PS 545 Syllabus Spring 2013

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PS 545-001 SPRING 2013
AMERICAN POLITICAL
THOUGHT
MWF 9-9:50AM 506 King Library (Conference Room)
Course Hashtag: #ps545
INTRODUCTION:
Are you a pirate?
Do you avoid using Peer-to-Peer technologies for fear of losing your university computing privileges and
receiving a hefty fine from the RIAA?
Why do we even have copyright anyway? Does it serve any productive purpose?
PS 545 American Political Thought explores contemporary American political thought, its formation and
the ways in which it is involved in major problems of culture, political economy, ideology, community and
identity. This semester, we will be exploring these issues through the lens of the following themes:
• The History of Intellectual Property, Copyright & Patent in American Political Thought
• The Legal, Political, Cultural & Technological Dimensions of Sharing
• DRM, DMCRA and Other Architectural Barriers to Peer Production and the construction of a
knowledge commons
• The Political Economy of (Intellectual) Property and the (Knowledge) Commons
• The Future(s) of the Internet – why Net Neutrality, Open Source Software, Open Hardware and
the Generative Internet are more important than you may realize
• The Politics of DIY, Maker Culture and the Political Economy of Commons-Based Peer
Production (including 3D Printing)
• Labor in American political thought and the potential impact of robotics
Many of the issues we will discuss will involve some controversy, and will require you to approach them
with an open mind. The goal of this course is not to indoctrinate you or to force a set of beliefs about
politics, economics and copyright/patent upon you. Quite the opposite – I want to help you to build the
critical political theoretical tools with which to engage this central issue in American political thought. The
results are up to you. I hope you will join with us this semester in what I hope will prove to be an
enlightening, engaging and provocative exploration of contemporary American political thought.
Welcome to the course!
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION:
Instructor: Dr. Christopher S. Rice Twitter: @ricetopher
Office: 518 King Science Library Email: christopher.rice@uky.edu
Office Hours: By Appointment Telephone: 859.257.4011

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COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Grades and Examinations: Your final course grade will be based on three (3)
components:
• Class Preparation, Participation & Attendance – 20%
• Working Journal – 40%
• Research/Augmented Reality Project – 40%
Course Readings: The following texts are required for this course:
• James Boyle, The Public Domain. ISBN: 978-0-300-13740-8
• Lawrence Lessig, Free Culture. ISBN: 978-0143034650.
• Cory Doctorow, Content. ISBN: 978-1892391810
• Jonathan Zittrain, The Future of the Internet. ISBN: 978-0300151244
• Yochai Benkler, The Wealth of Networks. ISBN: 978-0300125771
• Cory Doctorow, Makers. ISBN: 978-0765312815 (pbk)
However, you do not need to purchase any texts for this course. All course readings are either available
as free, Creative Commons-licenses PDF downloads, are freely available on the Internet or may be
accessed through the University of Kentucky’s electronic journals collection. The links to each week’s
readings will be made available in a clearly labeled Note in an Evernote Notebook I will share with class
members. Since class time will be largely spent engaging with the assigned readings for the day, you
must bring each day’s readings to the class period for which they are assigned. As a word of warning, the
reading load will be quite heavy at times for this course (often approaching 100 pages/week), in addition
to the required writing assignments. See “Class Participation and Preparation” below for details on the
estimated time requirements for the class.
Class Participation, Preparation & Attendance: Because this course is
designed around a collaborative research and learning approach, attendance is required for your
success, as well as that of the course. You should come prepared every day to be an active participant in
the course, working on course activities, arguing for your own perspectives on the course material,
listening to the viewpoints and arguments of other class members and then engaging with them and the
instructor in an informed, thoughtful and considerate manner. If you feel that you cannot devote the time
to this course that is expected (2.5 hours in-class + 8-10 hours out of class per week), then you may want
to consider dropping the course. For those of you willing to invest the time, however, I promise you a
rewarding experience!
In addition to our face-to-face discussions, we will be using Twitter in PS 545 as a “backchannel” both
during and outside of class. You are encouraged to bring your phones or laptops to class and Tweet out
comments or issues raised during the class. You are also encouraged to share links and sources that you
find useful and are placing in your Working Journal, as well as brief reactions to the scheduled course
readings, while outside of class. During the semester, please use the “#ps545” hashtag when Tweeting
for class. You will be graded on the both the quantity and quality of your contributions – both in and out of
class – to our exploration of the readings, data and other course work.
A rubric outlining how participation and preparation will be graded will be posted to a Note in the course
Evernote Notebook by January 14, 2013. I strongly encourage you to bring (if you have access to one)
your laptop, tablet/iPad or internet-capable phone to class EVERY DAY. Class time will not be spent
passively listening to lectures; rather we will be engaged in active learning in every class session,
including research and data analysis. An internet-capable device will prove to be of high value to you in
this regard. If you do not have access to Evernote through a laptop, tablet or internet-capable phone
during class, you should print out a copy of the readings for the day and your response notes you’re your

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Working Journal and bring them to class that day. Class preparation & participation count for 20% of your
total course grade.
Working Journal: One of the key tasks for any political theorist is to reflect upon and actively
engage with key texts in their chosen subject of study. For purposes of this course, you will need to keep
an ongoing reading and research journal as the home for this informal engagement with the course texts,
to be contributed to prior to (and in between) each class session. I expect good grammar and spelling, but
I don’t wish you to obsess over such things – this is not to be written as a formal paper. Think of this as a
space to have a “conversation” with the texts and between them, drawing in insightful outside material as
warranted. You might find a few critical or provocative passages from the texts and quote these passages
while critiquing their arguments or supporting them based on other readings, materials or class
discussion. The platform we will be using for this assignment, Evernote (see below), makes it easy to pull
in articles or other digital artifacts from the Internet that will contribute to this conversation. Be creative
with your use of the journal, but be rigorous and thoughtful as well. It will be a key lifeline as you engage
with the major course topics and serve as your most valuable resource when preparing for class and
working on your research project.
You must stay up-to-date with your work on this assignment. There will be a prompt posted each week in
our course Evernote Notebook for you to respond to. Your class preparation notes should also be entered
into this journal. This is your place to store links to websites, articles, data sources, pictures, videos, etc.
that are relevant to our exploration of the major course topics. You will need to bring in at minimum one
outside article or artifact per course session into your Journal that is relevant to the topic of that day’s
reading(s) and annotate it accordingly. (I also recommend Tweeting these links out as you find them to
add to the class discussion. It is possible to do this directly from Evernote.). You should be certain to trace
connections between the assigned readings, our class discussions and articles/artifacts that you find
online related to the theoretical focus of the readings we are engaged with in class at the time.
You are required to start a free Evernote account, create a Notebook entitled “PS 545 Spring 2013” for the
course and share it with me with me (only) by the beginning of class on January 14, 2013. You should
then begin posting your journal entries, research materials and class preparation sheets to your shared
Evernote Notebook on Monday, January 14, 2013. I will explain this requirement in full in class on
January 14, and a rubric outlining grading criteria for the journal will be posted to a Note in the course
Evernote Notebook at that time. I will examine your Working Journal at the midterm of the semester
(around March 4) and provide feedback at that time. All journal work must be completed by 5pm,
April 26, 2013. Your journal work will constitute 40% of your total course grade.
Research/Augmented Reality Project: The Research Project is your opportunity to
demonstrate mastery of the course readings and subject matter, your ability to synthesize and critically
engage with them, your ability to incorporate material related to the course topics and readings that you
have collected and considered in your Working Journal, and also to creatively apply the knowledge and
skills you gain during the semester in a novel fashion. You should expect to produce at least 3000 words
of text for the project, as well as bibliographic work, photos, video, infographics, etc. The project must also
possess an augmented reality component using Layar Creator (http://www.layar.com/). Your work for this
project will constitute 40% of your course grade. Full details of the project will be posted to a Note in the
class Evernote Notebook prior to Spring Break. Your Research Project must be posted as a PDF in
your Working Journal by 10:30am, May 1, 2013. The result of this project will be an ebook with
Augmented Reality components collecting all student projects that will be made available on the web for a
public audience under a Creative Commons license after the end of the semester. Your research project
work will constitute 40% of your total course grade.

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COURSE POLICIES:
Classroom Standards: I expect all students to behave in a professional manner during class
time. This means coming to class on time and being ready to start class at 9am. It is disrespectful to
me and to your fellow students to come late and disrupt class, so be on time. I will not tolerate chronic
tardiness, and if you arrive to class more than 5 minutes late, you may be asked to turn around and leave.
Also, unless you have obtained prior approval from me, you may not leave class early. Furthermore, I do
not tolerate rude and disruptive classroom behavior. During class, refrain from engaging in non-relevant
and distracting side-conversations, reading a newspaper, doing crosswords, sudoku or other
puzzles/games, sleeping, non-course-related text messaging or similar cellphone use, or listening to your
iPod or other .mp3 players. Laptops and other internet access devices ARE STRONGLY
ENCOURAGED in class for accessing your textbooks, taking notes and looking up material relevant to
that day’s work on the internet. Please do not abuse this privilege by using your Internet access device to
Facebook, do email, shop online or play games. I reserve the right to dismiss from class any student in
violation of these policies.
Grading: All course assignments will be graded on a 0-100 point scale. The grading scale for the
exams and papers, as well as the final course grade for undergraduate students is as follows: A = 90-
100%, B = 80-89%, C = 70-79%, D = 60-69%, and E = 0-59%. For graduate students, the grading scale
for this course is as follows: A = 90-100%, B = 80-89%, C = 70-79%, E = 0-69%. The course is not
graded on a “curve.”
Email Policy: You may always feel free to contact me via email. However, I do have a few general
guidelines you must follow when doing so. Always begin the subject line of an email to me with “PS
545:”. This will put your email into the appropriate inbox, allowing me to respond to your email in a timely
fashion. Emails that do not have “PS 545:” at the beginning of the subject line may not receive a
response. Also, emails are NOT text messages/IM communications. When emailing me you should open
the email by addressing me as Dr. Rice, identifying who you are and which course you are in (and at what
time the course meets), concisely providing the nature of your problem/request, and then signing off with
your name. If you have followed these directions, you may expect a response within 48 hours of its
receipt. If you have a pressing emergency, you should speak to me before or after class, ping me on
Twitter or contact me by phone. As a final note, I will NOT provide your grades (nor discuss any
personally-identifiable grade information) by email, Twitter or over the phone.
Twitter Policy: While I do not follow students on Twitter, I will always see Tweets sent using
@ricetopher or the course hashtag #ps545. I check Twitter often throughout the day and will generally
respond to Tweets within 24 hours. While Twitter is a more informal mode of communication, I still insist
that you treat me and other members of the class with respect when communicating via these channels,
just as you would during an in-class discussion. I will NOT provide your grades (nor discuss any
personally-identifiable grade information) by Twitter. Remember: messages sent to me on Twitter, using
the course hashtag are publicly available. If you need to speak to me about a private matter, please use
your University of Kentucky email account or speak with me face-to-face. If you have privacy concerns
with using Twitter, you DO NOT have to use your real name when creating an account. Simply create an
account with a username that cannot be connected to you and do not use your real name on the profile or
in your messages. Please let me know what username you will be using for the course so that I may note
it in the gradebook and give you credit for your work.
Office Hours: I will be scheduling several office hours each week, though the times and days for
these will vary as we find what works best for this class. I will provide an online calendar through which

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you may schedule appointments with me. You have the option of either coming to my office in 518 King at
that time to meet with me in person or meet with me using Skype or Google Hangout.
Excused Absences: The University defines the following as acceptable reasons for excused
absences: illness of the student or serious illness of a member of the student’s immediate family; death of
a member of the student’s immediate family; trips for members of student organizations sponsored by an
academic unit, trips for university classes and trips for participation in intercollegiate athletic events; major
religious holidays; any other circumstances which the instructor finds reasonable cause for
nonattendance. I reserve the right to require documentation for any excused absence. It is the student’s
responsibility to notify me before any absence if possible, but no later than one week following the
absence in any case. It is the student’s responsibility to provide proper documentation and notification in
all cases. See Student Rights and Responsibilities, Part II, Section 5.2.4.2
(http://www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/Code/part2.html) for UK’s policy on excused absences.
Late Assignments: University policy will be followed regarding all make-up exams and writing
assignments. Make-up exams and writing will only be allowed for excused absences. For definitions of
these terms, please consult the Student Rights and Responsibilities handbook.
A Brief Note on Cheating & Plagiarism and Academic Integrity:
Please see the home page for the Office of Academic Ombud Services (http://www.uky.edu/Ombud) for a
definition of plagiarism, how to avoid plagiarism and UK’s new academic offense policy. See also Student
Rights and Responsibilities, Part II, Section 6.3 (http://www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/Code/part2.html) for
UK’s policy on academic integrity.
Classroom and Learning Accommodations: If you have a documented disability
that requires academic accommodations, please see me as soon as possible during scheduled office
hours. In order to receive accommodations in this course, you must provide me with a Letter of
Accommodation from the Disability Resource Center (Room 2, Alumni Gym, 257‐2754, email address
jkarnes@email.uky.edu) for coordination of campus disability services available to students with
disabilities.
One Last Thing – Dropping the Course: Not that I hope you choose to leave our
little soiree, but there are a couple of dates you should keep in mind should the need arise. The last day
to drop this course without it appearing on your transcript is January 30, 2013. The last day to withdraw
from the course is April 5, 2013.
COURSE SCHEDULE:
NOTE: All items in the course schedule are subject to change at the discretion of the instructor. These
changes will be announced in class, by email or by Twitter. You are responsible for all announced
changes, so come to class and check email and the course hashtag on Twitter often.
A History of Intellectual Property, Copyright & Patent in American Political
Thought
January 11 – Boyle, Ch. 1 & Lessig, Ch. 1
January 14 – Benkler, Ch. 1
January 16 – Boyle, Ch. 2
January 18 – Lessig Ch. 2-4, Doctorow (Context), “The Copyright Thing” & “You Shouldn’t Have to Sell
Your Soul Just to Download Some Music”
January 23 – Benkler, Ch. 2

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January 25 – Boyle, Ch. 3, Lessig Ch.5
Legal, Political, Cultural & Technological Dimensions of Sharing
January 28 – Benkler Ch. 3
January 30 – Lessig, pp. 121-168
February 4 – Boyle, Ch. 4
Wrapping Up the Commons: DRM, DMCRA and Architectural Barriers to
Peer Production
February 6 – Boyle Ch. 5
February 8 – Doctorow (Content), selected essays:
• “Microsoft Research DRM Talk”
• “The DRM Sausage Factory”
• “Why is Hollywood Making a Sequel to the Napster Wars?”
• “How Do You Protect Artists?”
February 11 – Benkler Ch. 4
February 15 – Doctorow (video), “The Coming War on General Purpose Computation”
http://youtu.be/HUEvRyemKSg
The Political Economy of Property and the Commons
February 20 – Benkler, Ch. 5
February 22 – Benkler, Ch. 6
February 25, 27 – Benkler, Ch. 7
March 1 – Benkler, Ch. 8
March 4 – Benkler, Ch. 10
March 6 – Boyle Ch. 8
March 8 – Jaron Lanier, “You Are Not A Gadget” http://youtu.be/T5JZFx6rIlY and “How Not to Create a
Cyber Plutocracy” http://youtu.be/G1KObNG_Wnw
March 11-15 – SPRING BREAK – NO CLASSES
The Future(s) of the Internet
March 18 & 20 – Benkler, Ch. 11
March 22 – Zittrain Intro, Ch. 1 & 2
March 25 – Zittrain Ch. 3
April 1 – Zittrain Ch. 6 & 7
The Political Economy of 3D Printing and Robotics
April 3 – 3-D Printing I
• Rimmer (2012), “Inventing the Future: Intellectual Property and 3D Printing”
http://elgarblog.wordpress.com/2012/10/18/inventing-the-future-intellectual-property-and-3d-
printing-by-matthew-rimmer/
• Kostakis, Vasilis (2013), “At the Turning Point of the Current Techno-Economic Paradigm:
Commons-Based Peer Production, Desktop Manufacturing and the Role of Civil Society in the
Perezian Framework”
April 5 – 3-D Printing II
• Institute for the Future (2011) – The Future of Open Fabrication

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• Weinberg (2010), “It Will Be Awesome If They Don’t Screw It Up: 3D Printing, Intellectual
Property, and the Fight Over the Next Great Disruptive Technology”
April 8 – 3-D Printing III
• Rideout (2011), “Printing the Impossible Triangle: The Copyright Implications of Three-
Dimensional Printing”
• Doherty (2012), “Downloading Infringement: Patent Law as a Roadblock to the 3D Printing
Revolution”
April 10 – Robotics I
• Borenstein, Jason (2011) “Robots and the changing workforce.” AI & Society 26:87–93
• Joy (2000), “Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us”
• Cascio (2009), “Three Possible Economic Models (Part II)”
http://www.fastcompany.com/1339945/three-possible-economic-models-part-ii
April 12 – Robotics II
• Smith (2013), “The End of Labor: How to Protect Workers From the Rise of Robots”
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/01/the-end-of-labor-how-to-protect-workers-
from-the-rise-of-the-robots/267135/
• Kelley (2012) “Better Than Human: Why Robots Will — And Must — Take Our Jobs”
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/12/ff-robots-will-take-our-jobs/all/
Maker Culture and the Politics of Commons-Based Peer Production
April 15 – Doctorow (Makers), pp. 9-71

PS 545 Syllabus Spring 2013

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PS 545 Syllabus Spring 2013