Spring 2023 Sociology GU4701 section 001

CREATIVITY/TECH:WAR & COMMERCE

CREATIVITY/TECH:WAR & COM

Call Number 14860
Day & Time
Location
T 2:10pm-4:00pm
477 ALFRED LERNE
Points 4
Grading Mode Standard
Approvals Required Instructor
Instructor Sudhir A Venkatesh
Type SEMINAR
Method of Instruction In-Person
Course Description This course examines the ways that technological shifts have catalyzed innovation and social change in human societies. The focus is on the social basis for creativity. Analysis centers on the conflicts, disruptions and tensions that emerge in society when new and/or competing technologies are introduced. Students will explore two substantive spheres of social life. The first is war. Throughout recorded history, participants have sought to garner competitive advantages in battle via technological innovation. We look at several moments in which the development of a particular innovation helped bring about massive societal change. The second focus is on commerce. The class will examine the impact of digital technologies on those who work in creative industries undergoing transformation via technology and diffusion of tech-inspired ideas. The learning objectives for students are: • To situate technology within a wider social and historical context. • To consider creativity as a social activity, not only as individual aptitude. • To place the contemporary period of so-called “fast paced technological progress” within a sociological framework of change and innovation.
Web Site Vergil
Department Sociology
Enrollment 12 students (20 max) as of 12:06PM Thursday, March 28, 2024
Subject Sociology
Number GU4701
Section 001
Division Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Campus Morningside
Section key 20231SOCI4701G001