WEEK 0

September 26

Introduction.
Discussion of Projects.
Borland Preview.
Videos:

• Karl Sims Evolved Virtual Creatures.
• USC's Institute for Creative Technologies.

September 28

Introduction.
Discussion of Projects.
Borland Preview.
Game of Life.
Video:

• VPRO Amsterdam

Challenge 0 - Wator

WEEK 1

October 1

Space

Video:

• VPRO Amsterdam

Borland - Once over lightly.
Game of Life.
Planet Wator.
Handouts...

October 3

Defense Threat Reduction Agency

More on Borland, C++ and Wator.

Video:

• VPRO Amsterdam

October 5

More on Borland, C++ and Wator.

Video:

• Galapagos
• Karl Sims

WEEK 2

October 8

Color

Videos:

• VPRO Amsterdam

Challenge 1 - Color

October 10

Color

Wator Progress:

• Tim
• Dave
• Rizwan

October 12

Wator Progress:

• Lonnie

Diffusion Limited Aggregation

Video:

• VPRO Amsterdam

Challenge 2 - Wator or Aggregation

WEEK 3

October 15

• Neighborhoods
• .bmp format
• .ico format
• codes

October 17

• Demos
• Graphics Commands
• Arrowhead

Cellular Automata

• Fredkin
• Mirek
• Draves

October 19

Cryptography - NSA Kid's Page
Crypto - Bletchley Park - Devices

Video:

• VPRO Amsterdam
• Nightline
• Mission Rehearsal Exercise
• Minsky in Nara

Challenge 3 - 13th Floor

WEEK 4

October 22

• Demos Adriana...
• Traveling Salesman Problem
• Files You Need to Keep

October 24

Film:

• The Thirteenth Floor

October 26

• Demos from Ruth and Tim
• Class Projects Discussion
• TSP Representation
• Social Science Readings:
  Minsky and Forrester

Challenge 4 - Traveling Salesman

WEEK 5

October 29

• The Thirteenth Floor
• Demo from Tim and Lonnie
• Class Projects Discussion
• TSP Search Strategies
  Project Files On-Line in WIP page
• More Social Science Readings:
  Minsky and Epstein/Axtell

October 31

• Demos? X-29.
• Mutation Algorithms
  • Reverse
  • Shuffle
  • Rotate
  • Permute
  • Sort
  • might also look at vallarray
• Robofest, Osaka
• Minsky and Epstein/Axtell

November 2

• An Evolutionary TSP
• Demo from Jeff Shih
• Lego Mindstorms
• Marc Davis Lecture

Challenge 5 - Project Pre-Presentation

WEEK 6

November 5

• JASSS
• The Sims Take On Al Qaeda (Dave)
• The CTP aka TSP

November 7

• Artificial Culture
• Ethnography of Artificial Culture
• Skeuomorphs and Cultural Algorithms
• readings in review

Networks to Nanosystems - Design | Media Arts

November 9

Lego

TSP

Challenge 6 - Sharks & Herrings

WEEK 7

November 14

Instructor will be at the ICT today.

Class will please attend the
9/11 - N2N Conference session on
Nanotechnology and Culture
taking place from 9 'til noon
UCLA, Design | Media Arts
EDA (Experimental Digital Arts) auditorium
Located at 1473 Dickson Art Center
North Campus, UCLA

November 16

• Dave on "Cops and Rioters"

Pre-Presentations:

• Lonnie
• Fred
• George

25 Lego RCX Microcontrollers Ordered...

Challenge 7 - Nanotechnology & Culture

WEEK 8

November 19

• Participatory Simulations
• A short history of computational devices with some show-and-tell examples:
  • Mechanical, Electrical, Electronic
  • Analog, Digital
• Handout on Mechanical Computation

November 21

ASSIGNMENT 1: Since we won't be meeting on campus this day, I would like you to physically visit the "Devices of Wonder" exhibition at the Getty Museum and write a short essay on what you see.

Consider the evolution of the technologies that you see. How were they combined, how might they have been combined, how could they still be combined, to represent and compute the complexities of society. Think creatively.

November 23
Thanksgiving Holiday

Challenge 8 - Lego RCX Bricks

WEEK 9

November 26

• Grading based on "the curve." Please confirm to me by email your:
  • Participation
  • 10 Challenges
  • 2 Assignments
  • Course Project
  • Class Participation
• Book buyback.
• Computational Colloquium (Penny).
• Review of the paradigms of Artificial Societies and Artificial Culture.
• Scheduling Project Presentations.

November 28

ASSIGNMENT 2: Read three articles by Gessler which explain a research design for Artificial Culture and its epistemological basis. Write a critique of one article from the Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulations from the perspective of Artificial Culture.

Instructor will be presenting at the:
American Anthropological Association Meetings, Washington, D.C.

November 30

ASSIGNMENT 2: Read three articles by Gessler which explain a research design for Artificial Culture and its epistemological basis. Write a critique of one article from the Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulations from the perspective of Artificial Culture.

Instructor will be presenting at the:
American Anthropological Association Meetings, Washington, D.C.

Challenge 9 - Fall Computational Colloquium

WEEK 10

December 3

• Coffee and Cookies
• Project Presentations

Robo-sapiens (courtesy of Dave)

December 5

• Coffee and Cookies
• Project Presentations

Center for the Study of the Evolution and Origin of Life
CSEOL Library, 5:30 - 8:30 pm Our own Harry Jerison (Prof. Emeritus, Psychology and Biobehavioral Science, UCLA) "A Report on the Barcelona Colloquium on the Evolution of the Human Brain and Language." RSVP to: Andy Czaja

December 7

• Class will please attend the
  Fall Computational Colloquium.
  This is Challenge #9.
• Instructor will be in Sidney today.
• Last Day of Classes

December 10

no final

December 12

no final

December 14

no final
quarter ends