Social and Ethical Issues in Computing
Spring 2015
Wednesdays 1:00–1:50 — CENT 1030 § 001Prof. Patrick Gage Kelley
pgk @ unm.edu@patrickgage
Schedule / all the important details
- Wednesday 14 January
Discussion: Introduction and class goals.
Discussion: I am not sure if you are going to pick #JeSuisCharlie or the "North Korea" hack.
- Wednesday 21 January
Discussion: Net Neutrality.
Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Don't read this: Essay due:Your essays should involve net neutrality: either the court decision, current plans, the philosophical spirit behind net neutrality, how net neutrality could change the Internet (for consumers or companies), or how we can explain net neutrality to consumers.- Wednesday 28 January
Discussion: The new ethics of technology.
Read for class: Maner– Is Computer Ethics Unique?
Read for class: Johnson– Computer Ethics
Essay due:Do you agree with Maner or Johnson, or do you fall in between (note: this position is precarious)? Tell your story with, ideally, a single illustrated example of how a technology either: shows a new ethical issue -OR- shows where one would expect a new ethical issue to arise, one finds old issues reframed.- Wednesday 4 February
Discussion: Self driving cars.
Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Essay due:Self-driving cars seem to be a matter of not if, but when. What do you think this will do? What do you think is the most interesting social/ethical/policy piece of this? Tell me about it.- Wednesday 11 February
Discussion: The ACM Code of Ethics.
Read for class: ACM Code of Ethics
Consider: Ordine Gemoetria Demonstrata
Consider:Defining Computer Ethics (Just Section 1.2 of this page)Essay due:What did you find most interesting? What did you learn? Was it useful? If you wanted other people to learn one thing from it, what would it be? Was any of it surprising? Did it confuse you? Do you disagree with any of it? (Don't answer all of these questions, reminder: focus!) This is your code!- Wednesday 18 February
Discussion: Project proposals
Ideas due: Project proposal ideas:
Submit three ideas. Each idea should be no more than three sentences. The project must be somehow related to a social/ethical issue that is a result of computing or technology broadly. You should submit three very different ideas, all of which you are interested in, so that we can find a good, new, compelling direction for your project. This project could be a book review, an original essay, an experimental study, an explanatory brochure, or something completely different.- Wednesday 25 February
In class: Guest Speaker!
- Wednesday 4 March
Discussion: Privacy.
Read for class: Common Data Project
Optional: Optional: Essay due:Read a privacy policy. Try to pick a company/organization that other people won't pick. Take notes on what was interesting about it, what you learned. Consider the questions the Common Data Project asks. Consider how it interacts with the ACM Code of Ethics, or your own views on what is ethical.- Wednesday 11 March
Spring Break
- Wednesday 18 March
Discussion: Drones.
Choose a couple of the following readings. (At least two).
View for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Read for class: Essay due:"Drones" are coming, or are already here. But this term is too vague. Are we talking about farmers dusting their crops, the military targeting enemies of the state, or Amazon delivering you the next Harry Potter book? Pick some facet of the ongoing rush to drones and focus on what that could mean for our future (reminder, be focused! Don't try to cover everything in a page, it won't fit!)- Wednesday 25 March
Project Proposals due
Your goal here is to convince me that (1) your project is interesting (2) you are actually interested in it (3) you are going to say something/do something that hasn't been said/done before and (4) there are enough resources/information out there that this can actually happen
- your name
- your email address
- and a potential project name (you can change this later)
- a one paragraph description of the project (this is the one you are really going to want to do / commit to)
- at least five (5) links to starter ideas, arguments, facts, thoughts, essays (you don't need to have read these entirely, but they should be reasonable...)
- and a short description of what you will turn in (paper, website, comparison table, app, poster, etc.)
- Wednesday 1 April
The Singularity (is near?) You do *not* need to write an essay about this, but you can if you want. I do want you to do these readings and think about this.
The Coming Singularity
The AI Revolution: The Road to Superintelligence
The AI Revolution: Our Immortality or Extinction
Bill Gates Fears AI, but AI Researchers Know Better
The Myth of AI (optional due to length, but this matters.)
Of Daisies and the Robot Apocalypse- Wednesday 8 April
Project Presentations I
Taylor - Product Design with Computer
Casey - Google’s Chokehold on eCommerce
Valuable - The Apocalyptic AI and its Effects on Society
Brendan - The Victimless Crime: Consequences of Digital Stealing- Wednesday 15 April
Project Presentations II
James - The impact of the lightbulb on working conditions
Chris - The Age of the Computing Professional
Haydn - Fabricating a Better Future
Mark - Bitcoin: A Viable Currency Alternative
Zachary - A new Frontier in Telemedicine- Wednesday 22 April
Project Presentations III
Neil - Decrypting the Details (Who/What/Where Hacking?)
Robert - Hacking the wide screen: Hacking in Hollywood
Tess - The Ethical Implications of the Stuxnet Virus
Laurence - TOR
Katrina - The need for increased email protection- Wednesday 29 April
Project Presentations IV
Gabriel - How to turn the tables on social media
Galen - How ISIS uses Twitter to recruit followers
Ronniet - How the Internet Harms Children
Caleb - Domestic Surveillance Concerns- Final Deadlines:
Optional first-draft reading: must be emailed to pgk @ unm.edu or turned in hard copy in class or to Farris 301B by 11pm Friday May 1.
These will be read and able to be picked up as of Monday May 4.
Final *hard* deadline Thursday May 7th at noon.
Papers received after this point will not be graded and grades from the first-draft will be used if one was turned in.
Résumé's may be turned in for extra credit (optional turn-in) and are due by Thursday May 7th at noon as well
If you want résumé feedback please note that in the email/turned in physical copy, this will be done via email.
PGK End of Semester Office hours:
Thursday April 30: 11am - 2pm (at Satellite Coffee on Central across from campus)
Friday May 1: noon - 2pm (in Farris 301B)
Monday May 4: 11am - 1pm (in Farris 301B)
Monday May 4: 1pm - 5pm (at Satellite as above)
Syllabus Details
What is this?
Society is consistently challenged by new advances, inventions, and the repercussions of technology.This class explores these issues, from the philosophical foundations of ethics to the minutia of technology policy. Throughout the course we will cover privacy, databases, intellectual property, computer crime, safety and reliability, professional responsibility and codes, the Internet, electronic communities, smartphones, the cloud, and the social and legal impacts of these and other technologies.
Assignments
Nearly every week you will have to turn in a short (ideally 1 page) written essay. These should be turned in, printed out, each Wednesday in class.
Expectations
You are expect to attend class, to have completed the assigned readings, and to participate in class discussion. If you must miss a class, please send an email in advance. All assignments should be done individually.
Grade
- Class discussion – 30%
- Short weekly assignments – 40%
- Longer project – 30%
- Wednesday 21 January