Week 12

Last day of lectures :( At least it was a good one :)

I had no idea that there was so much free software available on the web. I have been searching forever trying to find a database program that I could download for free. I have Microsoft Office, but it's the home version which doesn't include Microsoft Access. Not only did we talk about the right for users to free software, but Steve included a website at the end which lists free software. Yay! Who wouldn't agree with the concept of free software? It costs like and extra $200 dollars when you buy a new computer to get Microsoft Office included, and maybe if you're lucky a limited use of a virus protection program. I'm not particularly computer savvy and didn't even know about patches you could get to fix glitches in the old programs (usually I don't even understand there is a problem). I only update my software when that little box on my computer comes up and says there is an update available. I like the fact that people can put stuff they've created on the internet for free and can be protected against someone stealing that product and using it for commercial gain. It makes me happy that there are people who want to use their knowledge for good instead of for profit.

I was write in my initial reaction to Primer, it's a crazy movie. I was lazy and instead of researching the movie like Steve said, I came in to it totally unprepared. I actually thought I had a moderate grasp on what happened, and then I did some research. Wow, I was totally off the mark. I found out that there were 7 different timelines, when I only knew about half of them. I couldn't follow which Aarons and which Abes got killed and why. I still don't understand who knew about the extra machine first and why they went back to before the whole thing started. The plot line got lost in the craziness of the time travel. I would like to watch it again though to try and follow it a bit better and see if I can follow the story line better the next time around, now that I know what to expect.

So on with the Tutorial Task. Write a 500 word critical reflection of the course.

I enjoyed taking this course. I think experiences like this are why it is beneficial to study abroad. As a biology/chemistry major I would never have gotten the opportunity to take a course like this back home. I am required to take lots of classes that have nothing to do with my major, but even that is within a certain boundary. I'm not even sure we have a class like this at my University. My favorite thing about this class is that it was not a technical computer course. It was a technology course for people interested in technological philosophy. A lot of the lectures made you really think about what this technology is and how will that impact you personally, and society as a whole. My favorite lectures were the ones about virtual reality and time travel. These are interesting concepts that fascinate lots of people, but no course really touches on them, except maybe a physics. They also made me think the hardest about how these topics could impact my life, especially virtual reality. It might have also been that two of the movies we watched were also about virtual reality and time travel. I also enjoyed writing my essay. With so much freedom to choose a topic it's easy to find something you want to write about. I actually feel like I've learned a lot about the law and how it pertains (or in some cases doesn't pertain) to the Internet. Steve was a very enthusiastic guy. He seems to really enjoy what he does and is passionate about what he teaches. Our final was very fair and really I think Steve did an overall excellent job with the class.

My opinion of the movies we saw is mixed. I thought Primer was a bit hard to understand and wouldn't recommend it. The concept was cool though and you should probably show another movie relating to time travel because that's a very interesting topic. Existenz was awesome and I think everyone should watch this movie. It almost serves as a warning to humanity, be careful how far you push technology. Alphaville was pretty good too. I guess all the movies we saw were a bit out of the ordinary, pushing the envelope of our imaginations. Though La Jetee was different, 12 Monkeys is soooo much better. I think the kids in the class would have enjoyed watching 12 Monkeys.

I'm mixed on the tutorials. I enjoyed some of them, mostly the ones with Photoshop and 3D worlds. I didn't particularly enjoy the scavenger hunt or the Microsoft Word and Excel. Instead maybe you should have the students do further research into the topics that you bring up in class. I would have love to have done a scavenger hunt or some kind of tutorial tasks on Black Holes or find sites about e-democracy. Maybe let students have a choice on what tutorial task they want to research from that weeks lecture.

Overall I have a very high impression of this class and would recommend it to other students.

I just want to say thank you to Steve, Adam, Chris, and Jules.

You did an excellent job running a great class and I appreciate all your hard work.