Jo Guldi
@joguldi.bsky.social
Professor of Quantitative Methods at Emory. Data scientist, writer, historian. Newest: The Long Land War (2022), The Dangerous Art of Text Mining (2023).
Pinned
Jo Guldi
@joguldi.bsky.social
· May 1
Historians use data science to mine the past | PNAS
Historians use data science to mine the past
pnas.org
Thrilled to be featured (along with a few of the many rising stars of digital history) in this week's PNAS Front Matter: pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... "Historians Use Data Science to Mine the Past"
Reposted by Jo Guldi
Look around, the case for more, not less, liberal arts education remains stronger than ever.
If you were forced to bet on which university courses of study still will be relevant in 50 years, languages, literature, history, philosophy, and arts are all pretty good wagers.
They have an excellent track record over the past thousand years or so.
They have an excellent track record over the past thousand years or so.
Not the point of this fascinating article, but it remains darkly ironic to me that the Humanities have fallen backwards into being the safe financial bet of degrees
July 20, 2025 at 4:57 PM
Look around, the case for more, not less, liberal arts education remains stronger than ever.
Reposted by Jo Guldi
I can't stress enough how studying philosophy at a liberal arts school prepared me for my career.
Logic problems, organizing abstract concepts, neural nets and models of cognition, language and conversation, the nature of experience.
Honestly expected never to see a trolley problem again tho.
Logic problems, organizing abstract concepts, neural nets and models of cognition, language and conversation, the nature of experience.
Honestly expected never to see a trolley problem again tho.
Look around, the case for more, not less, liberal arts education remains stronger than ever.
If you were forced to bet on which university courses of study still will be relevant in 50 years, languages, literature, history, philosophy, and arts are all pretty good wagers.
They have an excellent track record over the past thousand years or so.
They have an excellent track record over the past thousand years or so.
July 20, 2025 at 5:06 PM
I can't stress enough how studying philosophy at a liberal arts school prepared me for my career.
Logic problems, organizing abstract concepts, neural nets and models of cognition, language and conversation, the nature of experience.
Honestly expected never to see a trolley problem again tho.
Logic problems, organizing abstract concepts, neural nets and models of cognition, language and conversation, the nature of experience.
Honestly expected never to see a trolley problem again tho.
Reposted by Jo Guldi
3 tabs opened, a note-pad with a to-do-list in front of you, and a pair of spectacles handy. Surfing on the #earlymodern internet in 1622. #skystorians
December 17, 2024 at 8:15 AM
3 tabs opened, a note-pad with a to-do-list in front of you, and a pair of spectacles handy. Surfing on the #earlymodern internet in 1622. #skystorians
Reposted by Jo Guldi
Is it too late to give Sacha Baron Cohen an Oscar for this? Not a damn lie told. 🇺🇸
June 22, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Is it too late to give Sacha Baron Cohen an Oscar for this? Not a damn lie told. 🇺🇸
This is cool. Johannes Uhl and colleagues use historical maps and settlement data to generate a dataset of the approximate date of every road in the United States. Check it out: arxiv.org/pdf/2506.16625 @jhuhl.bsky.social
arxiv.org
June 27, 2025 at 3:32 PM
This is cool. Johannes Uhl and colleagues use historical maps and settlement data to generate a dataset of the approximate date of every road in the United States. Check it out: arxiv.org/pdf/2506.16625 @jhuhl.bsky.social
Reposted by Jo Guldi
So.
Less ability to forecast hurricanes, and a crippled FEMA so you can’t get federal aid for the damage…
Less ability to forecast hurricanes, and a crippled FEMA so you can’t get federal aid for the damage…
A huge blow was dealt to hurricane forecasters this week as a critical tool was abruptly terminated by the Department of Defense and NOAA. The immediate discontinuation of data from three weather satellites will severely impact hurricane forecasts this season and beyond. More ⬇️
Critical Hurricane Forecast Tool Abruptly Terminated
U.S. Department of Defense announced Tuesday it would no longer process and deliver data essential to most hurricane forecasts
michaelrlowry.substack.com
June 26, 2025 at 3:36 PM
So.
Less ability to forecast hurricanes, and a crippled FEMA so you can’t get federal aid for the damage…
Less ability to forecast hurricanes, and a crippled FEMA so you can’t get federal aid for the damage…
Now if only they would publish the data on their findings so that we could understand the work of government and the sacrifices of public servants. Because every past government committee in a democracy committed to transparency publishes its findings, right??
“I personally was pretty surprised, actually, at how efficient the government was,” Sahil Lavingia told NPR's Juana Summers.
Former DOGE engineer says federal waste and fraud were 'relatively nonexistent'
NPR's Juana Summers talks with Sahil Lavingia, who worked for the Department of Government Efficiency as a software engineer assigned to the Department of Veterans Affairs, about his experience.
www.npr.org
June 26, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Now if only they would publish the data on their findings so that we could understand the work of government and the sacrifices of public servants. Because every past government committee in a democracy committed to transparency publishes its findings, right??
Exciting new threshold in dh!
I’m so excited that my book is now out in the world. It pulls together my scholarly training in African American literature with my turn to digital humanities. I’ve also published the complete data dataset of 100 years of AFAM and am lit anthologies that is the backbone of the book.
In Digital Literary Redlining, @aearhart.bsky.social
examines how technological and institutional infrastructures construct and deconstruct race, ethnicity and gender identities.
#ReadUP
www.sup.org/books/li...
examines how technological and institutional infrastructures construct and deconstruct race, ethnicity and gender identities.
#ReadUP
www.sup.org/books/li...
June 26, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Exciting new threshold in dh!
Profound personal statement about the power of the humanities, the risks associated with losing the university as a bridge to social mobility, and how much is at stake as we abandon the infrastructure of research. Thank you for writing this, Karin. We need the long form version.
"My father, an early and prominent computer scientist, passed away more than two years ago. Since then I’ve been trying to make sense of how rapidly the world that helped make him, and in turn the one he helped shape, is unraveling." 1/ scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/06/26/d...
Did My Father’s World Die with Him? Grieving the Incalculable Costs of “STEM.” - The Scholarly Kitchen
Grieving my father's death feels inextricably tangled with grieving the catastrophe overtaking the whole of our research infrastructure.
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org
June 26, 2025 at 11:44 AM
Profound personal statement about the power of the humanities, the risks associated with losing the university as a bridge to social mobility, and how much is at stake as we abandon the infrastructure of research. Thank you for writing this, Karin. We need the long form version.
Reposted by Jo Guldi
I wish more of my neighbors in Western North Carolina realized this.
Trump has gutted FEMA grants to build storm-resistant infrastructure in flood and hurricane-prone communities.
Two-thirds of counties that have lost funding voted for him in 2024.
Trump is even telling his own voters they're on their own. https://www.cbsnews.com/femagrantcuts/
Two-thirds of counties that have lost funding voted for him in 2024.
Trump is even telling his own voters they're on their own. https://www.cbsnews.com/femagrantcuts/
Cuts to FEMA's storm prep program hammer communities that voted for Trump
A CBS News investigation found two-thirds of counties that have lost funding from this FEMA program supported President
www.cbsnews.com
June 19, 2025 at 3:43 AM
I wish more of my neighbors in Western North Carolina realized this.
I do love that it was helpful to a China scholar, Tom! I’ve been hearing the same thing from sovietologists as well. Thanks for weighing in!
Fascinating interview with @joguldi.bsky.social novaramedia.com/2025/06/13/h... part near the end on going beyond communism vs capitalism to classify modes of development during cold war is especially relevant to China
How to Redistribute the Globe | Novara Media
It's the Land, Stupid.
novaramedia.com
June 15, 2025 at 8:52 AM
I do love that it was helpful to a China scholar, Tom! I’ve been hearing the same thing from sovietologists as well. Thanks for weighing in!
Super powerful Sunday meditation on America in despair by theologian Diana Butler Bass @dianabutlerbass open.substack.com/pub/dianabutle…
https://open.substack.com/pub/dianabutle…
June 15, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Super powerful Sunday meditation on America in despair by theologian Diana Butler Bass @dianabutlerbass open.substack.com/pub/dianabutle…
Reposted by Jo Guldi
This is a remarkably thoughtful essay about standing ruins in urban landscapes today and what they mean -- a portrait of Austin's long battle to attract IT, and about international bulldozing as a way of life in our wasteful economy.
My interest in ruins that are not ruins goes back a long way...I went looking for an old piece about grackles and turned up this: www.austinchronicle.com/news/2001-11...
A Colossal Wreck
The Intel Building and its discontents
www.austinchronicle.com
June 14, 2025 at 9:14 AM
This is a remarkably thoughtful essay about standing ruins in urban landscapes today and what they mean -- a portrait of Austin's long battle to attract IT, and about international bulldozing as a way of life in our wasteful economy.
Reading Albert Camus's A Short Guide to Towns Without a Past (French edition 1950) -- new to me, but essays written from 1937 to 1950 in northern Italy and Algeria. I'm used to the dour short stories of Camus assigned in high school, but these are different.
June 14, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Reading Albert Camus's A Short Guide to Towns Without a Past (French edition 1950) -- new to me, but essays written from 1937 to 1950 in northern Italy and Algeria. I'm used to the dour short stories of Camus assigned in high school, but these are different.
Listen to my new podcast/interview with the brilliant young British folks at NovaraFM, where I talk about participatory mapping, land reform, and their fascinating histories -- "How to Redistribute the Globe"
novaramedia.com/2025/06/13/h...
novaramedia.com/2025/06/13/h...
How to Redistribute the Globe | Novara Media
It's the Land, Stupid.
novaramedia.com
June 14, 2025 at 8:35 AM
Listen to my new podcast/interview with the brilliant young British folks at NovaraFM, where I talk about participatory mapping, land reform, and their fascinating histories -- "How to Redistribute the Globe"
novaramedia.com/2025/06/13/h...
novaramedia.com/2025/06/13/h...
Reposted by Jo Guldi
Modern https://xkcd.com/3089/ #histodons
May 15, 2025 at 9:08 PM
Modern https://xkcd.com/3089/ #histodons
Reposted by Jo Guldi
after listening to a talk by @joguldi on AI and historical objectivity and receiving a hint in this direction on the chat, I started playing around -- multiple ethical qualms notwithstanding -- with NotebookLM. I have now set up a publicly accessible notebook with my #measuringtheearth dataset […]
Original post on hcommons.social
hcommons.social
June 13, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Delighted to be in Warwick -- nest that nurtured so many greats of history (EP Thompson, Ed Countryman, Maxine Berg) -- giving talks on environmental history and AI this week. Say hello!
June 2, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Delighted to be in Warwick -- nest that nurtured so many greats of history (EP Thompson, Ed Countryman, Maxine Berg) -- giving talks on environmental history and AI this week. Say hello!
Reposted by Jo Guldi
Check out the handout from the AHA’s Congressional Briefing on the history of deportation. Panelists
@hidehirota.bsky.social, Ana Raquel Minian Andjel, &
@yaelschacher.bsky.social shared policies concerning immigration & deportation throughout US history. 🗃️
@hidehirota.bsky.social, Ana Raquel Minian Andjel, &
@yaelschacher.bsky.social shared policies concerning immigration & deportation throughout US history. 🗃️
History of Deportation – AHA
This handout was created for the AHA's Congressional Briefing on the history of deportation.
www.historians.org
May 22, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Check out the handout from the AHA’s Congressional Briefing on the history of deportation. Panelists
@hidehirota.bsky.social, Ana Raquel Minian Andjel, &
@yaelschacher.bsky.social shared policies concerning immigration & deportation throughout US history. 🗃️
@hidehirota.bsky.social, Ana Raquel Minian Andjel, &
@yaelschacher.bsky.social shared policies concerning immigration & deportation throughout US history. 🗃️
My second talk at the University of Glasgow will connect the history of land politics to affairs in Scotland: “The Long Land War: Scotland and Ireland in the longue durée”
eventbrite.co.uk/e/jo-guldi-t... (alt text: The Long Land War, 1881-1990)
eventbrite.co.uk/e/jo-guldi-t... (alt text: The Long Land War, 1881-1990)
Jo Guldi, “The Long Land War: Scotland and Ireland in the longue durée”,
Jo Guldi, “The Long Land War: Scotland and Ireland in the longue durée”, Global History Cluster and the Centre for Scottish & Celtic Studies
eventbrite.co.uk
May 20, 2025 at 12:11 PM
My second talk at the University of Glasgow will connect the history of land politics to affairs in Scotland: “The Long Land War: Scotland and Ireland in the longue durée”
eventbrite.co.uk/e/jo-guldi-t... (alt text: The Long Land War, 1881-1990)
eventbrite.co.uk/e/jo-guldi-t... (alt text: The Long Land War, 1881-1990)
I'm thrilled to be giving a series of lectures at Uni Glasgow in a few weeks! Here's one: "Will AI Kill Democracy or Spur a Democratic Revival?" eventbrite.co.uk/e/jo-guldi-w... (alt text: human silhouette with a question mark, robot head, and the slogan, "Crisis of Fact")
Jo Guldi, Will AI Kill Democracy or spur a democratic revival?
Jo Guldi, "Will AI Kill Democracy or spur a democratic revival? The role of text mining for historical analysis", Global History Cluster
eventbrite.co.uk
May 20, 2025 at 12:11 PM
I'm thrilled to be giving a series of lectures at Uni Glasgow in a few weeks! Here's one: "Will AI Kill Democracy or Spur a Democratic Revival?" eventbrite.co.uk/e/jo-guldi-w... (alt text: human silhouette with a question mark, robot head, and the slogan, "Crisis of Fact")
Reposted by Jo Guldi
AHA members @joguldi.bsky.social, Peter Roady, @laraputnam.bsky.social, @kalanicraig.bsky.social, Arlene Díaz, & Katherine McDonough were featured in an article in PNAS, one of the most-cited & comprehensive multidisciplinary scientific journals, on how historians use data science to mine the past.
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
May 16, 2025 at 2:46 PM
AHA members @joguldi.bsky.social, Peter Roady, @laraputnam.bsky.social, @kalanicraig.bsky.social, Arlene Díaz, & Katherine McDonough were featured in an article in PNAS, one of the most-cited & comprehensive multidisciplinary scientific journals, on how historians use data science to mine the past.