Computers and the Surveillance Society

Catalog description

This learning community joins two disciplines, Computing and Film and Screen Studies. In combining computing practice with interpretation of narrative films about surveillance culture, the course will provide a survey and analysis of the data collection and surveillance opportunities enables by pervasive networked computing and media structures that are integrated into all parts of modern life. Material from CIS 101 will provide a grounding to understand the ability of technology to collect, sort and retain indefinitely data collected from all aspects of modern society. Students will also master basic computing skills by completing a series of lab assignments in Excel, Web Design, and Programming. The Film and Screen Studies portion of the course will provide a theoretical introduction to how media culture and surveillance cultures are intertwined, and through close readings of films that use surveillance as a theme, process how popular culture is making sense of a society increasingly defined by surveillance in a variety of forms. This course requires that students bring a laptop to every class.