Political Science 138D

Fall 2002

Midterm Exam
October 14, 2002

Answer ONE of the following questions in a concise, well-argued essay of MAXIMUM 1250 WORDS. Please double-space your answer. Direct quotations from readings should be cited, but it is not necessary to fully document your sources for general ideas. This is an exam, not a paper.

The exam is due at the beginning of lecture on WEDNESDAY, October 16, 2002. Turn in one hard copy in class, and also e-mail the exam to your GSI. The deadline is met when the hard copy is turned in. The standard penalty for late assignments of 1/3 of a grade per day applies.

There are no tricks here, and there are no right or wrong answers to either of these questions. There are strong answers, by which we mean carefully reasoned, well-illustrated and compelling answers that make and defend an argument; and there are not so strong answers that do not make an argument. YOU MUST MAKE AN ARGUMENT! Good luck!

(1)

"This so-called dot.com revolution was nothing but 'irrational exuberance', as Alan Greenspan has rightly said. Sure, the Internet makes communication a little cheaper and a bit more efficient, but that's about it. The fundamentals of markets haven't changed. The economy hasn't changed. And the world isn't going to change either. You just can't make money from thin air."

In responding to this quote, explain how the Internet may or may not be different from previous communication technologies. How would we know if digital technologies were indeed having effects beyond just making "communication a little cheaper"? You may want to draw on your knowledge of previous far-reaching or even transformative changes to societies and markets here. Examine at least one industrial sector and one policy area to evaluate what the evidence suggests so far – just a little more efficient or maybe something bigger?

* * *

(2)

The “Great Transformation” signifies a radical restructuring of society, the economy, and politics. What evidence and criteria should we use to gauge the social, political, and economic implications of the digital economy? How revolutionary is our current transformation?

* * *

(3)

Important philosophers have argued that we can only truly understand how history transpired long after the fact.  In contrast, many political scientists implicitly or explicitly insist that it is the past that gives critical insight into the direction of future change.

How do the stories we tell about previous waves of technological change influence the arguments we make about the causes and consequences of the current wave, and the kind of things we look to for evidence?  In answering this question, be sure to link at least two contending explanations for historical transformations to a current policy debate touched on in the course.