Sean Pue focuses on strengthening connections between data science and the humanities. Lately, the College of Arts & Letters researcher has been using digital technologies to interpret and annotate the poetics of Indian

literature circulated online through texts, manuscripts, sound, and video.

“Poetry is a very vibrant mode of expression in South Asia,” said Pue, Associate Professor of Hindi Language and South Asian Literature and Culture, and core faculty member of the Asian Studies Center and Muslim Studies Program. “People across social classes exchange poems on a daily basis through apps as well as at large festivals and other public gatherings...One of our aims is to build the capacity for digital humanities research and teaching in India. Although present in a number of Indian universities, the discipline is still emerging as a whole." 

Pue received an award from India’s Scheme for the Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration (SPARC) with Professor Nishat Zaidi of the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) in New Delhi to support their collaborative work in the digital humanities. Administered by the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, SPARC facilitates academic and research collaborations among higher educational institutions across India and top institutions from 28 nations worldwide.

"What’s so interesting in India is the way that poetry circulates through social media along with images and video. By analyzing and annotating that cultural record, we’re hoping to help aspiring writers and poets get a better grasp of different poetic traditions," added Pue.

Read the full story on CAL's website.