Schedule for CS 4001A: Computing, Society, & Professionalism, Spring 2011

Date Topic Readings Assignment
1/11 Welcome & Overview    
1/13 Case Study: Therac-25  
1/18 Reading Arguments Writing Arguments (WA) 1 & 2  
1/20 Utilitarianism Quinn Chapter 2  
1/25 Deontology & Social Contract Theory Quinn Chapter 2, continued Reading the Argument of a Current Article
1/27 Core & Logical Structure of Arguments WA 3 & 4  
2/1 Stakeholder Analysis & Virtue Ethics Please come to class with a short quote from one of the readings that you find interesting.
2/3 Professional Ethics
  • Quinn Chapter 8
  • Article "Using the New ACM Code of Ethics in Decision Making" by Anderson et al (electronic reserve)
 
2/8 Freedom of Speech Quinn Chapter 3 Applying Ethical Frameworks to a Dilemma
2/10 Do Artifacts Have Politics?
Guest lecturer: Jill Dimond
"Do Artifacts Have Politics?" by Langdon Winner (electronic reserve)  
2/15 Evidence WA 5  
2/17 Privacy  
2/22 Privacy, continued Term Paper Proposals
2/24 Discussion of Term Paper Proposals
& Midterm Review
  Come to class prepared to tell everyone about your term paper topic.
3/1 Midterm    
3/3 Moving your Audience & Responding to Alternate Views
Guest lecturer: Thomas Smyth
WA 6 & 7  
3/8 Intellectual Property
  • Quinn Chapter 4, through end of 4.6
  • 4001 term paper, on t-square as a resource
Term Paper Outline
3/10 Software as Intellectual Property Quinn Chapter 4, continued (4.7-end)  
3/15 Visual Argument Visual & Statistical Thinking: Displays of Evidence for Decision Making by Tufte  
3/17 The Patriot Act Wikipedia Articles:  
3/22 & 3/24 Spring Break No class.  
3/29

Term Paper Discussion

  Come to class prepared to talk about your term paper.
3/31 Talk by Sherry Turkle (required)   Term Papers
Hand in papers to Tom at the Turkle lecture.
4/5 Globalization and Outsourcing
Guest Lecturer: Thomas Smyth
Quinn 9.4 HW: One page on Turkle talk
4/7 Digital Activism
Guest Lecturer: Jill Dimond
From Innovation to Revolution: Do Social Media Make Protests Possible? by Malcolm Gladwell and Clay Shirky  
4/12
  • Changes to Work
  • The Digital Divide
  • When do People Cheat?
    Ethical Conduct in the Real World
  • Quinn 9.1-9.3, 9.5
  • Chapter from "Predictably Irrational" by Dan Ariely (electronic reserve)
 
4/14 Simulation  
4/19 Computer Reliability & Warranties
  • Quinn Chapter 7 (except sections 7.5 & 7.6 which you've already read)
  • Wikipedia article on Net Neutrality
 
4/21 class cancelled   Tom will be there for 15 minutes at the start of class to accept revised term papers.
4/26 Final Exam Review    
4/28 no class    

Readings and assignments are subject to change.