Mar 28, 2024  
2020-2021 Undergraduate Academic Catalog 
    
2020-2021 Undergraduate Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

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SS 3700 - Digital Society

3 lecture hours 0 lab hours 3 credits
Course Description
As AI and other technologies advance and become increasingly entwined with daily life, society is rapidly changing in response. This course examines the impacts of these changes on personal relationships and on the world’s economic, cultural, political, and social infrastructures. Students will reflect on digital technology’s effects on the human condition by applying liberal arts perspectives to their own personal and professional experiences through course readings, classroom lecture, media analysis, discussion of case studies, and research/writing workshops. A mix of individual personal-reflection essays and a collaborative digital-storytelling project will allow students to explore course-related topics they are curious about in greater detail. (prereq: GS 1001  or GS 1010H , GS 1002  or GS 1020H , and GS 1003  or GS 1030H )
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  • State the interdisciplinary influences underlying the concept of the Information Age 
  • Evaluate various sources of news and other content
  • Discern differences between media manipulation and legitimate digital content
  • Recognize the effects of digital disruption on economic, social, and political systems
  • Describe the opportunities, limitations, and implications of artificial intelligence for humans/society
  • Analyze the implications of and potential for immersive experience in multiple contexts via virtual and augmented reality 
  • Understand the impact of social media “influencers” (e.g., on YouTube, Instagram, etc.) on culture, politics, society, and personal/professional identity

Prerequisites by Topic
  • College-level writing, research, and presentation skills

Course Topics
  • Contemporary digital literacy in the Information Age
  • Evaluation of online sources, impact of the deep/dark webs, and interpretation of digital artifacts
  • Media manipulation, including propaganda, advertising, social “proof,” clickbait, digital misdirection, and further examination of fake news
  • Mass media, both traditional and contemporary, including analog forms that interconnect with digital media
  • Immersive experience via virtual and augmented reality
  • Digital citizenship and digital rights
  • AI, IoT, and humans/society
  • Social media influencers” (e.g., on YouTube, Instagram, etc.) and their impact on culture, politics, society, and personal/professional identity

Coordinator
Dr. Katherine Wikoff



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