The Centre for Humanities Computing (CHC) is located in the Nobel Park at Aarhus University and is headed by Professor Kristoffer Laigaard Nielbo. The centre is both a research and development unit that supports humanities research projects using data analysis, machine learning and artificial intelligence. The centre opened in 2019 as part of the Faculty of Arts' strategic focus on the use of digital and computational methods in the humanities. The speed and precision that AI enables has not made the center less relevant since its opening. The ability to analyse huge amounts of data in a short period of time and identify patterns provides humanities research with an unprecedented opportunity to understand complex cultural processes in a world that is constantly changing.

"The humanities have great growth potential, not least if we can contribute to contextualizing and enriching data sets as well as using our knowledge of people's culture and experience to improve these technologies," says Kristoffer Laigaard Nielbo.

According to him, with the enormous growth in digital data, new opportunities are opening up for the humanities. Data that might have previously seemed overwhelming can now be used to gain a deeper understanding of everything from the culture of the past to today's social patterns.

"We are witnessing an exponential growth in digital data that is unprecedented. If we treat these data with the same scientific rigor that we usually display, they offer – as an innards in a number of data-based technologies – unique resources for obtaining new and more nuanced knowledge about the human past – and future – in a wide range of areas," he explains.

From bestselling literature to media literacy
There are many examples of how new knowledge has emerged at CHC. Among other things, they have used artificial intelligence to analyse large amounts of data in order to identify what characterises bestselling literature. They can also, based on the analysis of large data sets, say something about how natural disasters or cultural disasters such as war affect media. But an important part of CHC's work also consists of developing technologies and methods that make it possible for humanities researchers to work with large data sets without necessarily being experts in programming or advanced technology.

"By developing open data science and language technology tools and establishing infrastructure for computation and data storage, we enable the humanities to use computational methods without a deep technological understanding," explains Kristoffer Laigaard Nielbo and elaborates:

"Our wish with the centre is to promote a research culture that embraces digital technologies, so that researchers can create new insights that complement traditional methods. Our work on natural language processing (NLP) – a field of AI and computer science that helps computers understand, interpret and generate human language – and our work on quantitative methods, show how interdisciplinarity can become an indispensable part of humanities research."

In this way, the contours are also drawn of a humanities that not only uses technology, but also develops technology and adapts it to humanistic issues. A taste of the new research contributions can be experienced at the upcoming conferenceComputational Humanities Research. The conference will be held for the first time ever in Scandinavia and will take place on 4-6 December. At the conference in Aarhus, research that combines computer science with humanities studies will be presented. In connection with the conference, a new scientific journal will also be launched Computational Humanities Reasearch.

New grant pushes the development of Danish language models forward
CHC is also involved in the work with Danish Foundation Models - a collaborative project that develops advanced language models specifically for Danish. The project is run by the Alexandra Institute, the University of Copenhagen, the University of Southern Denmark and Aarhus University. Together, they work to create models that support the Danish language and culture, and that can be used widely in both the public and private sectors.

Danish Foundation Models has an extensive partnership with the Danish Language Model Consortium, which includes both public and private actors. Among the participants are Aarhus Municipality, ATP, Falck, Salling Group, Topdanmark and Visma Enterprise.

The parties behind the research reserve have just granted DKK 10 million for research and innovation in the Danish language models based on generative artificial intelligence.

Read more about the Center for Humanities Computing

Kristoffer Laigaard Nielbo
Centre for Humanities Computing
School of Culture and Society
Aarhus University
Mail: kln@cas.au.dk
Mobile: +45 2683 2608