Placing contemporary media platforms in historical context 

In the course New Media Literacies, students learn to connect current debates in the study of participatory culture to broader historical trends in societies. Interacting with primary objects, under guidance of subject experts, is instrumental in contextualising the historical and theoretical core content of the course. Gaining a broader historical understanding of media platforms also enables insight and provides historicity to broader discussions that take place under other thematic questions of the AUC programme.

Tracing technology from the Special Collections to the Computer Museum

As part of the relevant section of the course programme, students first visit the Special Collections of the Library of the University of Amsterdam where they are given an opportunity to explore first-hand the historical journey of the written word. From mediaeval manuscripts to advertising posters from the 19th century, the visit illustrates the evolution and proliferation of the print culture and its transformative impact over Western Europe.

Following this historical trajectory, in the next part of the course, students visit the Computer Museum, housed in Science Park, where they explore the digitisation of writing and interact with early computing devices. In the last section of the course, where students explore the future potential of new technologies on various aspects of society, the class is joined by the resident 3D Printing Lab of AUC to discuss the potentials of this breakthrough technology and offer demonstrations.