Biography:

Miguel C. Fernandes is a Ph.D. candidate in the History Department at the University of Chicago. His research interests include medieval European cultural and cognitive history, visual culture and materiality, media and technology, and the Iberian Peninsula. He holds an M.A. in Medieval History from the Universidade Nova de Lisboa (FCSH) and a B.Sc. in Applied Mathematics and Computation from the University of Lisbon (IST). 

Project Title: Diagramming Hands: cognition, computation, and cross-modality in the Middle Ages

Abstract:

Diagrams have shaped the creation and circulation of knowledge for centuries, using space, color, and even the human body. Particularly in medieval times, diagrams often engaged not just the eyes but also the hands through touch and gesture. However, whereas the visuality of diagrams is a well-mapped field, the crucial role of the human body within diagrammatic cognition remains overlooked. Indeed, the sensory and motor systems of the body have a profound influence on our perception, memory, and thinking. My project addresses this question by situating medieval diagrams at the crossroads of visual, verbal, tactile, and kinesthetic senses. I argue that diagrams were dynamic, embodied, and multisensory interfaces, that enhanced memory and facilitated sophisticated thinking and problem-solving. By integrating history, cognitive science, computation, and art history, my research spotlights understudied sources like finger-counting diagrams and the Aristotelian pons asinorum, giving special consideration to educational environments such as monastic schools and universities. While my primary focus is on Latin Europe during the High Middle Ages (ca. 1050 – 1350), I also explore broader contexts, including Arabic, Greek, early medieval, and early modern source materials. Ultimately, this project aims to contribute to discussions on embodied cognition and premodern visual and material cultures.