Digital Humanities and Web 2.0

The study of "Humanities" has been around for some time, but with the advent of computers and the Internet,the field of Digital Humanities has evolved. In their article on Defining Digital Humanities, Davies & Osborne assert that collaboration and "thinking through making" are essential elements of the field. They point out, that "the revolution of text is changing how we access, interpret, and use literary and research materials," and that "digital humanities increase the potential of possibilities for our lives and our relationships with ideas, language, and each other."

It sounds to me like the functions and benefits of Web 2.0 align pretty solidly with those of Digital Humanities. It will be interesting to see if the development of this relatively new discipline ultimately parallels, overlaps, or meshes with the development of Web 2.0 tools and functionality. The development of the study of Digital Humanities re-enforces the importance of the productive human qualities of collaboration and thinking through making: all Web 2.0 qualities as well.