February 12

This Week's Goals
In the next week, this is what we need to accomplish:

• Finish discussion of Drucker/Pollan with a view to writing the next draft
• Turn in rough draft and do peer revision
• Begin discussion of Susan Blackmore

I'll provide some direction in a moment to re-focus our Pollan/Drucker discussion. As for peer revision, I am open to suggestions on how all of you want to approach that. If I don't get any input, I will again assign peer revision groups and will provide a sheet for people to work with. Expect all that on Thursday.

Paper One
I'm in the process of grading the first paper. Expect to have that back on Thursday. On Thursday, I'll also post global comments that reflect on common problems I see in papers .

Drucker/Pollan
In the forum, we've touched on a number of important issues brought up by these two essays: the mobility of knowledge, the role of schools, the place of race in a knowledge society, and more. That's a great start, but noe we need to focus the discussion in ways that will help us write in response to the assignment for paper two.

So let's start by thinking about what the assignment is asking you to do. It's central concern seems to be about the responsibility of knowledge for its social and economic impacts. Notice, first off, that it's not about Drucker/Pollan directly. That is, I want us to break out of the "compare/contrast" mode that azhelen noticed in the formula. Instead, the question asks you to think about a larger issue (the role of knowledge in society, one might say) and to speak to that issue using these texts.

And what does that mean? Well, some questions around the issue may help you start thinking about this:

• Drucker seems to valorize the knowledge society as one of immense mobility and opportunity for knowledge workers. But what's the downside of this society, and how can we see it illustrated by Pollan?
• Drucker says we need to think about "economic impact statement" just as we have environmental impact statements. Could such a concept help us to resolve the problems that Pollan has with New Leaf potatoes?
• Drucker ends his essay with a problem: the need for sociala nd political innovation in the knowledge society. Does Pollan suggest a solution to this problem? Does he illustrate the need?
• How does Pollan's description of the various kinds of farmers and workers challenge Drucker's description of the knowledge society?

And here are some sample projects:

• Although the knowledge society provides new opportunities through the economy of knowledge, it has also has new responsibilities for workers excluded from knowledge work. The social effects of knowledge can be seen in Pollan's essay.
• Pollan is concerned with the environmental responsibility of Monsanto; however, his essay also illustrates the ways in which companies must consider the economic impact of knowledge in today's society.

The Challenge for You Now
The challenge here is that our sense of what a project is, and how it is like or unlike an argument, is newborn. The question for paper two is big, overarching, and perhaps for that reason a little amorphous. I have a packet on project at the office. I'll send it out tomorrow morning to help us think about hwo to get a handle on this.

What To Do Next
Try to get this done as soon as you can, and by Thursday if possible:

1. Make suggestions for how you want to handle peer revision. See forum thread: "Peer Revision Ideas."
2. I'll be sending out a packet on project tomorrow. Look it over as soon as you can.
3. Post your project for class comment in the thread "Projects for Paper Two."
4. Continue Drucker discussion in whatever ways you want.