The Medieval Academy Blog

MAA2020 at UC Berkeley

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Chris

Dear Colleagues,

In response to the developing situation with COVID-19, the Chancellor of UC Berkeley, Carol Christ, has today prohibited large meetings scheduled to take place on campus before March 31, 2020. As a result, it is necessary for us to cancel the upcoming physical meeting of the Medieval Academy at UC Berkeley, scheduled for March 26-28, 2020. This is a painful decision: our diverse and richly interdisciplinary program brings together scholars at various stages in their careers. And the program bespeaks the energy and collaboration of many colleagues from institutions throughout northern California. But the health and safety of our participants and of the community at large are paramount.

The Academy and the Program Committee are working on the possibility of mounting a virtual conference to allow papers, lectures, and discussion to take place via Zoom. We will have further information for you soon about participating in a virtual conference.

As you will have read in a message earlier today from Executive Director Lisa Fagin Davis, the leadership of the Academy is in active consultation about the possibility of at least a partial refund of registration fees.

This is a frustrating and concerning time for all of us. We appreciate your patience as we take the many necessary steps involved in cancelling the Berkeley meeting of the Medieval Academy.

On behalf of the Program Committee,

Maureen C. Miller, Co-Chair
Katherine O’Brien O’Keeffe, Co-Chair

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MAA 2020 and COVID-19: Latest Update

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Chris

Dear Colleagues,

COVID-19 continues to bring uncertainty to all of us. Some of you who have registered for the Annual Meeting of the Medieval Academy of America may be unable to attend, whether because you are particularly vulnerable to the virus or are a caregiver for someone who is, or simply because the risk of travel at this time is not something you want to take on.

At the same time, however, we still hope that the conference can take place. Our colleagues at UC Berkeley and others on the program committee have put in a great deal of effort to come up with an excellent program of sessions and events, and many people have worked very hard on their presentations. It is our intention at this point to hold the conference.

Many institutions, including universities, are currently banning large meetings. If UC Berkeley, or the city of Berkeley or the state of California, decide to do so, we will of course comply and cancel the meeting. We hope that if this is to happen we will know by the end of this week, but in any case we will let you know immediately.

We plan to offer at least a partial refund of registration fees for those who cannot attend, or for all registrants if the event is cancelled. The exact amount of that refund must wait to be determined until we know which contracts can be reduced or cancelled. Some expenses have already been incurred during the multi-year planning process.

Thank you very much for your patience. This is a very worrying situation for all of us. We hope to know more soon.

Sincerely yours,

Ruth Mazo Karras, President
Lisa Fagin Davis, Executive Director
Maureen Miller, Program Co-Chair
Katherine O’Brien O’Keefe, Program Co-Chair

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2020-2021 Schoenberg Institute Visiting Research Fellowships

Posted on March 5, 2020 by Chris

The Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies (SIMS) at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries is accepting applications for its 2020-2021 Visiting Research Fellowship program. Guided by the vision of its founders, Lawrence J. Schoenberg and Barbara Brizdle Schoenberg, SIMS aims to bring manuscript culture, modern technology, and people together to provide access to and understanding of our shared intellectual heritage. Part of the Penn Libraries, SIMS oversees an extensive collection of premodern manuscripts from around the world (https://dla.library.upenn.edu/dla/medren), with a special focus on the history of philosophy and science, and creates open-access digital content to support the study of its collections. SIMS also hosts the Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts (https://sdbm.library.upenn.edu/) and the annual Schoenberg Symposium on Manuscript Studies in the Digital Age (http://www.library.upenn.edu/about/exhibits-events/ljs-symposium).

The SIMS Visiting Research Fellowships have been established to encourage research relating to the premodern manuscript collections at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries, including the Schoenberg Collection. Affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania, located near other manuscript-rich research collections (the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the Free Library of Philadelphia, the Science History Institute, and the Rosenbach Museum and Library, among many others), and linked to the local and international scholarly communities, SIMS offers fellows a network of resources and opportunities for collaboration. Fellows will be encouraged to interact with SIMS staff, Penn faculty, and other medieval and early modern scholars in the Philadelphia area. Fellows will also be expected to present their research at Penn Libraries either during the term of the fellowship or on a selected date following the completion of the term.

Applicants can apply to spend 1 month (minimum of 4 work weeks) at SIMS between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021. Applications are due May 15, 2020. For more information and to apply, please visit: https://schoenberginstitute.org/visiting-research-fellowships-2/

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MAA News – MAA 2020 Updates

Posted on March 4, 2020 by Chris

Please note that online registration closes on March 6. Registration information and the full program can be found here: https://www.medievalacademy.org/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1125497

1) Parents with infants may register before the Annual Meeting to obtain access to the lactation room on the third level of Wheeler Hall (Room 313). To request a security code for room access, please complete the registration form available here: https://www.emailmeform.com/builder/form/MwR2U10910tdBJe54Xep4Z or visit the campus’s Breastfeeding Support website: https://uhs.berkeley.edu/facstaff/wellness/breastfeeding-support

2) Bonus Lunchtime Event Saturday March 28 12:45-1:45 pm:Medieval Visionaries of Vision: Grosseteste & Giotto

A scientist and a humanities scholar – Prof. Tom McLeish FRS (Physics and Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York, UK and Asst. Prof. Henrike Lange (History of Art and Italian Studies, University of California, Berkeley – take complementary perspectives on two medieval figures of immense influence in the history of ideas, scientific and artistic, leading a lunchtime master class on the value of interdisciplinary readings across fields in the recovery of a united vision for the production of knowledge today. The introduction will include an account of the international Ordered Universe project. The Ordered Universe project brings science, philology, and history to bear on the natural philosophy of Robert Grosseteste, while producing both new historical scholarship and new science from the encounter. A discussion with participants will develop on the theme of good practice in interdisciplinary science-humanities research, mirrored by the value of integrating multiple disciplines in Giotto scholarship, and the role of imagination in the arts and sciences.

Please RSVP by March 26th 2020 to henrike.lange@berkeley.edu with the subject line “RSVP Visionaries of Vision.” Participants will meet at 12:45 sharp at the Campanile Way entrance to Doe Library.

See you in Berkeley!