She called it a misconception that in the era of digitalization and technological development, humanities disciplines are taking a back seat. Speaking to the participants of the Republican Olympiad in Russian language, Gerlovan said their hobby is “the key to the future.”
“The role of philology is multiplied today. You are the future architects of the future in artificial intelligence. Why? Because it is philologists who teach machines to understand human language, develop algorithms for neurosystems, chatbots. And your literacy and knowledge of the text structure is just the foundation of digital technologies,” said Olga Gerlovan.
She also emphasized the role of philologists in the fight against misinformation. In the conditions of spreading fake news, critical thinking and text analysis skills allow to distinguish reliable information from manipulation and identify hidden meanings.
“You are the future defenders of the truth,” she told the schoolchildren.
According to the scholar, the Language Olympiad is not only a competition, but also an “entrance ticket” to the space of digital humanities:
“…where your ability to interpret meanings, to create quality texts becomes the most demanded competence. Your ability to find true meanings and create quality texts is exactly what exact science and the modern digital world are striving for today”.
