If archives provide first-hand evidence of the past, how is this evidence changing when it’s studied in digital environments, with digital tools? This discussion-based seminar will provide a snapshot of ways in which AI is changing research and teaching with archives.

First, Dr. Laura Blomvall from Adam Matthew (AM) will share case studies of doctoral and postdoctoral researchers who have made original discoveries in archives through research methods that utilize AI programs like Handwritten Text Recognition. Then, she will share examples of university instructors who have turned to primary sources, both in digitized archives and in special collections, to create teaching and learning environments that resist the use of generative AI in student assignments.

The presentation will be punctuated by group discussion with the aim of exchanging experiences and ideas on the impact of AI and digital methods in research and teaching in the humanities across different disciplines.