ANNOUNCEMENTS

The following are in reverse chronological order.

Wed Apr 21 08:24:08 EDT 2010

Major First Amendment US Supreme Court decision yesterday that overturned law banning animal cruelty videos, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/21/us/21scotus.html. Still awaiting a decision on Bilski.

Thu Dec 31 13:18:43 EST 2009

Semester letter grades have been posted in the averages.txt file.

Fri Dec 18 09:36:00 EST 2009

2009 patents: http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/12/13/magazine/13endpaper.html.

Fri Dec 11 14:35:49 EST 2009

The final exam will be open ``Gift of Fire'' text book, but closed notes, closed other books, closed Internet, closed old exams, closed laptop, closed cell phone, closed neighbor, etc. The exam questions will come from the chapter 1--6 ends. Since it is open book, any part of those chapters is ``fair game'' whether we talked about it in class or not.

Wed Dec 9 10:49:10 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, December 10, 2009.

Adrian Sandoval, absent
Matthew Vanduyne, Study: You'll wolf down 34GB of data today, news.cnet.com
Matthew Zepp, AT&T to Urge Customers to Use Less Wireless Data, nytimes.com

Sat Dec 5 13:57:08 EST 2009

I am wrong about being wrong about using Google Public DNS on computers connected to Rowan's network; it does work. I forgot to adjust the software firewall (Linux iptables) on the machine I was trying.

Fri Dec 4 21:01:34 EST 2009

I am wrong about using Google Public DNS on computers connected to Rowan's network; I said in class Thursday that you could use it but I tried it and it did not work.

Fri Dec 4 11:39:43 EST 2009

Start reading Chapter 6 of the text book on work issues. Take note of the following terms and concepts.

computers both create new job types and eliminate job types
dealing with dislocations and retraining
long-term effect on national productivity and wealth
worker productivity has greatly increased due to technology
which means more production with fewer workers, which means lower prices, which means expanded market and increased sales, which means more workers
unemployment is more the result of economic, political, and social factors, not technology
offshoring: call center jobs, programming, manufacturing
theory is lower off-shore wages lead to lower domestic prices
offshoring problems: complaints about call centers, foreign accents, cultual differences, time zones, need to train domestic employees for new management skills, demand drives up wages of off-shore workers
benefits of telecommuting
problems of telecommuting
technology helps getting a job
technology helps companies vet applicants
employee crime: logic bomb, computers help embezzlement
companies monitor employees: keyboard keystrokes, telephone conversations, e-mail, voice mail, Web surfing, surveillance camera, GPS systems in company cars and trucks, tracking active IDs inside buildings
monitoring e-mail and Web surfing is legal because company owns the companies and pays for network access
liability issues, leaking proprietary information

Thu Dec 3 17:33:17 EST 2009

For ``In the News'' on Tuesday, December 8, 2009, the following six people should be ready, each with two articles ready in case of collisions (two people with the same article on the same day). See the syllabus for more about ``In the News.'' We will go in alphabetical order to have three ``In the News'' presentations each day of prepared people. Each person will give me hard copy of his/her article showing URL or hardcopy of just his/her article's URL.

Michael Speer, Google Poised to Become Your Phone Company, wired.com
Vincent Tober, Dane who ripped his DVDs demands to be arrested under DRM law, boingboing.net
Jason Valentine, LoJack for the Infirm, nytimes.com

Thu Dec 3 07:26:51 EST 2009

Information on the accelerated BS and MS in CS is available at http://www.rowan.edu/colleges/las/departments/computerscience/acad/ComputerScienceRowanUniversity1.htm.

Wed Dec 2 05:32:27 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, December 3, 2009.

David Lee, Google Launches Public DNS to Speed Up Web, pcmag.com
Mathew Mullan, I do take thee, Facebook and Twitter updates, msn.com
Brian Nosti, Large Hadron Collider Shatters Energy Record, technewsworld.com

Mon Nov 30 09:24:03 EST 2009

Exam 5 is on Thursday, December 3, 2009, and covers Chapter 5 of the text book on crime. See the list below.

Mon Nov 30 09:07:45 EST 2009

The ``last assignment'' is due in class on Thursday, December 10, 2009, in hardcopy form stapled twice as two separate documents.

Wed Nov 25 14:11:54 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, December 1, 2009.

Matthew Vanduyne, 'Unfriend' is 2009's Word of the Year, pcworld.com
Bryant Jones, Higley schools IT director fired for 'alien spy software', abc15.com
Edward Lew, The One About the Guy Who Married a Video Game, kotaku.com

Mon Nov 23 09:57:46 EST 2009

McAfee warns about '12 Scams of Christmas', http://news.cnet.com/8301-19518_3-10403100-238.html

Fri Nov 20 12:09:09 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, November 24, 2009.

Adrian Sandoval, Your Next Body Is Growing in a Lab Right Now, gizmodo.com
Charles Dugenio, A Translator Tool With a Human Touch, nytimes.com
Timothy Horner, A Silent Hell: For 23 Years, Man Was Misdiagnosed as a Coma Patient, blogs.discovermagazine.com

Thu Nov 19 12:30:36 EST 2009

A timely article about protecting your online identity to prevent identity theft, a particularly nasty kind of theft, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/technology/personaltech/19basics.html.

Thu Nov 19 11:21:27 EST 2009

Online student evaluation for this course opens Tuesday, December 1, 2009, and ends Saturday, December 19, 2009. Instructions for students to access the evaluation:

Go to http://cp.rowan.edu/cp/.
Click "Student Self-Service" icon.
Click "Access Banner Services - Secure Area - login Required"
Enter User ID and PIN.
Click "Personal Information".
Click "Answer a Survey".
Click on one of the student evaluations for your classes.
Complete the student evaluation.
Click "Survey Complete" to submit your completed student evaluation.
Repeat for other Fall 2009 classes.

Wed Nov 18 06:07:08 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, November 19, 2009.

Matthew Zepp, Google Translate now helps with pronounciation, news.cnet.com
Bethany Branco, Microsoft Addresses Prickly Pair of Windows 7 Flaws, technewsworld.com
Michael Fodor, Internet Out of Room Next Year, Warns Report, foxnews.com

Tue Nov 17 13:45:02 EST 2009

On Thursday, November 19, 2009, we will watch and enjoy the play. We will start out meeting in Wilson 164 for ``In the News'' until 5:35pm and then move to the Boyd Recital Hall in Wilson for the play.

Tue Nov 17 12:59:24 EST 2009

Start reading Chapter 5 of the text book on crime. Take note of the following terms and concepts.

computer crime often harder to detect
computer crime often difficult to prosecute
computer crime becoming more widespread and more frequent
terms
- virus
- worm
- Trojan
- zombie
- botnet
- spyware
- adware
- drive-by malware
- backdoor
- denial of service
- distributed denial of service
- phishing, recent FAQ, http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10396786-245.html
- pharming
- Nigerian e-mail scam
- click fraud
- stock pump and dump
positive and negative hacking, black hat, white hat
why is all software so buggy? why do operating systems have bugs and holes?
convenience versus security and privacy
do you want your stove connected to the Internet? do you want the machine that drips medication into your arm (while you are in the hospital) connected to the Internet?
illegal: intentional unauthorized use, exceeding one's authorized level of use, preventing others authorized access
1986 federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA)
2001 USA PATRIOT Act
securing your own computer from attack
when (if) to publish security weakness details
how to write a virus, virus code, hacking scripts: protected freedom of speech?
credit history file with credit agencies: freeze, fraud alert
some letters that appear in different alphabets look the same so imagine the URL confusion that can result
``I just got e-mail from a friend that my cell phone can unlock my car...'' snopes.com, factcheck.org
online auction problems, shill bidding
protecting databases from unauthorized access
check forgery and currency counterfeiting easier with color laser printers
responsibility to prevent access, authority to prevent entry

Fri Nov 13 10:18:26 EST 2009

Here is an interesting freedom of speech case: German privacy laws being applied to speech generated outside of Germany, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/13/us/13wiki.html.

Thu Nov 12 17:35:22 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, November 17, 2009.

Michael Speer, Meet Go, Google's New Programming Language, webmonkey.com
Vincent Tober, Apple Crushes Clone Maker in Court, businessweek.com
Jason Valentine, Online Maps: Everyman Offers New Directions, nytimes.com

Mon Nov 9 12:09:51 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, November 12, 2009.

Charles Dugenio, G.E.'s Bid to Connect Computerized Health Records, nytimes.com
David Lee, Solar sail to launch in 2010, usatoday.com
Brian Nosti, Space hotel says it's on schedule to open in 2012, news.yahoo.com

Mon Nov 9 17:36:55 EST 2009

Monday's arguments before the US Supreme Court on business method patents, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/10/business/10patent.html.

Mon Nov 9 16:43:57 EST 2009

Exam 4 is in class on Thursday, November 12, 2009. It will cover Chapter 4 (Intellectual Property) from the text book.

Mon Nov 9 12:09:51 EST 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, November 10, 2009.

Timothy Horner, Placebo Effect Isn't Only in the Brain---It's Also in the Spine, discovermagazine.com
Bryant Jones, Virus Downloads Child Porn to Your Computer, whptv.com
Edward Lew, Protesters hijack more than 200 Facebook groups, cnn.com
Mathew Mullan, Hacking ring caught in $9 million fraud, msnbc.msn.com

Sun Nov 8 11:34:19 EST 2009

The Bilski business method patent case will be argued before the US Supreme Court on Monday, http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/11/07/business/AP-US-TEC-Supreme-Court-Software-Patents.html. An editorial in Sunday's New York Times sided with the US Patent Office and the courts, agreeing that business methods like the one in the Bilski case should not be patentable.

Thu Nov 5 18:47:21 EST 2009

If smart phones will be like this in a few years, what will they be like in 2050, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/05/technology/personaltech/05smart.html.

Mon Nov 2 12:16:16 EST 2009

Due to popular demand, the play about life in 2050 will be presented Thursday, November 19, 2009.

Fri Oct 30 15:43:53 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, November 5, 2009.

Matthew Vanduyne, Facebook "Memorial" Profiles Could Make Research For Journalists Harder, fox40.com
Michael Fodor, DateCheck phone app gets 411 on suitors, msnbc.msn.com

Wed Oct 28 10:53:21 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, October 29, 2009.

Jason Valentine, What Do You Think of Facebook's Latest Changes, nytimes.com
Matthew Zepp, Using a Cellphone Number to Pay for Virtual Goods, nytimes.com
Bethany Branco, EFF fights `censorship' with Takedown Hall of Shame, networkworld.com

Tue Oct 27 11:47:39 EDT 2009

While reading Chapter 4, take note of the following terms and concepts.

definition of copyright, patent
two separate benefits, one to individuals, one to society
when you buy a copyrighted item, what can and what can't you do with it
copyright law grants certain rights to the copyright owner
effect of computers and the Internet on the ability to make and distribute (digital) copies
right of ``first sale''
new technologies mean new and/or revised laws
penalties for copyright infringement and how they have changed
don't record a movie while it is playing in a theater
Rowan acceptable use policies for computers and network
NJ state employees acceptable use policies for computers and network
1976 fair use exceptions, fair use criteria
1984 Sony decision by US Supreme Court and its two implications
1992 and 2000 reverse engineering and fair use court decisions
Napster peer-to-peer file sharing and 2000 court decision
2005 US Supreme Court decision on file sharing without a central directory or list that Napster's site had
DMCA prohibits making, distributing, or using tools to defeat copyright protection systems
US Copyright Office summary of DMCA, lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/legislation/dmca.pdf
DMCA safe harbor provision
DVD DeCSS teenager in Norway; posting code or links to code illegal in US; teenager acquitted in Norway trial
software piracy, big problem, rationalizations, rebuttals
digital rights management technologies
RIAA file-sharing lawsuits, 2009 court cases
Business Software Alliance
ban technologies that have illegal uses or just ban the illegal uses?
search engines display short text excerpts or thumbnails; infringement?
open source software, GNU, Stallman, GPL, Linux, Firefox, Red Hat
courts have leaned towards not allowing ``look and feel'' of software to be copyrightable
2007 US Supreme Court decision broadened definition of obvious in patent criteria

Thu Oct 22 17:29:31 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, October 27, 2009.

Adrian Sandoval, Japanese Burger Kings Selling Windows 7 Whoppers, geekologie.com
Michael Speer, ACLU Says Extracting DNA From Suspects Unconstitutional, wired.com
Vincent Tober, OnStar Disables Tahoe In High-Speed Chase, jalopnik.com

Thu Oct 22 14:48:03 EDT 2009

Start reading Chapter 4 of the text book on copyrights (intellectual property) for next week.

Wed Oct 21 16:49:59 EDT 2009

New Jersey has a law against ``making terroristic threats against the President'' so this is not protected speech. The law was used to make an arrest at Newark airport, http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/10/21/us/AP-US-Obama-Threat-Arrest.html.

Wed Oct 21 14:45:13 EDT 2009

For our viewing pleasure, the following will be presenting a play or skit with props on Tuesday, November 19, 2009: Matthew Zepp, Mike Speer, Dave Lee, Michael Fodor. The subject is ``A Day in the Life'' circa 2050 when the class members are grandparents living with adult children and grandchildren, specifically the effects of computers, technology, and the Internet on day-to-day living forty years in the future.

Wed Oct 21 13:24:19 EDT 2009

Exam 3 is on Thursday, October 22, 2009, and covers Chapter 3 of the text book.

Wed Oct 21 13:18:42 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, October 22, 2009.

Edward Lew, The future of libraries, with or without books, cnn.com
Mathew Mullan, FCC votes to begin crafting `net neuttrality' rules, msnbc.msn.com
Brian Nosti, NASA puts new rocket on launch pad for test flight, news.yahoo.com

Fri Oct 16 16:22:47 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, October 20, 2009.

Matthew Zepp, Will airports screen for body signals? cnn.com
Timothy Horner, Lasers Write False Fearful Memories into the Brains of Flies, blogs.discovermagazine.com
Bryant Jones, Will a facial expression recognizer help autistic kids? news.cnet.com

Wed Oct 14 13:23:40 EDT 2009

I just now noticed that there are no classes on Tuesday, November 3, 2009, Election Day. Gasp! Because of that I have moved Exams 4 and 5 back a week. See the revised schedule at the end of the syllabus.

Wed Oct 14 09:53:20 EDT 2009

I will be on campus from about noon to about 5pm today.

Wed Oct 14 08:48:54 EDT 2009

I typed ``US obscenity trials'' into Google and found the following.

Top 10 "Obscene" Literary Classics, http://civilliberty.about.com/od/freespeech/tp/obscenenovels.htm
Wikipedia's entry on obscenity, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obscenity
An article about the Max Hardcore obscenity trial October 2008, http://www.businessinsider.com/2008/10/what-s-really-at-risk-at-a-federal-obscenity-trial-about-four-years-in-prison

Tue Oct 13 22:35:26 EDT 2009

Our third debate will be on ``Should the parts of the USA PATRIOT Act expiring in 2009 be renewed?''

It will be held Thursday, October 29, 2009. Two teams each with two people will debate the pro and con: Tim Horner and Bryant Jones; Charles Dugenio and Vinnie Tober. Pro and con sides will be determined by a flip of a coin on the day of debate, ensuring thorough preparation by each side. At the end of each debate, audience students will write

a summary of the pro and con positions,
who they think won the debate and why, and
what your opinion is of the debate topic (are you pro or con?) regardless of who you think won.

Tue Oct 13 22:33:06 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, October 15, 2009.

Charles Dugenio, Google Accounts for 6% of All Internet Traffic, readwriteweb.com
Michael Fodor, Fraud Fugitive Busted After Unwise Friend Request, abcnews.go.com
David Lee, Wal-Mart Offers No-Contract Cell Service Plans, crn.com

Thu Oct 8 17:32:25 EDT 2009

Start reading Chapter 3 of the text book on freedom of speech for next week. While reading Chapter 3, take note of the following terms and concepts.

First Amendment applies only to government not restricting or interfering with your freedom to speak; businesses are not restricted in the same way
``speech'' includes books, newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, telephone, postal system, Web sites, blogs
unprotected speech: obscenity (1973 Supreme Court definition), libel, direct threats, incite violence, child pornography (assumed abusive and exploitation)
1973 Supreme Court definition relies on community standards, which Internet makes hard to use
categories: print, common carriers, broadcast
print has strongest protection
broadcast media have limitations because of children: no cigarette ads, no dirty words in prime time, no nudity in prime time e.g. 2004 Super Bowl ``wardrobe malfunction''; but there have been exceptions, Schindler's List prime time TV, 9/11 firefighters dirty words prime time TV
1996 Telecommunications Act, common carriers (telephone, postal system, ISPs) are not allowed to censor or restrict (special rules for ISPs and copyrighted materials)
children, censorship, Internet a big issue last 10--15 years
1996 Communications Decency Act (CDA), illegal to make obscene or indecent material available to a minor, US Supreme Court unconstitutional 1997
1996 Child Pornography Prevention Act to extend illegality to virtual children ruled unconstitutional by Supreme Court in 2002 since not abusive of actual children
1998 Child Online Protection Act (COPA) requires proof of age to access potentially harmful material, applies to commercial Web sites only, relies on community standards; ruled unconstitutional by a federal court in 2000; 2002 Supreme Court barred government enforcement; federal court ruled it unconstitutional again in 2007; US Supreme Court refused to hear the federal government's appeal 2009
2000 Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requires Internet filtering software in schools, libraries receiving federal funding; US Supreme Court ruled constitutional 2003
filters are hard to get right
Internet and censorship involving more than one country problematic; totalitarian governments always try
2006 FEC issued rules that campaign regulations apply only to content placed on a Web page for a fee
anonymity has roots in colonial times
Georgia law against using a false identity on the Internet struck down by a federal court in 1996
does the danger from use of anonymity by criminals on the Internet outweigh the benefits of privacy and freedom of speech by non-criminals? same question applies to encryption
battle over legal status of spam; 2004 CAN SPAM law; federal do-not-call list
network neutrality debate

Thu Oct 8 17:30:05 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, October 13, 2009.

Adrian Sandoval, FBI's 'Phish Fry' Sting Nets 100, pcmag.com
Matthew Vanduyne, The Most Popular Password Is 123456, gizmodo.com
Matthew Zepp, absent
Bethany Branco, Goodbye DRM, Hello DPP, arstechnica.com

Wed Oct 7 15:46:40 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, October 8, 2009.

Adrian Sandoval, late
Michael Speer Hey, iPhone Users: Get Ready For Data Caps, gizmodo.com
Vincent Tober, There's a map for that, allthingsd.com
Jason Valentine, As a Phone, It Makes a Good GPS, nytimes.com

Wed Oct 7 15:44:21 EDT 2009

Exam 2 on Thursday, October 8, 2009, covers Chapter 2, Sections 2.3, 2.4, and 2.5.

Tue Oct 6 12:21:15 EDT 2009

I will be in my office Wednesday, October 7, 2009, from around 12:15pm until 5:30pm or so for questions and help.

Mon Oct 5 13:31:28 EDT 2009

While reading Chapter 2 of the text book, take note of the following terms and concepts.

aspects of privacy: freedom and control
freedom from intrusion and surveillance, control of your personal information
revealing personal information every day
tension between privacy and law enforcement
electronic data trails
invisible information gathering
abuse of collected personal information
secondary use of personal information
computer matching, cross matching
computer profiling
informed consent principle: telling consumers what is collected and how it will be used including secondary uses
opt in versus opt out
Privacy Act of 1974 but loophole: federal agencies contract with the private sector
Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988
abuse of census data collected
FBI National Crime Information Center database abuse
IRS and Social Security databases abuse
4th Amendment: freedom from unreasonable search and seizure
new technologies erode the 4th Amendment
4th Amendment applies when we have an expectation of privacy
wiretapping telephone lines requires a warrant
no expectation of privacy with EZPass data
no expectation of privacy with banking data
USA PATRIOT Act of 2001 lets government search library records without court order
expectation of privacy from outdoor surveillance cameras? from satellite cameras? google Street View? airport X-ray full-body scans? buy a book online and get ``would you also like to purchase...?'' behaviorally targeted Web advertising?
data mining, companies say it makes their ads more relevant
purchase history at a store used for targeted marketing even variable pricing
companies gather your Web surfing history and sell it to other companies to use for targeted marketing and advertising
location tracking makes location-based advertising possible as we move about
RFID technology now in passports
pretexting: pretending to be someone else to obtain information
employers look at the online profiles and social networking sites of prospective employees
children divulging risky personal information
1998 Children's Online Privacy Protection Act COPPA
2001 illegal for credit bureaus to sell your personal data
1970 Fair Credit Reporting Act is easy to circumvent, vague clause ``... and others who need it for legitimate business purposes...''
Rowan no longer uses SSNs as ID numbers
problems with national ID cards
problems with INS right to work database
2005 REAL ID act in US put federal standards on state driving licenses
problems with electronic health records and medical records databases
2001 federal law to control secondary use of medical information
issues with state and local governments converting paper records into Web-accessible databases: much easier to perform searches or link information, much harder to track who has accessed the information
protecting company and government databases: individual logins, different levels of access based on login, audit trails, encrypt contents
public key encryption
word ``privacy'' is not in US Constitution, do we have any rights to privacy?
do businesses have rights to your personal information if you want to do business with them (insurance companies use your credit report to determine premiums)
does a company have a right to use your Web surfing history on their Web site such as sell it?
does privacy have an economic value with property rights?
is privacy a right? negative right? positive right?
independent right to privacy view
no independent right to privacy view
free market view of privacy
consumer protection view of privacy
privacy and 1st Amendment conflicts: because you can use anonymizing tools if you don't want your personal information captured, there is no need for laws restricting business free speech (sharing your personal information)
European Union compared to US on collection and use of personal data
government wiretapping made unconstitutional without a warrant in 1967
no warrant needed to record telephone numbers called and number called from
e-mail and cell phones included in 1986
USA PATRIOT Act let FBI sift through e-mail headers looking for a suspect's headers without a warrant
1994 Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) controversy
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) secret FISA Court
since 2002, NSA secretly intercepted communications of domestic persons without a FISA court warrant
NSA was also data mining all Internet traffic
1990s, US companies could not export strong encryption tools
freedom of speech and exporting strong encryption tools
government wanted but never got access to keys used in all US encryption tools

Fri Oct 2 14:05:39 EDT 2009

Our second debate will be on ``Should business method patents be eliminated or greatly curtailed (in the US)? Should software patents be eliminated or greatly curtailed (in the US)?'' by the courts declaring them unconstitutional or significantly restricting them or Congress outlawing or significantly restricting them so that the US Patent Office no longer issues them in their current form. Debaters should note that this issue is currently before the US Supreme Court in a case named Bilski.

It will be held Thursday, October 15, 2009. Two teams each with two people will debate the pro and con: Ted Lew and Matt Zepp; Jay Valentine and Beth Branco. Pro and con sides will be determined by a flip of a coin on the day of debate, ensuring thorough preparation by each side. At the end of each debate, audience students will write

a summary of the pro and con positions,
who they think won the debate and why, and
what your opinion is of the debate topic (are you pro or con?) regardless of who you think won.

Wed Sep 30 12:59:24 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, October 6, 2009.

Timothy Horner, New Biomimicry in Digital Security --- Ants Swarm to Protect Computers, treehugger.com
Bryant Jones, The Army's Remote-Controlled Beetle, technologyreview.com
Brian Nosti, Mike Leach suspends a player, forbids Twitter accounts, star-telegram.com

Thu Oct 1 09:13:51 EDT 2009

I learned a new word today, ``vook'', from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/01/books/01book.html.

Wed Sep 30 12:59:24 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, October 1, 2009.

Charles Dugenio, E-Commerce Is Getting Chinese to Loosen Their Purse Strings, nytimes.com
Timothy Horner, absent
Bryant Jones, absent
Edward Lew, Pentagon reviewing policy on social networking sites, cnn.com
Mathew Mullan, Secret Service: Facebook poll not a threat, msn.com

Mon Sep 28 11:00:24 EDT 2009

Exam 1 grades are in the grades file.

Sun Sep 27 18:08:22 EDT 2009

For class discussion this coming Tuesday and Thursday, finish reading Chapter 2 of the text book (Privacy). For Tuesday, October 6, 2009, start reading Chapter 3 on Freedom of Speech. Exam 2 is Thursday, October 8, 2009.

Thu Sep 24 17:22:51 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, September 29, 2009.

Bethany Branco, Federal Judge Rules Video Games are Protected ``Expressive Works'', kotaku.com
Charles Dugenio, absent
Michael Fodor, Drug cops caught playing Wii during raid, news.cnet.com
Timothy Horner, absent
Bryant Jones, absent
David Lee, Net Neutrality, foxnews.com, prisonplanet.com, washingtonpost.com

Wed Sep 23 17:40:34 EDT 2009

Another day, another relevant news item, http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/09/fbi-nsac/.

Wed Sep 23 09:02:57 EDT 2009

The Google books lawsuit settlement approval might be delayed, making it even more appropriate to debate in class, http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/09/22/business/AP-US-TEC-Google-Book-Battle.html, http://news.cnet.com/8301-30684_3-10359071-265.html.

Wed Sep 23 06:09:57 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, September 24, 2009.

Jason Valentine, Best Buy and Verizon Jump Into E-Reader Fray, nytimes.com
Matthew Vanduyne, How Will Google Restructure Books Settlement?, crn.com
Matthew Zepp, Tiny technologies could produce big energy solutions, cnn.com

Wed Sep 23 06:02:15 EDT 2009

Exam 1 on Thursday, September 24, 2009, covers Chapter 1 and Sections 2.1 and 2.2 of Chapter 2.

Tue Sep 22 13:16:44 EDT 2009

Our first debate will be on network neutrality, ``Should the federal government pass regulations prohibiting broadband providers from blocking or slowing Web content and applications.'' It will be held Thursday, October 1, 2009. Two teams each with two people will debate the pro and con: Mathew Mullan and Brian Nosti; Adrian Sandoval and Matt Van Duyne. Pro and con sides will be determined by a flip of a coin on the day of debate, ensuring thorough preparation by each side. At the end of each debate, audience students will write

a summary of the pro and con positions,
who they think won the debate and why, and
what your opinion is of the debate topic (are you pro or con?) regardless of who you think won.

Here are some other possible debate topics.

Should the US federal government pass legislation requiring all states to use electronic voting machines?
Should the federal government provide substantial subsidies to ensure that all Americans have broadband Internet access, particularly rural and other underserved areas? This is much like the interstate highway system that was built in the 50s and 60s.
Should airwave radio stations pay royalties to play music like Internet streaming sites are being required to pay?
Should Congress pass laws limiting online behavioral tracking and ad customization?
What should happen to your e-mail accounts, Facebook page, social networking sites, etc., after you die?
Google Books, what should be done?
Google Street View and privacy
Should the parts of the USA PATRIOT act expiring in 2009 be renewed?

Sat Sep 19 08:36:45 EDT 2009

Freedom of speech is not necessarily absolute, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/19/us/19scotus.html. Facebook's Beacon program, like the news and mini feeds, upset users, http://www.nytimes.com/external/idg/2009/09/19/19idg-facebook-will-shut-down-beacon-to-settle-lawsuit-53916.html.

Fri Sep 18 13:47:50 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

Adrian Sandoval, Racial Term in DS' Scribblenauts?, kotaku.com
Michael Speer, Chinese Farmers Can Build Anything, gizmodo.com; Customer Visits Verizon CEO's Home, consumerist.com
Vincent Tober, Hacking firms one click ahead of law, theage.com.au

Thu Sep 17 08:53:05 EDT 2009

We will discuss these today that I saw just this morning.

We will also discuss some of the exercises and discussion questions at the end of Chapter 2 that deal with about the first third of the chapter.

Wed Sep 16 14:30:44 EDT 2009

``In the News'' on Thursday, September 17, 2009.

Charles Dugenio, Insurers Fight Speech-Impairment Remedy, nytimes.com
Mathew Mullan, France approves Internet piracy bill, msnbc.msn.com
Brian Nosti, Google to reincarnate digital books as paperbacks, tech.yahoo.com

Wed Sep 16 09:32:22 EDT 2009

Office visits will resume Thursday, September 17, 2009, during office hours, and Friday afternoon, September 18, 2009.

Sun Sep 13 07:00:27 EDT 2009

Start reading Chapter 2 in the text book on privacy. On Tuesday, we will do some of the exercises and problems at the end of Chapter 1.

Sun Sep 13 06:58:51 EDT 2009

I will be in my office Monday, September 14, 2009, for office visits from about 10:30am on (no classes to teach, no meetings yet).

Fri Sep 11 11:08:00 EDT 2009

For ``In the News'' on Tuesday, September 15, 2009, the following people made presentations or were absent.

Charles Dugenio absent, must repeat Thursday, September 17, 2009
Timothy Horner Researchers testify to Senate about safety standards for cell phones, news.cnet.com
Bryant Jones Chinese schools discard Web filter, reuters.com
Edward Lew Viral site mocks Wal-Mart customers, cnn.com

Thu Sep 10 07:17:01 EDT 2009

I will come to campus Monday, September 14, 2009, for office visits if at least one person makes an appointment by late Sunday evening. If no one does, then I will work at home on Monday.

Wed Sep 9 12:45:31 EDT 2009

We started ``In the News'' on Thursday, September 10, 2009. The following people made presentations or were absent. or hardcopy of just his/her article's URL.

Bethany Branco, Trapped girls call for help on Facebook, abc.net.au
Charles Dugenio, absent, must repeat Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Michael Fodor, 11-th Hour Filings Oppose Google's Book Settlement, nytimes.com
Timothy Horner, absent, must repeat Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Bryant Jones, absent, must repeat Tuesday, September 15, 2009
David Lee, Is the Palm Pixi Premature?, crn.com; Sprint Offers Unlimited Mobile-To-Mobile Calls, informationweek.com

Mon Sep 7 15:30:43 EDT 2009

While reading Chapter 1 of the text book, take note of the following terms and concepts.

ubiquity of computers and networking, rapid pace of change, problems and controversies: viruses, spam, copyrights, databases, porn, privacy, scams, identity theft, cell phones and driving, sexting, cyberbullying such as fake profiles on social networking sites, posting embarrassing videos of others, freedom of speech on the Internet, right to be anonymous on the Internet, ethics
new technologies create policy vacuums and require new or changed laws
most new technologies have both positive and negative impacts, for example, ATMs: unemployment, alienation, customer service, crime, privacy, errors
ethical theories
deontological: intrinsic, duty, absolute rules, universality, logic, reason, people are not means to an end but ends in themselves, Immanuel Kant
consequentialist: utilitarianism, increase aggregate utility, goodness, happiness
act utilitarianism: evaluate each individual act
rule utilitarianism: evaluate general rules
act utilitarianism problems: hard to calculate utility, no respect for individual rights
natural rights: to life, liberty, property, happiness, voluntary interactions, freely made exchanges
negative rights or liberties: act without interference, freedom of speech, religion, right to voluntary interactions, freely made exchanges
positive rights or claim rights: obligation to provide, food stamps, job retraining, funds to expand broadband to rural areas, time on radio/TV for opposing points of view
positive and negative rights can conflict, we must pay taxes to support government programs, government can force us to sell our real estate for public good
ethics guides us in how to attain goals
some laws enforce ethical rules, other laws set up conventions (drive on right) to help society run smoothly

Mon Sep 7 15:27:08 EDT 2009

In class on Tuesday, September 8, 2009, we will listen to your parent/grandparent interviews, chosen at random. Everybody will be heard even if we have to finish up on Thursday. In class on Thursday, September 10, 2009, I will ``quiz'' you verbally in class on Chapter 1 of the text book to check for being prepared. Notes can be open but books are closed! I want no page flipping and no reading of answers out of the book.

Sun Sep 6 12:27:01 EDT 2009

Some interesting articles offering advice to college students, particularly first year ones, are in http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/opinion/06collegeadvice.html. My favorite is, ``Don't Alienate Your Professor.''

Sat Sep 5 19:39:49 EDT 2009

Another swine-flu-on-campus article, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/us/05flu.html. This one's kinda funny. Keep washing those hands, anyway!

Sat Sep 5 08:36:35 EDT 2009

I have a meeting 10:50am--12:05pm on Wednesday, September 9, 2009. I'll be in my office after that for the rest of the day.

Fri Sep 4 16:12:16 EDT 2009

Along with freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and being secure in your person guaranteed in the Bill of Rights part of the Constitution, is a phrase in Article I Section 8 about copyrights and patents.

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

Thu Sep 3 22:37:15 EDT 2009

Some articles about the model and blogger we were talking about in class today.

Wed Sep 2 12:28:01 EDT 2009

Homework assignment due, Tuesday, September 8, 2009.

Interview your parents and grandparents about what new technologies were in the news and/or affecting their lives when they were in their teens and 20s (13--29 years old, say, roughly your age now), what the new technologies were at that time and how they were affecting them, what problems the new technologies caused, what benefits there were from them. Cell phone minutes are free nights and weekends so you can certainly do this over the phone. Talk to me about what to do if none of your parents and grandparents is still alive (I am sorry to hear that), if you are not on speaking terms with them (I am sorry to hear that, too), or if they are not accessible for some other reason. One idea is to talk to (great) aunts and (great) uncles. Try to interview at least three of your parents and grandparents. Please identify each interviewed person by first name (or nickname) and year of birth.
Pretend you are in your 70s, i.e., 50 or so years from now. Your grandchild is taking Computers and Society at Rowan and wants to interview you about what new technologies were in the news and affecting your life when you were in your teens and 20s.
What new technologies do you hope to be part of society by the time you are in your 70s?

Wed Sep 2 12:10:14 EDT 2009

In class on Thursday, September 3, 2009, we will discuss the first ten amendments to the US Constitution, the ``Bill of Rights.'' The following are the first two hits on google for us bill of rights: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Bill_of_Rights and http://www.constitution.org/billofr_.htm. One of the things we will discuss is, Why look at the US ``Bill of Rights,'' ratified in 1791, in a class about computers, the Internet, technology, and society?

Wed Sep 2 12:08:17 EDT 2009

Effective Thursday, September 3, 2009, we will be meeting in Bunce 104 (a computer-equipped classroom). Yeah, yeah, I know, it's further to walk.... I will post a note in Robinson 210 about the room change before going over.

Sat Aug 29 09:49:35 EDT 2009

Let's keep Rowan out of the swine flu news, http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/08/28/health/AP-US-Colleges-Swine-Flu.html.

Sun Aug 23 16:39:48 EDT 2009

By our class meeting on Thursday, September 10, 2009, all registered students must have completed the following. Unprepared students will be charged a half day of attendance as described in the syllabus.

Read Chapter 1, Unwrapping the Gift, in the text book, A Gift of Fire, 3^rd ed.

Fri Aug 21 14:21:54 EDT 2009

Welcome to Computers and Society non-WI!

home page: http://elvis.rowan.edu/~hartley/index.html
e-mail: hartley@elvis.rowan.edu