Digital Humanity

An undergraduate Philosophy and Ethics gen-ed course developed and co-taught by Alison Langmead and Annette Vee and focused on what it means to be human in an age of ubiquitous computing. Course Description How have computational devices affected the way we think about our own humanity? Our relationship to digitality has changed from the mainframe to the smartphone, but throughout, computers have processed huge amounts of data, kept track of our (or our enemies’) activities, made our lives more fun or at least more complicated, allowed us to communicate with each other, and archive knowledge on a broad scale. What roles do computers play in our lives, and what role do we play in theirs? What are the borders between humans and computers, or can they be drawn at all? This course prepares students to critically examine the intersections between digital devices and human life. Covering topics such as the relationship between computers and humans, surveillance, big data, and interactivity and games, we question what it means to be human in a space of pervasive digitality. Students will read philosophy, fiction, essays, book excerpts, and watch movies and play games. Assessment will be based on regular online posts to WordPress, a take-home midterm examination, a reflective synthesis of online posts, and class participation. The course fills the Philosophy General Education requirement and meets three times per week: twice for lecture, once for recitation/lab