machine learning

10 key implications for AI in Holocaust memory and education
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10 key implications for AI in Holocaust memory and education

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10 key implications for AI in Holocaust memory and education

by Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden Our Lab Director has recently been engaging with delegates of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance about AI and Holocaust memory, tackling topics including mass digitisation of archival and historical material and the risks of distortion and disinformation. In this week’s blog she discusses what emerged from recent events organised by the IHRA, including our new policy briefing. I have had the pleasure to engage with the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (the IHRA) on two occasions in the last few weeks because under their UK Presidency in 2024, it has decided to focus on the significance of AI for Holocaust memory and education. Firstly, I spoke at an online AI workshop with approximately 70 people, organised by the IHRA's Education Working Group. Then, this past weekend, I presented the opening paper at the conference ‘AI in the Holocaust Education, Research and Remembrance Sector’ at Lancaster House, London. My role at these events was really to set the scene for those who are policymakers and Holocaust education and history experts, but less savvy about emerging digital technologies. At the core of my presentations was the question: what are the implications of AI for Holocaust memory and education in [...]

By Victoria Grace Walden|2024-12-05T17:16:20+00:005 December 2024|

Three Phases of Digital Holocaust Memory Development
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Three Phases of Digital Holocaust Memory Development

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Three Phases of Digital Holocaust Memory Development

By Professor Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden Through artificial intelligence, machine learning, crowdsourcing, digitisation, VR, AR and computer games, we take you on a tour of some of the world’s most prolific digital Holocaust memory initiatives by way of the theory of the ‘three stages’ of development. To argue that there are three phases of digital Holocaust memory development is not to suggest a clear and simple historical chronology from the 1990s – when digital technologies were first introduced into this arena – to now. Rather, this proposition offers a framework for mapping the different types of approaches organisations take when adopting digital media for the sake of Holocaust memory. These three phases are: the experimental, the normative, and the connective, and they define the different relationships organisations have with digital technology and cultures through their work. Let’s take a closer look at each of them. Experimental Phase This phase acknowledges periods of enthusiasm for a new medium, often led by a ‘what if?’ curiosity among a handful of digital advocates or a desire to shake up the status quo. During this phase, creators are explorative and playful with a medium’s possibilities, they’re not afraid to take risks and can be inquisitive [...]

By Victoria Grace Walden|2024-11-11T14:29:45+00:0023 October 2024|

AI and the Future of Holocaust Memory
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AI and the Future of Holocaust Memory

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AI and the Future of Holocaust Memory

by Prof Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden, in conversation with Dr Mykola Makhortykh and Maryna Sydorova In November, Mykola Makhortykh and Maryna Sydorova from the University of Bern will join the Landecker Digital Memory Lab as visiting researchers. In this interview, our Director, Dr Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden discusses a core focus of their research with them: AI and Holocaust memory. Dr Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden: We're really looking forward to hosting you here in the autumn semester. Mykola, we have of course worked closely together on a number of ventures over the past few years. Your and Maryna's research explores the significance of algorithm organisation of memory culture online. What first inspired you to recognise the significance of algorithms more broadly, and AI more specifically, in relation to Holocaust memory? Mykola Makhortykh: Like it often happens in the creative process, my inspiration for studying the significance of algorithms and AI for Holocaust memory originates in frustration. Back in the day, when I was doing my PhD on the platformisation of Second World War memory in Ukraine, I relied primarily on qualitative methods. However, at some point, it became obvious that I had more data than I could realistically process qualitatively. I [...]

By Victoria Grace Walden|2024-11-28T11:16:34+00:0011 September 2024|

Addressing Our Research Recommendations: Funding Bids and Policy Guidelines
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Addressing Our Research Recommendations: Funding Bids and Policy Guidelines

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Addressing Our Research Recommendations: Funding Bids and Policy Guidelines

by Dr Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden Lab director Dr Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden details how we came to run a workshop together with the United Nations and the Holocaust Outreach Programme earlier this summer. The event provided a forum for world-leading Holocaust commemoration organisations, international funders, and UK Parliament to explore the impact they could have on the future of global digital Holocaust memory. Between 2022 and 2023, the Lab’s current research team – Dr Kate Marrison and me – ran a series of online co-creation workshops with our project partners. The project led to the publication of 6 recommendation reports providing guidance on digital interventions in Holocaust memory and education. The workshops were composed of more than 120 diverse stakeholders, from Holocaust organisations, the wider heritage sector, creative and technical professionals, and academics from broad range of disciplines. A recurring theme emerged: there was a lot of enthusiasm and imagination for developing digital work in the Holocaust sector, but funding bids and a lack of (inter)national policy guidelines hampered development. Representatives from Holocaust organisations expressed many frustrations including a lack of coherent digital strategy; long-term, project funding; and permanent staff with digital expertise. Problems which many felt could be tackled at [...]

By Victoria Grace Walden|2024-11-28T11:16:54+00:005 September 2024|