• Match!!@pawb.social
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    2 days ago

    the pama-nyungan language family is indigenous to Australia and all the languages in that umbrella are either endangered or extrinct already.

    pick one:

    a) it is already safely and thoroughly catalogued or reachable via the Internet

    b) there’s already enough embedded researchers in indigenous Australian communities to study these endangered languages

    c) it’s not humanities for some reason

    d) probably should spend some money getting more students and professors out there to study it

    • seeigel@feddit.org
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      2 days ago

      It’s difficult to not get snarky. You obviously have studied but you argue against my position that humanities with limited funding is possible with the demand that a new university must be able to fund nieche topics. How is that necessary?

      • Match!!@pawb.social
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        2 days ago

        because a humanities without “niche topics” is going to cover a very limited subject matter, and in particular, a very certain bias of subject matter! if we design humanities with cost-savings in mind, this is the most inexpensive and readily available culture, language, history: the mainstream, the corporate owned, the majority opinion. funding in humanities expands the horizons and the populace that humanities covers, and without diversity, humanities is not worth teaching

        • seeigel@feddit.org
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          1 day ago

          You are arguing about the curriculum of a newly established college as if it were the research focus of the entire humanities.

          Diversity doesn’t come from exotic trips but the matetial you cover and the way it is taught and debated. All classic texts are freely available. For centuries that was enough.

          There can be trips and such once money is available. For that you need some alumni to get donations. They will not be there if you don’t start teaching which is, for humanities, possible with a minimal budget.