ENGH 101
Section 66, Fall 2012
TR 1:30-2:45am - Innovation Hall 203
| Dr. Kenneth C. Thompson |
| Office: Aquia 234B |
| Office Phone: 703-993-2305 |
| Office
Hours: Tues/Thurs 3-4pm and by appointment |
| Email: kthomps4 [at] gmu.edu |
| Syllabus: http://mason.gmu.edu/~kthomps4/101-66-f12/ |
| Course Blog: http://10166f12.wordpress.com/ |
| WRITING TUTORING: The Transition Resource Center and University Life at GMU are sponsoring Living Learning
Community tutoring especially for students in this
and other LLC
1st year classes. Our tutors--Dylan, Brian, and
Jessica--have been specially trained to help you with
your writing as well as to work with you on peer review. A flyer will be distributed to Univ100 classes as well
as the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC
sections of Engh101. Each ENGH 101 LLC student is required to attend at least two tutoring sessions this semester. The tutors will hold their hours in the Eastern Shore Multi-Purpose room. You will be receiving an email with instructions on how to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule here. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours, click here. |
TEXTS:
COURSE BLOG: Over the course of the semester, you will regularly post short writing assignments on the class blog. The blog will be the place to post as a place to post personal reflections and your responses to readings and films as well as try out ideas for your more formal print papers while receiving feedback from your fellow students . I will put instructions on the site and go over procedures in class. If you have problems, please contact me. The blog can be found at: http://10166f12.wordpress.com/ (note no dashes in the URL)
RESOURCES:
COURSE FRAMEWORK: This section of English 101 is specifically designed for students in Engineering, Business and Economics or for students especially interested in those subjects. About 60% of the class is also taking University 100 as part of either the Engineering or Business and Economics Living Learning Communities (LLC). University 100 is intended to help students transition from high school to college. The main objectives of this course are to develop relationships with others in the class including the instructor and peer advisor, to establish a knowledge base of campus resources, and to acquire basic academic skills for success.Engh101 will enable you to improve your writing and research skills while you study the history of electrification in 19th century America and the development of computers in the mid 20th century from both an Engineering and Business point of view. In your English course, you will regularly post short essays on the class blog, and comment on each others longer papers using editing sheets I will prepare for each assignment. You will also be required to do exercises from Diana Hacker's Pocket Style Manual website keyed to my comments on your writing.
WWRITING TUTORS: Our tutors--Dylan K, Brian S, and Jessica K--have been specially trained to help you with your writing as well as to work with you on peer review. A flyer will be distributed to Univ100 classes as well as the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC sections of ENGH 101. Each ENGH 101 LLC student is required to attend at least two tutoring sessions this semester. The tutors will have hours in an office in Eastern Shore (the Multi-Purpose room). You will be receiving an email with instructions on how to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule here. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours, click here. Make sure to bring a print copy of your assignment, paper/draft and other materials you want to work on with you when you visit Brian, Dylan or Jessica.
REQUIREMENTS: 1) Regular attendance. Participation in all class activities including workshops, group projects, films, trips and individual presentations. 2) Completion of all assigned reading. 3) On-time completion of all written work including papers, blog posts, editing sheets, quizzes, papers, bibliographies, and proposals. After three late assignments, each succeeding late project will be lowered half a grade. I will accept no assignments that are over one week late. All assignments are due at the beginning of class on the day indicated on the syllabus. Students who do not earn a "C" or higher will receive the grade "NC" (No Credit) and are required to take Engl101 again.
FILM SCREENINGS: There will be three required Cinema and Supper showings with free pizza and soda at 7pm and a film at 7:30pm. The films are scheduled as follows:
NOTE ON PLAGIARISM: The English Department defines plagiarism as "using the exact words, opinions, or factual information from another source without giving that source credit. Writers give credit through the use of accepted documentation styles, such as parenthetical citation, footnotes, or end notes; a simple listing of books, articles, and websites is not sufficient. Plagiarism is the equivalent of intellectual robbery and cannot be tolerated in an academic setting." I will not tolerate plagiarism in my classes and will report incidents to the appropriate authorities.
DISABILITIES: If you are a student with a disability and you
need academic accommodations, please see me and contact the Office of
Disability Resources at 703.993.2474. All academic accommodations must be
arranged through that office.
PRINTING IN INNOVATION HALL: to use the printers outside the lab on the third floor of Innovation Hall, you will need to add money to your Mason ID card for printing by going to http://masonmoney.gmu.edu and clicking on the link “Buy Online.” On the next page, click “Deposit Online Now” at the top. On the next page that opens, enter your G number and your pin. If you have never used the site before, your pin is 1111. You can then use a credit card to add Mason Money to your ID.
PAPERS 1 & 2: 33%
PAPERS 3 & 4: 33%
PARTICIPATION
AND GROUP WORK (including blog posts): 33%
SCHEDULE (SUBJECT TO REVISION)
| DATE | ENGL 101 |
|---|---|
| Tues Aug 28 | Introduction
to the course; print and fill out the class Information
Sheet and bring it to class on Thurs. Go to Mason
Live and set up mail forwarding if you do not check
your GMU email several times a week. I will also help
you add my email addresses to your safe list so messages
about the class will not be blocked by GMU's spam filter. (We may have to finish some
of these items during our second meeting.) You
should also create a course folder in your Mason Live
account so you can easily locate course related messages.
In addition, this week, 1) you will register on Wordpress.com; 2) I will give you write permissions on the class blog; 3) you will introduce yourself to your fellow students; and 4) you will comment on each other's postings. The instructions for the assignment are at page/prompt 03 on the upper right of the class blog; instructions for registering and posting are at page/prompts 02a and 02b as well as below. TO REGISTER ON WORDPRESS, go to Wordpress.com. Click on Get started here on the upper left. DO NOT SIGN UP FOR A BLOG BUT JUST A USER NAME (see the signup for just a user name to the right of the blog address box). Use your GMU user name and email address; write down your password (or use one you will remember). If your user name is already taken on WordPress, add letters or numbers to your GMU user name. DO NOT click on Sign up for a blog, too. Agree to the terms of service and click Sign up. How you fill in your profile on the next page is up to you. Click submit and then go to your GMU email account and open the message from WordPress and click on the verification link. Then come to the instructor station and let me know you are registered on WordPress; using the email address you used to register I can give you write permissions on the class blog (you must be registered on both WordPress and the class blog before you can log on and see the New Post link). Because there may be some lag time here, you may want to begin your writing using an HTML editor or Word (saving the file as a web page filtered). The login link for the course blog is at the lower right of the page under Meta. There is also a link to wordpress.com there. Once you are fully registered and logged on, you should see the course blog under My Blogs on the left side of the page. Click on that link (and choose the blog for this course if you are registered for more than one blog). You should see a New Post link at the top of the page under the link for this course. Give your post a title like “03-Intro Ken T” and enter the text of your post in the box under Post. Once I have given you authorship privileges, you should also see a check box with your name under People at the top right of the Write page (its one of the “categories”). Also check Introductions before you click on Publish. If I haven’t entered your first name and last initial yet under the name categories, you can edit your post in a day or two, check your name category and click save changes. For this and all subsequent posts, title the post with the assignment number/name and your first name/last initial. (Note: you can edit your published posts by clicking on the edit button underneath the post.) Before next class respond to at least one of your fellow students' intros using the Leave a Comment or #Comments link under the post. |
| Thurs Aug 30 | Class blog posting
and commenting continued. We will watch selections from Edison: Miracle of Light during class. |
| Mon Sept 3 | LABOR DAY, UNIVERSITY CLOSED |
| Tues Sept 4 | Before class,
read Jill Jonnes,
Empires of Light, Introduction (xiii-xiv) and
watch the interview with her on CSPAN Booknotes at
http://www.booknotes.org/Watch/178806-1/Jill+Jonnes.aspx Also read Edison's Story from the Lemelson Center at http://invention.smithsonian.org/centerpieces/edison/ During class we will go over the reading and I will discuss Edison using Paul Israel's Edison: A Life of Invention (not assigned but on reserve at JC Library), pp. 119 and 167; Jill Jonnes' Empire of Light, p. 67; and Randall Stross, The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Edison Invented the Modern World (Google Books and JC), pp. 288-290. Both Stross and Israel see Edison as a transitional figure. For Israel, Edison stands at a point of transition between the individual inventor working in the context of 19th century shop culture and the modern director of research and development in a corporate lab. Stross sees Edison as a celebrity, both in his time and ours, precisely because he was not an anonymous researcher but an individual. And he ties some of Edison's failures to the burden of modern celebrity and the unrealistic expectations it entailed. Introduction to Edison, his inventions and the War of the Currents. We will watch the rest of Edison: Miracle of Light during class. SEPT 4-LAST DAY TO DROP WITH NO TUITION PENALTY, LAST DAY TO ADD CLASSES |
| Thurs Sept 6 | Before class, read
Empires of
Light, pp. 51-85 (Thomas Edison: The Wizard of Menlo
Park) and pp. 3-15 (Morgan's House Was Lighted Up Last
Night). Also watch Thomas Edison: The Electric-Light Bulb at http://www.hulu.com/watch/87171/milestones-in-science-and-engineering-thomas-edison-the-electric-light-bulb (you will need to watch an advertisement to access the video). During class we will continue going over the assigned reading in Jonnes as well as Paul Israel's Edison: A Life of Invention (not assigned but on reserve at JC Library) and Randall Stross' The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Edison Invented the Modern World (Google Books and JC). Intro to in-text citations and paper formats in MLA/APA, using Diana Hacker's A Pocket Style Manual. Next week we will use the companion website, Research and Documentation online site. Start bringing A Pocket Style Manual to class. |
| Tues Sept 11 |
Before class read the section from the end of Empires of Light on Edison's later work (347-353), review Jonnes on Edison (51-85), and study the following resources for information and ideas about Edison's inventions in preparation for your first paper:
Group discussion of what you consider Edison's most important invention or inventions and the reasons for your views. Then post individually on what you consider Edison's most important invention or inventions. Make sure to provide reasons and evidence to back up your choice(s) and take into account contrary views on the part of your group members. See page/prompt 4 on the class blog for the assignment. During or after class, comment on at least two of your fellow group members' posts and then update your own post based on the feedback you have received both face-to-face and in comments). Intro to MLA and APA citations formats, continued, using Diana Hacker's Research and Documentation online site. We will begin with MLA and an overview of the relation between in-text entries and the works cited page, look at the drop down for in-text cites and items on the works cited page, and then go over some of the works cited format for some of the sources you have available for your paper including: 1) books; 2) articles in journals; 3) articles in magazines and newspapers; 4) websites and short works from websites; 5) online video clips; 6) DVDs; 6) radio or TV programs; and lectures or public addresses. As we will see over the next few weeks, sometimes these your sources will be a mix. For the APA guidelines, see the overview, and the drop-down menu for APA in-text citations and APA list of references. Note that APA is more narrowly targeted at research publications and so does not have as many categories or types of sources as MLA. Start bringing A Pocket Style Manual to class. |
| Thurs Sept 13 |
Paper #1, a 2-3 page paper (typed & double spaced) essay on Edison's most important invention(s) is due at the beginning of class this coming Tues Sept 20th. A printed 1 page draft of the paper is due at the beginning of class today. You will work on your paper during class while I talk to you about your plans and ideas. I will return your revision of paper #1 on Tues Sept 25th. You are required to see one of the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC tutors as you work on/revise paper #1 or work on drafts of paper #2. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours starting September 25th and instructions on how to make an appointment, click here. LLC Peer tutoring begins Tues Sept 25th in the Eastern Shore Multi-Purpose room. SEPT 19-LAST DAY TO DROP WITH 33% TUITION PENALTY |
| Tues Sept 18 |
Paper #1, a 2-3 page paper (typed & double spaced) essay on Edison's most important invention(s) is due at the beginning of class. In-class editing using an editing sheet I will provide. If you do not finish the peer review in class, you can complete it next class. Introduction to the War of the Currents and the issue of ethics and integrity in business and technology. We will be studying a famous case where the ethics of Edison's public relations assault on Alternating Current (AC) and Westinghouse has often been questioned. You will learn about the history of the rather vicious standards war and then write a letter supporting either Edison's or Westinghouse's position. I suggest most of you write as if you are one of their contemporaries although you also have the option of writing from the future. One final option would be to try to determine the truth of their claims by writing a letter as if you are a NYC regulator. Before you write the paper, make sure to review the interview with Jill Jonnes on CSPAN Booknotes, available online at http://www.booknotes.org/Watch/178806-1/Jill+Jonnes.aspx By the
end of class today, email your paper to mailto:kthomps4@gmu.edu. This electronic copy will
be used to assess what the class learned as a whole by
comparing it to one or more later papers and has nothing to
do with your grade. (You will also be handing
in a print copy with editing sheet today or Thurs
which I will grade and comment on over the
weekend.) Include
in the subject area of the message the following: 1)
Pap1 At the end of class, I will briefly introduce you to the use of Lexis-Nexis Academic to find newspaper articles. Next week, you will look for an article on Edison entitled The Father of Invention by Debra Galant from the New York Times, June 1st, 1997. SEPT 18-LAST DAY TO DROP WITH 33% TUITION PENALTY |
| Thurs Sept 20 |
CLASSROOM VISIT BY THE LLC TUTORS. I will return your revision of paper #1 on Tues Sept 25th. You are required to see one of the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC tutors as you work on/revise paper #1 (due Oct 18th) or work on drafts of paper #2 (due Oct 11th). For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours starting September 25th, click here. LLC Peer tutoring begins Tues Sept 25th in the Eastern Shore Multi-Purpose room. You will be receiving an email with instructions to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule here. Read before class Empires of Light, pp. 117-124 and 129-139 (George Westinghouse). Review pp. 123 and 130-132 especially carefully. Also look over the following resources on Westinghouse to see what you might draw on in writing/revising your next paper:
By Sun at 11:59pm, use the blog’s comment function to vote on: 1) which account is the most technically correct and comprehensive; 2) which account is the most accessible and understandable to non-engineers; and 3) which account is the best mix of the two. To see what a technically detailed explanation by a physicist can look like, see Electricity & Magnetism, Walter Lewin, MIT Lecture 24 (21:30min- Transformers; 32min- coils) http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8-02-electricity-and-magnetism-spring-2002/video-lectures/lecture-24-transformers-car-coils-and-rc-circuits/ |
| Fri Sept 21st |
Edison The Man (1940) at the Blue Ridge classroom (room 129). Pizza at 7pm; film showing at 7:30pm. By Sun at 11:59pm, post to the class blog your reaction to the film, indicating what struck you as most interesting about the portrayal of Edison and his work and what you liked and didn't like about the film. The film showing is required but if you have to miss it because of a course conflict or family emergency, in addition to the post write a 300-500 paper/post comparing Edison as presented in Edison The Man with what you know of him from your reading in Jonnes’ Empire of Light and Edison: Miracle of Light. You can also bring in the optional reading in Israel’s Edison: A Life of Invention and Stross’ The Wizard of Menlo Park if you have been to the JC library/Google to look at the sections I discussed in class. Be specific, cite sources (using MLA or APA) and conclude by writing about how the process of discovery is represented in Edison The Man. The paper/post is due by the beginning of class next Thurs. If you attend the showing you can also write the paper/post for extra credit. |
| Tues Sept 25 |
Before class on Tues Sept 25, read Empires of Light, pp. 141-152 and 165-179 (Edison Declares War; Constant Danger). Also before class, post to the blog a preliminary post on Brown’s role in Edison’s public relations campaign against AC. Before you state your opinion on Brown, make sure to discuss what he did, what his connection with Edison was, and why Edison resorted to such tactics. We will listen in class to the chapter on Brown in AC/DC: The Savage Tale of the First Standards War by Tom McNichol (not assigned; on reserve JC library under call number QC641 .M36 2006) and then you will update your post and comment on each others’ views (at least two comments) either today or Thurs. LLC Peer tutoring began Tues Sept 25h in the Eastern Shore Multi-Purpose room. Missing appointments will lower your class participation grade (or require two make-up visits). During class, I will give you some time to sign up for appointments. You will be receiving an email with instructions to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule here. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours, click here. You are required to see one of the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC tutors as you
|
| Thurs Sept 27 | Before
class, read Empires of
Light, pp. 198-204 (the PR struggle over the
electrocution of a Western Union lineman in The
Horrible Experiment) and
begin the preliminary draft of paper #2 following page/prompt 8 on the blog. Imagine you are either
Edison or Westinghouse (or one of their allies, a NYC
regulator, or even someone from the future) and
enter a post to the class blog in the form of a
letter to one of the New York papers on the Western Union
lineman case and the safety of AC and DC. You will
update your post before class on Oct 2nd after you
have read the exchange between Edison and Westinghouse in
the North American Review. During class we will go over how to use ProQuest Historical Newspapers. You will then find the Oct 12th, 1889 New York Times article on Feeks' electrocution--"Met Death in the Wires." Read the article and email it to yourself for future use. You will then have time in class to work on blog post #8--I suggest, among other things, adding details from "Met Death in the Wires"--while I talk to you about how you plan to approach the assignment. Complete your post during or after class. By Tues Oct 9th at 11:59pm, comment on at least two of your fellow students' posts on Brown and two on Feeks' electrocution (page/prompt 7 and 8). I will also go over how to use Lexis-Nexis Academic and you will look for an article on Edison entitled The Father of Invention by Debra Galant from the New York Times, June 1st, 1997. Once you have found the article, read up to the section "Nationally Revered But Locally Ignored" and email the piece to yourself. LLC Peer tutoring began Tues Sept 25h in the Eastern Shore Multi-Purpose room. Missing appointments will lower you class participation grade and require two make-up appointments. You will be receiving an email with instructions to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule/make appointments here. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours, click here. You are required to see one of the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC tutors as you
|
| Tues Oct 2 | Before
class, read the exchange between Edison
and Westinghouse from the North American Review (see
the
paper #2 assignment for the links). Then
update your post on Western Union lineman John
Feeks' death from electrocution, drawing on the exchange
between Westinghouse and Edison as well as the NY
Times article on his death and your reading in Jonnes.
Follow the lineman's death prompt on the blog
(page/prompt 8).
For paper #2, you will write a 2-3+ pages (typed and double spaced) revision of your letter to the New York papers on the Western Union lineman case and the safety of AC and DC. In class today, indicate who you are writing as (as well as who you really are) in the subject heading of your post. Then find a post by a student who has taken a different approach than your own and leave a critique from the perspective you took in your own posting using the blog's comment function. If you cannot find a posting from a different point of view than your own, leave a friendly critique. By Tues Oct 9th at 11:59pm you should have also done a more objective critique of at least one other student's post, concentrating on the persuasiveness of their arguments, use of evidence and sources, rhetorical strategy. Remember that you are required to have at least one tutoring session as you are writing/revising paper #1 or working on paper #2. Paper #2 is due Oct 11th and the revision of paper #1 Oct 18th. If there is time, I will discuss Edison by going over some key sections of Empire of Light that point to simplifications in the film Edison The Man that have their roots in Edison's own manipulation of the press in the 19th century:
If there is time, we will also watch selections from Edison Tech in class (4:40-20:25). |
| Thurs Oct 4 |
Paper workshop on Paper #2. You are required to bring a print copy of your draft to class. During class, you will read your letter to a fellow student while they stop you with any questions or comments they have. Pause in your reading and jot down any problems you see as you read the paper. Then exchange your print copies and note in writing any problem areas you find in your fellow student's paper including the letter's point of view, writing style and rhetorical strategy, grammar and clarity, and the use of evidence and citations. Put your name as the editor at the top of the paper and return it to your fellow student. He or she will hand in this draft with your comments next Thurs along with their revised paper and documentation for any tutoring sessions on paper #2, including: 1) a form (or email) from the tutor; and 2) a printed note on who you saw and when, what you went over with the tutor, and what you changed as a result. Finally, go to the blog and leave comments on your fellow students posts. Note that one of your comments on the Feeks' postings should be an "in character" critique from the point of view of one of the parties in the debate and one a more objective critique, concentrating on the persuasiveness of their arguments, use of evidence and sources, rhetorical strategy. Also make sure everyone in the class has at least one comment of each type on their lineman's death posting. At the beginning of class, we will go over Hacker on shifts in point of view (pp. 8-9) and you will do exercises 5-1 to 5-4 under clarity. If there is time at the end of class, we will review how to use ProQuest and you will search for "Edison New York Sun" in ProQuest Historical Newspapers using both the Basic and Advanced search pages. Many papers outside NYC reprinted or quoted from articles in the NY press so we have access to the paper--the New York Sun--that played a key role in constructing Edison's reputation indirectly using ProQuest Historical Newspapers. At the end of class, we will review Hacker on citing online sources in MLA, pp. 137-143 (APA (177-181); on citing articles found using databases in MLA, p 140 (APA 178); and citing articles from periodicals in MLA, pp. 134-136 (APA 174-7). Here are links to the corresponding sections of Hacker's online site: |
| Tues Oct 09 | NO CLASS--COLUMBUS DAY OCT 8TH, MON
CLASSES MEET TUES, TUES CLASSES DO NOT
MEET By Tues Oct 9th at 11:59pm, comment on at least two of your fellow students' posts on Brown and two on Feeks' electrocution (#7 and 8). Note that one of your comments on the Feeks' postings should be an "in character" critique from the point of view of one of the parties in the debate and one a more objective critique, concentrating on the persuasiveness of their arguments, use of evidence and sources, rhetorical strategy. Make sure everyone in the class has at least one comment of each type on their lineman's death posting. In your comments on your fellow students posts on Brown, briefly sum up their position and state whether you agree or not and why. |
| Thurs Oct 11 |
Paper #2 due at the beginning of class. The paper should be 2-3+ pages, typed and double-spaced, and include in-text cites and a works cited page. Make sure you draw on (and cite) the exchange between Westinghouse and Edison from the North American Review, the Oct 12th 1889 New York Times article, "Met Death in the Wires," and your reading in Jonnes and other sources. Jonnes was obviously written long after the Edison/Westinghouse exchange but you can refer to her as a contemporary to preserve the point of view of your letter. You should use at least three sources and quote selectively where relevant to your argument. See Hacker on Integrating Sources, pp. 110-115, starting with 31a (MLA) or pp. 165-173, starting with 35c (APA). Include documentation for any tutoring sessions on paper #2, including: 1) a form (or email) from the tutor; and 2) a printed note on who you saw and when, what you went over with the tutor, and what you changed as a result. Also include the draft from Oct 4th edited by your fellow student. You may also want to learn about the "barehanding" of high voltage transmission lines if you are going to write from the future in support of Westinghouse. See the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9QJGXln1lE and use ProQuest Research Library to find a Sept 7th, 2010 article by Kafia Hosh from the Washington Post entitled Barehanding Technique Allows Power-line Repair Crews to Work with Live Wires. Chapter 12 of Tom McNichol's AC/DC: The Savage Tale of the First Standards War (on reserve in the JC library under call number QC641 .M36 2006) is also relevant if you write your paper from the point of view of someone from the future. For recent developments in lighting, see The Future of Light Is the LED, from Wired, September 2001, at http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/08/ff_lightbulbs/all/1 and Companies Strive To Build a Better (more expensive) Light Bulb from The Washington Post, October 14, 2011. At the beginning of the class, we will watch the Milestone's in Science and Engineering program Michael Faraday: From Electricity to Power Generation. We will then review the section on Faraday from the Jonnes reading for next week (pp. 17-49) and you will form groups to work on the first part of your group posting on how Faraday's motor of 1821 worked and why it was important. In putting together your group posting you should draw on the Magnet Lab demo, Faraday's motor, the sections on Faraday from Einstein's Big Idea (DVD chap 3 and part of 5; chap 3 is currently on You Tube in two clips, Part I and Part II), and Michael Faraday: From Electricity to Power Generation. The first part of the post should be completed by Sun at 11:59pm; you should also have put up a preliminary draft of the second part of the group post, on Faraday's discovery of the electromagnetic induction in 1831 the connection between the kind of basic research Faraday's work represents and the kind of product development we studied earlier in the course. |
| Tues Oct 16 |
Read Empires of Light, pp. 17-49 (Endeavor to Make it Useful). This chapter covers the history of electricity and we will come back to it several times over the next few weeks. At the beginning of class I will ask you who you thought were the most interesting or important figures Jonnes covered as well as what you think about studying the history of science and technology. Take notes as you do the reading and be prepared with your answers before class. Then we will go over the reading and watch the sections on Faraday from Einstein's Big Idea (DVD chap 3 and part of 5). The chapter is also currently available on You Tube in two clips, Part I and Part II. You will then have some time to work on your group postings on Faraday's 1821 motor and his 1831 discoveries in electromagnetic induction. In putting together your group posting you should draw on the Magnet Lab demo, Faraday's motor, the sections on Faraday from Einstein's Big Idea (DVD chap 3 and part of 5; chap 3 is currently on You Tube in two clips, Part I and Part II), and Michael Faraday: From Electricity to Power Generation. At the end of your group post, address the question of Faraday's method and the connection between the kind of basic research Faraday's work represents and the kind of product development we studied earlier in the course. The group post on Faraday (page/prompt 09) should be completed before next class. |
| Thurs Oct 18 | Before class read
Empires of
Light, pp. 87-115
(Nikola Tesla: Our
Parisian). We will discuss both the
reading and go
over the assignment for paper #3. During class, we will begin watching Tesla: Master of
Lighting
During or after class, review Jonnes 87-115 and read pp. 353-367 (Tesla's later career); begin your post on what you consider to be Tesla's most important invention with a description of how it worked (or might have worked) and your view of why it was important. A preliminary post (page/prompt 11) is due before class next Tues. You will then comment on at least two of your fellow students' posts during or after class. You may find the following sites informative and interesting as you prepare your post and work on your paper:
By today (or at the Cinema and super Fri) you should have had at least one session with one of the LLC tutors. You had the choice of seeing a tutor while you were
In either case, you are required to have a typed and printed statement about what you went over with the tutor and how you changed the paper as a result of the visit. Include earlier drafts and editing sheets, put the revised paper on top and use a staple, clip or folder to secure the portfolio. You can see an LLC tutor twice for extra credit, although if the LLC tutors are booked up, this may required seeing one of the regular Writing Center tutors in Robinson Hall A. OCT 19--MIDTERM PROGRESS REPORT DUE |
| Fri Oct 19 | Required
Cinema and Supper showing of The Prestige (2006) at the Blue
Ridge classroom (room 129). Pizza at 7pm; film showing at
7:30pm. There will be a performance before the film by Jessica. By Sun at 11:59, post to the blog your reactions to the film (page/prompt ). The film showing is required but if you have to miss it because of a course conflict or family emergency, in addition to the post write a 250 word post comparing Tesla as presented in The Prestige with what you know about Tesla from at least one of the following sources: Empires of Light (pp. 87-115, 153-163, 179-183, and 353-367), the documentary Tesla: Master of Lighting, Carlson's Nikola Tesla and the Business of Invention or Tesla in New York. The post is due at the beginning of class next Thurs. If you attend the showing you can also write the post for extra credit. |
| Tues Oct 23 | Before
class, read Empires of Light, pp.153-163 and
179-183. During the next two classes we will review the reading and
go over the assignment for
Paper #3. Your preliminary blog post on Tesla's
inventions is also due before class today (page/prompt
11). In class today, we will watch Bernard Carlson, Tesla in New York (You Tube 7:30 min-) For extra credit, review carefully pp. 153-163 and post to the blog an account of Tesla's lecture to the American Institute of Electrical Engineers in 1888 (page/prompt 12). Make sure you explain the importance of polyphase AC in Tesla's induction motor. Also indicate why Westinghouse purchased Tesla's patents and difficulties Tesla had working with Westinghouse Engineers and commercializing his design. If enough students do the extra credit assignment, you will use the blog's comment function to vote on: 1) which account is the most technically correct and comprehensive; 2) which account is the most accessible and understandable to non-engineers; and 3) which account is the best mix of the two. This extra credit post (page/prompt 12) is due by Thurs Nov 1st at 11:59pm. LLC Peer tutoring will continue in the Eastern Shore Multi-Purpose room. During class, I will give you some time to sign up for appointments. You have received an email with instructions to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule here. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours, click here. You are required to have at least one more meeting with one of the Engineering and Business/Economics LLC tutors by Nov 15th as you
Missing appointments will lower your class participation grade (or require two make-up visits). |
| Thurs Oct 25 |
During class, we will review the reading on Tesla and go over the works cited/references format for some of the sources you have available for your next paper including: 1) books; 2) articles in journals; 3) articles in magazines and newspapers; 4) websites and short works from websites; 5) online video clips; 6) DVDs; 6) radio or TV programs; and lectures or public addresses. As we have seen, sometimes these sources will be a mixture of types. For the APA guidelines, see the overview, and the drop-down menu for APA in-text citations and APA list of references. Note that APA is more narrowly targeted at research publications and so does not have as many categories or types of sources as MLA. For example, To cite Carlson's lecture (Madrid), follow the model at http://dianahacker for lectures but add "Web" for the online source; for the On Point interview, follow the Hacker model for radio interview but also add "Web" for online access. For Tesla Master of Lightning, follow the model for Radio or Television program but add VHS or DVD (or web) depending on how you saw the program. During class we will also go over how to use Academic Search Complete (EBSCO), one of the databases available through the GMU DB Portal (see the Research Databases link under Research Tools at http://library.gmu.edu/. Then look for Bernard Carlson's article on Tesla, "Inventor of Dreams," published in Scientific American in 2005. Read the article and then email it to yourself.We will then review Hacker on citing articles found using databases in MLA, p 146 (APA 188); and citing articles from periodicals in MLA, pp. 135-137 (APA 182-4). Here are links to the corresponding sections of Hacker's online site:
If there is time, we will listen to some of Bernard Carlson, Tesla and Innovation Today (On Point, NPR, 8:30-28:40). To cite the On Point interview, follow the Hacker model for radio interview but also add "Web" and date of access. OCT 26-INCOMPLETE WORK FROM s12 AND sum12 DUE TO INSTRUCTOR |
| Tues Oct 30 | CLASS CANCELLED BECAUSE OF STORM, BRING DRAFT OF PAPER #3 THURS |
| Thurs Nov 1 | Bring a 2 page typed and double spaced draft of Paper #3 (on
Tesla) to class for required for in-class exchange
and editing by a fellow student. The
editing sheet you will use is tied to the grading
rubric for the assignment. A 3-4 page revision of the paper is
due in class on Thurs Nov 15th or at the last Cinema and Supper Fri Nov
16th.
Make sure you read Nikola Tesla and the Business of Invention or watch Tesla in New York (You Tube 7:30 min-) before you write your draft. You will need to study and cite these and other sources--in addition to Jonnes--in your revised paper. See the listing for Oct 20th above, including the interview Tesla and Innovation. If there is time, we will listen to selections from Mike Daisey's Great Men of Genius monologue on Tesla and mad scientists. Review the video lecture, How Does an Electric Motor Work (a DC motor with commutators and brushes) that we watched last week particularly if you are writing on Tesla's AC motor design. You might also enjoy Marco Tempest: The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla, particularly if you are writing on Tesla's use of visualization. If you are writing on Tesla's ideas on wireless power transmission, read A Critical Look at Wireless Power on the IEEE Spectrum site. |
| Tues Nov 6 |
Read Hacker, pp. 2-3 (wordy sentences). During class, we will watch The Machine That Changed the World, Part I up to the section on Alan Turing (43:44), stopping to discuss the issues the documentary covers. Next Tues we will watch Part II. Take notes during these classes in preparation for a blog post on why the development of computers was an important technical and social achievement. |
| Thurs Nov 8 |
Read Diana Hacker on pronoun reference, pp. 32-33; also review pp. 2-3
(wordy sentences). During class today we will finish up Part I (from Alan Turing on (43:44-55:40) and then watch The Machine That Changed the World, Part II (0-12:07; 24:03-36). Take notes and begin your post to the blog (page/prompt 13). NOTE: Priority registration for my Spring 2013 LLC Engh202 (From Literature to Entertainment) is Nov 16th for 1st year students in this class and the Engineering/Business/Econ LLCs. The class meets the General Education literature requirement and should be of special interest to students in Engineering, Business and Economics. For more information or to enroll, contact the Transition Resource Center at trcdesk@gmu.edu or at 703-993-9082. To enroll, you will need to provide the following information: 1) name; 2) identification number (G number); and 3) the LLC you are enrolled in. Spaces are limited. |
| Tues Nov 13 |
Review Hacker pp. 32-33 (pronoun reference) and pp. 2-3 (wordy sentences).
During class, you will do the online exercises on wordiness at (1-1 to 1-4 under Grammar
Exercises/Clarity) at http://dianahacker.com/pocket/gm_menu.asp as well as the exercises on
pronoun reference (12-4 through 12-6 under Grammar Exercises/Grammar).
While you are working on the exercises, I will continue
individual conferences on how you are doing in the class.
Last class, we watched The Machine That Changed the World, Part II. Today we will watch the first 35 min of Part III (The Paperback Computer). Take notes as you watch all three parts of the documentary. Pay particular attention to ideas about computers as universal machines used by everyone--not just as calculating machines for scientists and engineers--and take notes on the individuals and groups involved in this shift. You will draw on this material when you write your final paper as well as in the second part of your The Machine that Changed the World blog post. After class begin your post to the blog (page/prompt 13) on The Machine That Changed the World. Begin your post with your view of why the development of computers was an important technical and social achievement. Then write an account of at least three of the most important figures, ideas or devices in this series of inventions (at least one for Part I, one for Part II, and one for Part III), giving the reasons why you think your choices are noteworthy. Your posts must be completed by Sun at 11:59pm. To see an interesting anticipation of one recent trend in interface design--Microsoft Kinect--see the clip from Spielberg's 2002 film Minority Report at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwVBzx0LMNQ |
| Thurs Nov 15 |
Revised and extended
Paper
#3 due either at the beginning of class
or at the Cinema and Supper Fri. Make sure to bring
the editing sheet your fellow student filled out
as well as the draft they edited and a typed statement
of what you changed as you revised the paper; if you saw
a tutor, also include a statement of what you went over during your session.
As with your last papers, put the revised paper on top and secure the
portfolio with a clip or put it in a folder. While you are working on paper #3 (for Nov 15th/16th) or revising paper #2 (for Nov 20th), you are required to have a session with one of the LLC tutors. Include all drafts with comments and editing sheets. Include a detailed typed statement of what you went over during your session and what you changed as a result of the feedback you received. You have received an email with instructions to sign up for appointments, but can see the schedule here. For Dylan's, Brian's, and Jessica's hours, click here. The optional revision of paper #2 due next Tues (or before) if you saw one of the LLC tutors. During class, we will finish the first 35 min of Part III (The Paperback Computer) of The Machine That Changed the World and I will introduce the reading for next Tues from Michael Hiltzik, Dealers of Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer Age. Make sure you have the text. We will then go over the following pages from Diana Hacker's A Pocket Style Manual in class: active verbs (3-5), misplaced and misplaced modifiers (10-12), and commas after intro word groups (55-56). NOTE: Priority registration for my Spring 2013 LLC Engh202 (From Literature to Entertainment) is Nov 16th for 1st year students in this class and the Engineering/Business/Econ LLCs. The class should be of special interest to students in Engineering, Business and Economics. For more information or to enroll, contact the Transition Resource Center at trcdesk@gmu.edu or at 703-993-9082. To enroll, you will need to provide the following information: 1) name; 2) identification number (G number); and 3) the LLC you are enrolled in. This section of the required General Education Literature class will fill up soon so you should register now if you want to take the course. |
| Fri Nov 16 | Required Cinema and Supper
showing of
Iron Man 2 at Blue
Ridge classroom (room 129). Pizza at 7pm; film showing at
7:30pm. Before the film begins we will watch a brief clip (4:59-6:11min) of a futuristic gestural computer interface from Minority Report (2002) designed by John Underkoffler and then a recent demonstration of Oblog Industries g-speak gestural multi-user interface. Underkoffler is one of the founders of Oblong. If you are interested in reading more about g-speak, see Minority Report Interface Is Real, Hitting Mainstream Soon. By Sun Nov 18th at 11:59, post to the blog your reactions to the film (page/prompt 14). For an interesting critique of films like Iron Man 2, see David Denby, Has Hollywood Murdered the Movies? from the Sept 14th New Republic. We will return to some of the ideas in Denby's article next semester. For now, I will be interested in hearing why you like or dislike the film. The film showing is required but if you have to miss it because of a course conflict or family emergency, in addition to the post write a 200 word paper/post comparing the portrayal of scientific discovery in Iron Man 2 with what you have learned about the process of discovery from studying Faraday, Edison and/or Tesla. The paper/post is due by the Sun before we return from break. Make sure to include specific details and not just generalizations. If you attend the showing you can also write the paper for extra credit. |
| Tues Nov 20 |
Before class, read Michael
Hiltzik, Dealers of
Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the
Computer Age, pp. xix-xxvii and
163-177 (the Alto). During class, we will begin to go over Hiltzik, pp. 10-20 and 40-51 (Bob Taylor) and pp. 54-67 and watch selected clips from Engelbart's 1968 demo. See the clips at http://sloan.stanford.edu/MouseSite/1968Demo.html. We will review Hacker on active verbs (3-5) and if there is time go over restrictive and non-restrictive clauses and phrases (57-58). Next class you will do the online exercises at Diana Hacker's Pocket Style Manual online site on Active verbs (2-1 to 2-3 under Clarity). We will also look at restrictive and non-restrictive clauses with the example from the Republican Convention in 1984 in the Language Debates section on that vs. which at http://dianahacker.com/pocket after going over restrictive & non-restrictive elements (57-58). Revision of paper #2 due by today if you saw one of the LLC tutors. |
| Thurs Nov 22 | THANKSGIVING RECECSS NOV 21-25 |
| Tues Nov 27 | Before class, read Michael
Hiltzik, Dealers
of Lightning, pp.
81-96 & 211-228 (Alan Kay). During class, we will go over the reading and then watch Alan Kay's history of computer interfaces, Doing with Images Creates Symbols, part 1 at http://www.archive.org/details/AlanKeyD1987 starting with Dynabook and Parc at 26:35 (20 min). I highly recommend watching more of the lecture on your own. Also see Space War: Fanatic Life and Symbolic Death Among the Computer Bums and The Graphical User Interface Gallery for Xerox at http://toastytech.com/guis/indexxerox.html We will review the rules for using semi-colons and colons in Hacker, pp. 62-65 and you will do exercises 18-1 to 18-3 under grammar/punctuation at http://dianahacker.com/pocket. Also do the online exercises at Diana Hacker's Pocket Style Manual online site on Active verbs (2-1 to 2-3 under Clarity). We will also look at restrictive and non-restrictive clauses with the example from the Republican Convention in 1984 in the Language Debates section on that vs. which at http://dianahacker.com/pocket after going over restrictive & non-restrictive elements (57-58). |
| Thurs Nov 29 |
Before class, read Michael
Hiltzik, Dealers of Lightning:
Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer
Age, pp. 314-328 (Alan Kay and
LRG's NoteTaker
vs. CSG's Dorado) and Alan Kay's
Design Summary of the NoteTaker-2 . During class, you will get into groups and begin work on a memo to George Pake, the Director of Parc, about why Xerox should fund the development of a small personal computer like the NoteTaker. Make sure to include an account of the purpose/uses of the device, its design, and at least four potential markets. One approach you could take is to do some in-class research on the i-Pad and write a memo from the future to on why Xerox should develop the NoteTaker. Post your memo to the blog (page/prompt 15) by Sun at 11:59. In class next Tues you will vote for: 1) the best memo for an audience of scientists and engineers; and 2) the best memo for an audience of business executives (two comments). At the end of class, we will review Hacker on balancing parallel ideas (pp. 5-6) and do grammar exercises 3-1 to 3-3 under Clarity at Diana Hacker's online site We will also study how Alan Kay uses both numbered lists and parallel grammatical form in his Design Summary. Both lists and parallelism are particularly useful when writing for busy people who need to take in information quickly. |
| Tues Dec 4 | Before
class, read Hiltzik, Dealers of Lightning,pp.127-144 (laser printer) and pp. 329-345
and 423-4 (Steve Jobs' visit to Parc). At the beginning of class you will vote on your fellow students' memo to George Pake on the NoteTaker (two comments). Use the blog's comment function to vote for: 1) the best memo for an audience of scientists and engineers; and 2) the best memo for an audience of business executives (see page/prompt 18). We will then discuss Gary Starkweather's difficulties convincing Xerox to market his invention in the context of the frequent claim that Xerox "blew it" (see the reading for Thurs) as well as Steve Jobs' astonishment that Xerox had no plans to market the technology he saw during his visit to Parc. If you want to listen to selections from Hiltzik, see the following: Starkweather and the laser printer (Audible 1:59:51- ); Steve Jobs visit to Parc (Audible 4:38:31 to 4:53:20); Did Xerox Blow It (Audible 5:39:40 to 5:51:55). At the end of class, we will discuss Hacker finding a voice (pp. 16-19). Her glossary of usage (pp. 232-242) will be a useful resource as you work on your paper. |
| Thurs Dec 6 | Before class, read Michael
Hiltzik, Dealers of
Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer
Age, pp. 389-398
(Did Xerox Blow
It;
Audible 5:39:40-5:51:55).
Also before class, post to the blog an account of Steve Jobs visit to Xerox Parc and your preliminary position on whether Xerox "blew it" (page/prompt 16). Make sure to cover at least one specific example. Some of your options here include Xerox’s failure to develop a marketable Alto and/or NoteTaker; its failure to take advantage of the Smalltalk based interface except with the Star; and Xerox’s eventual success with Ethernet and the laser printer. By Sun at 11:59pm, comment on at least two of your fellow students' posts, indicating whether you agree with their position or not and why. To introduce you to one of the options for Tues reading as well as to highlight the importance of memos and other more formal kinds of writing at Xerox Parc, we will watch Bob Metcalfe talk on the History of Ethernet and look at two documents from the Ethernet Timeline: 1) Metcalfe's May 22nd Memo (click refresh page if the doc doesn't appear at first); and 2) Metcalfe and Boggs 1975 paper from the Association of Computing Machinery entitled Ethernet: Distributed Packet Switching for Local Computer Networks. I recommend that you listen to Metcalfe's talk at the Computer History Museum (5:30-14:30 min). If there is time during class, we will listen to this selection. At the end of class, we will review Hacker on fragments and run-on sentences (pp. 40-45) and semi-colons and colons (62-65) and then you will do some of the exercises from the Diana Hacker site for A Pocket Style Manual at http://dianahacker.com/pocket. Pick exercises on areas where you are having difficulties--or aren't sure you understand the rules after you do exercises 14-1 to 14-3 and 15-1 to 15-3 under Grammar (fragments and run-ons); and 18-1 to 18-3 under Punctuation (semi-colons, colons and commas). MAKE-UP CLASS FOR MON OCT 29TH--MON DEC 10TH MAKE UP CLASS FOR TUES OCT 30TH--TUES DEC 11TH EXAM PERIOD DEC 12TH-19TH |
| Tue Dec 11 | Read Michael
Hiltzik, Dealers of
Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer
Age, on one of the following:
Ethernet (178-193), Superpaint--graphics (229-241), The
Star--office system (242-256, 361-370). Chose your
reading based on your sense of what you can draw on
in writing your final paper as well as your interests
more generally. Those writing your final exam paper on question #2 (Did Xerox Blow It),
for example, should consider reading both the
sections on the Star and/or the Ethernet.
(Note: for those of you who like listening to Hiltzik, the Star sections are
3:30:05-3:43:40 & 5:08:29-5:19:57; the Ethernet sections
are 2:37:14-2:50:40). Another topic you could cover in
question 2 is Xerox's failure to market an inexpensive Alto
(261-5, 278, 283-287). NOTE: Don't try to cover all of
these points but pick an example or two that that
you find interesting and relevant to your argument.
As with our discussion last class, we will go over some key points in the reading that may be relevant to your final paper. Today we will focus on the Xerox Star and Alto III. We will supplement Hiltzik on the Star (pp. 242-256 & 361-370; Audible 5:08:56 to 5:19:57) by watching the beginning of David Liddle's presentation at Parc in 1998, Xerox Star 8010 Final Demo. We will also discuss the Office System Division's success in blocking Ellenby's attempt to commercialize the Alto III in 1976 (261-265, 278-287; Audible 3:47-3:53:43). I also recommend learning more about Clayton Christensen's notion of disruptive innovation during break by looking at Christensen's book The Innovator's Dilemma along with his four part Fortune Global Forum lecture on YouTube (New Delhi, 2007). After we go over some key points in the reading during class, you will work on paper #4 in class while I talk to you individually about your plans for the final paper. Revision of paper #3 due if you saw one of the LLC tutors. Include all drafts with comments and editing sheets. If you see a tutor, include a visit verification form and a detailed statement of what you went over during your session and what you changed as a result of the feedback you received. |
| Mon Dec 17 | Paper #4 on Xerox Parc due. It should be 2-3 pages, typed and
double-spaced, and include at least three in-text
cites and a works-cited page. See Diana Hacker's Research and Documentation Online to review citation
formats etc. See Hacker, for example, on how to
reference video clips on your works cited page, and how to cite
a book. Also study carefully the sample paper on her site for how to include headers,
titles, etc. Chose one of the following questions: 1) Who is the most interesting and/or important figure who worked at Parc and why; 2) after reading Hiltzik on Steve Jobs' visit to Parc (329-345, 423-4) and on whether Xerox "blew it" (389-398), write a paper following up on the chapter title for Hiltzik's epilogue: "Did Xerox Blow It?" See the assignment sheet for details. By Dec 14th, you should have met with a peer tutor three times (more if you missed an appointment without letting us know in advance). |