Yale Mellon Sawyer Seminar: December Newsletter
Dear Colleagues,
Welcome to the December newsletter of The Order of Multitudes, Yale’s 2020-2022 Sawyer Seminar on the long history of big data. It has been quite a year: a year of crisis and transformation, but also of new possibilities and a renewed awareness of how crucial the creation, circulation, and sharing of data can be. The excitement around the new COVID vaccine and the many articles connecting this moment back to previous pandemic responses, for instance, is a reminder of the continuing relevance of our project.
This month, we launched a new initiative in partnership with the Archives at the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore, India. Together, we will be co-sponsoring a podcast series, Scrolls & Leaves. The series will focus on the history of borders and pandemics. The first season, called “Trade Winds,” explores themes centered in South Asia, from the time of Muziris more than 2,000 years ago to European colonialism in the 20th century. Two students will have the opportunity to work as interns, helping to research and produce the podcast. Those interested in applying for the internship should do so by January 6th 2021. For information, please contact me, Ayesha Ramachandran, at ayesha.ramachandran@yale.edu.
During December we reviewed applications for our Seed Grant program. Preliminary recipients were invited to send revised proposals. We will announce our grantees in the new year. If you or your student missed the fall application deadline, we will be accepting submissions in the spring semester.
Currently on The Order of Multitudes website are interviews with Alex Chavez on “Connectivity as Reimagined Geographies,” Heddi Siebel discussing travel, art, and archival layers, Regan Rosburg on “Connecting with Place” and a conversation with Ro Spankie on the various meanings of “interior space.” Our theme this month has been Alternative Geographies; in January, we will focus on Digital Storytelling. In the meantime, do not hesitate to contact us at admin@orderofm.com with ideas, responses, or pitches.
Looking ahead, we will be taking a short break over the holiday season and should resume activities in the spring semester. The end of the year brings us all some much-needed respite. We look forward to new events and collaborations in the New Year on a range of topics: the creation and preservation of minority archives; tracing the presence of marginalized peoples in archives at Yale; the history of medieval Islamic encyclopedias; aesthetics and data visualization—and more!
We hope that 2021 brings you renewed energy and excitement for what's possible.
All the best,
Ayesha Ramachandran