Read and present a web-related essay or book chapter. You can choose your own or choose from the list below:

• "As We May Think" by Vannevar Bush (Atlantic Monthly).
• "The Curse of Xanadu" by Gary Wolf (wired.com).
• "The Future of Hypertext" by Jakob Nielsen, February 1995 (useit.com).
• "Cautious Cars and Cantankerous Kitchens: How Machines Take Control" from The Design of Future Things by Donald Norman; Basic Books; 2007; ISBN-10: 0465002277.
• "Google is Making You Dumber" online debate between Jakob Nielsen and David Alan Grier (at BusinessWeek.com).
• "Writing for the Web" by Jakob Nielsen.
• Chapter One of Paper Prototyping: The Fast and Easy Way to Design and Refine User Interfaces by Carolyn Snyder; Morgan Kaufmann; 2003; ISBN-10: 1558608702.
• "Beyond the Browser" by Jakob Nielsen (eweek.com).
• Chapter One and Chapter Two of Sketching User Experiences: Getting the Design Right and the Right Design by Bill Buxton; Morgan Kaufmann; 2007; ISBN: 978-0-12-374037-3.
• "Being Analog" originally published as Chapter Seven of "The Invisible Computer" by Donald Norman.
• "Interface Design" Chapter 9 of Getting Real by 37Signals.
• "Chapter 11: Turn Signals Are the Facial Expressions of Automobiles" by Donald Norman.

Your presentation should take approximately 15 minutes and allow for a question/discussion period of 5 minutes. You may use the digital projector for visual support.

You should present the material in your own words, making use of quotations from the article from time to time.

Email me ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for topic approval and to add your name to the time slot below. Time slots are alloted on a first come-first served basis.

Presentations will take place on March 4 and March 11. You MUST attend both sessions. Your absence from class on these days will result in a zero for the Attendance portion of your final grade.

March 4

March 11