HIST4306SM 世界史專題研究：New Methods in Renaissance Studies

In late fourteenth century Italy, there arose a craze for all things ancient. This shaped new forms of literature, philosophy, statecraft, art and architecture that would cast a long shadow in Europe and beyond in the following centuries. It also produced scholars and artists, may of whom have become household names, e.g. Leonardo da Vinci, Machiavelli, Michaelangelo and Thomas More. This course will provide a survey of this exciting period of world history and the latest methods used by historians to study it. The course will introduce some of the main figures, texts and works of art associated with the period, as well as some of the most innovative modern techniques for studying it drawn from data science, especially Natural Language Processing (NLP). No background in Renaissance history or digital history is required.

1. What is the Renaissance?
2. How did the Renaissance begin?
3. Florence as a Renaissance City
4. Distant-reading Renaissance texts
5. Petrarch’s Letters: Renaissance Text as Data
6. NLP-Approaches to Petrarch
7. The Renaissance in England
8. Distant-reading Thomas More
9. NLP Approaches to Thomas More
10. Renaissance Visual Culture
11. Distant-viewing Leonardo da Vinci
12. Distant-viewing Michaelangelo
13. Troubleshooting the final project

30% Participation in Tutorial

Active and enthusiastic participation in the tutorial (7.5% per tutorial). This will receive a letter grade.

15% Attendance and participation in lecture and departmental seminars

Each student is required to attend the weekly lecture and the tutorials, as well as participate in class exercises, etc. (5%).  If students are more than 15 minutes late to class, this will be counted as an absence.

Additionally, students must attend at least 3 seminars from among term 2’s various meetings of the RIH Digital Humanities Talk Series OR History Department World History Seminar via Zoom (send screen shot to TA as proof). You should also ask at least one question during one of the Q&A sessions (also send screen shot of chat box to TA as proof). The schedules will be announced in due course. (10%). 

35% Group Project

Students will produce a final group project. This can be a data project (text or images) or involve analysis. The output will take the form of a report (min. 15 pages, including images, appendices, etc.) plus any code, data files, etc.

Due by email to the Professor on 1 May 2026.  

10% Presentation of Group Project at Conference

On 11 May 2026 each group will present their project as part of a Faculty of Arts digital humanities conference. All students must attend and take part in the presentation.

Scheduled for 11 May 2026.

10% AI-diary

The use of AI, including chatbots, is permitted (and encouraged!) in this class. However, it must be documented and reflected upon.  An important part of the assessment is therefore an AI diary (absolute minimum 13 entries, one for each week). This can be a Word document or other format, in which you record the prompt, the response (screenshots are OK) and a minimum 50-word personal reflection on the value of the response and how you might want to further prompt the AI chatbot or edit the output. It is important to show sustained interactions with chatbots (multiple related prompts). You must document every single use of AI related to the course. You should begin keeping the AI diary from the very beginning of the course. Microsoft Copilot is a good choice, but you can use any chatbot you want.  The only place you are not allowed to use AI is in writing the comments on the AI diary! 

Due by email to the TA: DEADLINE 11/5/2026  

Only the AI diary requires a submission to Veriguide. Please email the Veriguide receipt to the TA along with the assignments: DEADLINE 11/5/2026 

AI Policy

By requiring an AI diary, this course follows Approach 3 in the CUHK Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools in Teaching, Learning and Assessments A Guide for Students:

Use only with explicit acknowledgement

In courses where students are allowed or expected to collaborate with or use AI tools, students may use these tools for in-class learning activities, exercises or assignments as long as they explicitly cite or acknowledge the use of these tools. Details will be spelt out clearly in the course outline and/or the instructions of the assignments. Students shall follow the instruction strictly and are expected to understand the limits and appropriate uses of these tools.

Email Policy

The TA and I are here to help you.  We aim to respond to emails within 48 hours of receiving them (excluding weekends and public holidays). If you do not receive a response within 48 hours, please send a follow-up email. 

Tutorials will provide an opportunity to hone your skills in the digital methods.

Jardine, Lisa. Worldly Goods : A New History of the Renaissance. New York: W.W. Norton, 1998. Print.

Rabil, Jr, and Jr Rabil. Renaissance Humanism, Volume 1 : Foundations, Forms, and Legacy. Ed. by Jr. Rabil. Reprint 2016. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2016. Print.

Text Mining for Historians, https://wissen.hypotheses.org/2783

Thomas More, Eutopia https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2130

Petrarch’s Letters to Classical Authors https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/47859

Introduction to Python for Humanists https://python-textbook.pythonhumanities.com/intro.html

請注意大學有關學術著作誠信的政策和規則，及適用於犯規事例的紀律指引和程序。詳情可瀏覽網址：http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/。

學生遞交作業時，必須連同已簽署的聲明一併提交，表示他們知道有關政策、規則、指引及程序。

• 如屬小組習作，則所有組員均須簽署聲明；所有組員（不論有否簽署聲明及不論有否直接或間接撰寫有問題的內容）均須負上集體責任及受到懲處。
• 如作業以電腦製作、內容以文字為主，並經由大學「維誠」系統 (VeriGuide) 提交者，學生將作業的電子檔案上載到系統後，便會獲得收據，收據上已列明有關聲明。

未有夾附簽署妥當的聲明的作業，老師將不予批閱。

學生只須提交作業的最終版本。

學生將作業或作業的一部份用於超過一個用途（例如：同時符合兩科的要求）而沒有作出聲明會被視為未有聲明重覆使用作業。學生重覆使用其著作的措辭或某一、二句句子很常見，並可以接受，惟重覆使用全部內容則構成問題。在任何情況下，須先獲得相關老師同意方可提交作業。