Dan Cohen
@dancohen.org
Vice Provost/Dean of the Library, Professor of History at Northeastern University
Posts originate at social.dancohen.org, but I'll hear you if you reply
Subscribe at newsletter.dancohen.org for longer-form writing
Posts originate at social.dancohen.org, but I'll hear you if you reply
Subscribe at newsletter.dancohen.org for longer-form writing
New issue of my newsletter: “Will a Landmark AI Settlement Make Authors Feel Whole?” — The remuneration from Bartz v. Anthropic may not provide what writers really want: respect, recognition, and readers
September 5, 2025 at 10:52 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Will a Landmark AI Settlement Make Authors Feel Whole?” — The remuneration from Bartz v. Anthropic may not provide what writers really want: respect, recognition, and readers
New issue of my newsletter: “The Stones of Newton” — A bell tower with a surprising name is in danger of falling
August 29, 2025 at 7:05 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “The Stones of Newton” — A bell tower with a surprising name is in danger of falling
New issue of my newsletter: “AI and Libraries, Archives, and Museums, Loosely Coupled”—
A new framework provides a way for cultural heritage institutions to take advantage of the technology with fewer misgivings, and to serve students, scholars, and the public better
A new framework provides a way for cultural heritage institutions to take advantage of the technology with fewer misgivings, and to serve students, scholars, and the public better
August 18, 2025 at 9:06 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “AI and Libraries, Archives, and Museums, Loosely Coupled”—
A new framework provides a way for cultural heritage institutions to take advantage of the technology with fewer misgivings, and to serve students, scholars, and the public better
A new framework provides a way for cultural heritage institutions to take advantage of the technology with fewer misgivings, and to serve students, scholars, and the public better
“When Information is Networked” — My tribute to Clifford Lynch, who sadly passed away last week. Cliff saw before anyone else how digital technology would enable new forms of research and learning, and completely transform the production and dissemination of knowledge
April 14, 2025 at 7:00 PM
“When Information is Networked” — My tribute to Clifford Lynch, who sadly passed away last week. Cliff saw before anyone else how digital technology would enable new forms of research and learning, and completely transform the production and dissemination of knowledge
belated hello from Belle, Darth, she was also napping
April 3, 2025 at 11:34 PM
belated hello from Belle, Darth, she was also napping
New issue of my newsletter: “The Unresolved Tension Between AI and Learning” — If education is accelerated using AI, will we lose some crucial aspects of learning that will prove to be problematic?
January 16, 2025 at 7:48 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “The Unresolved Tension Between AI and Learning” — If education is accelerated using AI, will we lose some crucial aspects of learning that will prove to be problematic?
The Catalog of Distinctive Type, a visual catalog of distinctive and damaged printing type originating in books published in England from 1660 to 1700
December 8, 2024 at 5:46 PM
The Catalog of Distinctive Type, a visual catalog of distinctive and damaged printing type originating in books published in England from 1660 to 1700
A periodic reminder that you can subscribe to my newsletter Humane Ingenuity on my website
December 5, 2024 at 7:32 PM
A periodic reminder that you can subscribe to my newsletter Humane Ingenuity on my website
New issue of my newsletter: “Books, AI, and the Public Good: A New Grant” — A Mellon-funded project to develop an ethical, public-interest way to incorporate books into artificial intelligence
December 5, 2024 at 7:30 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Books, AI, and the Public Good: A New Grant” — A Mellon-funded project to develop an ethical, public-interest way to incorporate books into artificial intelligence
New issue of my newsletter: “Synths and Sensibility” — From Beethoven to Kraftwerk, innovative artists have used new technology to make music more human, not less
October 15, 2024 at 4:03 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Synths and Sensibility” — From Beethoven to Kraftwerk, innovative artists have used new technology to make music more human, not less
New issue of my newsletter: “No Happy Medium for Books” — A court ruling curtails the circulation of the written word
September 11, 2024 at 9:00 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “No Happy Medium for Books” — A court ruling curtails the circulation of the written word
New issue of my newsletter: “Break Expectations” — Where does the ability of AI to mimic human expression end? Poetry provides a helpful case study
July 24, 2024 at 4:50 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Break Expectations” — Where does the ability of AI to mimic human expression end? Poetry provides a helpful case study
New issue of my newsletter: “AI Comes for Music”—As the record labels sue AI companies for generating derivative songs, let us ask: What makes a song original and human anyway? (Includes non-spoiler references to Robin Sloan’s new novel Moonbound.)
June 27, 2024 at 3:07 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “AI Comes for Music”—As the record labels sue AI companies for generating derivative songs, let us ask: What makes a song original and human anyway? (Includes non-spoiler references to Robin Sloan’s new novel Moonbound.)
New issue of my newsletter: “Humane Ingenuity 53: Books are Big AI’s Achilles Heel”—AI companies may have the money and the data centers, but they are badly in need of what humble libraries have in abundance. (Co-authored with Dave Hansen of Authors Alliance)
May 13, 2024 at 4:02 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Humane Ingenuity 53: Books are Big AI’s Achilles Heel”—AI companies may have the money and the data centers, but they are badly in need of what humble libraries have in abundance. (Co-authored with Dave Hansen of Authors Alliance)
One way of seeing the eclipse here in Boston: a graph of the electricity produced by the solar panel array on the roof of my library, with peak eclipse at 3:30pm
April 8, 2024 at 10:25 PM
One way of seeing the eclipse here in Boston: a graph of the electricity produced by the solar panel array on the roof of my library, with peak eclipse at 3:30pm
From the Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections, a photo of viewers of the 1994 solar eclipse, when safety glasses were less advanced
April 8, 2024 at 10:11 PM
From the Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections, a photo of viewers of the 1994 solar eclipse, when safety glasses were less advanced
New issue of my newsletter: “Humane Ingenuity 52: Is Science Becoming Conceptual Art?” — A combination of new technologies may represent a new era for science, but one in which the lone scientist may no longer need her lab mates. Is that a good thing?
April 1, 2024 at 4:12 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Humane Ingenuity 52: Is Science Becoming Conceptual Art?” — A combination of new technologies may represent a new era for science, but one in which the lone scientist may no longer need her lab mates. Is that a good thing?
How much does it cost to save a book for 100 years, or forever? What about a web page? I look at hidden long-term preservation issues for cultural artifacts, print and digital, in the new issue of my newsletter Humane Ingenuity. Plus: Apple’s vision (not the Vision Pro)
February 28, 2024 at 3:24 PM
How much does it cost to save a book for 100 years, or forever? What about a web page? I look at hidden long-term preservation issues for cultural artifacts, print and digital, in the new issue of my newsletter Humane Ingenuity. Plus: Apple’s vision (not the Vision Pro)
New issue of my newsletter: “Apple’s Vision + The Cost of Forever” — revisiting the original design documents for the Macintosh computer to understand why we’re in a love/hate relationship with Apple, and a comparison of how much it costs to save a book and a web page forever.
February 27, 2024 at 10:10 PM
New issue of my newsletter: “Apple’s Vision + The Cost of Forever” — revisiting the original design documents for the Macintosh computer to understand why we’re in a love/hate relationship with Apple, and a comparison of how much it costs to save a book and a web page forever.