Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Specialized one-time graduate course offerings on topics related to the current research of school faculty of visiting professors.

COURSE DETAILS:

Today, we find confident announcements that AI will bring about humanoid robots, the end of work, perhaps the obsolescence of humanity. But such prognoses look rather different when we consider their own history. Technological fantasies are often recycled over decades, leaving unbuilt prototypes and outmoded theories in their wake, sustaining the same old social problems.

From the 20th century legacy of cybernetics to 1970’s debates around artificial intelligence, from early modern systems of calculation and surveillance to today’s smart doorbells and predictive policing systems, we find a long history of moral dilemmas, enduring biases and unresolved social problems. The latest smart machines too often reprise the classic gender roles of the Jetsons (itself a Flintstones of the future), a pattern also repeated in our most contemporary fictions (e.g. Blade Runner 2049).   

This seminar equips students with a richer, more balanced understanding of how we think and talk about data and AI today. It develops situational awareness of relevant contemporary research in history of science and technology, STS, media and communication studies, as well as machine ethics and critical algorithm studies. There is a strong focus on bringing historical and philosophical lessons back to the pressing debates today – around data privacy and surveillance, Big Tech and anti-trust proposals, fake news and hate speech.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

This is a seminar course with an emphasis on in-class discussion around the readings, relevant research, current affairs, and moral / ethical dilemmas. The objective is to develop a more historically, culturally, and philosophically informed position to better address ongoing societal issues surrounding big data and artificial intelligence.

Grading

Materials

REQUIRED READING: