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Snowy Days in Debrecen
Early this week I travelled to Debrecen (in Northeastern Hungary) to present at a conference at the University of Debrecen. The conference went well, I met great scholars and received immensely helpful feedback on my research. My trip began at the Nyugati Pályaudvar (Western Train Station) in Budapest. It is a striking structure build by Gustave Eiffel…
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You, Me, & AI: Opportunities for collaboration
This week’s post is about the digital humanities work—using computers to assist with the research process—I am doing here in Hungary. Since that can be rather technical, I thought I would provide the direct connection up front and then for those interested a description of the technical part follows. Thanks for reading! -PCL Summary: A…
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December Recap: Snapshots from the Holiday Season
It has been nearly a month since the last post. There are several developments related to my work that I plan to describe in future posts. But for now a few highlights from the last month seems a good way to wrap up 2023. Scenes from Budapest & the Christmas Tram A White Christmas Eve…
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What is history and why does it matter?
One of the most common complaints I have heard about historians is that they do not simply “tell what happened” they bring their own interpretations to the past. In some ways that is correct, yet it is rooted in a fundamental misunderstanding about the past. In prior posts I described the role of memory and…
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How do we remember? Memory, myth, and Memento Park
One of the first readings I assign to students is this article by Jason Steinhauer because it allows students to engage with the core aspects of the historian’s craft, particularly the difference between memory, myth, history, and the past. In last week’s post, I talked about Thanksgiving, its mythology, and the purpose of that myth. So,…
Patrick C. Leech 