Twenty years ago Clifford Stoll wrote a now infamous article in Newsweek entitled "Why the Web Won`t Be Nirvana" (1995). At the time the article was written, Stoll was considered one of the top minds in computer science in the world. But, he failed to predict the development of Google, Blackboard, amazon.com, PayPal, Facebook, and e-readers like the Kindle and Nook. 



For this assignment, please read Stoll`s article at http://www.newsweek.com/clifford-stoll-why-web-wont-be-nirvana-185306. Then, write an essay (900+ words) where you answer the following questions: Why did Stoll believe that computers and the Internet would never be used to find useful information, teach classes, buy goods and services, socialize with friends, and read books? What were the fallacies in his reasoning or limitations in his evidence? 



Use the content of Chapters 6 and 7 in Asking the Right Questions to help explain and support your argument. For example, try to identify fallacies like searching for perfect solution, appeal to questionable authority, false dilemma, appeal to emotion, ad hominem, slippery slope, equivocation, appeal to popularity, straw person, wishful thinking, explaining by naming, glittering generality, red herring, or begging the question. Also, try to identify the evidence that Stoll drew on to make his claims, such as intuition, personal experiences or anecdotes, testimonials, appeals to authorities or experts, personal observations, case examples, research studies, or analogies. 



Before submitting this paper, students are encouraged to use the free Smarthinking Tutoring service. Click on "Learning Resources" for log on instructions. Students who use Smarthinking Tutoring and submit their tutor`s comments with their paper will receive extra credit on their assignment.



The assignment must be written in APA Style with references. Papers that do not meet these this requirement will not be graded. The rubric (grading criteria) for written assignments is available under the Rubrics tab in the course menu.