Reading Responses
CSC105 - The Digital Age
To help you prepare for our discussions on the social, legal, and
ethical impacts of computing technology, each day we have a discussion
you will write a few thoughtful paragraphs in which you reflect on
and respond to the reading(s). These are due at the beginning of class
(typically on Mondays).
Your reflections might
- outline ways you might apply what you've learned,
- how you agree or disagree with some conclusions of the author(s),
- compare or contrast what you read with your own experiences,
- etc..
While you must read all the articles for discussion, your reflection
should integrate material from at least two articles.
Grading Considerations
- Is the reflection more than a summary of the article(s)? That is,
does it present something new?
- Does the reflection provide reasoned support for its claims?
- Is the composition well-written? That is, does it exhibit good style,
syntax, and substance?
Formatting
Please type your responses using a double-spaced 12 point font with
1 inch margins. It should be 300-500 words long (more than one page,
less than two pages). Include, your name, date, and the subject of
the readings (e.g., "Intellectual Property") in the header.
Please print your response double-sided to conserve paper.
Citations
When it is unambiguous which article is being referred to (i.e., the
day's readings have only one article by that author), you may simply
cite the author of an article inline or in parentheses. For example,
Hoffman reports that Hollywood may be more interested in leveraging
DRM controls than preventing piracy.
While the Google Books settlement could establish a clear fair use
precedent (Hoffman), this may not be the most important aspect of
the case.
When there are multiple articles by the same author, you may disambiguate
by including the year:
Clarifying the return of orphan works to the public domain is the
most important aspect of Samuelson's (2007) argument for copyright
reform.
Guidelines for statutory damages, which are currently lacking (Samuelson,
2007), ought to set a high threshold in an age where many are one
click from a violation.
If the year fails to disambiguage the author, you may include the
issue number as well, e.g., (Samuelson, 10, 2007).
Finally, if you use a brief direct quote, snippet, or anything else
that should be more specifically referenced, please include the page
number in your citation, e.g., (Samuelson, 10, 2007, p. 23).
You do not need to include a works cited list for articles from the
assigned reading for the day. However, any other external material
should be properly and completely referenced.