The Data Science & Society Lab (STS 3440) is a hands-on, project-based course at Cornell University that explores how data science and society shape each other.
With the emergence of the field of data science comes an expansion of tools, professions, infrastructures, and ways of thinking about knowledge. The next generation will need a firm grasp on the practices and values implicated in designing and using data science methods. The Data Science & Society Lab (STS 3440) is a project-based course that welcomes students from across the disciplines, or anyone who uses or studies data science. Developed by Malte Ziewitz, Sarah E. Sachs, and Stephen Hilgartner, the lab is designed to sensitize students early on to the complexities of data science as both a social and a technical project.
The class combines readings and lectures with hands-on research and collaboration on changing projects and initiatives. The immersive learning experience will lay the groundwork for future research and critical engagement with data science; examine data science concepts; track the expansion of data science into several areas of daily life; and engage in social, ethical, and policy analysis.
Funding & Support
The Data Science & Society Lab is based at the Department of Science & Technology Studies at Cornell. We are grateful for support from the Milstein Program for Technology & Humanity as well as the Data Science Curriculum Initiative.
Land Acknowledgment
Cornell University is located on the traditional homelands of the Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ’ (the Cayuga Nation). The Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ’ are members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, an alliance of six sovereign Nations with a historic and contemporary presence on this land. The Confederacy precedes the establishment of Cornell University, New York state, and the United States of America. We acknowledge the painful history of Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ’ dispossession, and honor the ongoing connection of Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ’ people, past and present, to these lands and waters.
Contact
Department of Science & Technology Studies
Cornell University
306 Morrill Hall | Ithaca, NY 14853 | U.S.A.
dsslab@cornell.edu