This is the home page for CS 1033 Algorithms, Race, and Computing, offered at the University of Minnesota, Duluth by Professor Ted Pedersen.  

CS 1033 will teach you how computing and algorithms contribute to and amplify racism. To do that we'll need to build a foundation where we discuss race and racism, and then (gently) introduce some ideas from computing and algorithms. 

This class meets Tue & Thu 3:30 pm - 4:45 pm (in person, HH 306) and Wed 4:00 pm - 4:50 pm (on Google Meet). 

Our Google Meet classes on Wednesdays are "live" (synchronous) and will be held using the following link : 

• https://meet.google.com/atm-ghsh-jup

During our online Google Meet meetings on Weds it is important that you attend via a reliable internet connection that allows you to participate fully both speaking and using your camera. Please be ready to have your camera on during break out room discussions and some of our class-wide discussions. You may want to consider the use of a blurring filter or virtual background to keep your surroundings more private. You will also need to be able to edit documents and slides in order to participate during our online Google Meet meetings, so please log in with a device that allows you do do that. You should be in a relatively quiet location where there is not a lot of background noise, since we will have discussions that will be a part of. If you are on-campus you may want to consider the use of a library study room to attend class. Also remember that ITSS will loan you a Chromebook if your usual device is not working.  

Note that attendance and participation both in person and on Google Meet are a part of your grade. This is not meant to be a burden, it it meant to say that your active involvement in the class is important for you and your classmates learning.  Our class sessions will be devoted to discussions and not lecture-based and will not be recorded. Please make sure you understand and follow our Participation Norms for Small Group and Class Discussions.

Our Syllabus contains all the administrative details about the course. 

Please see the Class Schedule for our daily plans for class and our assignments. 

We will use Canvas to submit assignments, record grades, and we'll take advantage of the Discussion feature it offers. I will also sometimes make materials available to you via Canvas Files.

Please note that CS 1033 is a Liberal Education class in the Theorizing Race, Power, and Justice category.  While it is a Computer Science (CS) class, there is no prior knowledge of algorithms, computing, mathematics, etc. required or expected. CS 1033 does not count towards any CS major requirements - it is exclusively a Liberal Education class and as such is open to students in all majors.

We will be relying on two textbooks that are pictured below. You can find more information about them in our Syllabus.