As the pace of technological change continues to accelerate it raises questions about the impacts, positive and negative, on society. Will technology make our lives more comfortable and pleasant or will it destroy our human society and lead us to a catastrophic ending? The answers to these questions will largely depend on our ability to consider new technology advancements in light of our desire to live good lives within just institutions.

In this course, students will engage with topics of current relevance such as artificial intelligence, gene editing, virtual reality, robotics, and the internet of things. We will discuss the underlying technological aspects of each and critically consider possible implications for society.

Students will apply philosophical and ethical concepts and frameworks to consider how technology can become a positive force for the common good and will debate possible ways to evaluate and avoid undesirable effects of our current and future technologies.

40% Formative Assessments: These are low stakes activities that are designed to help you reinforce key concepts of the course and prepare us for productive discussion in class. They bridge our readings, videos and podcast to our in-class discussions. They are due 3 hours before the next class. Please, note that they are so critical to your overall learning experience that their weight on the final grade is 40%.

30% Application Projects: For some key tech areas, we will have projects in which you explore deeper aspects of the technology, report your experience, and reflect about its possible implications to the common good. Working in groups of 2-3 students is highly recommended. They are due after the last week of each unit.

30% Final Project: This is a longer project in which you will explore a real world situation in which technology can promote the common good and reflect about it using the theoretical framework of the course. Working in groups of 2-3 students is highly recommended.

Unit 1 - Artificial Intelligence

Title: AI for Earth

Groups of 2 or 3 students

Project Description and Template available here

Submit your projects using this form

Due Date - March, 7th (5 points deducted for each day after the deadline submission)

Collaboration

One of the principal components of a DCS course is collaboration. However, you should always be clear on what part of the work you hand in is your own, what parts come from other sources, and what parts are collaborative. As a rule of thumb, we distinguish between interacting with another student using any written medium (e.g. pencil and paper, email, looking at their code) and having broad discussions with them. Unless you work with another student in a group, you are not allowed to exchange information through a written medium with him/her or provide answers to problem sets through conversation. This is a zero-tolerance policy.

It is permissible to use materials available from other sources such as the Internet (understanding that you get no credit for using the work of others) as long as: 1) You acknowledge explicitly which aspects of your assignment were taken from other sources and what those sources are. 2) The materials are freely and legally available. 3) The material was not created by a student at Bowdoin as part of this or another course this year or in prior years. To be absolutely clear, if you turn in someone else's work you will not receive credit for it; on the other hand, if you acknowledge it, at least you will not violate the Honor Code. All write-ups, reviews, documentation and other written material must be original and may not be derived from other sources.

Academic Honesty

We assume that every student is abiding by the Code of Academic and Social Conduct to which they agreed upon matriculation at Bowdoin: http://www.bowdoin.edu/studentaffairs/student-handbook/college-policies/ If you find yourself overwhelmed, unsure about what to do, without materials to use, or otherwise feeling like you have no choice but copying from the web and calling it your own work, contact Professor Nascimento before you make a very bad decision. DO NOT jeopardize your academic career for an assignment in this course. Talk to us first, because if we suspect any kind of cheating or plagiarism we will pursue the matter to the fullest extent allowable by Bowdoin policy.

Religious Holidays

No student is required to take an examination or fulfill any other scheduled course requirement on recognized major religious holidays. Students are expected to declare their intention to observe religious holidays at the beginning of the semester. Please contact Professor Nascimento within the first week of classes to make arrangements if you will be missing classes due to religious holidays.

Electronic Responsibility

“My computer died” and “I only saved to the lab laptop” are not valid excuses for having nothing to show for your work on the day an assignment is due. We are going to discuss and practice responsible management of electronic files so that you are never caught without a very recent copy of your very important work. Having nothing to show on the due date will be a sign that you started the assignment very late.

Accessibility

Bowdoin College is committed to ensuring access to learning opportunities for all students. Students seeking accommodations based on disabilities must register with the Student Accessibility Office. Please discuss any special needs or accommodations with me at the beginning of the semester or as soon as you become aware of your needs; I am eager to work with you to ensure that your approved accommodations are appropriately implemented.