• Syllabus
• What is Digital Technology and Culture?
• In-class resources: Tim Brown, “Tales of Creativity and Play” (2008) (video)

• Douglas Rushkoff, “Introduction” to Program or Be Programmed (2010) (print textbook)
• In-class resources: Young Me/Now Me; Humans of New York; Chillout Song

• Brian Croxall, “How to Google Yourself Effectively and What to Do About It” (2010) (online article)

In-Class Activities

• Task 1: Create a WordPress.com site using the WordPress tutorial above. (Tip: when choosing your URL, make decisions about your online identity: do you want to use your real name? is your choice of name / URL professional? Avoid numbers, “cougs,” and “WSU.”) Example: Digital Clarissa Dalloway
• Task 2: Submit your URL to Google forms: 9am section
• Task 3: Write a sample blog post: Introduce us to your digital self: who are you on social media? who do you want to be?

• Jill Walker Rettberg, “Serial Selfies,” from Seeing Ourselves Through Technology (2014) (pdf, book chapter)

• Douglas Rushkoff, “Time: Do Not Always Be On” AND “Place: Live in Person,” from Program or Be Programmed (2010) (print textbook)
• danah boyd, “Participating in the Always-On Lifestyle,” from The Social Media Reader (2012) (pdf article)

In-Class Activity: Form Social Media Groups and Assign Roles (Step 1/5)

• Select group members, brainstorm topics, plan meeting times
• Submit your group’s information to this form.

• Ze Frank, “Web Playroom” (2010) (video, TED Talk)
• Sherry Turkle’s “Connected, but Alone?” (2012) (video, TED Talk)

• Simon Sinek, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” (2009) (video, TED Talk)
• Derek Sivers, “How to Start a Movement” (2010) (video, TED Talk)

• Clay Shirky, “How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World” (2010) (video, TED Talk)
• Casey Chan, “What Exactly Is a Meme” (2013) (online infographic)

• David Gauntlett, Making Is Connecting, Ch. 9 (pdf, book chapter)
• Resources: When Ideas Have Sex; Cognitive Surplus

• Brandon Stanton, “On How to Approach Strangers in the Street” (2014) (video, YouTube)

Blog Post 2: Social Media Connections (due before midnight on Sunday, Sep 20)

• Divide class into three groups, sorted by role: 1) project leaders, 2) technology specialists, and 3) communications experts
• Focus on large-scale issues and questions
• Each group member should be prepared to share the group’s progress and vision

• Divide class into group-pairs
• Focus on details
• Each group should bring a rough draft of the project to share with another group

• Work on your own with your group members in the lab or in the field to complete your final draft of the project

1. Action: Create a classification system for a physical collection of objects in your possession (items in your backpack, fridge, car, desk drawer, etc). The classification systems should contain a hierarchy (see Shirky) of at least 3 levels. Include at least 10 items.
2. Reflection: Reflect on the decisions you made in creating your system: what decisions did you make based on the types and quantities of items present? Perform a cultural analysis of your classification system: consider race, gender, class (economic / social status), nationality, education-level, etc.  

• Virginia Woolf, excerpt from Mrs Dalloway (1925) [pdf, book excerpt]
• In-class resources: #oneSecond; How to know if you’re in a Virginia Woolf novel

• Douglas Rushkoff, “Complexity: You Are Never Completely Right” [print book]

1. Action: Isolate a single public moment or activity in your day that measures no more than a minute (walking into the classroom, waiting in line for food, sitting on the bus, etc). Describe as many sensory and cognitive details as you can imagine and experience (use Woolf for inspiration). This is a creative writing exercise, and so you can also imagine the thoughts and feelings of other people present or imagined.
2. Reflection: Reflect on the complexity of that moment. What “facts” can you use to objectively characterize that moment? How might that moment be “classified” in the annals of history? Consider what “tags” you might use to label the moment.

1. Action: Visit one of the campus libraries. Find your way to the book stacks. Wander around the stacks until you find a book that interests you enough to want to check it out. Take a picture of the book amid the stacks.
2. Reflection: How did you arrive at this book, and what did you discover once you found it? How is wandering around the library different from performing a search in the database?

1. Action: Look around on campus for a sign that gives the user written instructions (anything from step-by-step instructions placarded on a vending machine to a handmade sign in a public restroom). Use your camera to take a photograph that you will upload to your blog post.
2. Reflection: Explore why the sign is needed (consider flaws in the design itself, the consequences of not following the instructions, the possible history of flaws surrounding the object/instructions).
3. Proposal: How might you use design to eliminate the need for the written sign? And/or how might you edit the existing sign to be more user-friendly?

1. Action: Imagine a smartphone app that can do the unthinkable (think sci-fi). Describe what it does and how it works. Design at least one image of the app (either by hand or using software) that renders the app in terms of a single page, frame, or icon. Post the image to your blog.
2. Reflection: Analyze how this app works and why it is important. While it might help to frame your app in terms of marketing (who should buy it and why), try to consider the purpose of this app on an even larger scale: “the app that changed the world.” 

• Resources: Junior Portfolios, DTC Certification, LandEscapes; SURCA; Poster Tips; Professional Writing; Find Your Why
• Junior Portfolio Instructions: Bring materials for Junior Portfolio (printed essay from this class + printed cover sheet) to receive my signature
• DTC Certification Instructions: Complete this application (printed form, statement of purpose, and digital text)

• Attend the DTC Project Showcase and Awards Ceremony
• Interested in becoming a DTC major? Curious to see what kinds of work you can do? Come see 3D animation films, websites, graphic design, games, and more.
• There will be cake and refreshments!

• Write a formal letter (use a formal letter template in Microsoft Word, or similar) addressed to your professor that evaluates your learning achievements this semester (two pages, single-spaced).
• Select 3 examples (from projects, activities, lectures, or readings) to analyze. Be sure to include relevant quotes, screenshots, or summaries from the examples you select.
• Your objective is to demonstrate what kinds of learning took place this semester and how this learning could be applied to future endeavors. 
• NOTE: use this space to also demonstrate your level of engagement and participation in the course, as measured by your attendance, contribution to class discussion, observations at the DTC showcase, etc.