Paradigm Shift: Libraries in the Context of Digital Humanities (Foreign Experience)

The article analyzes the new status of Western libraries within the framework of Di­gital Humanities (DH), a volumetric trend coup­led with a radical change in the existing scienti­fic para­digm. The concept of DH, connected with the use of the methods of computer-aided text ana­lysis, processing of large data sets, digital mapping and 3D modeling in historical, linguistic and cultu­ral studies, affected libraries in the whole range of their inherent functions: custodians of cultu­ral heritage, providers of scientific communication, and centers for know­ledge organization and dissemination.

The article aims to compensate the lack of publications, existing in Russian library science, both on the conceptual grounds and the practice of productive cooperation of libraries and DH-projects. The author reveals the content of the cardinal reform of the essence of library work under the auspices of digital science (e-science), associated with the growing complexity of the information environment, the large amounts of heterogeneous data, the interactive potential of modern information and communication technologies, and the personalization of user interfaces. The article classifies the types of cooperation between libraries and DH-projects, reducible to three main models: service, laboratory and network. The range of services provided by libraries to DH-project developers is analyzed: from initial consulting, access to electronic storage infrastructure, management of digital projects, finding grants and applying for them, to promotion, marketing and professional computer assistance.

The article presents positive examples of library rebranding as a place for avant-garde scientific research, synergy of methods and research strategies for exact and human sciences. The list of responsibi­lities of library DH-centers is considered: building digital collections for scientific or educational purposes; creating tools for databases identification, formation, and analysis; management of research process, support of websites, digital publication and storage of research results; organization of training in the field of DH, creation of lecture courses and programs, organization of seminars and conferen­ces, cooperation with similar structural units of other institutions.

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