Diane K. Jakacki

Is There Such a Thing as Digital Exceptionalism ..?

.. and is it a good witch? Or a bad witch?

I spend a lot of time talking to people – convincing people – wooing people to consider digital modes and methods when it comes to research and teaching. I’m happy doing this, not only because it’s my job, but because I (and excuse the goofy foot here) these things are fun for me, and I want to share that fun. Not the most serious, scholarly articulation, but those of you who know me know that I am a nerdy, geeky, goofball.

Asking Better Questions

The other night I had one of those eureka! moments that bring me joy and make me crazy. But mostly bring me joy.
As some of you know I’ve been trying to sort out how to track Queen’s Men touring practices in the 1580s by teasing information out of the Records of Early English Drama dataset and looking at it on maps. I had some early success – 1583 record scraps offered what looks like a split tour during the summer months. I’ve been pinning the record scraps to an ArcGIS online map (and a pretty crappy job I did of it, too) and explaining away the vagueness of my plotting because I don’t always have very specific geo references (aside from an extant guildhall here and there, for which I’m grateful.) [Read more…] about Asking Better Questions

Undefining #DigitalScholarship

I would like for this to be the first in a series of reflections about my engagement with and considerations of the digital in research and pedagogy. It seems like I should be making time for this navel-gazing.

I’ve spent most of the summer thinking about Digital Scholarship. What constitutes digital scholarship? What does it mean viz. humanities and pedagogy? What does it mean at Bucknell? And what does it mean in terms of what I practice and how I write about it. When do I capitalize it and when do I use the lower case?

Settling In

Bucknell: Week One phase is now complete. It’s been exciting and exhausting and confusing and exilarating. There’s so much to do, and so many people to meet, and so many goals to set, and … I still can’t quite adjust to the feeling that the Bucknell DSC (both position and center) is a reality and not something I’ve wished into being. There were so many meet-and-greets this week that it was Friday before I was able to start to make sense of my notes.

[Read more…] about Settling In

On Shifting Gears

Here I am in my new home office, listening as Mennonites in their buggies ride by on their way to church. Bonnie is sleeping in her bed at my feet (the hardwood floors are hard on her hips, so I’m investing in plenty of dog beds.) This morning we walked across the street, down a gravel road and through Mr. Baker’s farm. Last week at this time I was frantically packing boxes. Tomorrow I start the new job at Bucknell. This is a curious bucolic limbo.

[Read more…] about On Shifting Gears

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