Towards a Manifesto for Cyber Humanities: Paradigms, Ethics, and Prospects
This addresses the challenge for humanities scholars and practitioners in reconfiguring knowledge and culture in a computationally mediated world, presenting a new paradigm rather than an incremental extension.
The paper tackles the need for humanistic inquiry to adapt to digital and algorithmic systems by proposing 'Cyber Humanities' as a foundational paradigm, introducing a framework with ethical design and participatory knowledge systems to critically engage with algorithmic infrastructures.
The accelerated evolution of digital infrastructures and algorithmic systems is reshaping how the humanities engage with knowledge and culture. Rooted in the traditions of Digital Humanities and Digital Humanism, the concept of "Cyber Humanities" proposes a critical reconfiguration of humanistic inquiry for the post-digital era. This Manifesto introduces a flexible framework that integrates ethical design, sustainable digital practices, and participatory knowledge systems grounded in human-centered approaches. By means of a Decalogue of foundational principles, the Manifesto invites the scientific community to critically examine and reimagine the algorithmic infrastructures that influence culture, creativity, and collective memory. Rather than being a simple extension of existing practices, "Cyber Humanities" should be understood as a foundational paradigm for humanistic inquiry in a computationally mediated world. Keywords: Cyber Humanities, Digital Humanities, Transdisciplinary Epistemology, Algorithmic Reflexivity, Human-centered AI, Ethics-by-Design, Knowledge Ecosystems, Digital Sovereignty, Cognitive Infrastructures