Scattered Links – 7/20/2008
Bill Turkel wrote a thought-provoking post titled “Towards a Computational History.” I agree completely with his section on collective intelligence. A lot of digital history spells out the methodology of tools and technology, but the more theoretical shift in production and dissemination of information is of course equally important to the future of the field.
Eric Rauchway wrote a great article for The New Republic explaining why parallels between John McCain and Teddy Roosevelt fall flat.
One of the pleasant benefits of taking a break from school and having a 9-5 job (along with a peaceful 45 minute metro commute each way), is that I can read a ton of books that aren’t assigned to me by a course syllabus. A Pulitzer Prize, along with some interesting blog reviews, have placed Daniel Walker Howe’s What Hath God Wrought onto my short list. For similar reasons, Kate Summerscale’s The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher has been added as well.
Finally, Matthias Schulz of Spiegel Online has an interesting article on how the myth of Cyrus II as a pioneer of human rights developed. Schulz attacks this particularly insidious piece of propaganda, and isn’t afraid to take issue with heavyweights such as the United Nations and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Shirin Ebadi. The historian in me appreciates his revisionism, but would just like to see his sources.
