Description: This course provides a broad overview of theories and applied efforts to humanize technology, particularly computer technology, over the past thirty years. Course readings will survey a variety of approaches to the topic, such as open source, human cognition, interface design, and theater. Students will complete applied projects but should also expect to write extensively on the topic.
- Petzold, Charles. Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software. Microsoft Press, 2000. ISBN 0735611319
- Reas, Casey & Chandler McWilliams. Form + Code in Design, Art, and Architecture: A Guide to Computational Aesthetics. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2010. ISBN 1568989377
- Tate, Bruce A. Seven Languages in Seven Weeks: A Pragmatic Guide to Learning Programming Languages. Raleigh, NC: Pragmatic Bookshelf, 2010. ISBN 978-1-93435-659-3
- Vincente, Kim. The Human Factor: Revolutionizing the Way People Live with Technology. New York: Routledge, 2004. ISBN: 0415978912
- Walter, Aaron. Designing for Emotion. New York: A Book Apart, 2011. ISBN 1937557006
Featuring selections from the following books:
- Borenstein, Nathaniel. Programming as if People Mattered.
- Dewey, John. Art as Experience.
- Graham, Paul. Hackers & Painters: Big Ideas from the Computer Age.
- Winograd, Terry & Fernando Flores, Understanding Computers and Cognition.
- Laurel, Brenda. Computers as Theatre.
- Mathis, Lukas. Designed for Use.
- McCullough, Malcom. Abstracting Craft: The Practiced Digital Hand.
- Norman, Donald. Emotional Design.
- Rushkoff, Douglas. Program or Be Programmed.
Plus articles, blog posts, and videos from figures such as Jonathan Ive, Larry Lessig, Richard Stallman, Eric Raymond, Jason Fried, Alan Kay, John Maeda, Tim Berners-Lee, and Steve Jobs.