171D. social information spaces is a studio/production course where students design, implement and analyze both online and physical spaces. its focus is social software such as email, newsgroups, weblogs, social network-based search engines (e.g., google) and social networking sites like facebook, youtube, and flickr. we will consider the demise of public space in this country and consider how software might be designed to help address this problem. in particular we will study the structure and social dynamics of cafes to determine if the introduction of laptops, wireless networks, and mobile phones can be employed to invigorate, rather than silence, public discussion and exchange in the cafes. students will do a series of design and analysis exercises at the beginning of the term, write a proposal for a final project and then spend the final couple weeks implementing their proposal for a digital art work to be installed in a social space.
