This course is organized as a series of studio sessions and discussions based on texts and on visual and aural media. I will provide a framing narrative. Beginning with the fifth week of class, each week a student will present their own work, both for its own sake and in terms of its relationship to the general theme of the class. The class discussion will emerge from that presentation. Try for unconventional presentation methods which require you to stretch your skill sets, and which are not necessarily based on digital skills or use of a ready-made computer. Take advantage of the ACTLab's technology-rich environment, but don't slight its performative space, lighting and sound capabilities, and opportunity for walk-through or installation pieces.

The success of the class depends upon what you bring to it. I rarely lecture; instead, I guide discussion. This approach has its risks as well as its rewards. Some days nothing happens. When we can't kickstart a discussion for whatever reason, rather than requiring all of us to sit and stare at each other, I will declare studio time or send you home. Other days the heavens open and Truth descends in a fiery chariot. It's unpredictable. Go figure.

The ACTLab prime directive is Make stuff - in our case, produce two projects that elucidate and exemplify course topics as we unpack them during the semester. This means one small preliminary work to be completed in six weeks and to be presented at midterm as proof of concept; and one large final work incorporating theory, novel uses of technology, ideas that emerge from our evolving class community, things you bring to our discussions from outside, and inspiration from guest performers and lecturers.

Your final work, besides being an exploration and/or refinement of your semester's theoretical studies, will be an original contribution to advanced work at the intersections of technology, art, and theory.

You will develop your skills using ACTLab principles of intensive discussion, conceptual freeplay, and intellectual daring. Working in the ACTLab's technology-rich environment, you will master cutting edge hardware and software with an eye toward new ways of representing your work. We encourage unconventional approaches, flexibility, and multidisciplinarity - not only for their intrinsic worth, but because multiple knowledge sets are what you need to thrive in an era of exponential change.

You will learn by study and example to translate your research into electromechanical devices, digital media, sound, movement, performance, interactive installation, and other dynamic modes of representation. You will also become a member of the ACTLab's international community of award-winning researchers, entrepreneurs, performers, artists, and scholars. You will share their advice and experience via ACTLab mailing lists, workshops,and personal encounters.

Below are the semester's three topics, together with suggested adjunct material. I encourage you to suggest your own additions. The actual day-to-day structure of the class will emerge from your presentations of your physical work, our discussions of the textual material and its relation to each of our work. This syllabus is preliminary in the sense that it will be developed and elaborated by our interactions during the first weeks of class.

Surreality:
Freud
Blood of a poet
Holly Lewis
Un Chien Andalou
Dreamstates and dream interpretation
Additional material linked to the class website www.actlab.us/schiz.

Schizophrenia: A thousand plateaus: capitalism and schizophrenia
Identity in Mashpee
Mimesis and Alterity
Persona
Stone

Both:
Last year at marienbad
Memento
Meshes of the Afternoon
Mulholland Drive

Transdisciplinarity:
We fill this in as we go.

Like all ACTLab courses, S/S/T is both theory and practice. There are no written exams. Instead you will use the theories and tools you acquire during the semester to make stuff about some aspect of our work. What you make can be in any form: sound, installation, video, computer animation, collage, sculpture, assemblage, performance, etc. .You will do this in stages, starting with simple projects and moving to more complex ones, using humor, irony, uncommon approaches, and bizarre techniques. We assume a high level of motivation on your part and your willingness to self-start, set your own goals, think independently, collaborate with others, seek help when you need it, and take risks.

Class is in studio and discussion format. This means that your active participation is a requirement of the course. During the semester I expect you to contribute your own ideas and arguments to the discussions, and to be willing to take the risks such contributions imply. On the last class day, you will present your final project for our own delight and instruction and for other interested students, faculty, and friends. Your grade is based to a large extent on this presentation.

Take risks! Amaze us! In ACTLab courses we assume a high level of motivation on your part and your willingness to self-start, set your own goals, think independently, collaborate with others, seek help when you need it, and take risks. Let's make it an interesting fall!

Readings and Resources: I try to provide as many resources as possible, but your best resource is always your own curiosity, and Google or Dogpile or AltaVista are your best tools. Experiment with keywords and see what happens. When you find something interesting, share it, either in person or via the class mailing list schiz@actlab.us.

Mailing list: Outside of class time we keep in touch via the class mailing list . Use it to swap ideas, ask questions, get and give alerts of schedule changes, share weird urls, and whatever else you can think of. Most of you are already subscribed to the list, but we didn't have email addresses for everyone. Be sure you are subscribed to the list.

Equipment: The ACTLab equipment (in cmb 4.110) is there for you to use, play with, and experiment with. A lot of it is state-of-the-art. Some of it is cranky. If you're interested in digital-fu, don't waste the opportunity to stretch your creative skills in the digital domain. We have computers, DJ turntables, mixer, quadraphonic sound system, and other stuff. We also have some gear that we haven't used yet, and we invite you to play with it and see what you can make it do.

Documentation requirement:

In addition to your project you must submit documentation, i.e., a thorough, articulate description, photographic record, and sound files of the project, in web-ready form, so we can link it to the ACTLab web page. Don't slight this step, because a spectacular web page significantly raises your visibility in the professional world of digital-fu. No grade will be issued until your web site is up and you have demonstrated that it's running properly. You have five days after the last class day to fulfill this requirement.

Experienced Labbies say: One of the worst mistakes you can make is to leave the documentation for the last minute! Start thinking about your web site from the very first class day. Keep notes about your ideas for it as well as ways of implementing those ideas using the skills you acquire during the semester, so you'll have a good supply of ideas as you build the page.

Films: We'll see a film every few weeks, but they aren't listed here. We'll choose them in class, based on what we think would be useful or interesting or fun or all of the above.

Grading:

Participation in discussion 25%
First project 15%
Final project 30%
Documentation 30%

Total 100%

How to get an A: Shortly there will be a link from the Resources page called How to get an A. It spells out, as clearly as I could manage, what the ACTLab emphasis is, because what I expect of you may be different from what you're used to having professors want you to do. Re-read "How to get an A" as often as you need to. I'll also remind you in class.

What I expect you to do for a reading assignment:

1. Do the reading!
2. When you come to something that intrigues or excites you, make a note about it.
3. When you come to something that puzzles you, make a note about it.
4. When you come to something that drives you up the wall, make a note about it.

Here's what I expect from you during discussion:

1. Ask or talk about the parts of the text that you made notes about.
2. Participate. Talk. Ask. Argue. Laugh. (some of the readings are ludicrous.) None of this stuff is holy, none of the opinions are cast in concrete.
3. Bring in stuff -- maybe text, maybe just stuff -- that you feel relates to the reading. Throw it on the table, say why it's there, and see what happens.
4. My main job during discussion is to listen. My role is to make an opening or framing statement to start from. I'll guide when necessary, and clarify tough points. Discussion time gives me my best sense of how you're thinking about the theoretical part of our work together.

Participation is a key to success in this class, and you can't participate in discussion in a real way unless you've done the reading. Consequently Rule Number One is: Do The Reading! There are things in some of the essays that you may not understand. Make notes about them. Then ask about them during discussion.

End of semester cleanup. You leave the ACTLab in the same condition in which you found it at the beginning of the semester. No grades will be issued until this requirement is fulfilled. If one person doesn't do their job, no one gets a grade -- i.e., all classes are responsible for the workspace and you are responsible for each other.

The Fine Print:

This syllabus is V.1.1. It may be updated from time to time as necessary.

Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. By accepting this syllabus, you have agreed to these guidelines and must adhere to them. Scholastic dishonesty damages both the student's learning experience and readiness for the future demands of a work-career. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. For more information on scholastic dishonesty, please visit the Student Judicial services Web site at http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/.

About services for students with disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.

About the Undergraduate Writing Center: The Undergraduate Writing Center, located in the FAC 211, phone 471-6222, offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis.

Warning: This class may include explicit representations of, or may advocate simulations of, one or more of the following: Nudity, satanism, suicide, sodomy, incest, bestiality, sadomasochism, adultery, murder, morbid violence, paedophilia, bad grammar, deviate sexual conduct in a violent context, the use of illegal drugs or alcohol, or offensive behavior. But then again, it may not. Should your sensibilities be offended at any time, you are free to leave the classroom without penalty provided that you notify either the instructor or teaching assistant when you do so.