JOUR 4874.005/JOUR 4874.802/COMM 4000.003
The Meaning of Information Technology
Final Examination Questions.

The final examination for this class takes the form of a “partial take-home” exam. The format is very similar to the midterm exam; the main difference is that your answers on the final exam should be longer and more comprehensive. Today you are receiving 7 questions for thought, investigation and careful consideration. Of these 7 questions, you will be asked to answer 2 during the final exam period scheduled from 10.30 - 1.00 on Thursday, May 8. We prefer take-home exams to quizzes or other exams because (1) they cause us to reflect carefully and over an extended period of time about targeted issues of central importance to a course, (2) they allow us to investigate in areas where our knowledge may not be as strong so that we learn more about the key issues raised in a course, and (3) they take off the pressure to memorize massive amounts of information, allowing us to focus on key concepts and questions. You should bring two blue books to the exam, which will be in our regular classroom, Humanities 135.

Carefully consider the following 7 questions. As you think about the questions, you should look back at the syllabus and the slides from the semester. The more your answers reference readings and discussions from earlier in the semester, the better. We expect your responses to be thoughtful, informed, well-organized, and convincing. There is no “right” answer to any of these questions; your response must demonstrate your knowledge of the topic and your appreciation of the complexities and/or controversies of the topic. Your answer should have a clear thesis statement, and it must support that thesis statement with examples from class readings, discussion, or outside reading and contemplation. Prepare your thoughts in advance. Please, bring no notes or other prompting devices to the exam.

1. In the 1960s, JCR Licklider and Doug Engelbart envisioned computers as tools that could work in "symbiosis" with humans in order to "augment human intellect." In light of the positive and negative effects of information technology discussed throughout the course, do you think Licklider and Engelbart were right to be so optimistic? Use lots of examples.

2. Consider the role of IT in the four films we watched this semester as you address these two questions: How do characters in these films use IT as they try to manage the future? Do you see common themes throughout the four films? In your answer, you should discuss at least one character from each of the four films.

3. Evaluate Bill Joy's argument in "Why the Future Doesn't Need Us." Do you agree with him? Or do other readings from this semester give you cause to believe that Joy is incorrect about the future?

4. In class, we suggested that, in general, our culture is comfortable with weak AI, but deeply concerned about strong AI. Are there ideological reasons that explain why our culture embraces weak AI, but not strong AI?

5. What is Panopticism? Is this concept useful for understanding the privacy and surveillance implications of information technologies? Give three examples to support your argument.

6. What are the aesthetics of cyberpunk? What are the rules of the genre? Do these rules reflect anything about the culture that created cyberpunk? Does this help explain why cyberpunk arose in America in the 1980s, instead of in a different era or in a different culture?

7. Visit http://trace.ntu.ac.uk/frame/text/amerika.html. Discuss the relationship between the form and the theme of the website. Does the form (or structure) reflect the political sensibilities of the creator/s? If so, why? If not, why not? Your answer might also address the more general question of the political and ideological aspects - or lack thereof - in Internet art.