DAILY ASSIGNMENTS
Note: bulleted assignments are due on the date immediately above the bulleted list.
Wednesday, August 30, 2023
- First class.
Friday, September 1, 2023
- Read the instructions and complete the Contact Information handout.
- Read the instructions and complete the Student Contract handout.
- Read and mark the following selections Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page:
- “How to Really Read This Book"
- "A Brief Introduction to Science Fiction and Its History"
- [skim only, no need to mark] "A Selective Guide to Science Fiction Research"
- from The War of the Worlds—H.G. Wells
- "A Martian Odyssey" –Stanley G. Weinbaum
- "The Fact of Blackness"—Frantz Fanon
Monday, September 4, 2023
- No Class (Labor Day)
Tuesday, September 5, 2023
- No Class: We do not meet on Tuesdays.
- Last day to add without signature.
Wednesday, September 6, 2023
- Read and mark "Liar!"—Isaac Asimov (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
- Watch and take notes on Blade Runner (Final Cut). You can see where it is legally streaming here.
Friday, September 8, 2023
- Read and mark "Burning Chrome"—William Gibson (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Monday, September 11, 2023
- Read and mark "A Cyborg Manifesto"—Donna J. Haraway (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).WARNING: This text is going to challenge you and will require multiple nights to complete. Start on Friday night. This is a 10-point reading.
Wednesday, September 13, 2023
- Read and mark "Second Variety" by Philip K. Dick (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Friday, September 15, 2023
- Read and mark “When I Was Miss Dow” (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Monday, September 18, 2023
- Scholarly Article Analysis Project: read and mark Lisa Yaszek’s “Of Fossils and Androids: (Re)Producing Sexual Identity in ‘Jurassic Park’ and "’Blade Runner’" and then complete the questions found on the template document in the Scholarly Article Analysis Project instructions. (20 points)
Tuesday, September 19, 2023
- No Class: We do not meet on Tuesdays.
- Last day to drop without signature.
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
- Read and mark selection From Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
- Withdrawal without signature period starts.
Friday, September 22, 2023
- Read and mark "The Girl Who Was Plugged In" (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Monday, September 25, 2023
- Read and mark "The Algorithms for Love" by Ken Liu (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
- Read and mark "Mars Is Heaven!"—Ray Bradbury (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
- Read and mark "Bloodchild"—Octavia E. Butler (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Friday, September 29, 2023
- Midterm Exam Quotation Assignment Due. Submit to “Midterm Quotations” Assignment.
Monday, October 2, 2023
- Draft of Paper #1 due. Post a copy in the "Paper #1: Draft" Discussion Board topic. Posting is worth five points.
- We will have a workshop on your drafts today worth 20 points. You must attend class with a completed draft printed for a partner to read to get those points. Incomplete drafts will be prorated, but it is better to come with a partial draft than to skip class.
- If you had an accommodations letter sent to me, please send me an email to remind me that you will need extra time on the midterm exam so I can make arrangements.
Wednesday, October 4, 2023
- Read and mark Orson Scott Card’s “Ender’s Game” (the original short story version, not the novel, available online).
Friday, October 6, 2023
- Read and mark Robert Silverberg’s “Passengers” (see course documents).
- Read and mark "How the World Was Saved" by Stanislaw Lem (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Monday, October 9, 2023
- No class.
- Final draft of Paper #1 due by noon in the “Paper 1: Final Draft (Graded)” in Assignments and the “Paper 1: Final Draft (Discussion Board)” option. See checklist for details.
Wednesday, October 11, 2023
- Midterm Exam, Part 1 (Identifications: use the Midterm Quotation Guide to help you study)
Friday, October 13, 2023
Monday, October 16, 2023
- Read and mark "Ideology and Terror: A Novel Form of Government"—Hannah Arendt (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page). This non-fiction theoretical piece is a bit challenging.
Wednesday, October 18, 2023
- Read and mark "'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman"—Harlin Ellison (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Friday October 20, 2023
- Please arrange to view Gattaca. You can see where Gattaca is legally streaming here. Take notes that will serve as your reading check for the film.
Monday, October 23, 2023
- Read and mark Section 1, Chapters 1-8 of 1984. Pages 1-106.
Wednesday, October 25, 2023
- Read and mark Section 2 of 1984. Pages 107-230.
Friday, October 27, 2023
- Finish reading and marking 1984. Pages 231-308.
- Read the final essay in 1984, "The Principles of Newspeak.”
Monday, October 30, 2023
- Read and mark pages 3-115 of The Handmaid's Tale. ("I: Night" until "VIII Birthday").
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
- Read and mark pages 109-195 of The Handmaid's Tale ("VIII Birthday" until "XII: Jezebel's").
- Withdrawal without signature period ends.
Thursday, November 2, 2023
- No class: we don’t meet on Thursdays.
- Withdrawal with faculty signature period starts.
Friday, November 3, 2023
- Finish reading and marking pages 199-211 of The Handmaid's Tale ("XII: Jezebel's" through the end of the "Historical Note").
Monday, November 6, 2023
- Read and mark Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five (Chapters 1-4, pages 1-86).
Wednesday, November 8, 2023
- Read and mark Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five (Chapters 5-6, pages 87-157).
Friday, November 10, 2023 (Revised 11/6
- Read and mark Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five (Chapters 7-10, pages 162-215). You will finish the novel for today.
- We will discuss our second paper, which requires research.
Monday, November 13, 2023 (Revised 11/6)
- No Class: Dr. Halbert has a medical appointment.
- Read and mark chapters 1-6 of Watchmen. Since the text is a graphic novel, I suggest using large Post-it notes so that you do not have to cover up the pictures that are as much a part of the text as the words.
Wednesday, November 15, 2023
- Read and mark the rest of Watchmen.
Friday, November 17, 2023
- Please arrange to watch and take notes on The Matrix. You can see where it is currently streaming for legal viewing here.
- Withdrawal with faculty signature period ends
Saturday November 18, 2023
- No class: we do not meet on Saturdays.
- Withdrawal after deadline period starts and runs to the end of the semester. Withdrawals require approval from Academic Affairs after this point.
Monday, November 20, 2023
- Library Orientation. We will meet in the library: check announcements for specific location.
- Post a half-page description of one or two topics you are considering for Paper #2 that requires library research. Indicate the author, text, and overall topic about the text. Copy and paste AND attach the description to the “Research Paper Topics” Discussion Board Topic.
- Attendance counts double today.
Wednesday, November 22, 2023
- No class. Thanksgiving Break.
Friday, November 24, 2023
- No class. Thanksgiving Break.
Monday, November 27, 2023
- Read and mark “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes (available in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
Wednesday, November 29, 2023 (Updated 11/6)
- Library Research Day. Bring your laptop if you have one to facilitate looking up information.
- Dr. Halbert will not be in attendance as he has an appointment with a medical specialist. Please take a selfie in the library and upload it to the "Attendance for 11/29" assignment.
Friday, December 1, 2023
- Annotated Bibliography Due at 9:35 AM. Post a copy to the "Research Paper: Bibliography" Discussion Board Topic and submit a copy to the "Annotated Bibliography" Assignment. You should look at the Sample Annotated Bibliography.
- Two-Minute presentation on your paper topic.
Monday, December 4, 2023
- Draft of Paper #2 Due. Post a copy and bring two copies to class. This draft will be graded out of 20 points for a complete paper with a works cited page (and not just a copy of the annotated bibliography) attached. It is better to come with a page or two than to skip class.
- If you had an accommodations letter sent to me, please send me an email to remind me that you will need extra time on the final exam on December 13th so I can make arrangements.
Wednesday, December 6, 2023
- Second Exam Quotation Assignment. Post a copy to the “Quotations for Final” Assignment. Make sure to use the template linked in the instructions: don’t just copy and paste.
- Read and mark Chapters 1-13 of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Friday, December 8, 2023
- Finish reading and marking The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Monday, December 11, 2023
- Read and mark “The Star” by Arthur C. Clarke (Found in the “Files” section of our Canvas page).
- Last day of all 15-week classes.
- It is always a good idea to attend the final meeting of every one of your classes.
Wednesday, December 13, 2023
- Final Exam: Sci-Fi (8AM to 10AM in our normal classroom).
- Make sure you prepare your Exam Card.
- Today is the last day to resolve any outstanding grade issues.
Friday, December 15, 2023
- No class: the final exam was our last time together.
- Paper #2 Final Draft due by 10 AM. See checklist for both posting locations.
Monday, December 18, 2023
- No Class: the course is over.
- The optional Major Paper Rewrite of Paper #1 is due today by 10AM. There will be no extensions. Please email a copy of the MS Word file directly to Dr. Halbert and post the MS Word File to the “Major Paper Rewrite” assignment on Canvas.
Wednesday, December 20, 2023
- No class: the course is over.
- Grades (15-week Courses) due from Faculty to Registrar by 11:59 PM
End of Semester Reminders:
- Attend the final meeting of all your classes.
- Check your Montco email and Canvas announcements every day until Dr. Halbert says the grades are posted.
- Don’t email Dr. Halbert to see if the grades are done: he will announce when he is done.
- Do check your gradebook on Canvas during the exams to see individual assignment grades as they are entered.
- If there is a problem with a graded assignment, please email Dr. Halbert immediately.