00:16:38,565
you don't sing their songs
at that water hole
292
00:16:38,566 --> 00:16:40,073
for a certain amount of time.
293
00:16:40,074 --> 00:16:41,300
And so on, and so on.
294
00:16:41,712 --> 00:16:45,620
The point is that there are multiple
social and cultural factors
295
00:16:45,621 --> 00:16:48,550
that go into the diffusion
and creation of knowledge.
296
00:16:49,251 --> 00:16:54,623
So over several years, we worked
to take this sort of offline system
297
00:16:54,624 --> 00:16:58,936
and make it flexible enough to accommodate
any set of cultural needs.
298
00:16:58,936 --> 00:17:01,749
Rather than working from
a Western paradigm
299
00:17:01,750 --> 00:17:05,106
that information wants
to be free and open to all,
300
00:17:05,676 --> 00:17:09,192
what indigenous communities around
the world remind us is that, in fact,
301
00:17:09,193 --> 00:17:12,241
information and knowledge
is always grounded.
302
00:17:12,897 --> 00:17:17,951
It's rooted to local places
and people even as it travels and moves.
303
00:17:17,952 --> 00:17:22,161
When it travels, it gathers stories,
narratives, histories.
304
00:17:22,162 --> 00:17:26,280
It joins people together as they seek
to make their worlds more meaningful.
305
00:17:26,500 --> 00:17:30,224
How people define these travels
are driven by their cultural values.
306
00:17:30,582 --> 00:17:32,878
For the Warumungu
and other indigenous people,
307
00:17:32,879 --> 00:17:37,595
this is based on not seeing,
or partially seeing,
308
00:17:37,596 --> 00:17:39,349
or seeing differently.
309
00:17:40,330 --> 00:17:42,484
This is one of my favorite
types of images.
310
00:17:42,485 --> 00:17:45,958
The first time I saw this was at Uluru
in the Central Desert in Australia
311
00:17:45,959 --> 00:17:48,027
at the Visitor's Center.
312
00:17:49,480 --> 00:17:54,493
The Aboriginal population there
had gone into the Visitor's Center
313
00:17:54,494 --> 00:17:59,717
and taken cardboard and duct tape
and taped over a bunch of images
314
00:17:59,718 --> 00:18:02,481
of an elder who had passed away.
315
00:18:03,010 --> 00:18:06,425
So you have this very stark example
316
00:18:06,426 --> 00:18:09,831
of this is our cultural practice.
317
00:18:09,841 --> 00:18:12,636
You shouldn't be looking at this.
318
00:18:13,386 --> 00:18:16,519
Right? And so it was the first time
I saw that and I'm thinking,
319
00:18:16,520 --> 00:18:21,176
"Wow, it's very material practice for us
to actually jolt you out of that."
320
00:18:21,177 --> 00:18:23,618
When you go to a visitor's center,
a learning center,
321
00:18:23,619 --> 00:18:26,214
you want to go there and learn about
the other people, right?
322
00:18:26,215 --> 00:18:29,412
And here we were learning
about a viewing practice.
323
00:18:29,822 --> 00:18:32,868
So not seeing seems counter-intuitive,
324
00:18:32,869 --> 00:18:36,438
not only to the work of the humanities,
but libraries, archivists,
325
00:18:36,439 --> 00:18:40,810
because we rely so deeply on texts
and circulating images
326
00:18:40,811 --> 00:18:43,669
and making them open for everybody.
327
00:18:43,943 --> 00:18:48,158
But if we start here, we may find new ways
of defining the digital humanities.
328
00:18:48,547 --> 00:18:53,358
So in 2005, based on these practices
and my work with the Warumugu,
329
00:18:53,359 --> 00:18:57,426
several Warumungu community members
and I worked with the Vectors team
330
00:18:57,427 --> 00:19:00,645
out of USC, lead by Tara McPherson,
331
00:19:00,646 --> 00:19:03,012
who's wonderful, who many of you
probably know.
332
00:19:03,013 --> 00:19:07,686
And we created the Digital Dynamics
of Cross Cultures Online Space,
333
00:19:07,687 --> 00:19:11,222
as part of the, I think it was the second
or third issue of Vectors
334
00:19:11,223 --> 00:19:13,928
when it came out, way back in 2005.
335
00:19:13,929 --> 00:19:17,933
Our goal was to use the medium itself
to disrupt the message.
336
00:19:18,305 --> 00:19:23,533
So the default viewing protocols online
and underpinning many DH projects
337
00:19:23,534 --> 00:19:27,205
is search and you will find, right?
338
00:19:27,206 --> 00:19:31,234
Search has become this framework
for the ecology of information sharing
339
00:19:31,235 --> 00:19:32,719
on the internet.
340
00:19:32,720 --> 00:19:35,013
Like colonial frameworks of searching,
341
00:19:35,014 --> 00:19:37,188
the expectation of online search is that
342
00:19:37,189 --> 00:19:39,072
you will find what you're looking for
343
00:19:39,073 --> 00:19:42,246
and you can use it and take it
for your own purposes.
344
00:19:42,247 --> 00:19:43,260
Right?
345
00:19:43,261 --> 00:19:45,043
It's that same sort of paradigm.
346
00:19:45,044 --> 00:19:46,818
This is what our students do,
this is what I do.
347
00:19:46,819 --> 00:19:49,178
I got this on there, right?
I search. Google.
348
00:19:49,178 --> 00:19:51,858
This is what comes up
in their image archive.
349
00:19:51,866 --> 00:19:56,536
So our Vector site is meant to challenge
this mode of knowledge collection
350
00:19:56,537 --> 00:19:58,926
and it's attempt at ethical assumptions.
351
00:20:00,394 --> 00:20:04,711
So when a viewer begins,
they begin in a place.
352
00:20:04,739 --> 00:20:06,634
So these are representations,
353
00:20:06,635 --> 00:20:10,411
and all of the artwork was done by
Warumungu artists,
354
00:20:10,698 --> 00:20:13,801
so each of the circles is a place.
355
00:20:14,223 --> 00:20:20,438
And when they first did this,
we did not have them in correct
356
00:20:20,439 --> 00:20:22,971
geographical relationship to each other.
357
00:20:22,972 --> 00:20:26,380
They said, "No, no, no. We don't want
people to be able to know"
358
00:20:26,381 --> 00:20:28,056
"exactly what the place looks like"
359
00:20:28,057 --> 00:20:30,850
"but they always have to be in place."
360
00:20:30,851 --> 00:20:34,042
So they still have to be
at the proper coordinates.
361
00:20:34,043 --> 00:20:39,180
And one of the things Jampin reminded me
was that all knowledge is placed
362
00:20:39,789 --> 00:20:41,851
and all places have knowledge.
363
00:20:42,157 --> 00:20:44,595
So you can't know without being there.
364
00:20:44,596 --> 00:20:47,545
So, we start in place
and a viewer starts there.
365
00:20:47,546 --> 00:20:50,144
And then, you click on a place
and these are your tracks.
366
00:20:50,153 --> 00:20:54,791
The site will chart your tracks
as you move throughout the place.
367
00:20:55,259 --> 00:20:59,338
You will get a textual introduction
overview of the place.
368
00:20:59,557 --> 00:21:02,950
So this place is Manga-Manda.
It's an old Christian mission
369
00:21:02,951 --> 00:21:06,069
where children were taken,
a stolen generation.
370
00:21:06,070 --> 00:21:09,520
Some of you may have heard they were
taken away from their families
371
00:21:09,521 --> 00:21:10,991
not too far from Tennant Creek,
372
00:21:10,992 --> 00:21:13,607
taken to this mission to learn
European skills.
373
00:21:14,063 --> 00:21:15,756
So you'll get a little bit
of information there
374
00:21:15,757 --> 00:21:18,445
and then you can click
on the nodes off to the right.
375
00:21:19,510 --> 00:21:22,902
And then you'll get some more specific
information about what happened there.
376
00:21:22,903 --> 00:21:25,286
You might learn something
about the ceremonies
377
00:21:25,287 --> 00:21:29,510
and what we're trying to do here
is start you down the path,
378
00:21:29,511 --> 00:21:32,130
this sort of expectation of an online site
379
00:21:32,131 --> 00:21:34,262
is that you're going to be learning
something, right?
380
00:21:34,263 --> 00:21:36,982
You're going to be learning something
about Warumungu culture,
381
00:21:36,983 --> 00:21:38,681
that's what you're here for.
382
00:21:38,682 --> 00:21:41,146
And so we start to fulfill
that expectation.
383
00:21:41,529 --> 00:21:42,604
Except that we don't.
384
00:21:42,605 --> 00:21:47,976
So as viewers continue to maneuver
throughout the site, you're stopped.
385
00:21:48,606 --> 00:21:51,743
A photo may be partially covered
because the person in the picture
386
00:21:51,744 --> 00:21:53,672
has recently passed away.
387
00:21:54,315 --> 00:21:57,278
Or you might be watching a video,
388
00:21:57,279 --> 00:22:00,071
(woman speaking on video clip)
389
00:22:16,201 --> 00:22:17,457
and it'll stop.
390
00:22:18,506 --> 00:22:20,675
Or you might be listening to a song,
391
00:22:20,676 --> 00:22:23,840
(traditional chanting audio clip)
392
00:22:29,386 --> 00:22:32,013
and it'll fade in and out,
depending on the content.
393
00:22:32,014 --> 00:22:35,002
(chanting audio clip begins again)
394
00:22:38,591 --> 00:22:44,104
We purposely did not translate
any of the videos, or songs,
395
00:22:44,105 --> 00:22:48,498
or anything and we got this
sort of feedback from some anthropologists
396
00:22:48,499 --> 00:22:49,985
when the first site came out,
397
00:22:50,016 --> 00:22:51,954
but we can't understand
what they're saying.
398
00:22:51,955 --> 00:22:56,513
And I tried to explain, well because
it's not really about what they're saying.
399
00:22:56,514 --> 00:22:57,920
We're actually trying to teach you about
400
00:22:57,921 --> 00:23:00,623
your own learning practices
and cultural protocols.
401
00:23:00,624 --> 00:23:01,783
And this was an anthropologist
402
00:23:01,784 --> 00:23:03,515
and he's like, "But I can't hear
what they're saying!"
403
00:23:03,645 --> 00:23:07,888
(laughing) So we had a long debate
on an anthropology blog about that.
404
00:23:07,889 --> 00:23:10,590
But the site is designed in such a way,
there's an algorithm
405
00:23:10,591 --> 00:23:12,680
that a random sampling of material
406
00:23:12,680 --> 00:23:15,065
will always come up with
one of nine protocols.
407
00:23:15,066 --> 00:23:19,765
And the protocols were chosen
by the Warumungu community,
408
00:23:19,765 --> 00:23:23,077
related to circulation and access.
409
00:23:23,078 --> 00:23:25,800
So in each case though
when a viewer is stopped,
410
00:23:25,801 --> 00:23:28,533
we don't want to just stop them
and have them be frustrated.
411
00:23:28,749 --> 00:23:30,920
We do want to frustrate them
for a moment
412
00:23:30,921 --> 00:23:34,284
but then you'll go to or learn
about this protocol site.
413
00:23:34,572 --> 00:23:36,425
And you'll get a short explanation.
414
00:23:36,426 --> 00:23:38,926
So, why is it that I can't see this?
415
00:23:38,927 --> 00:23:43,897
Well, in some cases, custodians
for country are gendered
416
00:23:43,898 --> 00:23:46,940
and so it goes on to define that
and what that means.
417
00:23:46,941 --> 00:23:49,857
And then the Warumungu artist
that we worked with also created
418
00:23:49,858 --> 00:23:52,909
short animations for several
of the protocols.
419
00:23:53,450 --> 00:23:57,223
So you'll get a touch tool explanation
or you'll watch a short animation
420
00:23:57,224 --> 00:23:58,521
about the protocol.
421
00:23:58,522 --> 00:24:02,313
So you're starting to see, ok,
it's not that the site isn't working,
422
00:24:02,314 --> 00:24:05,636
it's not that I should be learning this
and I'm learning that,
423
00:24:05,637 --> 00:24:09,860
the hope was that as users
maneuver throughout the site,
424
00:24:09,861 --> 00:24:12,101
they'll grapple with their own biases
425
00:24:12,189 --> 00:24:16,131
about information freedom
and knowledge sharing online.
426
00:24:16,236 --> 00:24:18,999
Through a set of alternative
looking practices.
427
00:24:19,000 --> 00:24:22,110
Where not looking,
or averting your gaze
428
00:24:22,111 --> 00:24:25,869
or being denied access
is a type of ethical behavior.
429
00:24:28,262 --> 00:24:30,124
It's not a repercussion,
430
00:24:30,125 --> 00:24:31,200
it's not a penalty,
431
00:24:31,201 --> 00:24:32,358
it's not an error.
432
00:24:32,873 --> 00:24:36,243
It's a different type of looking behavior.
433
00:24:36,297 --> 00:24:38,642
So by presenting all of this information
434
00:24:38,643 --> 00:24:41,092
throughout a set of Warumungu
cultural protocols.
435
00:24:41,093 --> 00:24:45,161
The site's internal logic, challenges
many of the presumptions
436
00:24:45,162 --> 00:24:48,552
about knowledge acquisition
and looking that we all hold.
437
00:24:48,553 --> 00:24:55,220
And this project in 2005 was the catalyst
for the creation of Murkutu CMS.
438
00:24:56,293 --> 00:24:58,880
So Murkutu due is a free
and open source solution
439
00:24:58,881 --> 00:25:01,463
for managing and sharing digital heritage,
440
00:25:01,464 --> 00:25:04,191
built with and for
indigenous communities worldwide.
441
00:25:04,905 --> 00:25:08,921
Now Murkutu literally means
in Waramungu "dilly bag."
442
00:25:09,291 --> 00:25:13,259
So as we were creating
the first iteration of Murkutu,
443
00:25:13,260 --> 00:25:16,835
which was just for those collections
that we got back from the National Museums
444
00:25:16,835 --> 00:25:18,375
that we went to and from.
445
00:25:18,376 --> 00:25:21,731
We got back collections from
missionaries, school teachers,
446
00:25:21,732 --> 00:25:24,492
other people who have worked
in Tennant Creek.
447
00:25:25,072 --> 00:25:28,411
The first iteration was just going to be
a community archive.
448
00:25:28,412 --> 00:25:30,782
It was browser-based, it was standalone,
449
00:25:30,783 --> 00:25:33,066
it wasn't online,
it was just for the community.
450
00:25:33,067 --> 00:25:34,565
And when they were naming it,
451
00:25:34,566 --> 00:25:37,612
Jampin said that he wanted
to name it Murkutu.
452
00:25:37,613 --> 00:25:39,772
And I had never heard the word before
453
00:25:39,773 --> 00:25:42,462
and I worked in the community
for over 10 years and he said
454
00:25:42,463 --> 00:25:45,794
the dilly bag was a safe keeping place.
455
00:25:45,795 --> 00:25:49,508
Elders kept sacred items in the dilly bag
456
00:25:49,509 --> 00:25:53,281
and as younger generations,
you had to approach the elder
457
00:25:53,282 --> 00:25:56,096
to find out about that knowledge
and about those items,
458
00:25:56,097 --> 00:25:57,854
so about your cultural heritage.
459
00:25:57,855 --> 00:26:00,712
However, it was also
incumbent on the elder
460
00:26:00,713 --> 00:26:03,500
to open those up and share that,
461
00:26:03,501 --> 00:26:05,587
otherwise, the knowledge would die.
462
00:26:05,587 --> 00:26:08,398
And that was his word in English,
the knowledge would die.
463
00:26:08,399 --> 00:26:13,497
So it was actually about creating
a dialogue and reciprocation,
464
00:26:13,498 --> 00:26:17,723
sharing cultural knowledge,
not shutting it off or closing it down
465
00:26:17,724 --> 00:26:21,352
but sharing it properly
is how Jampin put it.
466
00:26:21,759 --> 00:26:24,838
So the dilly bag we thought
is a good metaphor
467
00:26:24,839 --> 00:26:27,150
for the way that Murkutu functions.
468
00:26:27,420 --> 00:26:30,151
Murkutu centers around protocols.
469
00:26:30,558 --> 00:26:32,907
These are the heart
and soul of Murkutu.
470
00:26:32,908 --> 00:26:36,471
They allow any community, however defined,
471
00:26:36,472 --> 00:26:41,518
to determine how materials are shared
through fine brain levels of access.
472
00:26:41,519 --> 00:26:44,768
So that slide I put up
with the ritual, gender,
473
00:26:44,780 --> 00:26:48,691
for the Warumungu, those would be
the protocols that they define
474
00:26:48,692 --> 00:26:50,617
within their instance of Murkutu.
475
00:26:50,618 --> 00:26:53,407
We're working with the Zuni libraries,
they use clans.
476
00:26:53,408 --> 00:26:55,894
All the groups, and that was the thing.
477
00:26:55,895 --> 00:26:58,370
One of the things
we grappled with early on.
478
00:26:58,371 --> 00:27:01,470
We couldn't just use
a cookie cutter set of protocols.
479
00:27:01,471 --> 00:27:03,315
Oh everybody'll have gender, no!
480
00:27:03,316 --> 00:27:07,053
So it had to be flexible enough
that any community can define whatever
481
00:27:07,063 --> 00:27:09,890
and that they're flexible
enough to change.
482
00:27:10,710 --> 00:27:13,311
So it was interesting with
the Warumungu community
483
00:27:13,312 --> 00:27:15,364
at first that deceased protocol
484
00:27:15,472 --> 00:27:17,286
was very strict
485
00:27:17,578 --> 00:27:23,008
and over the last five or six years,
we've seen it so thumbnails are ok.
486
00:27:23,934 --> 00:27:25,775
But bigger versions aren't.
487
00:27:25,786 --> 00:27:28,478
So, right? Because people change.
488
00:27:28,838 --> 00:27:31,862
And our protocols is for viewing
and circulating knowledge change
489
00:27:31,863 --> 00:27:36,721
and so, as a database, Murkutu
also had to be that flexible to change.
490
00:27:38,828 --> 00:27:41,027
But within the content management system,
491
00:27:41,028 --> 00:27:44,940
I can add any protocol to any single item
492
00:27:44,941 --> 00:27:47,819
or in a collection and with one click
493
00:27:47,820 --> 00:27:50,247
that protocol will be added
across the field.
494
00:27:50,248 --> 00:27:53,824
So within Murkutu this happens
in a really simple interface.
495
00:27:54,721 --> 00:27:57,324
And you choose
"add your cultural protocol"
496
00:27:57,325 --> 00:27:59,527
and then you add your protocol over here,
497
00:27:59,528 --> 00:28:02,216
define it however you want,
so this is a youth protocol.
498
00:28:02,217 --> 00:28:04,825
And then there's three sharing protocols
499
00:28:04,826 --> 00:28:08,628
that allow you to create
those levels of access.
500
00:28:08,629 --> 00:28:12,993
So there’s s community level,
there's what we call community strict,
501
00:28:12,994 --> 00:28:18,986
which is something where you'd have to be
a woman from that country, right?
502
00:28:18,987 --> 00:28:22,617
And in that kin group, you have to have
all three of those protocols met,
503
00:28:22,618 --> 00:28:24,232
to see something.
504
00:28:24,495 --> 00:28:26,903
Whereas, if it's just
a community protocol,
505
00:28:26,904 --> 00:28:29,609
you can be any of those
and you will see it.
506
00:28:29,610 --> 00:28:33,271
So the protocols overlap
and create these sort of Venn diagrams.
507
00:28:33,653 --> 00:28:37,895
But one of the other things that I
worked with the designers on
508
00:28:37,896 --> 00:28:40,184
and the folks that were architecting this
509
00:28:40,185 --> 00:28:44,904
was, I gave them a two-click mantra
when we started, which is
510
00:28:44,905 --> 00:28:46,873
if anything takes longer than two clicks,
511
00:28:46,874 --> 00:28:48,406
we're going to lose people.
512
00:28:48,407 --> 00:28:50,476
We're dealing not only
with literacy issues,
513
00:28:50,477 --> 00:28:52,515
but digital literacy issues as well.
514
00:28:52,712 --> 00:28:55,719
So this is a matter of design
and functionality, too.
515
00:28:55,720 --> 00:28:57,908
Who's your audience?
Who's the user base?
516
00:28:57,909 --> 00:28:59,103
What do they need?
517
00:28:59,104 --> 00:29:02,787
We knew there was a need.
We also couldn't create something
518
00:29:02,788 --> 00:29:05,115
that people wouldn't be able to
sit down and use.
519
00:29:05,115 --> 00:29:08,052
And interestingly,
in the communities that I work in,
520
00:29:08,053 --> 00:29:10,299
both in the Pacific northwest
and in Australia,
521
00:29:10,300 --> 00:29:13,499
I don't ever see people sitting
at the archive,
522
00:29:13,500 --> 00:29:15,878
at the computer, by themselves.
523
00:29:15,879 --> 00:29:17,381
It's always in groups, whereas,
524
00:29:17,382 --> 00:29:19,758
you know, you think of the archives,
you go in and
525
00:29:19,759 --> 00:29:22,794
(whispering) you're quiet, you sit
and you just do your own thing.
526
00:29:22,795 --> 00:29:26,860
No! It's about sharing stories
and telling what's happening
527
00:29:26,861 --> 00:29:28,127
and looking at these things.
528
00:29:28,128 --> 00:29:33,932
So, in this case, our philosophy
has always been to make
529
00:29:33,933 --> 00:29:38,156
the technology bend to the culture,
as opposed to the other way around.
530
00:29:38,482 --> 00:29:41,693
Where generally we say, "Ok, well,
we know that's your cultural value"
531
00:29:41,694 --> 00:29:43,133
"but the technology will only do this."
532
00:29:43,136 --> 00:29:45,799
That's what started us down his road.
533
00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:49,804
I was a graduate student in 2002
and I said, "Oh I'm sure we can just buy"
534
00:29:49,805 --> 00:29:51,840
"some software to do this."
535
00:29:52,240 --> 00:29:54,776
Ok 14, you know, 12 years later!
536
00:29:54,777 --> 00:29:57,917
Now, we're creating software.
I mean, I was a cultural anthropologist,
537
00:29:57,918 --> 00:30:01,394
I didn't write a line of code.
That's not me.
538
00:30:01,395 --> 00:30:05,492
But the cultural ideal behind it,
and I worked with great technologists
539
00:30:05,493 --> 00:30:10,342
who understand that this idea,
bending the technology to make it work
540
00:30:10,343 --> 00:30:12,378
so that people don't have to relinquish
541
00:30:12,379 --> 00:30:16,978
their cultural values for this sort
of open and shut model that we have.
542
00:30:16,979 --> 00:30:20,799
So for me, it's not necessarily about
building technology, but building trust.
543
00:30:21,541 --> 00:30:24,660
And of course there has to be trust
in the technology.
544
00:30:24,750 --> 00:30:27,916
It's a big thing and I've seen this
with the work that I do
545
00:30:27,917 --> 00:30:31,959
in the Pacific northwest with the tribes
when I started working at WSU,
546
00:30:31,960 --> 00:30:34,653
we used Murkutu
to create something called
547
00:30:34,654 --> 00:30:36,467
the Plateau People's Web Portal.
548
00:30:36,468 --> 00:30:39,695
And at the first couple meetings
with the tribal representatives,
549
00:30:39,696 --> 00:30:42,327
they said that, "And are you
going to be here, Kim?"
550
00:30:42,328 --> 00:30:44,223
I was like (gasp).
551
00:30:44,224 --> 00:30:48,727
I mean it was really about,
and nine years later, I'm still there
552
00:30:48,728 --> 00:30:52,714
but it took several years
just to establish
553
00:30:52,715 --> 00:30:56,330
that we could all work together,
554
00:30:56,331 --> 00:30:58,579
that we're not going to take
your stuff and leave.
555
00:30:58,580 --> 00:31:02,121
They've been burned by researchers
and universities before.
556
00:31:02,122 --> 00:31:05,806
And so it really is, so the technology
should inspire that trust.
557
00:31:05,807 --> 00:31:09,531
So the protocols really have to work
and people have to see them working.
558
00:31:09,969 --> 00:31:14,257
So our Murkutu team works directly
with groups to encourage
559
00:31:14,258 --> 00:31:15,852
these types of relationships.
560
00:31:15,853 --> 00:31:17,422
We worked with the Smithsonian,
561
00:31:17,423 --> 00:31:20,970
we've worked with other collecting
institutions to bring these materials
562
00:31:20,971 --> 00:31:24,725
back to communities and not just
hand them back on a hard drive,
563
00:31:24,726 --> 00:31:27,205
but actually have a relationship together.
564
00:31:27,489 --> 00:31:30,244
In December, we launched MIRA,
565
00:31:30,824 --> 00:31:34,210
which is a mammoth example
of what can be done with Mukurtu.
566
00:31:34,438 --> 00:31:37,875
MIRA is a collaboration between Mukurtu,
567
00:31:37,876 --> 00:31:41,707
the Center for Digital Archeology
at Berkeley,
568
00:31:41,708 --> 00:31:44,934
and the Canning Stock Route Project
team in Australia.
569
00:31:45,418 --> 00:31:49,427
MIRA has over 40,000
digital heritage objects,
570
00:31:49,428 --> 00:31:54,149
providing the most comprehensive database
for the artwork, stories, and histories
571
00:31:54,150 --> 00:31:57,590
of the Aboriginal people who live
on the Canning Stock Route,
572
00:31:57,591 --> 00:31:59,815
which is the major colonial artery
573
00:31:59,816 --> 00:32:01,971
that cuts across the Australian continent
574
00:32:01,972 --> 00:32:06,356
and affected hundreds of Aboriginal
communities, disrupted their lives,
575
00:32:06,357 --> 00:32:08,206
disrupted their cultures
and their languages.
576
00:32:09,215 --> 00:32:14,765
MIRA uses Murkutu's customized fields
577
00:32:14,766 --> 00:32:18,864
to provide a rich and detailed set
of linked content in what we call
578
00:32:18,865 --> 00:32:21,681
in Murkutu digital heritage items.
579
00:32:21,766 --> 00:32:26,213
And you can link them together
to create digital heritage stories,
580
00:32:26,214 --> 00:32:30,060
including video narratives
by artists in their country,
581
00:32:31,443 --> 00:32:33,670
individual pages for artists
and contributors,
582
00:32:33,670 --> 00:32:37,675
richly and multiply-narrated stories
with text, audio, and video.
583
00:32:38,280 --> 00:32:43,103
And all of these were curated by hundreds
of Aboriginal community members.
584
00:32:43,354 --> 00:32:46,565
They're the experts.
That's the difference here.
585
00:32:46,566 --> 00:32:49,334
These are curated by the Aboriginal
members themselves,
586
00:32:49,335 --> 00:32:52,621
in different languages and with
different sets of protocols
587
00:32:52,622 --> 00:32:54,480
across these images.
588
00:32:54,481 --> 00:32:57,054
So one community happened to have
some protocols,
589
00:32:57,055 --> 00:32:58,830
another will have
another set of protocols.
590
00:32:59,020 --> 00:33:01,050
It pushed us to our limits
591
00:33:01,051 --> 00:33:06,276
and now within Murkutu, every field
can have a protocol attached to it.
592
00:33:06,277 --> 00:33:10,344
So you may be ok with someone
seeing this painting,
593
00:33:10,345 --> 00:33:12,924
you may not want them
to hear the song or see the map.
594
00:33:13,343 --> 00:33:17,749
So you can still get to this page
but those fields will be hidden.
595
00:33:17,749 --> 00:33:20,530
So now our protocols are
every single field,
596
00:33:20,531 --> 00:33:24,602
every point of metadata can have
its individual protocol.
597
00:33:24,603 --> 00:33:27,979
That's a new feature in Murkutu,
stemming from the MIRA project
598
00:33:27,980 --> 00:33:29,835
and we're really happy about that.
599
00:33:29,835 --> 00:33:32,467
And because this project
really took us out
600
00:33:32,468 --> 00:33:34,283
and worked with hundreds
of Aboriginal communities,
601
00:33:34,284 --> 00:33:38,858
we started looking at this on the go
recording in curation.
602
00:33:38,859 --> 00:33:44,737
So we launched Murkutu Mobile
in October 2012 for iphones.
603
00:33:44,738 --> 00:33:48,803
We just got an NEH grant
and we will soon be also
604
00:33:48,804 --> 00:33:51,349
releasing it on Android as well.
605
00:33:51,698 --> 00:33:56,585
But this allows users to instantly upload
content to Murkutu sites,
606
00:33:56,586 --> 00:34:00,213
keeping their protocols
embedded at that level.
607
00:34:00,214 --> 00:34:02,277
So they're never without their protocols.
608
00:34:02,278 --> 00:34:05,132
They can also add their stories.
They can talk into it.
609
00:34:05,133 --> 00:34:08,391
They can do an oral history interview
right there in the field
610
00:34:08,393 --> 00:34:10,426
and link it to the photo of the person,
611
00:34:10,427 --> 00:34:14,024
geo locate it, and upload all of that.
612
00:34:14,025 --> 00:34:17,003
If they're offline, once they get
back online, they can sync it.
613
00:34:17,402 --> 00:34:20,266
And it'll go right into
their instance of Murkutu.
614
00:34:21,301 --> 00:34:25,590
All of this, in fact, all of the
development of features of Murkutu
615
00:34:25,591 --> 00:34:29,866
happens around what we call community
agile software development.
616
00:34:29,867 --> 00:34:33,482
So the notion of agile software
development is already there, right?
617
00:34:33,483 --> 00:34:36,714
We add the community to it,
so every feature,
618
00:34:36,715 --> 00:34:39,940
every upgrade of Murkutu comes
from what the community wants.
619
00:34:39,940 --> 00:34:41,731
They can vote things up or down.
620
00:34:41,732 --> 00:34:45,641
So, this type of mobile was something
everywhere we went.
621
00:34:45,643 --> 00:34:47,561
We did some workshops
across New Zealand
622
00:34:47,562 --> 00:34:50,536
and everywhere we went people said,
"What about mobile? What about mobile?"
623
00:34:50,538 --> 00:34:52,815
And the reason why is kids.
624
00:34:52,817 --> 00:34:55,385
They want to get their kids involved
625
00:34:55,386 --> 00:35:00,104
in creating and sharing heritage
and not just uploading it to Facebook.
626
00:35:00,811 --> 00:35:03,749
They want this stuff to remain
within their communities;
627
00:35:03,750 --> 00:35:06,521
they might also be on Facebook
but they want stuff in the communities.
628
00:35:06,914 --> 00:35:11,638
So I think that projects like Murkurtu
can help us define the present future
629
00:35:11,639 --> 00:35:16,580
of the digital humanities as a field,
whereas one of my mentors,
630
00:35:16,581 --> 00:35:18,866
Donna Haraway, reminds us,
631
00:35:18,867 --> 00:35:23,820
"We become answerable,
for what we learn how to see."
632
00:35:25,488 --> 00:35:28,124
As we move forward, carving out this field
633
00:35:28,125 --> 00:35:30,861
and creating it's contours,
we should remind ourselves
634
00:35:30,862 --> 00:35:36,107
to hold multiple, challenging,
and often times conflicting perspectives
635
00:35:36,108 --> 00:35:40,840
about knowledge and it's value
for the many publics that we engage with.
636
00:35:41,470 --> 00:35:44,314
Aboriginal practices of masking,
637
00:35:44,315 --> 00:35:48,429
deleting, defaming images,
objects, and artifacts
638
00:35:48,430 --> 00:35:50,821
disrupts this act of looking
639
00:35:50,940 --> 00:35:54,914
and the privileging of seeing
as a precursor to knowledge acquisition
640
00:35:54,915 --> 00:35:57,400
that we hold in this Western tradition.
641
00:35:57,444 --> 00:36:01,202
They help us see that communities
have different ways of knowing
642
00:36:01,203 --> 00:36:06,185
and that culturally responsive technology
can be leveraged to achieve their goals,
643
00:36:06,186 --> 00:36:08,909
without giving up
what makes them different.
644
00:36:09,345 --> 00:36:14,239
Collaborations between scholars
and the many communities we move between
645
00:36:14,240 --> 00:36:19,363
can, and should, keep these tensions
in place; let's not give them up.
646
00:36:19,776 --> 00:36:24,313
As we seek to create a productive center
for the digital humanities,
647
00:36:24,314 --> 00:36:26,564
where we think differently
648
00:36:26,565 --> 00:36:30,079
about this seemingly benign
act of looking,
649
00:36:30,080 --> 00:36:33,050
it's one thing to call attention
to difference,
650
00:36:33,051 --> 00:36:36,049
it's another to alter
our visual practices,
651
00:36:36,049 --> 00:36:39,420
challenge archival curation practices,
652
00:36:39,421 --> 00:36:41,547
and question modes of access.
653
00:36:42,102 --> 00:36:46,307
Moving forward, I think digital humanities
scholars can be at the forefront.
654
00:36:46,308 --> 00:36:50,642
We can play a role in defining
a new economy of looking,
655
00:36:50,643 --> 00:36:55,941
where localized project scales,
divergent ethical systems,
656
00:36:55,942 --> 00:37:00,667
varied access models,
and collaborative tool-making
657
00:37:00,668 --> 00:37:04,519
come to the center
and, therefore, enliven
658
00:37:04,520 --> 00:37:07,629
and expand the digital humanities
for all of us.
659
00:37:08,594 --> 00:37:09,827
Thank you.
660
00:37:10,260 --> 00:37:12,422
(applause)
661
00:37:16,245 --> 00:37:17,675
So I know that was a lot.
662
00:37:17,676 --> 00:37:18,800
(laughter)