Welcome to the course “Engineering and Computer Ethics!” This textbook consists of four main parts – the Introductory part, which elaborates on the normative foundations of engineering and computer ethics as an academic discipline and illustrates its importance and relevance; the Core Concepts Modules part, which provides an overview of key ethical theories such as Aristotelianism, Utilitarianism, and Kantianism; the Engineering Practice in an International Setting part, which deals with topics such as business and human rights and environmental ethics; and last, but not least, the Current Challenges in Computer Science part, which analyzes, among others, the ethical issues of artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles as well as privacy as a human right in the information age. The book ends with some concluding remarks concerning the relationship between science, technology, and philosophy, and related to the academic discipline of philosophy of technology.
The book is the result of my recent research and teaching experiences at Goethe University Frankfurt and Texas Tech University and was written in the summer and fall of 2017. The material presented includes all relevant research as of mid/end 2017.
This book would not have been possible without the helpful advice and generous support of many people. First, and foremost, I would like to thank my colleagues at the Murdough Center for Engineering Professionalism and the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech University, Sylvia Bermea, Richard Burgess, Patti Harper, Katharine Hayhoe, and William Marcy for their inspiration, guidance, and organizational help. I also wish to express my gratitude to my students at Goethe University Frankfurt and Texas Tech for all the constructive and stimulating discussions we have had during the past few years. In addition, I am extremely grateful to Ashley Garde, Wendy Key, and Tim Shade at Great River Learning for their constant assistance and support in realizing this book and online learning platform project. Finally, I am indebted to my wife, Sepideh, for all her love, devotion, and motivation. The book is dedicated to her!
1. Engineering and Computer Ethics
2. Methodologies of Engineering Ethics
3. Professional Ethics
4. Levels of Ethics: Micro, Meso, and Macro
5. Course Outline and Learning Objectives
1. Ancient (Hellenistic) Philosophy
2. Three Questions and Critical Analysis
3. Nussbaum’s and Sen’s Capability Approach
4. Engineering and Computer Science Virtues
1. Three Questions and Critical Analysis
2. Risk, Safety, and Cost-Benefit Analysis
2. Kantian Economic Ethics
1. Normative Foundations of Codes of Ethics
2. Rights and Responsibilities of Engineers and Computer Scientists
3. Engineering and Globalization
1. Business and Human Rights Debate
2. Project Finance and the Equator Principles Framework
3. Conflict Minerals and the ICT-Industry
1. Introductory Remarks
2. Conceptual Foundations
3. Elinor Ostrom and the “Tragedy of the Commons”
4. Climate Change
1. Introduction to Computer Ethics
2. Big Data and Labor Markets
1. Ethical Issues of Artificial Intelligence
2. Ethical Issues of Autonomous Vehicles
1. The Normative Foundations of Privacy
2. Edward Snowden and the NSA Mass Surveillance Scandal
3. Privacy and Data Protection Laws and Internet Governance
1. Introduction to Behavioral Economics
2. “Digital Nudging” and Technopaternalism
3. Filter Bubbles and Echo Chambers
1. Regulation in the Information Age
2. Silicon Valley and Technolibertarianism
1. Philosophy of Technology
2. Attitudes towards Technology, Technological Change, and Progress