Harvey Miller: Mapping the  Ghost Neighborhoods of Columbus

Harvey Miller, professor of geography and Director of the Center for Urban and Regional Analysis, discusses his project “Ghost Neighborhoods of Columbus,” which uses AI, machine learning, and GIS to extract data from historic Sanborn fire insurance maps and construct 3D virtual models of neighborhoods that have been altered or destroyed by urban renewal, highway construction, and redlining.

The project is a collaboration with Ohio History Connection and incorporates oral histories, archival photos, and VR experiences to preserve cultural memory.

Classical Reception: Harriet Fertik on Returning to Antiquity

Harriet Fertik, Associate Professor in the Department of Classics, discusses her research in classical reception, as well as her focus on literature and political thought in the early Roman empire. She speaks on her most recent project, Traditions Lost and Found: W. E. B. Du Bois, Hannah Arendt, and Classical Antiquity, which explores the intersections of these two thinkers and their uses of classical antiquity in their respective works. Fertik also talks about her involvement with the group Eos, a society dedicated to Africana receptions of ancient Greece and Rome, as well as the Ohio State Humanities Institute working group “Metaphors of Reception, Reception as Metaphor”.

 Behind the Curtain with Professor EJ Westlake 

 EJ Westlake, Professor and Chair of Theatre, Film and Media Arts, shares insights into her vast and varied work with plays, which includes her experiences directing, writing, and conducting research. She discusses her award-winning play about Amelia Earhart’s life, exploits, and ultimate tragedy. She also speaks on her many research and academic interests, including historical pageants, Nicaraguan and Guatemalan theater, and the larger scale of global theater, which she writes about in the textbook World Theatre: The Basics, soon to be released in its second edition.