A century ago, Sociologist W.E.B. DuBois posed the question, "How does it feel to be a problem?" speaking then of the Negro's place in the world. But what does it mean to be a problem in the context of computing technology? I argue that the relationship between African Americans and other people of color to computing technology has been mediated by "the problem." In this talk I tell the story of how Black people became the nation's (U.S.) first problem for computers to solve, the consequences of that relationship, and the lessons it provides about how we frame today's technological solutions for the future.

Social computing researchers increasingly need to question the nature of "truth" in our day-to-day work. In this talk, I’ll review ideas from philosophy, especially social epistemology, to give us practical, working definitions of "truth" and "knowledge." I'll apply these ideas to explain why a popular Wikipedia page is arguably the most reliable form of information ever created. Finally, I’ll explain how these ideas help us to be better social computing researchers, and more thoughtfully address controversies about what kind of content is appropriate.