Technology and Ethics
What are the two components of technology?
The two components of technology :
- The physical component of technology such as computers, tools, equipment and products
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The informational component of technology such as the knowledge in functional business areas (e.g. marketing, production, management, etc.), techniques, work methods and processes
What is a three-level approach to Ethical Analysis of Technology?
A three-level approach (technology, artifact and applications) to look at technology that can be useful when analyzing ethical issues.
- Technology Level – analysis of morally relevant features of particular technology including its subclasses
- Artifact Level – analysis of morally relevant features of artifact and procedures including its subcategories
- Application Level – analysis of morally relevant features of certain uses or configurations of artifacts or procedures
What does technoethics mean?
Technoethics is a research area that draws on theories and methods from multiple domains to provide knowledge on ethical dimensions of technological systems and practices.
What are the main characteristics of digital firms?
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Nearly all its significant business relationships with customers, suppliers, business partners and employees are digitally enabled and mediated
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Key corporate assets such as intellectual property, core competencies, human and financial assets are managed digitally
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Core business processes such as new product development and marketing strategies and plans are accomplished through digital networks that span the entire firm and link to other firms.
What do genetically modified organisms mean?
Genetically modified organisms or GMO are organisms whose genome has been modified by genetic engineering.
What kinds of topics does neuroethics include?
Brain interventions, brain imaging, memory dampening and stem cell therapy are examples of neuroethics topics.
How can technological trends and developments affecting ethical issues be summarized?
- Technology Development: Exponential increases in computer processing and data storage capabilities. Impacts on ethics: Dependency on computer systems lead to higher exposures to system failures.
- Technology Development: Advances in communication and networking infrastructure. Impacts on ethics: Objects and people can be highly connected leading to security issues.
- Technology Development: Explosive growth in mobile computing and mobile devices. Impacts on ethics: Availability of location tracking applications without user knowledge or consent leads to a large scale invasion of privacy.
- Technology Development: Advances in data collection and data analysis. Impacts on ethics: Detailed data of people are collected and analyzed to create profiles of individuals.
- Technology Development: Rapid decline in the costs of computers, digital devices, data storage and communication. Impacts on ethics: Higher rate of technology adoption is enabled by its lower costs with better technology adding further ethical impacts of technology.
What does artificial intelligence (AI) mean?
Artificial intelligence is generally defined as a technology (hardware, software, processes, algorithms, etc.) that has the ability to perform tasks or functions associated with human beings.
What are the components or abilities that characterize human intelligence in AI?
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Learning such as trial and error (i.e. each possible solution is tried until a right solution is found).
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Reasoning or drawing inferences appropriate to the situation (e.g. data are collected and a model is developed to predict future behavior).
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Problem solving using a systematic search through a range of possible solutions/ actions to reach a predefined goal.
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Perception by scanning the environment using sensory organs such as optical sensors to identify people.
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Languages like spoken words and signs.
What are ethical issues with AI?
Unemployment: Potential loss of significant number of jobs that are replaced by AI systems.
Inequality: Wealth created by machines would be allocated to those few who have ownership in AI-driven firms.
Humanity: Machines can significantly affect human behavior and interaction.
Bias: AI applications cannot always be trusted to be fair and neutral.
Security: AI systems can be used maliciously.
Unintended Consequences: Machines do not have understanding of the full context in which they were made which can lead to negative unintended consequences.
Complexity: AI systems can be so complex as to not be completely understood by humans.
What are ethical principles for AI design, development, and deployment?
Fairness: AI systems should treat everyone in a fair, balanced and unbiased manner.
Reliability: AI systems should perform safely and reliably.
Privacy & Security: AI systems should be secure and respect privacy.
Inclusiveness: AI systems should empower everyone and engage people.
Transparency: AI systems should be understandable.
Accountability: AI systems must be accountable for how they operate.
What are the characteristics of biometric data?
Universality: Every person should possess the trait or characteristic.
Uniqueness: The trait can be distinguished between people.
Collectability: The trait can be measured and acquired.
Permanence: The trait should reasonably be invariant over time
What is CRAFT as a framework for ethical decision making involving big data?
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C: Choice is the principle that recognizes individuals have an interest in the use of their data therefore, must be taken into account. Their choices should be given and honored when practices result from a transaction that could have meaningful consequences and/or is not within the individuals’ reasonable expectations of the transaction.
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R: Responsibility recognizes that data decision makers are responsible to individuals within all parties including those with whom they never directly interact.
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A: Accountability holds all parties, who profit from decisions to use/share data, accountable for their acts and consequences.
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F: Fairness to both individuals and society should be broader than just meeting legal requirements but include whether processes/ systems/applications should be made. For example, built-in bias/discrimination of AI and machine learning applications or algorithms must be recognized and dealt with.
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T: Transparency requires openness about data usage and the logic of decision-making process in a reasonable/understandable manner.
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- Computer & Internet Access
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Intellectual Property Protections
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Privacy & Information Security
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Trust
What does cloud computing mean?
Cloud computing is a model of computing that enables individuals and organizations to rent/buy/share resources such as computer processing, storage, software and other services over the Internet.
What are blockchain ethical dimensions?
- Privacy
- Anonymity
- Accuracy
- Sustainability
What does digital reality mean?
Digital reality is a term used to describe a combination of the following technologies:
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Virtual reality (VR) - a 3D interactive computer-generated environment with first-person perspective.
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Augmented reality (AR) – a digital augmentation overlaid on the user’s real world environment. Such as shopping apps to “try on clothes” at home and computer games such as Pokemon Go.
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Mixed reality (MR) – merges real and virtual worlds to produce new environments where physical and virtual items coexist and interact.
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Immersive technology – allows users to deeply engage in digital experiences with multisensory (like see, hear and feel) using VR, AR, MR, 360° video and other technologies.
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Digital reality – combination of VR, AR, MR and immersive technology.
What are principles of fair information practice?
- Notice/Awareness
- Choice/Consent
- Access/Participation
- Integrity/Security
- Enforcement/ Redress
What does copyright mean?
A Copyright is a legal right to reproduce, perform, display and distribute an original work or make derivative works from the original work. Copyright covers literary works such as novels and plays, films, music, architectural design and artistic works such as paintings and photographs.
In how many major ways can technology be used unethically or unlawfully?
Two major ways technology can be used unethically and/or unlawfully: computer abuse and computer crime.