Today’s What We’re Reading features Jill Lepore’s reflection on historical origins of the NSA scandal, why Don Draper is a preservationist, digital workflow for historians, a visual guide of “every single theory,” and much more!
History in the News
Privacy in an Age of Publicity
Jill Lapore on the historical context of the conflict between privacy, surveillance, and the government.
Bill O’Reilly Bringing History to Page, Screen in Book-Turned-Movie Franchise
The Fox News host and author of Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy, and Killing Jesus: “We consider ourselves historical investigators,” O’Reilly said of himself and researcher Martin Dugard. “We go and try to find new stuff and try to bring you a really vivid picture of who these people really were. … I don’t have an agenda at all, I mean I just want to know the facts.”
Julian Zelizer on a resurgent interest in Congress by historians.
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Preserving the Past
Mad Men Creator Matthew Weiner on Why Don Draper is a Preservationist
Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner talks about his work preserving the past and why Don Draper cares about historic architecture.
B.C. in 3-D: Rise of the MakerBot Printer
Producing and reproducing objects “raises new and old questions about the relationship between the artist and the museum, and about art as intellectual property.”
Memo from the Revolution: Six Things I’ve Learned from Our Institutional Transformation
Thoughts on transforming the museum experience from the always interesting Nina Simon at Museum 2.0.
History in the Digital Age
Digital Workflow for Historians
Michael Hattem, one of the early Americanists at the Junto, talks about “workflow and the tools that I use which allow the work to flow.”
Ben Alpers at US Intellectual History blog notes several distinct recent writings that “suggest that the past may no longer provide us with a useful guide to the future.” He asks, “Is this coincidence mere coincidence, or does it point to something broader about our cultural and intellectual moment?” and gets several long responses in the comments section.
Defending the Humanities
The long-awaited report by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Commission on the Humanities and Social Sciences, The Heart of the Matter, asks for national attention to flagging public interest in the humanities and social sciences. Colleen Flaherty offers additional coverage of the report for Inside Higher Ed, citing AHA Executive Director James Grossman, who argues that the report succeeded in “making the critical point that the humanities aren’t at odds with career-oriented education, but rather underpin them.”
Fun and Off-beat
World Map with Place Names Swapped Out for Their Original Meanings
The visual “reveals the etymological roots, or original meanings, of the familiar terms on today’s maps.”
A Visual Guide to Every Single Learning Theory
From Montessori to Dewey to Skinner, how different theories connect and intersect, or don’t.
Finding Mr. Right: A 1950s Guide to Dating
A series of bad dates caused by “demanding” women.
This post first appeared on AHA Today.
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