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STAS 341 L21 P08

 

Science,Technology and Society (STAS) 341 (L21)

Information Technology and Society
Spring 2008
Monday/Wednesday 14:00 - 16:45

 

  • Instructor: Ms. Robin Downey
  • Office Location: SS 323
  • Office Phone: NA
  • E-Mail: rdowney@ucalgary.ca
  • Office Hours: After class or by appointment

Course Description

In this course we will study of the implications of information technology, including, political, social and economic organization, individual psychology, and concepts of knowledge. The historical, ethical and legal implications will be also be considered.

Objectives of the Course 

  • To become familiar with a number of theories about information and communication technologies (ICTs) and their place in society;
  • To be able to think critically about the design, marketing, consumption, and use of ICTs in modern societies;
  • To understand the role that various actors play in the development of ICTs;
  • To exercise and further develop several academic skills: thinking and communication skills are central to several aspects of the course, including preparation for and participation in our explorations and discussions of course issues; information retrieval skills are the basis of the research involved in writing the term paper.

Over the term, you will develop an understanding of developments in ICTs through using appropriate categories and concepts. In addition to examining the ways that various actors are using these technologies, we will also consider the role that these actors play in constructing these technologies. The potential for these technologies to enhance political change will also be explored.  You are responsible for the main issues and themes of the course as presented in lectures and readings. This involves understanding main points, theories, examples, terms, and concepts and being able to use and refer to these in discussions of more general themes in class and in written work. 

Textbooks and Readings 

A reading package is available at the bookstore. Information on additional assigned and supplementary readings will be posted on Blackboard before the class meets.  In addition to the readings, you will be responsible for all videos and key examples that are given in the class. I will make all of the additional sources that I refer to in the class available on blackboard.

Assignments and Evaluation 

  1. Analysis (20%) 
    • This will be 4-5 page commentary and analysis of a website. You will draw on the course readings to analyze a website, so it is important to choose a suitable site.  We will discuss this more in class. Due June 11th. 
  2. Mid-Term Quiz - June 2nd (15%) 
  3. Research Paper (35%, Total) 
    • Outline- due May 26th (10%). This should be two pages in length and include a preliminary bibliography.
    • Research Paper- due June 25th (25%). Think of the paper as an opportunity to explore in greater depth one issue from the course material. The research paper will be 10-12 double-spaced pages in length.
  4. Registrar-scheduled Final Exam (20%) 
  5. Class Participation (10%) 

Policy for Late Assignments 

Assignments submitted after the deadline may be penalized with the loss of a grade (e.g.: A- to B+) for each day late.

 Writing Skills Statement

Faculty policy directs that all written assignments (including, although to a lesser extent, written exam responses) will be assessed at least partly on writing skills. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Writing skills include not only surface correctness (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc) but also general clarity and organization. Research papers must be properly documented.

If you wish help with your writing at any stage, including drafts, you are invited to contact the Writing Centre, SS110, 220-7255. 

Grading System

The following grading system is used in the Faculty of Communication and Culture:

A+ (96-100); A (92-95); A- (86-91); B+ (81-85); B (77-80); B- (71-76);
C+ (65-70); C (62-64); C- (59-61); D+ (55-58); D (50-54); F (0-49)

 

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people's words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS110) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

 

Tentative Schedule of Lectures and Readings (Please note that any changes to this schedule will be available in blackboard before the class meets)

Introduction: Theories of Technology; Globalization and ICTs I (May 14)

  • Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 1997. "Chapter 1: Towards a global information society" from Towards a Global Information Society.  7-14.
  • May, Christopher. 2002 "What is the global information society?" from The information society: A skeptical view. Polity Press. 1-18.
•·        Robins, Kevin and Frank Webster. 2002."The Long History of the Information Revolution." The Information Society Reader.  Webster (ed.), pp. 62-80.  Routledge.

Victoria Day (May 19) 

Privacy Issues; New Media; Research and Writing (May 21)

  • Branscomb, Anne. 1994.  "Who owns your name and address?" from Who owns information? From privacy to public access. Basic Books. 9-29.
  • Davies, Simon. 1998. "Re-engineering the right to privacy: How privacy has been transformed from a right to a commodity" from Technology and privacy: The new landscape. MIT Press. pp. 143-165.
  • Flew, T. 2005. "What's New about 'New Media'?". In New Media, 2nd Edition. South Melbourne, Victoria: Oxford University Press. 1-19.

Design and Ethics (May 26) Outline Due

  • Feng, Patrick. 2000. "Rethinking technology, revitalizing ethics: Overcoming barriers to ethical design" from Science and engineering ethic. vol. 6, no. 2.  207-220.
  • Carroll, John M. and Mary Beth Rosson. 2007.  "Participatory design in community informatics." Design Studies 28/3. 243-261.
  • Bakardjieva, Maria and Andrew Feenberg. 2002. "Community Technology and Democratic Rationalization". The Information Society. 18:181-192.

E-Government and E-Commerce (May 28)

  • Kunstelj, Mateja. 2004. "Evaluating the progress of e-government development: A critical analysis." Information Polity 9.3,4. 131-148.
  • Fox, Mark. 2004. "E-commerce Business Models for the Music Industry". Popular Music & Society. 27 /2. 201-221.
    • Recommended: Spitz, David. 2005. "Contested Codes: The Social Construction of Napster." The Information Society, 21: 169-180.

Surveillance, Hackers and the Internet (June 2) Midterm

  • Thomas, Douglas. 2002. "Hacking culture" from Hacker culture. University of Minnesota Press. 5-31.
  • Grow, Brian and Bush, Jason. 2005 "Hacker Hunters." Business Week. 3935, 74-82..
  • Lyon, David. 2002. "Everyday surveillance: Personal data and social classifications" from Information, communication & society, vol. 5, no. 2. 242-257.

Consumers and the Information Society  (June 4) 

  • Zureik, Elia and Abbe Mowshowitz. 2005. "Consumer Power In The Digital Age". Communications Of The Acm.  48/10. 47.
  • Brown, Arnold. 2008. "The Consumer is the medium." The Futurist. January/February.
  • Morahan-Martin, Janet. 2004. "How Internet Users Find, Evaluate, and Use Online Health Information: A Cross-Cultural Review." Cyberpsychology & behavior . 7.5. 497-510.

Identity in an Online Age (June 9)

  • Turkle, Sherry. 1995. "Introduction: Identity in the age of the Internet" from Life on the screen: Identity in the age of the Internet. Simon & Schuster. 9-26.
  • Turkle, Sherry. 2004.  "How Computers Change the Way We Think." The Chronicle of Higher Education: Information Technology, January.
  • Turkle, Sherry. 2007. Can You Hear Me Now?" Forbes. 179/10. 176-182.
  • Required: Introduction to Secondlife, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b72CvvMuD6Q

Information Technology and Green Production (June 11) Analysis due

  • "Mounting Concerns over Environmental Waste". Envirozine, 33/1. Online article: http://www.ec.gc.ca/EnviroZine/english/issues/33/print_version_e.cfm?page=feature1

Globalization and ICTs  II (June 16) 

  • Babe, Robert. 1996. "Convergence and the New Technologies." In Michael Dorland, ed. The Cultural Industries in Canada: Problems, Policies and Prospects. Toronto: James Lorimer & Co. 283-307. 
  • Dor, Daniel. 2004. "From Englishization to Imposed Multilingualism: Globalization, the Internet, and the Political Economy of the Linguistic Code." Public Culture. 16/1. 97-118.

Globalization and ICTs III (June 18)

  • Marsden, Christopher. 2004. "Hyperglobalized individuals: the Internet, globalization, freedom and terrorism." Foresight the journal for future studies strategic thinking and policy. 6/3. 128-140.
  • Garreau Joel. 2001. "Disconnect the Dots; Maybe We Can't Cut Off Terror's Head, but We Can Take Out Its Nodes." The Washington Post. September 17.  Online Article: http://www.casos.cs.cmu.edu/news/disconnect_wp.html
  • Latham, Kevin. 2007. "Sms, Communication, and Citizenship In China's Information Society." Critical Asian Studies. 39:2.  295-314

E-Democracy  (June 23)  

  • Sclove, Richard. 2003. "Technological politics as if democracy really mattered" from Technology and the future, 9th ed.Wadsworth, 2003. pp. 91-108. 
  • Kahn, Richard;Kellner, Douglas. 2005. "Oppositional Politics and the Internet: a Critical/ Reconstructive Approach." Cultural Politics: an International Journal. 1/ 1. 75-100.
    • Recommended
      • Leizerov, Sagi. 2000. "Privacy Advocacy Groups Versus Intel: A Case Study of How Social Movements Are Tactically Using the Internet to Fight Corporations". Social Science Computer Review. 18/ 4.  461-483.

Learning Conversations - discussions on key issues in preparation for the final exam (June 25)  Research Paper due

  • Last Modified:
    Wednesday, October 8, 2008 - 09:32

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