Due on Tue, 04/30 @ 11:59PM.

Instructions

Develop a conceptual framework that draws on the readings as well as your identity to articulate your unique perspective on a specific technology. That is,

1. you will choose a technology that you would like to analyze,
2. you will develop a framework based on theoretical arguments from at least 3 of the readings covered thus far and your own personal identity and experience in the world,
3. you will apply your framework to analyze that technology.

Format

Your analysis can take the format of:

• A paper: 5-6 page (graduate credit: 7-9 page) double spaced, 12-point font, Times New Roman. Must include citations of any quotes/ideas used and bibliography (in addition to page count).
• OR a presentation: 12-15 minute (graduate credit: 18-20 minute) presentation recording. Must include citations of any quotes/ideas used from readings and bibliography (can be a slide or separate attachment).

Graduate Credit Students

In addition to the extended paper/presentation format, graduate credit students must ALSO include a section historicizing some component of your selected technology. Some questions to think about as you develop this section:

• When was the technology developed? What was happening in the world during that time?
• Who conceptualized the technology and why? What issue in the world, if any, was it in response to?
• Who was part of the design process and who wasn’t? Why was that the case during that time?
• How has the technology been utilized over time, and by whom? Why?
• What other historical ideas/moments is this related to?

Citations

Follow APA guidelines for formatting and references:

• Include an APA style bibliography at end of writeup or as slide at end of video
• Written formats should use:
  • In-text citations
• Video formats should use:
  • verbal or textual cues (i.e., “According to Winner in ‘Do Artifacts have Politics…” while speaking
  • In-text citations when using slides
  • video annotations (like this example)

Tips and Examples

Ultimately, your conceptual framework should be useful, and productive. You will draw upon it to conduct a sociopolitical analysis of your chosen technology. Your analysis will be designed to shed light on questions such as:

• What values do this technology reflect, embrace, reject, or encourage?
• Who is affected by its design? How was its design affected by society?
• Who reaps the benefits, and who suffers the costs of its creation and use?

Check out the rubric below to see exactly what criteria we’ll be grading on!

Examples (published in BreakPoint Journal!):

• Blue Emergency Lights: An Investment in White Supremacist Surveillance on College Campuses
  • “I maintain there is an alternative intention; blue emergency lights are a measure of surveillance to increase the perceived safety of students through the exile, policing, and surveillance of Black and brown people.”
• E-Scooters in Chicago: A Cautionary Tale e-scooters
  • “This paper seeks to understand the values and attitudes that have shaped the implementation of e-scooter technology in Chicago, and their subsequent impact on society. In the process, we will also examine the interplay of public policy and technological advancement, and the politics embedded in society’s interaction with technology.”

Rubric