CS349 Contemporary
Issues
Spring, 2010
Alan Cline and Elaine Rich
Schedule
of Topics and
(This is the 2009 schedule. Details will change.)
January 20 Introduction
January 22 Introduction, continued
· Ethics for the Information Age, Chapter 1
· “The Connection has been Reset”
January 27 Guest speaker: Gary Chapman (UT LBJ School)
· Hand in your update to The Connection’s report.
January 29 Ethics
· Ethics for the Information Age, Chapter 2
· Bynum, Terrell Ward, “A Very Short History of Computer Ethics”
· Bynum, Terrell Ward, “Norbert Weiner’s Foundation of Computer Ethics”
February 3 Using the video camera
February 5 Ethics, continued
· Bertrand Russell, “Prolog” to Autobiography
· Write your version of the Prolog to Bertrand Russell’s autobiography
February 10 Using the video camera
February 11 UT CS Lecture, “Emerging Cyber Threats and Countermeasures”, ACES 2.402
February 12 Ethics,
continued, including a short introduction to risk and ethical behavior –
The Challenger disaster
· Ethics for the Information Age, Chapter 8
February 17 Video Editing with Premiere Elements
February 19 2:00 Video Editing with Premiere Elements
3:30: Lecture: Jon Kleinberg on Information Flow and Anonymization in Social Networks (ACES 2.302)
February 24 Guest
speaker: Suzanne Buchele (
· Book chapter (handout)
February 26 Ethics, continued
· Write at least one paragraph (to turn in) and come to class prepared to discuss your solution to the problem of rationing in the eBay era.
· Take the “many voices” quiz
· PROJECT OUTLINE DUE
March 3 Ethics, continued
·
The Human
Use of Human Beings
· Hand in your responses to the set of questions about the book.
March 5 Privacy
March 10 Guest speaker: Fred Chang (UTCS) on Cybersecurity
· Preparation for Prof. Chang’s lecture:
· http://www.pc1news.com/news/0540/cybercrime-threatens-entire-economy.html
· http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/technology/2009-01-28-hackers-data-scams_N.htm
· http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/01/07/2460906.htm
March 12 Some comments on writing papers
March 17 SPRING BREAK
March 24 Privacy
· Ethics for the Information Age, Chapter 5
· First draft of term paper due
March 26 Privacy
· Turn in your response to the ACM’s TIA letter
· Written progress report on video due
March 31 Privacy
April 2 Guest speaker: Bill Young on Critical Thinking
April 7 Artificial Intelligence
· Ethics for the Information Age, Chapter 9
· “Computing Machinery and Intelligence”, Alan Turing
April 9 Artificial Intelligence
· “Sounds Like Bach”, Douglas Hofstadter
· “Robotic Nation”, Marshall Brain
April 14 The future of technology
· “The Evolution of Mind in the Twenty-First Century”, Ray Kurzweil (handout)
· Turn in your response to the singularity quiz
April 16 The future of technology
· “Manna”, Marshall Brain (Note: There are 8 chapters, each in a separate file. Read them all.)
· “Why the future doesn’t need us”, Bill Joy
· “The Future Needs Us!”, Freeman Dyson
· Final version of video due
April 21 Student videos
April 33 Student videos
· Turn in your response to the resource allocation problem
April 28 Student videos
April 30 Student videos
May 5 Student videos
· Turn in your response to the Free Rice quiz
May 7 Student videos
· Final draft of term paper due