FYS - 186 - Dystopian Fiction or Business Plan or With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility 

 
Fall 2019 
T - Th: 12:30am -1:45pm 
Hillside 101 
Professor: Rita Chesterton 
Email - ​ritachesterton@muhlenberg.edu 
Office: Hillside House: First office on Right 
Office Hours: T - Th 11am - 12:00pm and on request 
Tel: 484-664-3028 
 
Course description: 
As businesses develop and deploy new technologies we must keep in mind how our 
human values and ethics can help define their uses and misuses. The course will use modern 
dystopian film and short stories as a lens through which students can analyze the ethical 
implications for businesses that develop these technologies. Areas to be explored include 
artificial intelligence, privacy and surveillance, technology addiction, and genetic engineering. 
In addition to the fiction pieces, students will read academic texts and news articles to allow 
them to develop a thoughtful discourse on business ethics.   
 
Outline: 
 
Ethics overview: 
- What is ethics? 
- What is business ethics? 
- Why is a consideration of ethics necessary when discussing businesses that use 
new technologies? 
 
Addiction: 
- How/Why do businesses design addiction into products?  
- Does doing so violate ethical standards of behavior? 
 
Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning: 
- What is AI and Machine learning? 
- How do human biases come in to play when designing AI systems? 
- What are the risks/ benefits to society of AI? 
 
Privacy and Surveillance: 
- What do businesses know about you? Why do they collect this data? 
- What are the ethical implications of a lack of digital privacy? 
 
Genetics & Genetic Engineering: 
- Who should determine the ethics of genetic engineering? 
 - What are the risks/ benefits of genetic engineering? 
- Should private companies be able to have control over our genetic material? 
 
 
 
What are First-Year Seminars?  
First-Year Seminars are small, discussion-oriented courses that introduce students to 
what it means to think deeply, to talk, read and write critically about ideas. Required of all 
first-year students, First-Year Seminars provide the opportunity to work closely with a faculty 
member and to read and write about a topic in depth. Taught by faculty from departments 
throughout the College, seminars vary in subject. Some examine a topic from an 
interdisciplinary perspective; others focus on particular issues within a discipline. What all 
First-Year Seminars share is an emphasis on writing and thinking critically about the values and 
assumptions underlying various approaches to knowledge. All First-Year Seminars are 
designated writing-intensive, and therefore, they require frequent writing and reading. 
Seminars teach students how to formulate a thesis and develop an argument or an 
interpretation. In addition, students learn how to collect, evaluate and cite evidence that 
supports and qualifies a thesis. With the help of the professor’s comments on preliminary 
drafts, students also learn how to revise their work. (From the Muhlenberg FYS brochure) 
 
What to expect in this seminar: 
My goal is to turn you into confident college-level writers. To that end, although the 
course is about business, ethics, and technology, it is really about writing. We have to write 
about something, and this is an incredibly interesting topic. We are also going to be exploring 
how to read with a purpose. Much of our class time will be spent discussing what we have 
read, analyzing the text. This is not always easy, we will work on it together.  
 
Contacting the Professor -  
 
1. You can stop by my office hours. 
2. If you cannot make those hours, please contact me via email and let me know when you 
are available to meet. I have time to meet students outside of office hours, but I am 
often in and out of my office. If you make an appointment I will be there. It makes my 
life much easier if you give me several dates and times to choose from in your email.  
3. I will try to respond to your emails as promptly as possible, and typically do so right 
away during normal business hours. If you email in the evening or on weekends, I may 
not reply right away.  
 
Needed for Class -  
 
You must bring with you every day to class (in addition to any assigned readings) a 
3-ring binder with loose leaf paper and something to write with.  
 
Assigned Readings​ – 
Assigned readings are to be done ​before​ the beginning of each class. Note the dates 
that readings are due on Canvas. You will be expected to have finished the readings before 
that date. We will frequently be working directly with the text so it is imperative that you not 
just read it, but that you read it for understanding. We will be working on strategies to help you 
with this throughout the course. ​Please print out all readings to bring to class.  
 
Shows/Film: 
 
We will also be screening films and TV shows in class. If you are absent on a screening 
day, you need to make arrangements to make up the screening.  
 
Course Participation -  
You are expected to participate fully in all discussions and in-class activities. 10% of 
your grade for this course is based upon your class participation. Participation includes 
completing readings, actively participating in assigned activities, participating in free-writes 
and participating in class dialogues.  
 
Technology in Class - 
You are welcome to bring any technology into the classroom that you feel will assist 
with your learning process. That being said, I reserve the right at any time to ask any or all 
students to put away their technological devices during portions of the course. Please be 
respectful digital citizens.  
Sometimes you will be allowed to write on your laptop and sometimes I will ask you to 
write on paper. Always bring both to class. 
Please print out and bring in copies of course readings rather than relying on a digital 
copy.   
 
Timeliness of Assignments​ -  
All assignments are due at the dates/ time listed in Canvas. If assignments are late your 
grade will be affected. You will receive a reduction of 10% for each day late up to 20% off. 
Assignments more than 48 hours late will not be accepted, no exceptions.  
Please make sure to double check the specific time during the day that an assignment is 
due.  
 
Submission of Assignments​ - 
I only allow submission of papers through Canvas. I will not accept any assignments via 
email or on paper, this includes if you “incorrectly” submit the wrong version of your 
assignment on Canvas. Those writings that we complete in class on paper can be turned in by 
hand.  
 
Canvas -  
 Canvas is the official course schedule. All due dates in this syllabus are subject to 
possible modification if needed. Always check canvas for latest dates.  
 
Respect for Student Diversity: 
 
I am a firm believer that our greatest strength as a class can be found in our diversity. It 
is my intent to present materials and activities that are respectful of diversity: gender identity, 
sexuality, disability, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, nationality, religion, and culture. 
I will do my best to foster an atmosphere that respects all worldviews that are expressed in 
class. We may discuss topics that evoke strong emotions. If anything is ever said in the 
classroom, either by myself or other students, that causes discomfort please let me know. If 
you do not feel comfortable coming to me directly, I encourage you to seek out another more 
comfortable avenue (Dean of Students, peer, other faculty member) who can reach out to me 
and we can hopefully resolve the issue through dialogue. It is important that we have an 
environment of trust and respect in which we can listen to each other and learn.  
 
Writing Assistant: 
You will be receiving a separate information sheet regarding our writing assistant, 
Moshe Forman. You must meet with Moshe at least three times during the semester. Please 
refer to his information sheet regarding these meetings. Failing to meet with the writing 
assistant as required will result in a reduction of your class participation grade.  
 
Attendance -  
In order to succeed in this course you must attend classes. I will be taking attendance. 
Arrival to class more than 10 minutes late twice constitutes one absence. You are only 
permitted TWO unexcused absences during the semester. Please note this policy. Your final 
grade for the semester will be dropped for each unexcused absence. So if you have 3 
unexcused absence your grade will drop, for example, from an A- to a B+. Attendance will also 
be counted into your class participation.  
 
Weight of Assignments -  
 
Class Participation including in-class writing assignments - 10% 
Paper #1 (5-7 pages) - 25% 
Paper #2 (5-7 pages) - 30% 
Paper #3 (5-7 pages) - 35% 
 
Grade Scale -  
Letter Grade Percentage Points  
A+  100 – 97  
A  96.9 – 93  
A-  92.9 – 90  
B+  89.9 – 87  
B  86.9 – 83  
B-  82.9 – 80  
C+  79.9 – 77 
C  76.9 – 73  
 
Assignments and Due Dates 
 
All assignment details will be posted on Canvas, including rubrics.  
 
Misc. Course Related Information 
 
Course Unit Instruction 
 
This class is scheduled to meet for 2.5 hours of classroom instruction time per week. 
Additional activities for this course meetings with the writing assistant. These activities will add 
an additional 10 hours of instruction.  
 
Students with disabilities 
 
Students with disabilities requesting classroom or course accommodations must 
complete a multi-faceted application/approval process through the Office of Disability 
Services prior to the development and implementation of an Accommodation Plan. Each 
Accommodation Plan is individually and collaboratively developed with the Directors or staff 
of the following Departments, as appropriate: Office of Counseling Services, Student Health 
Services, and the Office of Disability Services. If you have not already done so, please contact 
the appropriate Department to have a dialogue regarding your academic needs and the 
recommended accommodations, auxiliary aides, and services. 
 
The Academic Integrity Code (AIC)​. 
 
  Students are expected to know and abide by the AIC and will be held accountable for 
their adherence to the code in this course by faculty, administration and fellow students. The 
AIC is printed in full in the Student Handbook. For the purposes of each student’s development 
and understanding in this course most written assignments will be completed individually. I 
encourage sharing ideas about assignments with your classmates, while ensuring that the final 
product is a result of your individual efforts, incorporating what you learned from collaborating 
with others, but not duplicating another’s work. Within the context of group work that this 
course requires, only the names of the contributing group members should appear on any 
assignment. If a group member has not significantly participated in the creation of the project 
or assignment, including their name on the final product will be viewed as a violation of the 
AIC.  
 
Financial Hardships 
 If you are experiencing financial hardship, have difficulty affording groceries or 
accessing sufficient food to eat every day or do not have a safe and stable place to live, and 
believe this may affect your performance in this course, I would urge you to contact our CARE 
Team through the Dean of Students Office for support. Their website is 
www.muhlenberg.edu/main/aboutus/deanst/careteam/. You may also discuss your concerns 
with me if you are comfortable doing so.  
 
 
Technology 
 
The Office of Information Technology (OIT), provides free technical support for all 
students who may be experiencing issues with their computers or other devices such as mobile 
phones. Free services include: answers to general computing questions; virus and spyware 
removal; file recovery and reloads of operating systems (using your licensed DVDs); 
configuration of mobile devices for Berg WiFi and/or email; and printer setup with support 
(excluding wireless printers). Desktop Repair Services, also part of OIT, offers warranty repair 
as a free service on specific computer models. Desktop Repair Services can also perform out of 
warranty repairs for a quotable fee. 
 
The Student Help Desk is located in Ettinger 003 and is open Monday through Friday from 8 
AM to 5 PM and on the weekends as student worker’s academic schedules permit. Email 
helpdesk@muhlenberg.edu or call 484-664-3375.   
 
*** Please note that having a computer serviced at the Help Desk is not an excuse for missing 
assignments or official College communication via email. ***