Living in the IT Era

Bulacan State University
San Rafael Campus

This page contains lecture notes, exercises, and supplementary material for Living in the IT Era, prepared primarily for the first-year BS Biology students whom I teach. The course is not intended to turn students into computer technicians or make them memorise catalogues of devices, inventors, and fashionable technologies. Its purpose is to provide enough working knowledge to make better decisions about computers, internet services, software, privacy, security, online conduct, AI, and other technologies that students encounter in ordinary life and scientific work.

Much of the subject will already be familiar in fragments. A student may know one part from using a phone, another from connecting to Wi-Fi, and another from hearing about online scams or AI. The course brings those pieces together, fills important gaps, and explains how they are related. Examples are drawn whenever practicable from biology, health, research, and Philippine digital life.

The ten-chapter plan is my working interpretation of the course’s assigned scope, adapted for biology students and current technological concerns. The notes will be developed as the course proceeds and may change in response to students’ questions, suggestions, and practical needs.

Logistics

Course title: Living in the IT Era
Course number: MST 101d
Term: First Semester, A.Y. 2026–2027
Instructor’s name: Rey Joseph Nieto
Email: rj (at) rjnieto (dot) com (for questions or inquiries related to the course)
Consultation hours: To be announced through official class channels
Class schedule and room: Refer to the official class schedule

Important dates

Assessment Date
Midterm examinations To be announced through official class channels
Final examinations To be announced through official class channels

Printable lecture notes

The current release contains the Introduction and Chapters 1–2. Further chapters will be added as the course progresses.

Open the MST 101d lecture notes

Current version: 13 August 2026

How classes will work

We shall use a flipped-classroom approach. Students first encounter the assigned material by reading the announced pages or sections before class. Class meetings will provide a bird’s-eye view of the chapter and concentrate on questions, discussion, examples, and practical applications rather than repeat the notes line by line.

The assigned reading will not usually be terribly long, and students are not expected to master it before class. They are, however, expected to read the assigned sections carefully rather than skim only the headings and examples. They should arrive familiar with the main ideas and ready to say what was clear, what was confusing, and what deserves further discussion. Reading before class is part of the course rather than optional preparation for it.

House rules

  1. Printed notes are available if you need them. If you do not have reliable access to a laptop or mobile device, speak to me after class or during consultation hours. You do not need to explain your circumstances; I will provide the relevant printed material free of charge.

  2. Attend regularly and arrive on time. Much of the course depends on discussion, questions, and guided work that cannot be reconstructed fully from the notes. The notes are a guide rather than a transcript, and the examples or pace may change. Any change affecting examinable material will be announced clearly.

  3. Complete the announced reading before class. Unlike the advance reading for MMW, the MST reading should not be treated as a quick skim. Read the assigned sections carefully from beginning to end. If you encounter an unfamiliar term, make a brief effort to look it up using a search engine or dependable reference. This does not require a full research project; the aim is simply to understand enough to follow the discussion and identify what still needs explanation. Bring those questions, examples from your own experience, and claims that you would like the class to examine.

  4. Participate and ask for help. Questions are welcome in class, by email, and during consultation hours. You will not be judged if a technical idea is difficult or unfamiliar. Ask classmates, compare notes, and speak to me when something remains unclear.

    NoteLanguage in our classroom

    The notes use British English. The differences between British and American English are relatively subtle in this course, apart from some spelling conventions and a few terms, so they should not cause difficulty. Either is acceptable if your meaning is clear and consistent. English is useful for reading technical and biological literature, but it is not a barrier to participation. Students may use any dialect of Tagalog or Cebuano, or English. If my accent or wording is difficult to follow, tell me; I can explain in Taglish whenever practicable.

  5. Discuss ideas firmly but civilly. A useful discussion may involve disagreement. Address the claim rather than embarrassing the person who made it, distinguish evidence from opinion, and be willing to correct or revise a position. The same standard applies to communication in class and online.

  6. Use devices and generative AI thoughtfully. A phone or laptop may be a legitimate tool for reading, checking a specification, examining a source, or recording a question. Use it for the work at hand without distracting other people. Generative-AI tools may offer explanations or alternative perspectives, but fluent answers can still be wrong. Check important claims against the notes and dependable sources, and do not use AI during a graded assessment unless I have expressly permitted it.

  7. Protect other people’s information. Do not share a classmate’s personal details, messages, photographs, recordings, account information, or screenshots without permission. Use fictitious or properly anonymised data when an activity does not require real personal information.

  8. Help improve the course. Please point out factual errors, unclear explanations, broken links, and practical topics that the notes have overlooked. Correct mistakes respectfully. The notes are being developed alongside the course, and well-founded student feedback may shape later versions.

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