INFO-I 101

Introduction to Informatics

A hands-on introduction to informatics and computing. Each weekly topic is paired with an interactive artifact built for lecture — download it, open it, change something, break something.

About these artifacts

These tools were built to live inside weekly lectures — not as pre-reading, but as something to pull up mid-class and explore together. First tried in FA 25. Quickly built, intentionally rough — starting points for conversation.

FA 25 · First iteration

How to use them

Every artifact runs locally in your browser. Download the file, open it, hand it to an LLM and start tinkering. They're seeds — working code meant to be modified, broken, and rebuilt.

Week · Networks

Network Topology

Build and explore network structures — star, ring, mesh, and more

Network Analysis

Node importance, clustering, and information flow in a graph

Strategic Links

Which connections matter most in a network?

Human hand anatomy as a force-directed network — bones as nodes, joints as edges

Visualization→

Luddy Program Map

Network visualization of Informatics program minors and course connections

Visualization→

Classroom Networks

How seating arrangements shape information flow and group formation

Week · Standards

Unicode Binary Explorer

How text becomes numbers — characters, encoding, and the Unicode standard

Cartesian Conventions (2D)

The agreements behind coordinate systems — and what breaks when you don't share them

Cartesian Conventions (3D)

Right-hand vs left-hand, math vs graphics — how 3D coordinate standards diverge

Week · Electricity

Electrons moving through conductors, semiconductors, and insulators in real time

How materials switch between conducting and insulating — energy bands made visible

The transistor as switch and amplifier — interactive parameter control

Week · Ethics

The trolley problem, animated. Pull the lever or don't — and sit with it

The footbridge variant — is pushing different from switching?

Emergency decisions with limited resources — who gets care when you can't help everyone?

A particle collision study in distributed responsibility and unintended consequence

Week · Diversity

Schelling Segregation

How small individual preferences produce large-scale social segregation

James Sakoda's factionalization model — social clustering and group formation

Intersectionality

Overlapping identities and compounding disadvantage in computing contexts

Visualization→

Oximeter & Skin Tone

Pulse oximeters measure differently across skin tones — a case study in design bias

STEM Diversity Database

Underrepresented innovators and their contributions to science and engineering

NSF Diversity Timeline

Historical timeline of NSF diversity programs in STEM

Week · Data

Rope Length Histogram

Distribution analysis — reading and interpreting statistical variation

Visualization→

Crash Test Parameters

Combinatorial matrix generator — exploring the design space of test conditions

Spurious Correlations

Correlation, causation, and the art of being misled by numbers that are technically correct

Week · Design

Oven Clock Reset

Can you figure out how to set the time? A usability puzzle in reverse-engineering

Informatics Design Cycle

The iterative design process made explorable — problem, data, design, implement, evaluate

Program Learning Outcomes

Informatics PLOs as a force-directed graph — where skills connect and overlap

Visualization→

The original interface — before the algorithm, before the feed

Mid-period design — flatter UI, more engagement mechanics

Dark mode, algorithmic feed, modern components — how the platform choreographs attention now

Early Instagram — minimal, photo-first, before Stories

Stories, Reels, Explore — a decade of interface drift toward video and recommendation

Physics simulation of a rope under tension — material behavior as design constraint

Rhythm and timing as a design system — metronome and visualization

Week · Security

Digital Footprint

Map the data trail of everyday online life — what you leave and where it goes

Visualization→

Spot the attack — gamified security awareness with immediate feedback

Social Engineering

The human side of security — how trust gets exploited

Password Analyzer

Real-time strength analysis and crack-time estimation

Simple Encryption

Caesar and substitution ciphers — the foundations before RSA

Step through public-key cryptography with working code

Lecture Slides

Each artifact was built to accompany a specific lecture. Slides for FA 25 will be added here — connecting the tools to readings, discussion prompts, and the week's context.

Coming — FA 25 slides