Early History

Date: Fri, 26 Jan 1996 19:47:42 -0800 (PST)
From: Melanie Summit <summit@ocean.washington.edu>
To: Russ McDuff <mcduff@ocean.washington.edu>,
    Dean McManus <mcmanus@ocean.washington.edu>,
    Michael Martin <mpmartin@ocean.washington.edu>,
    Scott Veirs <scottv@ocean.washington.edu>
Subject: a course for spring?


I would like to organize a for-credit web seminar for next quarter that
would focus on designing interesting and useful lab group web pages in the
hope that the community (defined however you like it) would perceive us as
less lame.  Students participating in the class would each design and
implement pages that present their research (theirs specifically or that
done in their lab) as well as generate constructive criticism for each
others' pages.  Class sessions would not only be devoted to nuts and bolts
topics (what makes a good web page, programming in html, how to make web
pages accessible to people with all sorts of browsers, aesthetics of the
web) but also to effective communication: what audience should we be
targeting? what information is most useful or interesting to the general
public, and how should it be presented?  (Teetering on the fine edge of
philosophy: what does science owe society? what is science for?)

I envision a lot of interaction on the web outside of class, looking at
web pages already in place and putting page proposals and proto-pages on
the web for the rest of the class to critique.  I don't have a syllabus,
course outline, or anything much beyond the basic idea above.  I'd like 
to meet with people who think they would like to help plan/direct this 
course sometime after next week.

I would like to see this department give something back to the community,
and I think that this is a relatively painless and fun way for students to
participate.  I would like to make it a class because it will force people
to make the time commitment in advance and it may attract a greater
variety of students (though I'm mostly thinking about oceanography
students).  I don't know anything about the mechanics of a real
honest-to-god class; I know that a faculty-type is required.  Scott, Mike
and I could do all the real work, but we need someone to be official for
us.  Any takers? 

Mel