Davidson College Fall 2018
Introduction If you asked me at the beginning of the fall semester which of my courses would garner the most campus-wide attention, I probably would’ve put this course last on the list. While certainly timely and important, the content of this course didn’t seem particularly contentious to the average student. However, over the course of …
Rereading my blog posts over the course of this semester has revealed three key things: I love applications of theory. Whether it be exploring the role of social capital in the Nosedive episode of Black mirror, or understanding Farman’s philosophy of waiting through Dominos’ loading screens, or talking about the practical implications of our ideas …
Continue reading “The Threads I’m Continuing: Reflecting on 101”
During an in-class case study discussion about algorithms predicting financial risk, the most obvious realization hit me. If, as these companies boast, we really can predict to nearly to a tee who is susceptible to defaulting on their loans, why would we use that information to deny loans, rather than providing social support and interventions …
Continue reading “Algorithms, Edublocks, and Other Silicon Snake Oil”
In my fall 2017 semester at Davidson, I took Dr. Mark Sample’s Electronic Literature course. This was my first exposure to Lev Manovich’s book, The Language of New Media, and more specifically, the chapter entitled “The Database.” Like all theoretical frameworks that categorize a phenomenon that I had been unsuccessfully grasping to understand for months …
With the support of mentors in the Technology & Innovation department at Davidson College, I was had the pleasure of attending “OpenEd18” from October 10th through October 12th, 2018. Open Ed is an annual conference that focuses on scaling traditional higher educational materials to be available online. During my attendance, I presented my research on …
Continue reading “The Digital “Open”: Revolutionary or Reactionary?”
I usually write about existential threats to society and human nature in my blog posts. In my first post on data centers, I wrote that the “level of impact [of data centers] is consolidated in the hands of a few major providers, which could lead to a highly concentrated and consolidated market that is unresponsive […]
I expected my posts to be more cynical than they were after reading my first one, which was, broadly, a claim that the main internet companies work to “manufacture consent” among their users, obstructing truth to keep us uninformed and therefore wanting to use their services. With this as my starting piece, I thought that […]
Throughout the last few months, I’ve been regularly posting my thoughts about the current and future states of technology. I’ve touched on quite a few themes in this time, but I’d like to take some time to re-examine and emphasize the most important ones. As I consider technology from within a liberal arts perspective, I …
Upon re-reading my blog posts from this semester, the first thing that struck me was a common theme of skepticism and pessimism with regards to my attitudes towards technology. As someone who usually prides himself (perhaps unrealistically) on seeing the best in others and in things in this world, I realize that taking this course …
Summing up my blog experience, I have thoroughly enjoyed applying the readings to a wide variety of different things. I realized that I often found ways to compare parts of readings and the digital world to other classwork, life experiences, or mental health issues. I believe that the humanities gives us a great chance to …
Continue reading “The digital pessimist looks back on his blog posts”
