"The Information Society"
Grading and Caveats:
Requirements are of three sorts: Class, Paper, and Online.
Following their description is a section on grade break-down, course evaluation, a statement about academic honesty, and suggestions about the
internet and grammar.
The seminar has been kept deliberately small to facilitate class participation. To this end, some written work will be required.
- (1) Each week, based on careful reading of the material, you will
be expected to prepare several questions for discussion. You must include an indication of how
your question might relate to the readings, and to the class as a whole. Reactions are due in
class, Tuesday. You need only submit questions a total of 8 times during the semester, allowing
for some flexibility. Submissions need only be one half to a full page but should present a
coherent insight into the readings, followed by one or several questions that help focus our
readings and discussions. Further, these discussion/questions do not have to be typed, but they
must be legible and professional in presentation. I am not concerned with the form of what you
submit, only that you demonstrate that you are doing the reading with a degree of insight. This
requirement replaces the need for a final exam.
- (2) Each person will also be responsible (with a
partner) for a 10 minute oral presentation of the readings and related work. You may chose your
partner, and grades are generally shared, so help each other. Feel free to explore the week's topic
if you wish.
This course fulfills the University writing component. To that end, there will be two brief (750
words, about 3 pages), a 2 page proposal, and one medium size paper (2500 words, about 10
pages) that will be graded both on form and content (separate grades). The components of
'writing form' include sentence clarity, grammar, spelling, punctuation, and overall composition
and will contribute some 25% of the paper grade. Only the final paper need include a research
component. You may chose from among a variety of footnote and bibliographic conventions, but
be consistent.
- (1) For the first paper, please review a book or article of your choice that has some
relevance to our understanding of the 'information society.' While the book or article may come
from the class readings, feel free to substitute any relevant text.
- (2) For the second brief paper, you will visit an online community that includes some
spatial elements and real time interactions (a MUD), and explain how this might or might not be
a community, how this MUD might provide a glimpse of online communities of the future, and
how this MUD might be improved. You might consider what improvements might make the
MUD more economically viable, more social or exciting, make better use of emerging
technologies, and so on. What problems might be associated with making these improvements?
- (3) The proposal should state some of the issues you will cover, why you think they are
important, and an indication of what research materials you have found relevant to your interest.
This proposal should be part of your effort to write the final paper, and you can include parts or
all of it in your final paper. However, the proposal does not bind you to a topic. You can change
your topic at this point, but it would then be highly recommended that you talk you new topic
over with the instructor.
- (4) The final paper should suggest a tentative definition of the 'Information Society' and
cover some associated problem. You could, for example, expand your first or second writing
assignments, or one of the reaction pages. This paper should include some supporting citations
(a bibliography), and will be due on the last day of class. As always, try to a balanced account.
These papers must be typed or printed. Handwritten or electronic documents will not be
accepted.
There will be an RTF 331N Usenet 'newsgroup' (utexas.class.rtf331N). You must provide at least
one comment, and one response. Upload part of one of your reaction pages, for example. Beyond
that, feel free to use the newsgroup however you want. The course will provide some help in
getting online, and sharing information. I look forward to seeing you online.
Participation (5%); attendance (5%); brief reactions (15%); 2 three page papers (15%) each; brief
oral presentation (5%); proposal (5%); ten page final paper (30%); online uploading (5%).
In turn, you will have an opportunity to evaluate the course, as well as the instructor toward the
end of the semester. Your evaluation will not be available to the instructor until after the grades
have been turned in. However, do consider how to constructively modify the course, and feel free
at any time to send the instructor a note, or to make a visit during
office hours.
All work done for this course must be the original work of the student
submitting it and should
be undertaken exclusively for this course. Assisting in academic
dishonesty (e.g. letting someone
copy your assignments) can retroactively lower your grade. Violations of
academic honesty will
result in appropriate action under the University's rules.
The course will include demonstrations and suggestions about how to use
the Internet. The instructor will also be available online. Additional
help is available at the Student Microcomputer Facility in UGL. You
will find that accessing Usenet, the Web, etc. are all quite easy on the
UGL computers, and that there is a staff waiting there to help you. You
can also use the Communication College Computers. There is a stream of
new books all the time about how to use the Internet, and consider
buying a reference book if you don't already have one. I have used
Krol's Whole Internet (rev. ed.), but your local bookseller might have
newer suggestions. Make sure that the book provides enough examples
and command lists to suit your level of expertise.
Consider buying or unearthing a grammar book. The high school variety
is fine and can often be found in stores like Half Priced Books.
Writing styles vary depending on the audience, the content, and the
writer's sensibility. It is useful to be aware of what is usually
considered clear and powerful use (or is it 'usage'?) of the English
language.