ASS330 - Cyborg Anthropology
| Year: | 2027 unit information |
|---|---|
| Enrolment modes: | Trimester 2: Burwood (Melbourne), Waurn Ponds (Geelong), Online |
| Credit point(s): | 1 |
| EFTSL value: | 0.125 |
| Prerequisite: | Nil |
| Corequisite: | Nil |
| Incompatible with: | Nil |
| Study commitment: | Students will on average spend 150-hours over the teaching period undertaking the teaching, learning and assessment activities for this unit. |
| Scheduled learning activities - campus: | 1 x 1-hour on-campus lecture per week 1 x 1-hour on-campus seminar per week |
| Scheduled learning activities - online: | 1 x 1-hour online lecture per week (recordings provided) 1 x 1-hour online seminar per week |
Content
In the 1960s, the term "cyborg" was coined to describe a future in which humans might be made up of both biological and human-made parts. But, on reflection, perhaps we were already cyborgs? Global telecommunication systems mediate our relationships. Radiation and pharmaceuticals affect our environments and bodies. Microplastics are in our bloodstreams. Maybe humans and human societies have actually been a blend of the biological and technological for much longer than we typically imagine.
In this unit, students will be introduced to anthropological perspectives that engage these issues. What do new technological discoveries and our interactions with technologies tell us about human beings of today? How are human beings and their potential imagined in the digital age? How are human values and priorities embedded in the technologies that are shaping our futures? This course will open up new and exciting ways of thinking about the nature of human beings in the context of rapid technological and cultural change, as well as asking how human experiences of love, death, culture, gender, identity, community, the body, environment, work and leisure are being transformed in the context of new technologies.
Cyborg anthropology is about the world-transforming event of modern technological development. It is about the new human beings that we are always becoming.
Unit fee information
Fees and charges vary depending on the type of fee place you hold, your course, your commencement year, the units you choose to study and their study discipline, and your study load.
Tuition fees increase at the beginning of each calendar year and all fees quoted are in Australian dollars ($AUD). Tuition fees do not include textbooks, computer equipment or software, other equipment or costs such as mandatory checks, travel and stationery.
For further information regarding tuition fees, other fees and charges, invoice due dates, withdrawal dates, payment methods visit our Current Students website.
Hurdle requirements
To be eligible to obtain a pass in this unit, students must achieve an overall mark of at least 50% in assessment task 1, Group seminar presentation and assessment 2, Visual project on digital life to evidence a minimum proficiency in the aligned discipline learning outcomes included in this unit.