LBST 150
The Quantified Citizen

LECTURE K1

MWF 9:10am - 10:00am

Location

SNODDY COMPUTER LAB

Instructor

Dr. Mark Goadrich
goadrich@hendrix.edu
(501) 450-1367
Office Hours

LECTURE K2

MWF 9:10am - 10:00am

Location

MILLS 103

Instructor

Dr. William Haden Chomphosy
hadenchomphosy@hendrix.edu
(501) 505-1501
Office Hours

Overview

How much of what you do online is observed, collected, and sold by the apps and websites that you are using and why? This course explores the consequences of private companies, such as YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify, collecting personal information from their users in order to quantify human behavior for profit. By collecting and analyzing data on their own lives, students will be introduced to foundational concepts from computer science and economics to understand the way that behavior is translated into data and how this new business practice is influencing modern economies.

Course Learning Goals

Upon completing this course, our goal is for students to be able to:

TEC Learning Goals

Resources

R

ggplot

Kaggle Notebooks

Readings

Goadrich

Date Reading
  Same Stats Different Graphs
  Beware the Truthiness of Charts
  Telling Stories with Data
  Get To Know Your Heartrate
  Understanding Your Target Heartrate
  Mapping Disease: John Snow and Cholera
  A Refresher on Regression Analysis
  Clustering: How It Works
  Introduction to Recommender Systems

Haden Chomphosy

Date Reading
  The Data Economy: Introduction
  The Data Economy: Trading Apps for Info
  The Data Economy: Personal Information Marketplace
  The Data Economy: Social Media
  The Data Economy: Data and Politics
  Econimate: Social Media and Welfare

Coursework

Each student has four late days to spend throughout the semester as they wish. Simply inform the instructor any time prior to the due date for an assignment that you wish to use a late day; you may then turn in the assignment up to 24 hours late. Multiple late days may be used on the same assignment. There are no partial late days; turning in an assignment 2 hours late or 20 hours late will both use 1 late day. Note that late days are intended to cover both normal circumstances (you simply want more time to work on the assignment) and exceptional circumstances (you get sick, travel for a game or family obligation, etc.). After you have used up your late days, late assignments will receive at most half credit.

Labs: 100 points

# Name
1 Data and Tables
2 Understanding Graphics
3 Grammar of Graphics
4 Time Series Data
5 Census Data
6 Location Data
7 Regression
8 Clustering
9 Recommendations
10 Blockchain Technology

Much of your experience with data visualization in this course will be through weekly labs. Each lab will be assigned in lab with time allotted to work through the materials. All labs are weighted equally within the lab portion of your final grade.

On these labs, you will work with a partner on the lab assignments. Their name must be listed on any code you hand in as joint work. A partnership should only turn in a single copy of the assignment. If students working as partners wish to turn in a lab late, both students must use a late day.

Labs take place in the Snoddy Computer Lab, in the Bailey Library. As you go through the exterior door of the library, turn immediately to your left and enter the Snoddy Academic Resource Center. Continue through the door at the far end of the hall into the first computer lab, and then enter the second lab at the back.

Homework and Discussions: 100 points

# Name
1 Data Economy Discussion
2 Market Homework
3 Social Media and Advertising Discussion
4 Public Policy Homework
5 Public Policy Discussion

Papers: 400 points

# Name Points
1 Social Media 50
2 Making Arguments with Graphs 150
3 Privacy and Data Economy 200

You will write three papers in this course. These papers will cover concepts we have discussed in class and in labs, and will be due approximately two weeks after they are assigned.

Project: 300 points

# Name Points
1 Final Project 300

Checkins and Participation: 100 points

Three times throughout the semester, you are expected to make an office hours appointment with one of us and discuss your progress in the course. Each checkin meeting will count for 20 points. This will include conversation and feedback about your current progress and understanding. Ideally, these checkins should be scheduled during the weeks shown on the course calendar.

The remaining 40 points will be assigned based on classroom attendance and participation in classroom activities.

Grading Scale

Score Grade
900-1000 A
800-899 B
700-799 C
600-699 D
0-599 F

Commitments

It is my ultimate goal for this course, and my teaching, to develop your academic skills, advance your learning of computer science concepts, and support the liberal arts in general. To do so will require commitments from myself and from you toward meeting this goal.

Active Participation

I will be prepared and on time for class each day, ready to use class time to help you understand the course material. I will respectfully listen to, understand, and answer questions asked in class.

You are expected to attend class and actively participate in discussions every day, answering questions, asking questions, presenting material, etc. Your participation will be respectful of your classmates, both of their opinions and of their current point in their educational journey, as we each approach the material with different backgrounds and contexts.

Constructive Feedback

I will keep office hours and be available for outside appointments, and respond to emails within one business day (not including weekends). I will provide feedback on group presentations within one day. For exams, projects, and homeworks, I will provide graded feedback within two weeks.

You are encouraged to provide constructive comments for improving this course for furthering your learning throughout the semester. There will be an opportunity for anonymous course feedback at the end of the term, in which I hope you all participate. Through your feedback I can improve this course and others for future students.

Academic Integrity

I will abide by the above syllabus and grade your work fairly.

As stated in the Hendrix Academic Integrity Policy, all students have agreed to adhere to the following principles:

  • All students have an equal right to their opinions and to receive constructive criticism.
  • Students should positively engage the course material and encourage their classmates to do the same.
  • No students should gain an unfair advantage or violate their peers' commitment to honest work and genuine effort. It follows that any work that a student submits for class will be that student's own work. The amount of cooperation undertaken with other students, the consistency and accuracy of work, and the test-taking procedure should adhere to those guidelines that the instructor provides.
  • Members of the Hendrix community value and uphold academic integrity because we recognize that scholarly pursuits are aimed at increasing the shared body of knowledge and that the full disclosure of sources is the most effective way to ensure accountability to both ourselves and our colleagues.
More details of our departmental stance on integrity can be found in the Hendrix Computer Science Academic Integrity Policy

Learning Accomodation

I will make this classroom an open and inclusive environment, accommodating many different learning styles and perspectives.

Any student seeking accommodation in relation to a recognized disability should inform me at the beginning of the course. It is the policy of Hendrix College to accommodate students with disabilities, pursuant to federal and state law. Students should contact Julie Brown in the Office of Academic Success (505.2954; brownj@hendrix.edu) to begin the accommodation process.

Physical and Mental Health

I am willing to work with you individually when life goes off the rails.

Coursework and college in general can become stressful and overwhelming, and your wellness can be impacted when you least expect it. You should participate in self-care and preventative measures, and be willing to find support when you need it.

  • The Office of Counseling Services welcomes all students to see a counselor in a private and safe environment regardless of their reasons for making an appointment. Counseling services are available to all Hendrix students at no cost.
  • Student Health Services provides free healthcare to Hendrix students. Services are provided by an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) in collaboration with a local physician.

The Offices of Counseling Services and Student Health Services are located in the white house behind the Mills Center for Social Sciences at 1541 Washington Avenue.