Presentation of HUMlab to Science and Technology Studies Conference

A meeting space for disciplines, students, researchers, technologies, languages, media, teachers. People exploring and working with technology and meaning making

HUMlab Creates Places for Unexpected Coincidences Meetings are Important for Understanding new Techniques and Technologies

The meaningful artifacts have differences from traditional media While at the same time requiring established interpretive and critical approaches

A (Concise) History of HUMlab

1994-96: Humanities Faculty appoints and runs a Multimedia Group

1997: Concept for HUMlab is formulated and finance is sought from

Kempe Foundation with two million crowns granted.

1998: Steering group is formed. Faculty Board grants financing.

1999: Patrik Svensson appointed Deputy Director. Seminars begin.

2000: HUMlab made a permanent working unit. Director Torbjörn

Johansson takes up a position at the Interactive Institute ‘Tools

for Creativity’. Patrik Svensson made Director. Fifteen seminars

are held in 12 months. The Language Lab is established.

2001: Finance from Kempe Foundation and Riksbankens Jubileumsfond

granted for total 7,5 million crowns. HUMlab Phase II begins. Seven

or eight staff and the first national conference for the lab

held on technology and language learning.

2002: HUMlab Seminar Series begins with 18 seminars during the year.

The first workshops are held; History Laboratories and Digital

Culture. Numerous projects are run; Virtual Theater, Computer

Games and Players, Planning begins on a Masters Program.

2003: Humanities and Information Technology established as a priority research

area by the Humanities Faculty. Two doctoral researchers appointed with

dual affiliation, a model for research in HUMlab. An expansion of technology

and the beginning of HUMlab themes

2004: Jokkmokk 2004 mobile blog project. More seminars and workshops. Two

new doctoral students begin with funding from Wallenberg Foundation.

2005: Planning of five point course ‘IT for Humanists’ begins. The HUMlab blog

begins publishing. Several projects develop with the GIS project at Sävar

historic village being one. Funding from EU is sought with a number of

applications submitted. HUMlab is described as the “ starkast och

synligast i sitt slag i Norden” in a national and international evaluation

commissioned by the Humanities Faculty. Two large international

conferences are held and a symposium on data mining. A book is

published from one of the conferences on language learning and IT.

One more doctoral candidate begins work in HUMlab.

2006: Significant funding granted from Wallenberg Foundation, Kempe

Foundation, Umeå University and Humanities Faculty. A physical

expansion of HUMlab begins and five international post-doctoral

fellowships are announced. The 2 year EU project “Query and context

based visualization of time-spatial cultural dynamics” (QVIZ) is led by

HUMlab. A blog opera project is begun with Kulturverket. The five point

course IT for Humanists is taught with high evaluations.

2007: Work begins on HUMlab II a doubling in the physical space of the lab and

a significant expansion of technology. Five post-doc fellows begin their

work in HUMlab. The staff of HUMlab is now around 20 people.

The HUMlab Concept Laboratory Studio Meeting Place Archive Classroom Theater Work Place Broadcaster Resource Model Gallery

Sense and Technology Should Not be Taken for Granted

Blogging in Minus 30 degrees Celsius

Steina Vasulka, founder of New York art space ‘The Kitchen’ performs in HUMlab

An Experimental Dialogue Between The Sámi and Pygmy Peoples

Interaction Design

HUMlab is working in the 3D Online World ‘Second Life’ You are Welcome to Join Us

Postdoctoral fellowships in Digital Humanities at HUMlab Jan Van Looy

Jeanne Lopiparo

Matt Ratto

Torill Mortensen

Peter Asaro

Qviz ‘ Qviz’ will research and create framework for visualizing and querying archival resources by a time-space interface based on maps and emergent knowledge structures. The framework will integrate social software, such as wikis, in order To utilize knowledge in existing and new communities of practice.

Blog Opera

The Future

Creative Arts Campus

Doctoral appointment in Humanities and Information Technology with Focus Upon Gender Studies. From 1 January 2008

Masters Program