Out of all the classes I have taken at the university so far, I think History of the Information Age had been my favorite. That may seem odd since 400 level classes have a reputation for being some of the hardest and most time-consuming courses at UMW, but this course has easily been one of the most enjoyable ones I have taken in a while. Granted, this was the first 400 level class I have taken at the university and I have had Dr. McClurken for a previous class (and will have him again in the fall!), so I may be more than a little biased. Out of all the…

For our final assignment of the semester, it feels fitting that the 2021 HIST 427 class adds onto the preexisting work of the 2014 and 2019 classes. At the beginning of the semester Dr. McClurken shared his ongoing TimelineJS project from previous semesters, and while I found the software a bit confusing to work at first I do think it is an excellent tool. The goal of this assignment is to contribute to a timeline that includes information related to the history of the information age. While that may seem like a rather broad purview, I think it is fantastic. Not only does it give us an opportunity to learn…

As we move into the final few weeks of the semester, I have reached the last week I will be a discussion leader. This week we will be talking about several interesting topics, including the differences between planed and perceived obsolescence and the future of digital history. Planned obsolescence is an interesting topic I’m sure most of us are familiar with. For example, you buy items like lightbulbs and razors and you constantly must buy more. In the case of lightbulbs, they are made to last only for a certain length of time before they blow, forcing you to buy more. Similarly, razors dull after a certain length of time,…