Too Much Information?

Harry Lewis is Gordon McKay professor of computer science at Harvard University and a faculty associate at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society. From 1995-2008, Lewis served as dean of Harvard College. In this capacity, he oversaw the undergraduate experience including residential life, career services, public service, academic and personal advising, athletic policy, and intercultural and race relations. Lewis was honored with the title of Harvard College professor from 2003-2008 in recognition of his teaching excellence.

Harry Lewis is the author of seven books and numerous articles on various aspects of computer science. He is co-author with Hal Abelson and Ken Ledeen of Blown to Bits: Your Life, Liberty, and Happiness after the Digital Explosion (2008), which explains the origins and consequences for personal privacy of the explosion of
digital information.

Two of his books focus on higher education, Excellence Without a Soul: Does Liberal Education Have a Future? (2007) and What is College For? The Purpose of Higher Education (2011).

About this Lecture

The digital revolution democratized the creation and communication of all kinds of information, and we love it. Always-on cell phones. Video chats with our families. Electronic books. Online networks of friends. But everything that connects us also tracks us. The vast troves of detailed information we willingly provide about our movements, purchases, and proclivities are passed to governments, marketers, employers, insurers and saved forever. The agendas of these powerful parties need not be ours. Harry Lewis will lead a guided tour of some modern information flows, and pose some tough questions we are facing about privacy and freedom.

 

Featured Books

 

 

 

 

 

 

Helpful Links

Interview with Harry Lewis
Democracy Now! speaks with Harry Lewis
12 February 2009

Books of Our Time
Harry Lewis and coauthor discuss their book, Blown to Bits
August 2009

Blown to Bits
Download excerpts from the book