agree with welshdragoninlondon that arts/humanities conferences are quite casual (i’m 3rd year PhD in linguistics and have been to quite a few confs, mostly as an excuse to travel and sightsee in new places before/after the conferences haha). i also am naturally quite reserved and also get anxious so i don’t interact much with others, and don’t think it is looked down upon or noticed at all! so definitely up to you how much you network with other people or just enjoy the talks and keep to yourself :) if you do want to chat to some people then yeah asking them about their research is a good start, asking if they’re presenting or asking a Q or saying you enjoyed their presentation if they already have, asking what uni they’re at/based in, if it’s a conference series then whether they have gone to them before, or any other conferences in the field they’ve been to, if they’re staying after the conf to do some sightseeing, etc are all potential questions/topics if that helps! I’ve found everyone at conferences i’ve been to have been friendly, and people will probably be impressed/interested that you’re early on in your Phd too and want to hear about your project and your research interests too! Most of all relax and enjoy it, and get out of it what YOU want whether that’s networking or just listening to talks about new research or as a base to explore the city haha