Info 103
History of Information
3 units
Course Description
According to conventional wisdom, the “information age” began just a few decades ago and promptly superseded everything that went before it. But the issues we are wrestling with now—questions about piracy, privacy, trust, “information overload,” and the replacement of old media by new—all have their roots in the informational cultures of earlier periods. In this class we will take a long view of the development of these cultures and technologies, from the earliest cave painting and writing systems to the advent of print, photography and the telegraph to the emergence of the computer and Internet and the world of Twitter, Pinterest and beyond. In every instance, be focused on the chicken-and-egg questions of technological determinism: how do technological developments affect society and vice-versa?
Prerequisites
Signing Up for I School Classes
Instructions for Berkeley undergrads, graduate students, and community members
Course History
Spring 2018
Spring 2017
Spring 2016
Spring 2015
Summer 2014
Spring 2014
Summer 2013
Spring 2013
Summer 2012
Spring 2012
Summer 2011
Spring 2011
Summer 2010
Spring 2010
Summer 2009
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