Using examples from everyday life, this course investigates how preferences for certain technologies are shaped by social arrangements that reflect power relations, including genetic testing, social media, and the construction of a wall on the US/Mexico border.By considering the origins, materiality, and practices of use for a diverse range of technologies, from the telephone to the underwire bra, this course will interrogate the socio-political and ethical fallout of consumer and medical technologies. Within the context of this history of technology as a means of manipulating nature and maintaining control over groups of people, we will also consider how users, tinkerers, and hackers challenge and negotiate the meanings and usage of technology in ways that contradict the intended use.

Units: 1

Max Enrollment: 25

Prerequisites: None

Distribution Requirements: SBA - Social and Behavioral Analysis

Semesters Offered this Academic Year: Fall; Not Offered; Spring