FAMST 192DT: Digital Theory Fall Quarter 2023

Please write brief answers (like your forum posts, approximately 200-300 words, or one large paragraph) to the following questions.

Describe at least two ways in which the metaphor of the "black box" has come up in our class, including the methods used to "open" the black box (or what it stands for). Use specific author's names and terms from lecture.

Nametwothingsweencounteredthisquarterthatfallwithinthe"uncannyvalley"?Whydo think they belong there, and does that affect what Turkle calls their "holding power"?

What are some principles shared between Youmans and York (in their recommendations for social media if it is to be used in the "activist toolkit") and the work of Aaron Swartz (as featured in The Internet's Own Boy)?

Describe the three different kinds of networks outlined by Paul Baran, and how they map onto the paradigms of power/governance set forth by Foucault (sovereignty and discipline) and Deleuze (control).

Are the content moderators featured in The Cleaners part of the privacy problems outlined by Lori Andrews? Base your response in specific elements of the film and chapter.

What do you think is the most pivotal scene in the film Her? What does it say about embodiment and whether it's necessary for things like friendship, romance, and even love? Base your claims in an analysis of the scene (include timestamp if possible).

Essay Questions (70 points)
Your answers should follow standard essay form and include an identifiable thesis. They can include brief quotes from the relevant readings (give page numbers) and should be in the range of 500-600 words. Keep in mind, these questions are designed so that there are no obvious right or wrong answers; a good answer will marshal evidence and make connections across readings, screenings, and lectures.

Pick two of the following three prompts to answer.

My Body, My Choice?
One of the principal fears of the unionized actors that are currently striking is that evolving AI and digital technologies will result in a loss of control over their own bodies and voices once recorded. As Times journalist Marc Tracy recently wrote, "SAG-AFTRA, the union representing more than 150,000 television and movie actors, fears that a proposal from Hollywood studios calling for performers to consent to use of their digital replicas at 'initial employment' could result in its members' voice intonations, likenesses and bodily movements being scanned and used in different contexts without extra compensation" (Marc Tracy, "Digital Replicas, a Fear of Striking Actors, Already Fill Screens," New York Times, August 4, 2023). One example he gives is how the character of Grand Moff Tarkin was reanimated in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story through compositing the likeness of actor Peter Cushing (long dead) and the motion-captured movements of another actor.

Please consider these fears in light of the conversations we have had in class about more utopian and more pessimistic attitudes toward technology, digital embodiment, legal battles over virtual property, and technological determinism. Are "digital replicas" of actors and extras inevitable? What "property" and whose interests are at stake in this debate? And how do these labor negotiations complicate the dividing line between the real and the virtual? In your answer, please use at least three of the following thinkers to support your claim(s): Raymond Williams, Cory Doctorow, Julian Dibbell, Robert Glushko, or Lisa Nakamura.

"The World's Most Inclusive Camera"
In 2021, Google shipped its Pixel 6 phones with new "Real Tone" technology, featuring "key improvements across [...] face detection, camera and editing products." Real Tone was designed to address historic inequities in image making, for instance in photographs of people with darker skin. In initial rollouts, Google Photos could be improved through the use of Real Tone filters named "Playa, Honey, Isla, and Desert," and images using those filters had a "Made with Real Tone" imprint. Now, however, Real Tone technology is largely "under the hood" and used to "auto enhance" images without calling attention to itself.

After looking at the images and information shared in the links below, reflect on what Google (or its parent company Alphabet) accomplishes with this technology and their unveiling campaign. How are (largely) Black/BIPOC bodies and stories being deployed? Is Real Tone a public good? Use at least two of the following sources in your answer and make direct references to the blog post and video below: John Perry Barlow, Coded Bias, Safiya Noble, or Ruha Benjamin.

https://blog.google/products/pixel/image-equity-real-tone-pixel-6-photos/ https://www.cnet.com/videos/google-debuts-real-tone-for-pixel-6-phones/ (video)

3. Hidden Figures

Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple Computer, is often credited as one of the most "well- known revolutionaries of the computing age" (Lemelson-MIT). Charles Babbage is frequently labeled "the father of the modern computer" (Wikipedia). And Alan Turing has been called "the father of modern computer science" (New Scientist). What do

   

pronouncements or dominant stories like these about the computer's development obscure about other realities and histories of computing? Please use at least three of the following sources (from lectures and readings) in your response: Raymond Williams, Paul Edwards, Vannevar Bush, Whose Utopia, Sherry Turkle, Lisa Nakamura, The Cleaners, or Youmans and York.

Extra Credit (up to 2 points)

Describe one of the ways that the year 1984 has shown up in our course and how it relates to the class.

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Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Question 1 The Black Box Metaphor In our Digital Theory class the concept of the black box has surfaced in discussions regarding information processing and algorithmic decisionmaking One instance was ... View the full answer