Computers, Traditional Scholarship, and the ACLS

Extract

Throughout the nation the cause of the humanities is suddenly being championed; indeed, at times, almost with a vengeance. Centers or institutes for the study and advancement of the humanities have come into being. The Eighty-ninth Congress, in an exuberant mood that surprised many, passed legislation in 1965 establishing a public foundation for the arts and humanities. Accompanying this burst of new interest in the humanities and coming to fruition at the same time is the growth and development of computer-oriented humanistic study. We are witnessing the appearance of a number of university centers or institutes for computer research in the humanities and social sciences and hear monthly of the establishment of newsletters or journals that promise to tell us what is going on and to keep us informed.