Textbooks and Materials

Ethics for the Information Age (2011), 4th Ed., by Mike Quinn
Readings in CyberEthics (2004), 2nd Ed., edited by R. A. Spinello and H. T. Tavani
Various online sources to be determined.

Course Content and Objectives

This course is intended to give students a chance to reflect on the humanitarian, social, and cultural impact of computer technology by focusing on ethical issues faced by and brought about by computing professionals, including those related to networking and the Internet, intellectual property, privacy, security, reliability, and liability. We will also focus on changing attitudes toward work and wealth related to the open source phenomenon, as well as issues raised by the possible emergence in the future of highly intelligent machines. We will consider these matters through reading, writing, discussion, and presentation.

UMD Catalog Description Ethical issues posed by computer use, including those related to networking, intellectual property, privacy, crime and security, risk and reliability, and effects on work and wealth. Includes significant writing and a class presentation.

Prerequisite

At least 60 credit hours. Comp 3100 or 3110 or 3121 or 3130 or 3140 or 3150 or 3160 or Engr 4001.

Course Organization

During lecture meetings (Tuesday and Thursday afternoons) new material will be presented and discussed. Some of this new material will be presented by the instructor, and some by students. In all class meetings, class participation will be expected. Accompanying readings from the texts and web sources will be indicated on the course calendar.

Thursday morning meetings will consist of in-class writing assignments. These must be written during class, and turned in at the end of class. There are no makeups, but your lowest two grades will be dropped.

Each student will each be required to give one formal lecture presentation (during a Tuesday or Thursday lecture session), covering several sections from the Quinn textbook. These presentations will be scheduled ahead of time, and the material that the student is responsible for will be assigned near the start of the semester.

During the last two weeks or so, all class days will be devoted to student project presentations. Attendance will be graded (i.e., it is mandatory) during these student presentations.

Exams

There will be three exams, including the final.

Exams will cover all discussion, lecture and reading material. Exams will not be specifically cumulative, but may include concepts from any material covered previously.

Exams must be taken at the scheduled time. Exams will not be given early, and can be made up only if documented evidence of medical emergency or death in the family is presented before the time of the exam.

The final exam will be held Wednesday, May 11th, 2:00-3:55 in HH306. Do not plan to leave for summer break before this date.

Grading

Grades will be based on total points earned. These points are broken down as follows:

Item	Number	Points each	Total
Exams (including final)	3	50	150
Class Participation, which may include: 1) Pop quizzes (given at any point in class; not announced beforehand; no makeups); 2) Presentation of new ethics-related news items; 3) Attendance during student project presentations during last part of semester; 4) Occasional short assignments.	12-20	2-5	45 (approx.)
Writing Assignments	9	20 (lowest two dropped)	140
Lecture Presentation	1	30	30
Project	1	125	125
Grand Total			490 (approx.)

The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the grading basis above.

In assigning grades I will use the cutoffs shown below. Note that these cutoffs may go lower but they will not go higher (if everyone gets over 90% of the total points then everyone gets at least an A-). Further note that no matter how low the cutoffs move, the cutoff for a D will likely never go as low as 50%.

• 90% - guarantees an A-
• 80% - guarantees a B-
• 70% - guarantees a C-
• 60% - guarantees a D

Incompletes: The grade of I (incomplete) may be given only when (a) the student has performed satisfactorily during most of the semester, and (b) the student is unable to finish the semester's work on time for reasons beyond his or her control. Students will not be assigned an incomplete solely for the purpose of avoiding a poor grade. According to UMD policy, the temporary grade I (incomplete) is assigned only when a student has made an agreement with the instructor to complete the course requirements before the instructor submits final grades for a semester.

More on Policies

• Assigned reading should be done before coming to class on that day. See the course calendar for reading assignments.
• In-class writing assignments must be completed during the specified class time. No makeups will be allowed, but each student's lowest two grades will be dropped.
• No electronic devices may be used during in-class writing assignments or exams. (Sorry, you'll have to use your handwriting skills.)
• Exams will not be given early, and makeups are not allowed except in very dire circumstances, e.g., severe illness or death in the family. In any case, I must be informed in advance of the scheduled exam time.
• Cheating: All of your writing must be your own. If you use material from other sources, it should quoted and the source cited. If you have questions about this, please see your instructor. If you violate this policy, it will be considered cheating.

Equal Opportunity

As instructor I shall make every attempt to treat all students equally, without regard to race, religion, color, sex, handicap, age, veteran status, or sexual orientation. I encourage you to talk to me about your concerns of equal opportunity in the classroom. To inquire further about the University's policy on equal opportunity, contact the Office of Equal Opportunity (726-6827), 255 DAdB. Web site: http://www.d.umn.edu/equaloo

Students With Disabilities

It is the policy and practice of the University of Minnesota Duluth to create inclusive learning environments for all students, including students with disabilities. If there are aspects of this course that result in barriers to your inclusion or your ability to meet course requirements -- such as time limited exams, inaccessible web content, or the use of non-captioned videos -- please notify the instructor as soon as possible. You are also encouraged to contact the Office of Disability Resources to discuss and arrange reasonable accommodations. Please call 218-726-6130 or visit the DR website at http://www.d.umn.edu/access for more information.