New Media, Spring 2019

20160	NMAC 4460.01	WM 9:30-10:45	CoAS-120	Spring, 2019

Microsoft’s new design language.

This seminar explores our inexorable movement from atoms to bits — from the centralized media landscape of the twentieth century, to that of the current bazaar of networked digital cultures. What does it mean to be citizens of a digital world? Do we invent our technologies, or do they invent us? Welcome to New Media.

New Media represents a paradigm shift in the ways we produce and consume culture, and these shifts are, in turn, changing us. This course examines the theories of media: from those based on the physical (record players, tape recorders, VCRs, newspapers, books, records) to those based on digital information (computers, VR, DVRs, MP3s, etexts, video-on-demand). Both the theoretical and practical will fall under the purview of this course: not only will we consider the art and business of “new media,” but we will extend our digital fingers and participate in the discussion.

Introduction

Welcome to NMAC 4460, your Senior Seminar in New Media. The document you’re reading is your syllabus. Everything you need for this class is on this page or linked off of it. Bookmark it now and return here if you get lost or confused.

For a head start on how to approach all work in this course, see “How to Do Well in My Class” and “Research & Response.”

Please read this document and those it links to carefully at the beginning of the semester. There is much information to process, and it can be somewhat daunting — especially if you read cursorily. If you are confused, do your best to work through it by (re)reading this document carefully and completely, searching this site, or consulting the FAQ. I promise, there is an answer to your question. If all else fails, you may contact me. Trust yourself to follow directions and find the answers. Be careful and deliberate.

Since you are seniors in the New Media and Communications program, I expect that you are all veteran users of new media. I’m assuming, since you’re taking this course, that you are comfortable with working by yourself and have a basic Internet fluency. Much of what we do in this course will involve using digital media, but also challenging our conventional uses and attitudes toward them. Please enter with an open mind. NMAC 4460 is also designed to let you — the students — discover and create your own knowledge using the powerful digital devices we all have access to. You will learn more about my approach shortly. If you’re curious to know more right now, you might want to read my teaching philosophy and peruse the articles under HackEdu.

Again, read this syllabus through carefully before beginning. You might want to take notes as you go, jotting down questions you have. I bet they are answered by the time you’re ready to begin the first lesson. Again, welcome.

Course Information

Prerequisite	At least a “C” in ENGL 1102
Description	This is a survey of new media theories and praxis. It positions new media in relation to the humanities and traditional media.
Classroom Hours	Three per week.

This course optionally offers the undergraduate research portion of the Experiential Learning@MGA program. This optional program is meant to involve students in applications of learning beyond the classroom. It will be accomplished through the course research component (see Project) and the submission of a research journal at the end of the class. See me early in the semester for more information, or if you intend to use this course to complete this requirement.

Instructor Information

Gerald R. Lucas
Office	CoAS-117 (Macon campus), Department of Media, Culture & the Arts
Office Hours	See Contact
Email	gerald.lucas [at] mga [dot] edu

I try to make myself as available as much as possible during the first couple weeks of a semester, including evenings and weekends. If you need to chat with me, email me and we’ll arrange a video conference via Skype (or similar service), if necessary. Please do not expect a response after 5pm on weekdays or anytime during the weekend. I may be available, but I also need some down time. Thanks for your understanding.

Goals

With a successful completion of the NMAC 4460, students will understand:

• the influence of networked digital technologies on communication, art, and culture in a global context;
• the unique properties of new media;
• the historical and cultural contexts of new media from theory to praxis;
• the legal and intellectual property concerns that new media challenges, particularly in the proprietary and open source communities;
• the political responsibilities of new media use;
• the distinction between various theoretical approaches to new media in cultural and academic contexts;
• how new media affects the evolution of the “human.”

Materials

Required Texts

• Murray, Janet H. (1997). Hamlet on the Holodeck: the Future of Narrative in Cyberspace. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Negroponte, Nicholas (1996). Being Digital. New York: Vintage.
• Wardrip-Fruin, Noah; Montfort, Nick, eds. (2003). The New Media Reader. Cambridge: The MIT Press.
• Various Links and PDFs

Recommended Texts

• Kurzweil, Ray (1999). The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence. New York: Viking Penguin.
• Lessig, Lawrence (2008). Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy. New York: Penguin.
• McLuhan, Marshall (1964). Understanding Media: the Extensions of Man. New York: Routledge.
• Sterling, Bruce (1999). A Good Old-fashioned Future. New York: Spectra.

Your course book(s) or readings should always accompany you to class, as we will make heavy use of them in our daily discussions. Please do not come to class without it: we need the texts for class activities, in-class writing, and all aspects of our study. PDFs must be printed if they are used in class—this includes exams. Failure to do so will earn you an absence (see Attendance).

You should also bring an ink interface of some sort, as well as dead trees on which to take notes. Notes should not only reflect good listening skills, but individual interest in every topic discussed in class.

Supplementary Documents

At several points throughout the semester, your reading assignments will entail essays that are not in the above texts. These additional readings will be made available to you as PDFs via Google Drive: request access. You will need to download them, print them (or put them on your device), and bring them on the day we are covering them in class. Failure to do so will earn you an absence.

Requirements

This course has three requirements: exams, research project, and participation.

Exams

Pro Tip

Share a Google Doc with every member of the class. Use it to collaborate on class notes each day we meet. Consider it a master study document.

Students’ knowledge of the course texts and lecture materials will be tested with a midterm and a final exam. These exams will test your knowledge of the subject matter (texts, lecture material, and vocabulary), your ability to synthesize this material, and your creativity in going beyond the discussion and lecture materials. The exams will include vocabulary, identification, and interpretation. All exam grades will be based upon objective knowledge of the material, thoroughness, depth of insight, precision, and originality.

Project

A formal research project will combine any aspects of the course topic into a well-researched, focused, and original project (see Research). This project could be a standard research paper, a significant Wikipedia contribution(s), or an approved digital approach to a topic. A proposal for this project will be due before midterm (see Schedule). A follow-up conference may be required to nuance your idea; you may, of course, discuss your ideas with me at any time.

Participation

Main article: Participation

Active participation in the classroom is required. Your daily work and attendance represents your participation, e.g.: reading, discussions, training, exercises, library tasks, reading quizzes, peer editing, the viewing of a film, and similar activities. Your participation in group activities and your preparation for class will be weighed heavily in evaluation: participation, effort, and attitude count significantly. You should not sit in class like you’re watching TV: learning requires active participation and enthusiasm (see Behavior). Participation grades cannot be made up.

Policies

Students are held accountable for knowing and practicing each of the following course policies. Consider them like the law: the excuse “I didn’t know” will carry no weight. In addition, students are responsible for reading, understanding, and adhering to all Middle Georgia State University student policies, including those linked on the Syllabus Policy page.

Drop Date

March 6, 2019

Students may withdraw from the course and earn a grade of “W” up to and including the midterm date. After midterm, students who withdraw will receive a grade of “WF.” Students are encouraged to read the withdrawal policy before dropping/withdrawing from class.

Assignments and Deadlines

Main article: Assignments

Your work represents you. Everything you turn in for evaluation should exemplify the very best of your professional self. Late work is unacceptable and will receive a zero. Technical problems do not excuse late work. Plan ahead and turn in your work on time. Last-minute work submissions are ineligible for revision for a higher grade.

Attendance

Main article: Attendance

Poor attendance will negatively affect your grade. You must endeavor to attend every class, and it is your responsibility to ask a fellow classmate what you missed; in-class assignments, like quizzes, cannot be made up. Too many absences will constitute class failure. Please read the attendance policy carefully.

Communication

Main article: Communication

Communication is integral to success, no matter what we’re talking about. In a digital world, these literacies are particularly important. Not only should you develop and perfect your communication skills while in college, you need to use those skills everyday with your peers and professors.

Evaluation

Main article: Evaluation

Evaluation depends on overall student performance: on the successful completion of all requirements, regular participation, and positive attitude. Some requirements are weighed heavier in evaluation, but all are essential to successfully complete the class. Letter grades are based upon a traditional ten-point scale. Grades for this class will be based on the point system.

Plagiarism

Main article: Plagiarism

Plagiarism is serious academic misconduct. Willful or accidental plagiarism—including using AI tools to generate assignments—will result in assignment failures, potential class failure, and will be pursued to incite the utmost penalty for such dishonesty.

Research

Main article: Research & Response

All writing in this course should be supported with both primary (readings I assign you) and secondary (sources you find yourself) texts. All suppositions must be supported with evidence, whether they appear on a forum post, a blog post, a Wikipedia article, or class discussion. In other words: research is an integral component of everything you do in this course. Any ideas that are not supported might as well not be written.

Schedule

This schedule represents the ideal outline for our study this semester. Yet, like all best-laid plans, we may not be able to keep up with our agenda. Please be flexible and try to look and read ahead whenever possible. We will do our best to stick by this schedule, but I will inform you verbally whenever there is a change in or an addition to an assignment. Getting these updates is solely your responsibility. Therefore, this schedule is tentative and subject to change contingent upon the needs of the students and the professor, and dictated by time and other constraints which may affect the course. This schedule reflects only an overview of the assigned reading and other major course assignments. It may not indicate specific class session assignments or activities. Specific assignments are often given in class.

See also: Writing on New Media

1	01/07	Classes Begin	-
	01/09		Introduction
2	01/14	Foundations	Read: Cortázar “Axolotl”; all posts under Defining New Media
	01/16		Monday’s intro and discussion continued.
3	01/21		No class today — MLK Holiday
	01/23		Read: Borges “The Aleph”; Bush, Licklider, Turing, and Wiener (Under “Foundational and Transitional Thinking”)
4	01/28	Revolution and Democracy	Read: Sterling, “Maneki Neko”; McLuhan, from Understanding Media: Ch. 1 “The Medium Is the Message” (NMR) and Ch. 4 “The Gadget Lover: Narcissus as Narcosis”
	01/30		Read: Sterling “Deep Eddy”; Enzensberger; and Boal (Under “Being Digital”)
5	02/04	Digital Humanities	Read: Di Filippo “A Short Course in Art Appreciation”; Lucas “Defining Digital Humanities”; Marche “Literature Is Not Data”; Pressner, et al “The DH Manifesto”; Lucas “Norman Mailer and the Novel 2.0”
	02/06		Langdon Winner “Mythinformation” (NMR 587); Robert Coover “The End of Books” (NMR 705); Stuart Moulthrop “You Say You Want a Revolution? Hypertext and the Laws of Media” (NMR 691)
6	02/11	Open Source	View: Revolution OS. Read: Richard Stallman, “The GNU Manifesto” (NMR 543); Eric Raymond, “The Cathedral and the Bazaar” (PDF); Bill Gates, Open Letter to Hobbyists (Weblink); Bruce Perens, Open Source Definition (Weblink)
	02/13		Catch up. Project proposals due. Sign up for conferences.
7	02/18	Midterm	In-class midterm.
	02/20		No class.
8	02/25	Conferences	No class. Conferences in CoAS-117.
	02/27		No class. Conferences in CoAS-117.
9	03/04	Participatory Culture	Read: Negroponte Being Digital
	03/06		Read: Henry Jenkins, Introduction to Convergence Culture; “Courtney Love Does the Math”
10	03/11	Cyberspace	Read: John Perry Barlow, “A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace” and “Declaring Independence”; Tim Berners-Lee, “On the 25th Anniversary of the Web” and commentary; Sherry Turkle, “Constructions and Reconstructions of Self in VR”; Alexandra Alter, “Is this Man Cheating on His Wife?”
	03/13		Read: Julian Dibbell “A Rape in Cyberspace”; Neal Stephenson, from Snow Crash
11	03/18	Spring Break
	03/20
12	03/25	Cyberdrama	Read: Murray Hamlet on the Holodeck
	03/27		. . .
13	04/01	Ludology	Read: Stuart Moulthrop, “From Work to Play”; Espen Aarseth, “Genre Trouble: Narrativism and the Art of Simulation”; Henry Jenkins, “Game Design as Narrative Architecture”
	04/03		. . .
14	04/08	Posthumanism	Read: Haraway “A Cyborg Manifesto”
	04/10		Read: Kurzweil, “Reinventing Humanity”; Joy “Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us”; . . .
15	04/15	Catchup & Project Work
	04/17
16	04/22
	04/24
17	04/29
	05/01