SAMPLE ASSIGNMENTS

Research Assignment:

1) Read the following texts:

• Chapter 13 in The Robot in the Garden, Telerobotics and Telepistemology in the Age of the Internet. History of Telepresence: Automata, Illusion, and Rejecting the Body. Please visit the web-sites cited in the chapter, they are very interesting and entertaining.
• Capek, Karel; R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots), 1923, Oxford Univ Press, London, 1961.

2) Prepare a response to be presented in the next class that reflects a comparison between the texts and the film you saw in the first class. This can be done by written text or image or whatever medium you find appropriate.

Research Assignment

1) Read the following texts: (which are in the library under reserve for EID111 )

• Chapters 9 and 10 in The Robot in the Garden, Telerobotics and Telepistemology in the Age of the Internet. "To Lie and To Act: Potemkin's vilages, cinema, and Teleprsencce" by Lev Manovich and "Dialogical Telepresence and Net Ecology", by Eduardo Kac. Please visit the web-sites cited in the chapter, they are very interesting and entertaining. Choose what you think is the wildest statement made by Eduardo Kac in his Chapter and say why you chose it.
• In addition, include these:

2) Prepare a response to be presented in the next class that reflects a comparison between the texts and the film you will see in the second class: "Fast, Cheap and Out of Control". This can be done by written text or image or whatever medium you find appropriate.

Project Assignment:

Define and describe a situation or scenario of dramatic interest (crisis, epiphany, irony, discovery, character) using elements of what you have seen and read up to now, present drawings, script, essay, story board, outline of principal elements.

Research Assignment

1) Read chapters 1, 2 and 15 in The Robot in the Garden, (Telerobotics and Telepistemology in the Age of the Internet). Please visit the web-sites cited in the chapters.

2) Write up a commentary on your readings and the movie, and the expansion of your own consciousness in this regard.

3) Prepare a response to be presented in the next class. Expand your scenario and prepare to defend it or modify it so you can >commit to a project plan next week.

Rsearch and Project Assignment

1) Read chapters 13 & 18 and mark down some notes relating them to the film "Beyond Human".

2) Pick out ten key words from your scenario and a discipline or metaphor that interests you, and research them. On the web, in the library, wherever. Display the results of your work on the class web site.

Project Assignment

Present us with the following in regard to your project and be prepared to present this in class as a presentation. This can be done in any format you like, but please upload copies of what you do to the web site where technically feasible. What you submit at this time is not necessarily set in stone, nor can it be the whole thing in a nutshell. Remember, this is a course where we want you to thoroughly document your process. Your final project (includingÊtitle) may come out rather different from this first concept,Êbut you will find that the focusÊwill be extremely helpful in moving forward.Ê

Your Final Project - Working Title

Mission Statement: State what you see as the Mission of your project.

Rationale: State the rationale for your project in any and all terms that are appropriate for you - you are interested in expressing, or shedding light on: the psychological, philosophical, technical, spiritual, political, juxtapositional, random-accessible, mischievous, ironic aspects of [noun(s)] here.

Scenario, Narrative: Restate your Scenario and discuss how you will "embody" it. Will you create a drama, interactive web site, webcast, sales pitch. What real objects, if any, will you need to create models of? As much as you can, describe the medium, style, design form, format, etc. When you are creating a drama you are creating a world -- how will it look? What will it be made of?

Timeline: As much as you can, break your process down into tasks (for instance: Research, Documentation, Construction, Drawing Modelling, Programming, Rehearsal, etc.) and create a timeline for completing your project with December 3 as the deadline. What equipment will you need? You do not have to be confined to the class room and time for your final presentation.