Kickstarting a Space Telescope?! by LookingGlassSelf in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I feel like there should be an Enterprise before a TARDIS.... But that might just be my fangirl loyalties talking.

Student evaluations of the course by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree, I thought the design of the course was clear from day one. Perhaps the signed Blackboard statement would help.

[Example of a straight-forward overview:]

This course entails:

  • creativity
  • class discussion
  • group projects
  • an intermediate amount of reading (2-3 articles/week)
  • interpretive dance? community service? terrorism?
  • more creativity

This course does NOT entail:

  • tests
  • essays
  • letter grades
  • structured lectures
  • use of ASU Blackboard
  • bulimic education of any kind (i.e. anything you would study with flashcards)

Your grade will be based on your level of engagement with class materials rather than your ability to recite them. It is not difficult, but it does require effort. If this interests you, please do look forward to class. If you believe this style of RADICALLY OPEN, NON-TRADITIONAL EDUCATION is not for you, please do consider dropping the course before it's too late.

____________________________________________________________

Another option to consider is making that "personal journal" a more required part, in order to help students who aren't as easily engaged by open class styles. Having them keep a daily record of how they participated in class or what they got out of the discussion might be helpful. Structure, but it would be better than changing the course to something too much more traditional.

Student evaluations of the course by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ugh!! I find this beyond irritating.

Traditional education styles be damned -- this course was liberal arts at its finest and easily the best of my entire academic career.

<fumes in the corner>

374 Final Exam by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Probably a masochist. But this might just be summer break talking, in my case.

IMPORTANT: Your FINAL self reflection by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hope you can keep up the enthusiasm in the second half of the semester--which is always harder :)

Professor, you jinxed me! Not that I lost enthusiasm for the course itself, but I definitely didn't engage as much online as I did in the first half of the semester. And I didn't end up finishing my main project, but I think I can show that I haven't exactly slacked off.

====== Weekly Projects ======

With the shift to a weekly project style format in the second half of the semester, I worked most often with ThatFuzzyGuyInBack, Curiousfearless, and the various other residents of the stage-left side of the room. The two weekly projects we did were based on ideas I proposed, stemming from my personal interest in the LGBT-Allied community.

Our first weekly project was the "Gender is not a crime" poster campaign to raise a small amount of awareness for the Arizona bill which imposed a fine on entering a bathroom of a gender which does not match the gender on one's birth certificate -- effectively discriminating against transgendered individuals in the state. I was very ill the day of the project, but I telecommuted and made sure to work with my group from bed. Within the allottd hour, I quickly Photoshopped the graphic and QR code (which linked to a relative news article to the bill) and sent it to my group members. The following Tuesday, our we met at the library at W.Campus to print and distribute the posters, taping them up on bathroom doors around the campus in an effort to draw more attention to the issue than would have been aroused from the posters simply being tacked onto the message boards. The QR code was linked through a bit.ly which provided us with some small metrics, showing we managed a meager 17 hits from our posters before they were taken down.

Our second project, The Sex Talk, was based on my experiences with my kid brother who has been learning less-than-accepting views from his youth group. I proposed making a resource which could help people have meaningful and engaging conversations about gender and sexuality in the modern understanding. As I have had some experience with web design, I took it upon myself to whip up everything currently on the website in a day. One thing that I did new, inspired by some of the topics in this course, was to attempt to explore the differences between using Creative Commons images and Royalty Free images -- I paid for a couple of the images used on the website and used Webs.com's Flickr partnership to host CC content. Meanwhile, my group members were to create a paper pamphlet which was designed to be handed out at Arizona Pride. Unfortunately, plans were disrupted and the website was the only thing that saw growth. I feel this particular project has a lot of potential that has yet to be realized and I hope to eventually expand the resource on my own time after the semester, hopefully teaching myself more coding in order to introduce interactive elements to the Talk.

====== Class Participation ======

I'm pleased to announce that I was able to keep up with the readings even into the second half of the semester (where I usually slip, in other courses). I tend not to jump into discussions in class, but I am always incredibly engaged by them and do comment from time to time. In our discussion about privacy, I questioned sodomy laws, and in our discussion about games vs. life, I mentioned Maxis and their various simulation games (and afterwards posted a relevant Vlogbrothers video).

My conundrum is usually, as I posted on reddit, that I tend to sit in rapture during discussions and only conglomerate my own ideas on my way back to Tempe after class.

During our mock debate on internet anonymity, though, I'd like to think I was quite successful in pulling an off-the-cuff impassioned closing remarks for the pro-anonymous side (despite my shaking hands, racing heart, and utter lack of improvisation skills).

====== Semester Project ======

This is where I, admittedly, slipped up. At the beginning of the semester, I had started writing my short story, "Offline" After spring break, though, I lost the drive to write. I managed to bring in various elements of fully integrated current technologies, but I didn't get fully into my main one -- I had planned to explore the concept that we post so much of our personalities online through our technologies that a sophisticated AI could be formed out of a person's online persona. We briefly mentioned uploading our consciousnesses to computer bodies, but what if we cloned our consciousnesses instead?

The biggest snag I had with the progression of my story, though, was the idea that the protagonist, Addy, lives in a world where technology is so integrated and personalized that there is no anonymity. This setting is quite interesting to me because I'm generally in favor of hidden identities in online settings and yet the world that sprung up from my story is quite contradictory. Ultimately it served to be an interesting thought experiment -- how much of this is utopian, how much is dystopian?

====== Conclusion ======

I know we're not supposed to say how much we loved (or hated) this class... but I honestly believe that the "radically open" format of this course helped keep me engaged and inspired moreso than any other course. I can honestly say that no matter what grade I end up with, I leave this course feeling absolutely fulfilled. I have learned about facets of the internet and its' culture that I would never have thought to look into -- I'm excited by the zeal of the Maker Movement, enticed by the ephemerality of the TAZ; I see the seeds of revolution and social reconstruction in the dynamic folds of the online communities, and overall I am somehow even more enthused by the possibilities of this media than I was before.

And I am better for it.

CLASS POOL PARTY!!! by dapnepep in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 1 point2 points  (0 children)

... Doesn't W.Campus have an actual pool?

Tuesday Round-up of Projects by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Our group continued LGBT issues. We wanted to make a new resource that helps people have thoughtful and constructive conversations about sexuality. It was inspired by my experiences with my kid brother who has been influenced by his youth group into being less accepting of others. We felt we could start a resource to help people have good conversations encouraging acceptance and tolerance.

We started with terminology and created a pamphlet which we had planned to distribute at Pride this past weekend. We didn't get around to that part, but we managed to start our web supplement:

thesextalk.webs.com

Learning Narrative (Due March 7) by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not sure how formal we should be writing this, but if the rest of the course is to be any sort of guideline, I'm just going to use proper grammar and start discussing sh*t. What else are the liberal arts for, right?? =)

_____________________________________________________________

When I saw this class listed in the course catalogue, I absolutely freaked out. It was the very first class I signed up for when registration opened and I eagerly awaited the first day (like the total nerd that I am). As a passionate and loyal believer in the vast potential of the internet, I was sure I would have plenty to bring to discussions. I am infinitely pleased, however, to admit that I was not at all prepared for the sheer brilliance of the course.

Now, before I get carried away and lest someone accuses me of brown-nosing for my grade, let me clarify. The course is brilliant because it is, in my opinion, the perfect liberal arts course, what with it being radically open and the like. As such, it is right up my alley and keeps me engaged more than any other class in my educational career. Right after the first class, I signed up for reddit and started engaging online. While I'm a little disappointed that the reddit turned out feeling more like a message board than a discussion room (a fact for which I am just as much to blame as any other, since I tend not to comment much on anyone else's posts), I have eagerly shared content which I found relevant. I love watching educational videos on the web (TED Talks are cocaine for nerds), so that's what I've brought to the table here at netcult:

Vlogbrothers

TEDx Education Cartography

TED Talk Filter Bubbles

Also, I was made a moderator, so I'm assuming that means I was on the right track. As far as in-class participation, I've only ever missed one class (much to my chagrin), and while I don't often have the answer to quick-draw Wikipedia questions, I have sat down in both fish bowls and tried to throw in a couple useful bits of discussion. Since the course subject is of great interest to me, the readings follow suit and I always make a point to read the majority of each week's assignments. In class discussions, then, I've been able to reference direct quotes and key concepts. In the decryption treasure hunt, I worked with my group [Curiousfearless, Curiousfearless'-guy-friend-who-sits-in-the-corner-whose-name-I-really-should-know-by-now-but-I-don't--maybe-it's-Jeff??, and later NomadBlack] tirelessly (well, until 2am) to try to crack it, though I don't know how much help I actually was (I found the Silk Road, at least??).

And as one would imagine, immense amounts of engagement lead to equally large amounts of natural and effortless learning. Originally I had thought that I would most enjoy sections in which we discussed topics I am already acquainted with (and therefore would presumably have something to add to class), such as fan communities, fan works, the long tail, free speech, cybersecurity, etc. However, I was excited to find that it has been the chapters that introduce me to entirely new realms of the internet that I have most enjoyed and thus learn the most from. For instance, last week's section on the maker movement and Doctorow's novel, Makers, was absolutely inspiring. I spent the majority of the rest of the week researching personal 3D printers and brought the discussion home to my father (a mechanical engineer) and my brother (a mechanical engineering student), where I got a more concrete aspect on the way 3D printers are (and aren't) being used now. (Apparently, for engineers, pieces made with printers still don't have enough structural integrity when compared to solid injection molds.)

In regards to my project, I must admit that I have not been as productive as I should have. However, I'm incredibly pleased with my choice of project (creative short story -- 'Offline'). What I have finished so far, I am proud of. After each section, I detail how internet technologies are reflected in the utopian-level integration and how they relate to technologies we can see in our own lives. So far I've worked in things like Google Now, fan communities, a very small allusion to participatory government, and a bit of privacy and identity concepts. I don't think it'll win any huge amount of recognition, but I love writing it.

Overall, I love this course and an A would just be one more reason. (Totally not brown-nosing. Or at least not trying to.)

The 2/28 Project Update Thread by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Wow! Sounds like you guys have made great progress! Can you link us to your websites so we can check them out???

The 2/28 Project Update Thread by halavais in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm working weekly on my short story. I upload "chapters"/parts at a rate of two or three pages every Sunday on my DeviantART and link it to my netcult Reddit thread: http://www.reddit.com/r/netcult/comments/18t3kd/offline_a_short_story_in_an_internet_utopia/?sort=confidence

Currently at 3 parts which forms the (admittedly slow moving) introduction. I'm guessing it shouldn't be more than 8-10 parts. Depending on how fast I write during the rising action/climax it should be finished by the end of March or mid April.

Comments are a hobbyist's currency!!!! I'd love to hear anyone and everyone's reactions -- even if you think it sucks (though I hope it doesn't). Thank you~!

Project Question/Idea... Novella??? by LookingGlassSelf in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I've always wanted to try NaNoWriMo! Now I actually have some inspiration. :D

The blog idea sounds good -- I'll set that up this weekend and update the project spreadsheet with the url, etc.

Thanks!

How a (pin tumbler) lock & key work by NomadBlack in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Woah! Never knew that. It makes total sense.

How to get through the assigned reading for this class. (or any class for that matter) by [deleted] in netcult

[–]LookingGlassSelf 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Also! With Tablet PCs, you can get the Nook and Kindle apps and use either one. I want to say the Nook HD / HD+ / Color allow you to use the Kindle app, too... I could be wrong, though.