August 24 (Thu), 2018 HW1 assigned: exercises at the end of chs. 1 and 2 of textbook (referred to as [B]), due on September 6, 2018. See elsewhere for details of submission. Administrative information: objectives, textbook, syllabus, grading policy. The students take the Ross-Barger philosophic inventory (cf. ch.4 [B]).
August 31 (Thu), 2018 Ch.1 [B] (Introduction): What is Ethics? The subject of ethics. Ethics and law. Definitions of computer ethics. Notes based on: James H. Moor. "What is Computer Ethics?" _Metaphilosopthy_, 16, 4 (October 1985), 266-275, and James, H. Moor. "Reason, Relativity, and Responsibility in Computer Ethics." In: Terrell Ward Bynum and Simon Rogerson (eds.). _Computer Ethics and Professional Responsibility_. ISBN 1-85554-844-5. Blackwell Publishing, 2004. (In addition to Moor's article, the paper also contains historical and introductory material on the topic of Computer Ethics.) "Logical malleability" formalized: interpretations, models, entailment.
September 6, (Thu), 2018 Anatomy of the computer revolution: technological introduction and technological permeation. Examples of "informational enrichment:" money, warfare, provacy, copyright, education. Notes based on: James H. Moor. "What is Computer Ethics?" _Metaphilosopthy_, 16, 4 (October 1985), 266-275, and James, H. Moor. "Reason, Relativity, and Responsibility in Computer Ethics." In: Terrell Ward Bynum and Simon Rogerson (eds.). _Computer Ethics and Professional Responsibility_. ISBN 1-85554-844-5. Blackwell Publishing, 2004. Good Q&A. Philosophical belief systems (ch.3 [B]): introduction, metaphysics (ontology), epistemology, axiology (ethics and aesthetics). Raphael's "School of Athens" (1511). Idealist metaphysics: the parable of the cave. Idealist epistemology. Introduction to idealist ethics.
September 13, (Thu), 2018 Class canceled due to inclement weather.
September 20, (Thu), 2018 HW3 (professional activity-related) assigned, due Thursday, October 11, 2018. See elsewhere on the course website for details. Presentation by Ms. Christine Mosich of the CEC Satellite Office of the USC Career Center.
September 27, (Thu), 2018 HW3 assignment reminder; HW2 assigned, due on October 18. Idealism and Realism, completed. Pragmatism and Existentialism, started.
October 11, (Thu), 2018 Pragmatism and existentialism (first part of Ch.3 [B]). The possiility of a unifying ethical theory (Ch.5 [B]).
October 25, (Thu), 2018 Presentation by Prof. Duncan Buell of the Computer Science and Engineering Department of the University of South Carolina: "Analyzing South Carolina's Election Data: What can we learn about the process and the software?"
November 1, (Thu), 2018 HW4 assigned: due the exercise at the end of Ch.6 [B]. This is due on November 8, 2018. Some comments on homework assignments to come. Brief comments on the recent (July 2018) update to the ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, the first update since the code was published in 1992. Ch.6 [B]: The Ethical Decision-Making Process. Brief comments on IRAC, a methodology for legal analysis. A framework for ethical decision making in journalism, from: Stephanie Craft and Charles N. Davis. Principles of American Journalism: An Introduction. Routledge, 2013. A Framework for Ethical Decision Making from Santa Clara University's Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. The culture clash on the net case, in detail.
November 8, 2018 (Thu) HW5 assigned: exercise at the end of Ch.7[B], due on November 15, 2018. Psychology and Computer Ethics: brief review of Ch.7[B], with mention of Papert (the Logo language) and Piaget's role. Please review the slides on Kohlberg model of moral development, which go beyond the textbook. The Computing Field as a Profession (Ch.8[B]).
November 15, 2018 (Thu) Ch.9 [B]: Computer-Related Codes of Ehics. Note: the ACM Code of Ethics was Rewritten in Summer 2018! Three case studies for the Joint Software Engineering Code: a paper by Gotterbarn and Miller; see link to paper on course website. One case from the ACM Website on the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. See https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics and https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics/case-studies: we discussed the "Malware" case study. Good discussion!
November 29, 2018 (Thu) Several student presentations using the HW7 PowerPoint documents.
December 6, 2018 (Thu) Several student presentations using the HW7 PowerPoint documents. Student evaluation. End of course.