An approximate course schedule is below. Check back for updates on any dates more than 1 week in the future.
For all required readings, unless otherwise stated, students are not required to read appendices or footnotes.
For each reading, you will be asked to answer these three questions in advance of class (to submit via Canvas):
What is one thing that you learned from reading the paper?
Having read this paper, what is one thing that you would now like to learn more about? Alternately, having read this paper, what is one question you now have?
Having read this paper, what is one connection (if any) to any non-CS course that you have taken at Georgetown? You are encouraged to think about connections not explicitly made in the paper.
For each question, write your answer as if you are explaining it to a friend who has not yet read the paper.
Thursday, August 27, 2026: Introduction, Making Connections
Day contents:
Course overview
Course participant introductions (instructor and students)
Preliminary explorations of the relationships between computation and other disciplines
Required reading:
None
Optional reading:
T. Kohno, Finding Cross-Disciplinary Research Projects, 2024. (Posted on Medium.com – the post is free to access, but there might be a popup to click through)
Tuesday, September 1, 2026: Reading Day
Day contents:
Examples of “security thinking”
Examples of connecting between disciplines (genetics and genetic genealogy)
Required reading:
F. Roesner, T. Kohno, and D. Molnar, Security and Privacy for Augmented Reality Systems, CACM 2014. [Same article in an alternate format]
P. Ney, L. Ceze, T. Kohno, Genotype Extraction and False Relative Attacks: Security Risks to Third-Party Genetic Genealogy Services Beyond Identity Inference, NDSS 2020.
Optional reading:
P. Ney, K. Koscher, L. Organick, L. Ceze, and T. Kohno, Computer Security, Privacy, and DNA Sequencing: Compromising Computers with Synthesized DNA, Privacy Leaks, and More. USENIX Security 2017
T. Kohno, The David and the Fig Leaf. Hyphenpunk 2022. (Fiction)
Thursday, Sept 3: Reading Day
Day contents:
Examples of “security thinking”
Examples of connections between computing and society
Examples of connecting between disciplines (neuroscience and social psychology)
Required reading:
T. Denning, Y. Matsuoka, and T. Kohno, Neurosecurity: Security and Privacy for Neural Devices. Neurosurgical Focus, 2009.
M. Sim, B. Radka, E. Yoshikawa, F. Roesner, K. Hugenberg, and T. Kohno, To Reveal or Conceal: Privacy and Marginalization in Avatars, PoPETS 2025.
Optional reading:
T. Kohno, To the Stars, Dead or Alive, IEEE S&P 2025. (Fiction)
T. Kohno, Forgotten Memories, IEEE S&P 2026. (Fiction)
Tuesday, September 8, 2026: No class
Thursday, September 10, 2026: Reading Day
Day contents:
Examples of connecting between disciplines (art and economics)
Required reading:
T. Eschebach, E. I.C. Peterson, N. Kim, B.(J.) Liu, M. Downie, D. Pancoast, and B. Ur, Depictions of Privacy Invasion and Surveillance in Artworks and Potential Lessons For Privacy Communication. CHI 2026.
R. Anderson, Why Information Security is Hard – An Economic Perspective. ACSAC 2001. (Access through Georgetown University Libraries)
Optional reading:
T. Moore, R. Clayton, and R. Anderson, The Economics of Online Crime. Journal of Economic Perspectives 2009.
Tuesday, September 15, 2026: Security Reviews
Day contents:
Student-driven presentations of security reviews
Security reviews will include societal thinking as well as explorations of connections between computing and other disciplines
Assignment:
Details forthcoming, to include both slide (presented) and a written assignment
Optional reading:
D. Halperin, T.S. Heydt-Benjamin, K. Fu, T. Kohno, and W.H. Maisel, Security and Privacy for Implantable Medical Devices, IEEE Pervasive 2008.
T. Denning, T. Kohno, and H.M. Levy, Computer Security and the Modern Home, CACM 2013.
Thursday, September 17, 2026: Security Reviews (Continued)
Optional reading:
S. Checkoway, D. McCoy, B. Kantor, D. Anderson, H. Shacham, S. Savage, K. Koscher, A. Czeskis, F. Roesner, and T. Kohno, Comprehensive Experimental Analyses of Automotive Attack Surfaces, USENIX Security 2011.
D. Halperin, T.S. Heydt-Benjamin, B. Ransford, S.S. Clark, B. Defend, W. Morgan, K. Fu, T. Kohno, and W.H. Maisel, Pacemakers and Implantable Cardiac Defibrillators: Software Radio Attacks and Zero-Power Defenses, IEEE S&P 2008.
Tuesday, September 22, 2026: Reading Day
Day contents:
Foundational discussions of the relationship between technologies (artifacts) and society
Examples of connecting between disciplines (economics)
Required reading:
L. Winner, Do Artifacts Have Politics, 1980.
D.Y. Huang, M.M. Aliapoulios, V.G. Li, L. Invernizzi, K. McRoberts, E. Bursztein, J. Levin, K. Levchenko, A.C. Snoeren, D. McCoy, Tracking Ransomware End-to-End. IEEE S&P 2018.
Optional reading:
T. Kohno, The Schuhmacher, IEEE S&P 2022. (Fiction)
Thursday, September 24, 2026: Reading Day
Day contents:
Required reading:
TBD (contact instructor if you wish to start reading these papers in advance but if they’re not posted by September 15)
Optional reading:
Tuesday, September 29, 2026: Tentative No Class
Think about the “Applications of X to CS” assignment
Thursday, October 1, 2026: Tentative No Class
Think about the “Applications of X to CS” assignment
Tuesday, October 6, 2026: Current Events
Day contents:
Student-driven presentations of current events in and/or related to computing
Current event discussions will include societal thinking as well as explorations of connections between computing and other disciplines
Assignment:
Details forthcoming, to include both slide (presented) and a written assignment
Tuesday, October 8, 2026: Current Events (Continued)
Tuesday, October 13, 2026: Tentative No Class
Think about the “Applications of X to CS” assignment
Thursday, October 15, 2026: Tentative No Class
Think about the “Applications of X to CS” assignment
October 20, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Preliminary Presentations and Workshopping
Day contents:
Student-driven presentations of topics/lessons from other disciplines that may be applicable to computing and/or computer security
Workshopping of topics in class
Assignment:
Details forthcoming, to include a slide (presented) and workshopping activities
Tuesday, October 20, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Preliminary Presentations and Workshopping (Continued)
October 27, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Preliminary Presentations and Workshopping (Continued)
Thursday, October 29, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Preliminary Presentations and Workshopping (Continued)
Tuesday, November 3, 2026: TBD
Day contents:
TBD based on class discussions and interests
Required reading:
Optional reading:
Thursday, November 5, 2026: Tentative No Class
Tuesday, November 10, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Project Presentations
Day contents:
Final student-driven presentations of topics/lessons from other disciplines to computing and/or computer security
Assignment:
Details forthcoming, to include both slide (presented) and a written assignment
Thursday, November 12, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Project Presentations (Continued)
Tuesday, November 17, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Project Presentations (Continued)
Thursday, November 19, 2026: “Applications of X to CS” Project Presentations (Continued)
Tuesday, November 24 2026: Extra Credit Current Events Day
Day contents:
Extra-credit current events presentations
No in-class assignment
Tuesday, December 1, 2026: TBD and/or Workshop Final Projects
Thursday December 3, 2026: TBD and/or Workshop Final Projects
Tuesday, December 8, 2026: TBD and/or Workshop Final Projects
Monday December 14, 2026: Projects due
The course project will be submitted electronically and is due at the start of the scheduled final exam period (Monday, December 14, 2026 at 12:30pm).