Art History

The Course is a structured discussion of the issues and problems which are specific to the discipline of Information Theory or Digital Humanities. A special focus, both theorical and practical, will be dedicated to illustrating functions and policies of databases. Moreover, considering the history of Information Retrieval (since the Sixties) will give the opportunity to stress on the role of database as authoritative sources for the scholarly communication. Books and articles of the pioneers of computer Science will also be read and analyzed. In fact, the “literary corpus” of Informatics must be revealed in all its cultural aspects. First aim: Cultural history of information technology and communications (ITC). Comparison with other near disciplinary fields related to traditional institutions such as archives and libraries. (historical and critical approach) Second aim: improving Information literacy. Digital libraries will be considered as the main focus of study, both in the perspective of a “general user” and, further on, to give the students the best potentiality for seeking a job in the area of digital curator or advanced librarian. Third aim: enhance autonomous and critical capacities. Methodological approaches offered during the course: Structutralism, Cultural Studies, Comparative Studies. Further expected results: an autonomous approach to the field of Digital libraries and digital heritage. Google’s algorithm PageRank will be a case study particularly important. The success of Google both as a “narration” and as a “market strategy”, as well as a user-friendly and extremely efficient tool of retrieval, will give the opportunity of considering the disciplinary field of Information Theory at every levels: from the practical-technical aspects to the professional ones. A second case study will be ACO the algorithm well known for the use in Amazon (“suggestions” for other books to buy). Starting from technical aspects of the algorithm itself, the students will be invited to consider cultural effects, mainly related to the risk of a monopolistic use of the book market.