DOI: 10.7256/2585-7797.2020.4.34747

Abstract: The word "data" has recently become one of the key words in the semantic field of modern science. This happened due to a sharp increase in information flows in the economy and social sphere and the ongoing breakthrough in the development of methods and technologies for processing and analyzing data in the context of large-scale digitalization and the need to work with big data. This has led to the rapid development of data science. Historical science has been affected by these processes as well. The article discusses the course and results of the 17th international conference of the interregional association "History and Computer" held under the title "Historical Research in the Context of Data Science: Information Resources, Analytical Methods and Digital Technologies". Researchers from 7 countries took part in the conference held on-line. The article characterized the structure of the conference in details and the most interesting speeches of its participants. There were two plenary meetings, two round tales and 9 sections. The conference results show that historical computer science has entered a new stage of its development and has ceased to be perceived as a kind of "niche" area of historical science. New researchers are being involved in its development, the geography of scientific centers of historical computer science is expanding, their studies touch upon the most important issues of Russian and foreign history.

DOI: 10.7256/2585-7797.2020.2.33549

Abstract: The article focused on problems and prospects caused by the rapid development of data science and discusses the opinions and remarks made by the participants of the round table called "Methods and Technologies of Data Science: Its Prospects in Historical Research" held by the editorial board of the "Historical Information Science” journal " and the Association "History and Computer" on July 3, 2020. The round table was attended by over 60 teachers, researchers, as well as students from 5 countries. Online discussions and talks were assisted by Zoom video conferencing service. The participants addressed issues related to the term "data science" itself, artificial intelligence and big data issues. All these were discussed in the light of problems that arise and are solved in the framework of historical research. The speakers addressed the problem of historical sources digitization and text recognition, the opportunities of programming languages (R and Python) use as well as many other issues. The very fact of the round table and its results have demonstrated the undeniable usefulness of the dialogue and the need to develop this form of scientific contacts. It is emphasized that that the development of such a field as "digital historical source studies" is becoming more and more urgent.

DOI: 10.7256/2585-7797.2019.3.31386

Abstract: The article starts a special issue of Historical Information Science journal which addresses a topical and an important impact of the “digital turn” on a historian, methodology and practice of historical research and historical education. These questions were raised when questioning well-known scholars applying mathematical methods and information technologies to historical studies and education who work at various research centers in Russian and abroad. The research novelty is a new approach to evaluate the current state of one of the most popular domains of humanities – history in the context of the “digital turn”. The questionnaire has been drawn up by the editorial staff and the editorial board members of the journal. The focus is the impact of the “digital turn” on historical studies and education, new terms and definitions, ties of historical information science with such domains as digital humanities and “digital history”, the role and the importance of an analytical component in research done by historians using new methods and techniques, the status of “digital sources” as well as the necessity to form a new branch of source studies (“digital source studies”). .