The New Media Lab
The New Media Lab (NML) works with Graduate Center students and faculty from a variety of academic disciplines to create multimedia and digital projects based on their own scholarly research. With the assistance of the Lab, students incorporate new educational technologies into more traditional academic practices: for example, they can access or collect digital data, conduct technologically-driven analyses, and reach new and larger audiences.
Located in room 7388.01 at the CUNY Graduate Center and run under the auspices of the American Social History Project / Center for Media and Learning, NML researchers:
- work across academic disciplines to produce scholarly digital media projects
- analyze Internet and other digital media usage in the educational, social, and commercial sectors
- construct interactive environments that explore ways of visualizing the arts, humanities, and sciences
- digitally archive and analyze a wide range of data
- participate in public programs that address the critical intersection of knowledge and technology
- are offered stipends and eligible for research awards including the NML digital dissertation award.
The NML is committed to a vision of new technology based on open access to ideas, tools, and resources. Our goal is to integrate digital media into traditional academic practice, challenging scholars to develop fresh questions in their respective fields using the tools of new technology. With ongoing support from CUNY, the New Media Lab has become a dynamic environment in which projects funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Rockefeller Foundation, and other private and public sources demonstrate new approaches and methods of merging digital media, scholarship, and learning.
Student Recognition and Awards
The New Media Lab offers several awards to student researchers. More details and past awardees are on the Awards page.
Resources offered to NML researchers
Software
The New Media Lab is equipped with twelve high-end workstations running Mac OS and Windows. Every machine has Adobe’s Creative Suite Master Collection installed, making available a wide variety of design, layout, image editing, and video production tools. Final Cut Pro is available on Mac, and ArcGIS is available on Windows. Open-source software can be added to any computer.
Web hosting
The American Social History Project/Center for Media and Learning has a dedicated web server server at the Graduate Center, which can be used by New Media Lab students to host their web projects. The server is capable of hosting a wide array of software. Some of the more common packages that students have used include WordPress, Omeka, and Drupal.
Digital and legacy audio, video, and art scanning
The NML has a dedicated video editing Mac with Final Cut Pro X and Adobe’s Creative Suite Master Collection. The machine is connected to decks for digitizing audio and video materials from DVCam, Mini-DV, VHS, Betacam SP, U-Matic, Hi-8, and audio cassettes. We also have microphones, a tripod, and lights for shooting and producing high-quality video. We have a medium format art scanner, capable of scanning large images as well as slides and negatives at true 2400dpi resolution.
Meeting space
The Lab is equipped with a large monitor that is used for presenting projects at meetings. The monitor is also equipped with a blue-ray DVD player, and other players can be arranged on an as-needed basis.
Join us
Meetings
Fill out this form to be added to our listserv, where full details on the Lab’s upcoming events and activities will be shared.
We hold general meetings open to the Graduate Center community and other less formal discussions that focus on individual projects. You can find the current meeting schedule here.
Apply
Create your digital project related to your dissertation or academic research at the New Media Lab. Apply for a position by submitting the student application.
Students apply here.