Dr. Zef Segal explores the interrelations between communication systems, media networks, social and cultural perceptions, focusing on the historical study of journals and maps. In addition, he is a strong advocate of the emerging field of digital humanities and social sciences in Israel, having initiated the Digital Humanities track at the Open University and being among the initial faculty members in the first Israeli DH bachelor’s degree at the University of Haifa. His expertise lies in the study of social networks, mapping, and analysis of textual corpora. His current research delves into the Hebrew and American newspaper networks in the 19th century, using computational tools to identify and analyze textual and thematic connections between articles published at different times and in distant locations.
Dr. Segal holds a bachelor’s degree from the Open University in History and Philosophy, a bachelor’s degree from Tel Aviv University in Mathematics, two master’s degrees in Mathematics and Philosophy from Tel Aviv University, and a doctorate in History from Tel Aviv University. His doctoral dissertation examines the influence of communication networks and communication infrastructures on spatial and political perceptions in the German-speaking world in the 19th century.
In addition to his research, he has been teaching humanities, social, and exact sciences since his master’s degree, aiming to broaden the horizons of students and develop critical understanding of the world we live in. He has received numerous research grants, including from the Israel Science Foundation, Erfurt University, the German Historical Institute in Washington, and the DAAD. His research has been published in leading journals and books. In recent years, three of his books have been published: The Political Fragmentation of Germany by Palgrave Macmillan (2019), Motion in Maps, Maps in Motion by Amsterdam University Press (2020), and Die politische Zersplitterung Deutschlands by J.B. Metzler (2024). Two upcoming books, The Culture of the Enlightenment in the 18th Century: Restructuring the Private Space by the Open University of Israel and Computational Literacy for the Humanities by Routledge, are expected to be published in the near future.
