QUESTIONING NEW MEDIA
COURSE SYLLABUS
Spring 2009
CNM 201/IEOR 298-3: Questioning New Media
M 5:30-6:30PM (class), M 7:30-9:00PM for ATC lectures
340 Moffitt Library (the BCNM Commons)
Professor Ken Goldberg
goldberg@ieor.berkeley.edu
TAs:
Alenda Chang
alenda@berkeley.edu
Kris Fallon
krisfallon@berkeley.edu
Course Description:
CNM 201/IEOR
298-3 (cross-listed under Center for New Media & Industrial
Engineering and Operations Research) will be held in conjunction with
the Art, Technology, and Culture Colloquium, a monthly lecture series
that brings internationally known speakers to campus to present their
work on advanced topics in new media. This semester's speakers include: artists Joe DeLappe, Ray Beldner, and Jennifer & Kevin McCoy, as well as curator Marcia Tanner and the artist-driven Neighborhood Public Radio.
Students will enhance skills in "questioning" new media: how to think critically about advanced topics in new media, how to use new media resources such as the Internet to research pioneering work in new media, how to formulate effective questions about new media, and how to evaluate and create persuasive presentations on topics in new media.
Students will research each speaker and formulate incisive questions regarding each speaker's work. Students will attend each lecture, take careful notes, and ask relevant questions. During the week after each lecture, students and instructors will review and evaluate the strengths (and weaknesses) of the presentation and discuss pertinent advanced topics in new media.
This course is open to graduate students from any department and upper level undergraduates (upon instructor approval).
This course fulfills one of the core course requirements for the Designated Emphasis in New Media.
Requirements:
Students must attend class meetings and every ATC lecture. Please
see the attached course schedule for the specific dates of classes and
lectures. Students must research each speaker and are responsible for
generating discussion and contributing to a course blog. Required readings are available on the course website.
Grading:
This is a 2-credit course. Students will be graded on the
Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory scale. To obtain a Satisfactory grade,
students must come prepared to each class and ATC lecture, contribute
to class discussions and the class blog, and develop incisive and relevant questions for each visiting speaker in the ATC lecture series. Attendance is expected: students with more than two unexcused absences will not receive a Satisfactory grade.
Class Schedule (dates with ATC lectures in bold):
| January 19 | Academic and Administrative Holiday - NO CLASS |
| January 26 | Course introduction
Read: "New Media from Borges to HTML" (2003) |
| February 2 | Introduce Joe Delappe
Read: "From Hackers to Hacktivists" (2005);"Virtually dead in Iraq" (2006); "Reenactment: The Salt Satyagraha Online"; "The ABC of Tactical Media" (1997) Optional: "Shoot to thrill" (2007); "America's Diplomat"; New York Times parody; Iraqimemorial.org; "Memorializing Iraq" (2008); "The Salt Satyagraha" (2008) |
| February 9 | Present research and questions for Joe Delappe
ATC Lecture: Joe Delappe, "You'll Never Walk Alone: Protest, Memory, and Reenactment," 7:30-9PM, 160 Kroeber Hall |
| February 16 | Academic and Administrative Holiday - NO CLASS |
| February 23 | Introduce Ray Beldner
Read: "Collective Intelligence: A Civilisation" |
| March 2 | Present research and questions for Ray Beldner
ATC Lecture: Ray Beldner, "Flickr, Flarfing, and Babelfish: The Internet and Art Practice," 7:30-9PM, 160 Kroeber Hall |
| March 9 | Discuss Ray Beldner lecture
Read: Foreword and Introduction from Protocol |
| March 16 | Introduce Marcia Tanner
Read: Excerpt from Bits of Life View: Sites for Kathy High; Nina Katchadourian; Rachel Mayeri; Patricia Piccinnini; Sabrina Raaf; Gail Wight; Diane Willow |
| March 23 | Spring Recess - NO CLASS |
| March 30 | Present research and questions for Marcia Tanner
ATC Lecture: Marcia Tanner, "Where the Girls Are: Women Artists, Science, and Technology," 7:30-9PM, 160 Kroeber Hall |
| April 6 | Introduce Jennifer and Kevin McCoy
Read: "Dispersion"; Interview with Jennifer and Kevin McCoy |
| April 13 | Present research and questions for Jennifer and Kevin McCoy
ATC Lecture: Jennifer and Kevin McCoy, "I'll Replace You: Outsourcing Everyday Life," 7:30-9PM, 160 Kroeber Hall |
| April 20 | Introduce Neighborhood Public Radio
Read: Excerpt from Radio Territories View: "Polymorphous Space" |
| April 27 | Present research and questions for Neighborhood Public Radio
ATC Lecture: Neighborhood Public Radio, "1/4 Watt of Pure Power: Experiments in the Dark Transmission Arts," 7:30-9PM, 160 Kroeber Hall |
| May 4 | Discuss Neighborhood Public Radio lecture |
| May 11 | Final class and wrap-up |