3. Doctor: “It hurts when I do this...”
Flight Attendant: “I went on holidays last year...”
Wikipedian: “I found a mistake in an article...”
4. Palimpsest?
The palimpsest is that most unusual of sources as it shows not only what was
retained but also what was considered unworthy of retention.
What was once discarded can be reclaimed.
9. There is an increasing literature about how to use Wikipedia in the classroom
and also the specific circumstances when you could legitimately cite its articles.
This presentation talks about Wikipedia as an historical record in its own right
and therefore how it might be legitimately used as a primary source.
It is the most controversial of the “four uses”.
11. Without these three pillars,
Wikipedia would not be of any use to historical research.
With them, Wikipedia is a compendium of information
- created by the world in real time - of primary history.
13. “Prolific by unmediated, powerful but untamed,
open to all but taken seriously by few.”
- Dan Cohen, History and the Second Decade of the Web, 2004
(Speaking about the internet in general
but especially applicable to Wikipedia)
14. 4 Primary History Uses of WP
Articles Paratexts
Discussions Popularity
15. Digital Archaeology
Given an sufficient amount of server space and the commitment to maintain it, a resource
already exists that may not only sound the death knell of archaeology but also the
opportunity to enable a greater depth and sophistication of anthropology than has ever
existed before. So radical an innovation would this new anthropological methodology
represent that it deserves its own name.
Call it Wikipediology.
- Andrew Updergrove, The Wikipedia and the death of archaeology 2006
17. Arthur Conan Doyle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Help us provide free content to the world by donating today! Log in / create account
article discussion edit this page history
Arthur Conan Doyle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle, DL (22 May 1859 –
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
7 July 1930) was a British author most noted for his
navigation
stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, which are
Main page
generally considered a major innovation in the field of
Contents
crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor
Featured content
Challenger. He was a prolific writer whose other works
Current events
Random article
include science fiction stories, historical novels, plays and
romances, poetry, and non-fiction.
search
Contents [hide]
1 Life
2 Death
interaction 3 Bibliography
About Wikipedia 3.1 Holmes books
Community portal 3.2 Challenger stories
Recent changes 3.3 Historical novels
Contact Wikipedia 3.4 Other works
Donate to Wikipedia
4 See also
Help Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
5 Notes and references
toolbox 6 External links Born 22 May 1859
Edinburgh, Scotland
What links here
Related changes Died 7 July 1930 (aged 71)
Upload file Crowborough, East Sussex
Special pages Life [edit]
Occupation Novelist, short story writer, poet,
Printable version doctor of medicine
Permanent link
Arthur Conan Doyle was born on 22 May 1859 in
Edinburgh, Scotland, to an English father of Irish descent, Nationality British
Cite this page
Charles Altamont Doyle, and an Irish mother, née Mary Genres Detective fiction, historical
languages
Foley, who had married in 1855. [1] Although he is now novels, non-fiction
Afrikaans referred to as "Conan Doyle", the origin of this compound Notable stories of Sherlock Holmes
surname is uncertain. [2] Conan Doyle's father was a work(s) The Lost World
!"#$%&'(&)
chronic alcoholic, and was the only member of his family
Influences [show]
who, apart from fathering a brilliant son, never
Bân-lâm-gú
accomplished anything of note [citation needed] . Influenced [show]
Bosanski
Brezhoneg Conan Doyle was sent to the Roman Catholic Jesuit Signature
*+,-./012 preparatory school Hodder Place, Stonyhurst, at the age of
Català nine. He then went on to Stonyhurst College, but by the
Cebuano time he left the school in 1875, he had rejected Christianity to become an agnostic.
3456'
From 1876 to 1881, he studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, including a period working in
Cymraeg
Dansk
the town of Aston (now a district of Birmingham) and in Sheffield [3] . While studying, he also began
Deutsch writing short stories; his first published story appeared in Chambers's Edinburgh Journal before he was
Eesti 20. [4] Following his term at university, he served as a ship's doctor on a voyage to the West African
7889:;<= coast. He completed his doctorate on the subject of tabes dorsalis in 1885. [5]
Español
18. Revision history of Arthur Conan Doyle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
You can support Wikipedia by making a tax-deductible donation. Log in / create account
article discussion edit this page history
Revision history of Arthur Conan Doyle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
View logs for this page
Browse history
navigation
Main page From year (and earlier): From month (and earlier): all Tag filter:
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article (latest | earliest) View (newer 50) (older 50) (20 | 50 | 100 | 250 | 500)
For any version listed below, click on its date to view it.
search
For more help, see Help:Page history and Help:Edit summary.
External tools: Revision history statistics · Revision history search · Page view statistics
(cur) = difference from current version, (prev) = difference from preceding version,
interaction m = minor edit!"#"$"section edit!"%"$"automatic edit summary
About Wikipedia
Community portal (cur) (prev) 04:55, 30 June 2009 RibotBOT (talk | contribs) m (26,529 bytes) (robot
Recent changes Modifying: "#$%&'(')*&+,-.)/0120) (undo)
Contact Wikipedia
(cur) (prev) 18:14, 25 June 2009 VolkovBot (talk | contribs) m (26,529 bytes) (robot
Donate to Wikipedia
Modifying: "#$*&+,-.)%&'(')/0120) (undo)
Help
(cur) (prev) 13:56, 22 June 2009 83.104.72.243 (talk) (26,528 bytes) (!Life) (undo)
toolbox
(cur) (prev) 13:54, 22 June 2009 83.104.72.243 (talk) (26,593 bytes) (!Life) (undo)
What links here
Related changes
(cur) (prev) 13:37, 22 June 2009 Alansohn (talk | contribs) m (26,528 bytes) (Reverted
RSS Atom edits by 83.104.72.243 to last revision by Alansohn (HG)) (undo)
Upload file (cur) (prev) 13:37, 22 June 2009 83.104.72.243 (talk) (26,526 bytes) (undo)
Special pages (cur) (prev) 13:36, 22 June 2009 Alansohn (talk | contribs) m (26,528 bytes) (Reverted
edits by 83.104.72.243 to last revision by Deor (HG)) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 13:35, 22 June 2009 83.104.72.243 (talk) (26,535 bytes) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 23:06, 20 June 2009 Deor (talk | contribs) (26,528 bytes) (no—see
http://www.sfweekly.com/bestof/2008/award/best-mystery-spot-1033088/) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 19:58, 20 June 2009 75.7.12.87 (talk) (26,766 bytes) (!Life: Added post
regarding Conan Doyle's stay in San Francisco, CA) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 17:07, 18 June 2009 Deor (talk | contribs) (26,528 bytes) (Undid revision
297192158 by 89.242.209.54 (talk)) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 17:06, 18 June 2009 89.242.209.54 (talk) (26,527 bytes) (!Life) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 07:47, 17 June 2009 Timrollpickering (talk | contribs) m (26,528 bytes)
(!Life: footnote link) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 17:43, 15 June 2009 90.206.13.187 (talk) (26,526 bytes) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 17:42, 15 June 2009 90.206.13.187 (talk) (26,527 bytes) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 22:06, 14 June 2009 91.107.193.225 (talk) (26,545 bytes) (Minor geographic
biog amend) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 22:02, 14 June 2009 91.107.193.225 (talk) (26,458 bytes) (undo)
(cur) (prev) 15:21, 13 June 2009 Ohconfucius (talk | contribs) (26,444 bytes) (ce, use dmy
20. Long History
“Australasia - natives” - Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1842
“Indigenous Australians” - Encyclopaedia Britannica, present.
It is not the information in these EB articles which is interesting to historians.
It is that they demonstrate the spirit of the age. As it is with EB, so too with WP.
21. Short History
Timelapse video of first 24 hours of WP
article development: “July 2005 London Bombings”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8O-hv3w-MU
A minute by minute account of the public record of “interesting” events.
23. Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wikipedia is sustained by people like you. Please donate today. Log in / create account
article discussion edit this page history
Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy
hyperlink
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
navigation The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy
Main page began after twelve editorial cartoons, most of which depicted the
Contents Islamic prophet Muhammad, were published in the Danish
Featured content newspaper Jyllands-Posten on 30 September 2005. The
Current events newspaper announced that this publication was an attempt to
Random article contribute to the debate regarding criticism of Islam and self-
censorship.
search
Danish Muslim organizations, who objected to the depictions,
responded by holding public protests attempting to raise
awareness of Jyllands-Posten's publication. Further examples of
interaction the cartoons were soon reprinted in newspapers in more than
About Wikipedia fifty other countries, further deepening the controversy.
Community portal This led to protests across the Muslim world, some of which
Recent changes escalated into violence with police firing on the crowds (resulting
Contact Wikipedia
in more than 100 deaths, altogether),[1] including setting fire to
Donate to Wikipedia
the Danish Embassies in Syria, Lebanon and Iran, storming
Help
European buildings, and desecrating the Danish, Dutch,
toolbox Norwegian and German flags in Gaza City. While a number of
What links here Muslim leaders called for protesters to remain peaceful, other
Related changes Muslim leaders across the globe, including Mahmoud al-Zahar of
The controversial cartoons of Muhammad, as
Upload file Hamas, issued death threats. [2][3] Various groups, primarily in they were first published in Jyllands-Posten in
Special pages the Western world, responded by endorsing the Danish policies, September 2005 (English version ). The
Printable version including "Buy Danish" campaigns and other displays of support. headline, "Muhammeds ansigt", means "The face
Permanent link of Muhammad".
Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen described the
Cite this page
controversy as Denmark's worst international crisis since World
languages War II.[4]
Alemannisch Some critics of the cartoons described them as Islamophobic or racist,[5] and argued that they are blasphemous
to people of the Muslim faith, are intended to humiliate a Danish minority, or are a manifestation of ignorance
Bosanski
about the history of Western imperialism.
!"#$%
Supporters have said that the cartoons illustrated an important issue in a period of Islamic terrorism and that
Article
Cymraeg
Dansk their publication is a legitimate exercise of the right of free speech, explicitly tied to the issue of self-censorship.
Deutsch They claim that Muslims were not targeted in a discriminatory way since unflattering cartoons about other
Español religions (or their leaders) are frequently printed. [6] They question whether some of the riots were spontaneous
24. Of the associated discussion pages:
I submit that this transcript is valuable in revealing exactly how a war of ideas is
waged... As the primary article about the Muhammad cartoons evolved, there also
arose behind the scenes a fierce debate over whether or not the cartoons themselves
should be included and how they should be displayed.
The transcript of the debate captures not only the ideas expressed by the many
contributors and readers, but also the tenor of the debates, the pleas, the acts of
vandalism, the argumentative styles, strategies, tactic and gambits. In other words,
the transcript reveals how some contributors won the debate, how the others lost,
and how each side treated the other.
This transcript reveals the mechanics of the clash of civilizations.
John Simmons, Iraq Museum International
www.baghdadmuseum.org/wikipedia
25. “Ordinary writings”
This is unmediated debate* in the frame of describing topics for posterity.
Wikipedia discussion pages are not for conversation
but for planning and debating the best way to convey a topic.
There is scarcity of analysis but an abundance of data.
Historians, with new tools and methodologies, are needed to analyse this data.
*digital divide notwithstanding
27. Vandalism...
“...from the philosophical and the poetic to the lewd and the obscene.”
Rex Wallace, An Introduction to Wall Inscriptions
from Pompeii and Herculaneum, 2005
28.
29. Their banality becomes their usefulness.
What was once discarded becomes important,
precisely because it was never meant to be kept.
Spelling/grammar mistakes, marginalia, erasures...
31. Quantitative, not just
Qualitative
How does the historian footnote the following statement:
“In the lead-up to the 2008 US presidential elections, the choice of Joe Biden
took no one by surprise but the choice of Sarah Palin took her from relative obscurity to
become political phenomenon, instantly.”
34. Wikipedia article traffic statistics
Wikipedia article traffic statistics
Michael_Jackson has been viewed 12507214 times in 200906. This article ranked
142 in traffic on en.wikipedia.org.
6.3M
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
5.9M
5.0M
3.8M
2.5M
2.0M
1.4M 1.4M1.4M 1.3M
17.8k18.6k16.7k18.8k19.9k15.2k17.4k16.8k19.6k16.8k20.5k16.1k14.7k15.5k16.3k16.1k17.4k16.8k14.4k27.6k19.3k16.9k16.4k16.4k 0 0
Enter another wikipedia article title:
English 200906
35. Relative Popularity
How does the historian footnote the following statement:
“In the 2008 US Democratic party primaries, Barack Obama consistently
dominated the popular interest of the population, at least those online.”
