Evolving Systems Course: PGnotes1

Making sense of ourselves in an evolving universe

Paul's notes - Session 1

Course subject: evolution (physical, biological, cultural, individual)

Course method: co-evolution, co-constructive inquiry, evolving by telling/hearing each other's stories, using them to create new ones, individually and collectively = co-constructive dialogue

Course arrangements (see course home page):

• Reading assignments for Thursday discussions
• Writing assignments due by 6 pm Wednesdays, emailed to pgrobste@brynmawr.edu
• Forum commentary on previous week's discussions due by Monday evening (engage each other and world)
• Biweekly individual meetings (sign ups on Thursday)
• In bookstore: Truth About Stories, Parable of the Sower, Logicomix, Pocket Manual of Style
• From esem program: Writing with Sources (see Plagiarism, intellectual property, and creative story construction)
• Grades (least interesting form of co-construction) based on engagement with class, essay and forum writing, portfolio with own evaluation turned in at end of semester

Serendip arrangements:

• Public co-constructive inquiry
• Serendip registration to establish user name, password
• Choices re user name, image, using Word
• Always sign in to Serendip before posting in course forum

Getting started: finding out who we are now

• Serendip, Paul Grobstein, Anne Dalke, Evolving Systems Project
• You?  Who are you?  What makes you valuably different from everyone else here? 

Getting started: stories and where they come from

• Brain drain

Getting started: stories and their evolution through, among other things, co-constructive inquiry

• For Thursday, go to the course forum, briefly introduce yourself, include a link to a creation story that appeals to you
• For Thursday, read quickly through Thomas King's The Truth About Stories: A Native Narrative