Assignments

1. Discussion Board Exercise
2. Paper #1
3. Discussion Board Exercise
4. Paper #2
5. Paper #3

Guide to Writing Assignments

The papers for FS 118 are designed to show that you have done the assigned readings, thought about the material, listened attentively to the speakers, and integrated new information and data into your own thoughts and experiences. The most important feature of an A paper will be careful and logical presentation of an argument that weaves in material from the readings and the class lectures and discussions.

In order to present material logically, you will need to write clearly, using good sentence structure and crafting logically developed paragraphs. Since this is not a writing course, we cannot take class time to teach good writing. But since writing will be such an important part of your success at UT, we suggest that you purchase, if you don’t already own, a good writing handbook. There are many good handbooks – one we like is the Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage, 5th ed., 2003, by Muriel Harris. The Coop has copies of this book under several courses in the Division of Rhetoric and Composition.

Each paper should be no more than two pages in length and is worth 15 points of your final grade.

Criteria for Evaluation

1. Is it obvious that you did the assigned reading? Does your paper show an understanding of the readings and the class discussions? (4 pts)
2. Did you cite your sources. (Use the referencing resources available on the Resources page.) (3 pts)
3. Is your thesis clear and your argument clearly and logically developed? Does the paper show that you’ve integrated class readings and discussion into your argument? (4 pts)
4. Are your sentences and paragraphs clear and well structured? (2 pts)
5. Did you follow the directions of the assignment? (2 pts)

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Intellectual Property - FS 118 Paper #1: Due Monday, September 27, 2004

Recently developed technologies for networked computers and digital reproduction produce some interesting ethical dilemmas involving intellectual property.  Please discuss one of the following questions:

1. Is buying a term paper always an act of cheating? Is it ever ethically defensible? (See “Cybercheats . . .,” The New Republic, March 23, 1998.)

OR

2. In the case of the digitally enhanced crowd scene from Forrest Gump, who owns the rights to that clip: “the original filmmakers or the technician who transformed their work?” (See “The Property of the Mind,” The Economist, July 27, 1996.)

Write an essay of no more than two pages discussing one of these two situations and your answer to the question.  Be sure to support your argument with facts and appropriate citations. Remember to spell check, proofread, and double space your paper.

The paper value is 15 points.

For information on using citations, see the section on the Resources page on "Citations and Style Manuals." For criteria for evaluation see the Grading page for the Guide to Writing Assignments. Also, please review Dr. Hart's lecture on writing.

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Health Care and Technology FS 118 Paper #2: Due Monday, October 11

If consumers become more responsible for their own health care in the future, what are possible problems with this “information-age” health care system?  Can you envision problems with security of information, access to information, etc.?  Create some scenarios or examples that explain your ideas.  Are the benefits of medical Informatics worth the possible problems?

Write an essay of no more than two pages discussing one of these two situations and your answer to the question.  Be sure to support your argument with facts and appropriate citations. Remember to spell check, proofread, and double space your paper.

The paper value is 15 points.

For information on using citations, see the section on the Resources page on "Citations and Style Manuals." For criteria for evaluation see the Grading page for the Guide to Writing Assignments. Also, please review Dr. Hart's lecture on writing.

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Digital Games, Arts and Technology and the Internet and Politics- FS 118 Paper #3  Due Monday, October 25, 2004

Please discuss one of the following questions:

1. In their article, “Making a Game of System Design” (2003), William Swartout and Michael van Lent describe how many applications other than games and entertainment can make use of the strategies and user-oriented environments that game designers employ. In your experience, what educational, training, or communication applications could benefit from “a game-design approach”?  (Choose one application or several.) To what extent would these other applications benefit from building “emotion” into the system?

OR

2. According to the study reported by Candy and Edmonds (“Modeling Co-Creativity in Art and Technology,” 2002), artists using digital technologies are more collaborative (over 90%) than other artists. Why do you think this is so? How might this finding apply to the making of art in general in the coming century?  Answer with specific art forms and processes in mind, and consider the interaction of human and machine as a subject for art.

OR

3. Referencing at least one published work (the assigned reading or other readings)and, if you like, class discussion, discuss how technology and the Internet have affected the election process in the last few years.

Write an essay of no more than two pages discussing one of these three topics and your answer to the question.  Be sure to support your argument with facts and appropriate citations. Remember to spell check, proofread, and double space your paper. No font size smaller than 10 points, please. The paper value is 15 points.

For information on using citations, see the section on the Resources page on "Citations and Style Manuals." For criteria for evaluation see the Guide to Writing Assignments on the class web site.