school of social science - Hampshire College

CCS 215
CREATIVE PROGRAMMING WORKSHOP
Lee Spector
In this course we will study the process of computer
programming, programs in the "code literature," and our own
code while engaging in intensive programming projects.
Students will program continuously and read. run, and
criticize one another's programs. These programs may be
written for any application area and may include utilities,
games, artworks, cognitive models, and environmental or
social simuladons. We will develop the ability to critique
programs from a variety of perspectives, including complexity
theory. software engineering, and aesthetics. The course will
include class analysis of student work and exercises in specific
computational techniques and programming paradigms (for
example, functional, declarative, and object-oriented programming).
Students may work in a range of programming
environments including both "scripting environments" (such
as Director and HyperCard) and more traditional programming
languages (C/C++, Lisp, Java, etc.). Prerequisite: fluency
in any programming or scripting language
Class will meet once a week for two hours and fifty
minutes. Enrollment limit is 20.
CCS 241
CONSTRUCTMST THEORIES OF CHILD
DEVELOPMENT
Mary Jo Rattermann
The constructivist view of child development, developed
most fully by Jean Piaget, proposes that children "construct"
their own reality. Recent advances in computer science,
philosophy, and neuroscience have driven developmental
psychologists to reconsider Piaget's constructivist views. In
this seminar we will examine Piaget's seminal work, as well as
more recent construcrivist and sociocultural views of child
development. Class requirements are anendance, participarion
in class discussion, and two research papers. Prerequisites are
either Introduction to Cognitive Science, Theories of Developmental
Psychology, or any other psychology course
Class will meet twice a week for one hour and twenty
minutes each time. Enrollment limit is 12.
CCS/NS 243
BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR
Christopher Chase/Michelle Murrain
How do birds learn to sing? Why in some species is the
song innate and in others learned? In this course we will
explore the diverse and complex world of specific structures in
the nervous system and how they relate to behavior. We will
study in depth the nervous systems of several different species
and specific mammalian perceptual systems or motor structures,
such as vision and the cerebellum. In the case of each
system, students will learn detailed information about how the
neurophysiological functions at the microscopic level of
neurons control and regulate complex perceptual and behavioral
functions.
Class will meet twice a week for one hour and twenty
minutes each rime and again for a three-hour lab session.
Enrollment limit is 25. by instructor permission. This is a
Hughes advanced research course.
24
CCS 268
NET NEWS WORKSHOP
J ames Miller
The Internet is transforming journalism. In this course
we will both critically examine these changes. their causes and
consequences, and, in a practicum setting. engage in the
actual practice of journalism on the net. The course will
involve exploration of such matters as the move towards
"computer-assisted journalism," the increasing presence of
virtual newspapers on the Internet and the emergence of
multimedia informational web sites. We will likely visit
organizations where on-line journalism is practiced, and we
will be joined occasionally by expert guests. Students may also
carry out projects that create journalistic content for the net,
including elements of web site design and construction in
addition to developing writing tailored to the special demands
of the Internet.
Admission to the course presumes that students have
some familiarity with the Internet. possess basic html skills or
journalistic competence, or both. Class will meet once a week
for two hours and fifty minutes. Enrollment limit is 10. by
ins£ructor permission.
CCS 289
IS THE MOUSE DEAD! THE PSYCHOLOGY OF
HUMAN-COMPUTER INTERFACE
Slavoljub Milekic
Computer technology is changing on almost a daily basis.
However. the methods of interacting with computers are still
in their "medieval" stage. For most of the population interacting
with computers is a source of frustration. Can we use the
insights from psychology about the mechanisms of human
perception and cognition to build a better human-computer
interface? What makes some programs 'user friendly' and
intuitive and some not? Can one communicate with a
computer just by thoughts? These are some of the questions
we will investigate during this course.
Students will be expected to do a fair amount of reading
from primary sources, give a class demonstration of their own
interface ideas. and complete a final project/paper. Class will
meet once a week for two hours and fifty minutes. Five hours
of lab will be scheduled during the course. Prerequisite: if you
don't have previous experience with computers and programming,
you will need the instructor's permission to take the
course. Enrollment is limited to 15.
CCS 298
INSTALlATION, PERFORMANCE, AND VIDEO
Joan Braderman/Sherry Millner
In this course we will explore the ways in which video is
deployed in spaces created by artists. Some single-channel
video will be produced but largely in the context of performance
and installation work. The class will engage in a series
of workshops to develop performative skills and to learn to
create new spaces by using sound, objects. bodies. walls. light,
and darkness expressively. Students will learn to make work in
video which is non-narrative and nonlinear as part of these
performative and installation spaces. We will look at and
discuss slides and tapes made by a variety of artists who have
worked in these mediums; we will have several visiting artists
do workshops with the class. Students will be expected to do
extensive reading, screening, looking at work by other artists.