Content Creator Studio with Dan Shiffman
This studio course introduces students to the culture and practice of so-called “content” creation, questioning what it even means to call everything content. Students bring their own production skills and interests to develop and refine a personal approach to making work for online audiences. Through short exercises and small-group collaborations, students will experiment with formats (a TV recap podcast, a how-to tutorial, a video essay, a “let’s play” live stream, vertical, horizontal, long, short, and more) and consider how different platforms shape creative possibilities and constraints. Guest speakers will share their experiences working in the “creator industry.” For the final project, students will propose and produce an initial installment or pilot of their own ongoing “show” or creative series.
Open Source Studio with Dan Shiffman (7W1; 2 credits)
This studio course introduces students to the culture and practice of open source. Through short exercises and discussions, students will learn about technical development, community, and version control for open source. Students will propose and make a modest contribution to an existing open source project or release an early version of their own tool, library, or other open source project. The ml5.js project will serve as an example and option for participation for those interested in contributing to an active open source community.
Electronics for Inventors with Pedro (4)
Today we no longer solely connect to the digital world through computers. The result of this push to connect the digital and the analog world is the increase necessity for low cost, low power, and self-contained electronics. This course is an applications-driven intro to electronics for inventors. Through a hands-on approach students will learn basic concepts about analog circuits, boolean logic, digital devices interfaces, and low-cost code-free electronics. Topics will include basic principles of electricity, as well as understanding of electronics components such as resistors, capacitors, diodes, transistors, audio amplifiers, and timers.