UROP Research Mentor Project Submission Portal: Submission #1288

Submission information
Submission Number: 1288
Submission ID: 21036
Submission UUID: 3af9e5d0-2f52-43bd-bff6-140dbe8f8d2b

Created: Mon, 08/18/2025 - 10:52 PM
Completed: Mon, 08/18/2025 - 10:54 PM
Changed: Mon, 09/29/2025 - 08:33 PM

Remote IP address: 46.110.204.100
Submitted by: Anonymous
Language: English

Is draft: No

Research Mentor Information

George Williamson
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Dr.
gwilliamson@fsu.edu
Faculty
Arts and Sciences
History
George 2020 w beard.jpg

Additional Research Mentor(s)

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Overall Project Details

Transcribing Historical Handwriting Using AI Tools
Handwriting, Transcription, AI
No
2
Open to all majors
On FSU Main Campus
No, the project is remote
Fully Remote
5-10
Flexible schedule (Combination of business and outside of business. TBD between student and research mentor.)
This project involves learning and applying new tools that make it easier to read centuries-old handwriting. For decades, historians of Europe interested in reading letters, diaries, or government documents from 1500 forward have had to master a new form of handwriting just to make out individual letters and words. In the past five years or so, however, new software tools have emerged that can do the work of transcription on their own. My current project involves a large number of archival documents in the late 18th-century/early 19th-century German handwriting, often referred to as Kanzleischrift. The UROP student would work with me to master the basics of transcription software (we will start with Transkribus) to decipher these sources. For the final UROP project, the student could either present on their use of this software or apply their new found skills to decipher and discuss a particularly interesting text from the past.
dealing with old handwriting
using AI-based transcription tools
organization of files and documents
* required: facility with computers and software
* recommended (but not necessary): a basic knowledge of German (German I or higher)
I look at UROP as an opportunity for students to become familiar with and, eventually, partners in the research process as it is carried out by historians engaged in original archival research. This involves bringing students up to speed regarding the key questions underlying a research project, the sources that will be used to answer those questions, and a sense of just what is at stake in the project as a whole. The project on the assassination of Kotzebue is, in part, a study of political violence, its origins, and its effects, but it also offers a window into an era and culture that was different from our own but also quite alike. As a mentor, I will attempt to match research tasks with the interests and preferences of my UROP students. As students demonstrate competence in one area, they will be given opportunities to explore other areas of the research. Along the way, I will provide help and advice regarding the work you are doing on the project, as well as your final UROP poster presentation.
See below.
For those who are interested, background on the Kotzebue assassination and its impact can be found in these articles. I have a handout available that background information for the first article. If you'd like a copy of the handout (or of the articles) you can contact me directly at gwilliamson@fsu.edu
* George Williamson. "What Killed August von Kotzebue? The Temptations of Virtue and the Political Theology of German Nationalism, 1789-1819," Journal of Modern History 72:4 (2000), 890-943. [Accessible online via Strozier Libraries at this link: https://www-journals-uchicago-edu.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/doi/full/10.1086/318549]
* George Williamson. "Thought Is in Itself a Dangerous Operation": The Campaign Against 'Revolutionary Machinations' in Germany, 1819-1828," German Studies Review 38:2 , 285-306. [Accessible online via Strozier Libraries at this link: https://muse.jhu.edu/article/582108]
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  • Day: Thursday, September 4
    Start Time: 4:00
    End Time: 4:30
    Zoom Link: https://fsu.zoom.us/j/8576263967

UROP Program Elements

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2025
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