The Digital, the Critical, and Beyond

Perspectives on Technology and Society

Curated by Emanuel Deleon Otazu ‘25 (Data Science and WGSS)

List of books and their location in the Macalester Library

From the alarms that wake us, to the platforms we use for learning, communicating, and connecting, the digital realm comprises more than just tools—it is a framework through which we live, think, and act. This book display explores the complexity of our digital existence through various lenses, encouraging readers to engage critically with the technologies that permeate our everyday lives.

Classification is a difficult task, especially because multiple things can be true at once. Most of the authors in this display engage in interdisciplinary work, so instead of creating categories for each of them, let’s frame this display by the types of questions they ask. These range from whether technology shapes our understanding of what it means to be human, to how we can create impactful data visualizations, to understanding the role of the digital in our economic system and questioning the ethical implications of quantifying things. These and more, often addressed together, are the guiding questions across these books.

This collection of works spans a range of perspectives—some rooted in critical theory, others more neutral or even optimistic—yet all share a common goal: to reflect on the digital world not as a given, but as something that can and should be interrogated. Works like Technically Wrong and Weapons of Math Destruction take a critical stance on algorithmic bias and inequality, calling into question the often hidden structures of power embedded in the technologies we use. The Age of Surveillance Capitalism similarly critiques how data is commodified, highlighting the ethical and economic consequences of big tech’s influence on our lives.

On the other hand, books like Dawn of the New Everything or You Look Like a Thing and I Love You offer a more positive or constructive take on technology, exploring its potential for innovation and creativity. These works provide a balanced view, demonstrating that engaging with technology can be about questioning its impact, but also about celebrating its possibilities.

Finally, other works focus on the history and evolution of digital tools. A People’s History of Computing in the United States and Computers offers historical perspectives that allow us to understand how the digital age came to be and its social implications. In contrast, books like Info We Trust provide practical insights into how we can better work with data in this digital world.

Whether engaging with the philosophical critiques of digital life, the historical trajectories of technology, or practical guides to navigating digital spaces, this collection is designed to provoke reflection, asking readers to step back and question the systems they interact with daily. These varied perspectives remind us that the digital is not a fixed reality, but one that is constantly shaped—and can be reshaped—through our actions, thoughts, and engagement with it.