Research Interests

My research explores both the history of automation online (i.e. the rise of algorithms and bots and its societal implications), and the ways in which such automation is affecting the collection, curation and dissemination of history, archaeology and cultural heritage. My thesis examines the roles of software robots in conserving knowledge on Wikipedia and the wider web through the Internet Archive, the potential influence garnered by automated user accounts on social media in relation to the dissemination of historical knowledge, and the algorithmic creation and advertisement of fake and illegally-sourced cultural artefacts for sale online. More widely, I am interested in how the public consumes historical and archaeological information and have co-edited a volume exploring perceptions of public archaeology around death and memory entitled The Public Archaeology of Death.