Prof. Franklin
MWF 2:10pm-3:00pm (Wellman 129)
Office Hours (Kemper 3021): TBA

NOTE: The schedule has been updated to reflect the canceled class on Fri 9 Oct.

Schedule for 8-10 minute oral presentations here.

Schedule for 3-5 minute oral presentations here.

Grades for review reports here.

Textbook: Society, Ethics, and Technology (5th edition), by Morton Winston and Ralph Edelbach, Thomson-Wadsworth.

Catalog Description (Course Outline): foundations of ethics, views of technology, technology and human values, costs and benefits of technology, the character of technological change, the social context of work in computer science and engineering.

Expanded course description here. This course is developed by Prof. Phil Rogaway, and we will follow his overall structure and methods.

Grading: Your grade in this class will depend (roughly) on the following factors:

Classroom participation (30%): You are expected to participate fully in all of the classroom discussions. Please feel free to express your views.

Review reports (35%): These are brief reports (1-2 pages) on our course readings. Each review report must be turned in at the start of the class at which that course reading is discussed.

Each student will give a 3-5 minute oral presentation for one of the course readings. This oral presentation will focus on a question selected by the student and approved by the instructor. These will be presented in class at the start of the class after that article is discussed. If you give an oral presentation on a paper, then you do not have to turn in a written report for that paper. You also don't have to turn in a written report for the paper we discuss on the day of your oral presentation. Thus an oral presentation means that you get to skip *two* written reports in a row. Your grade for this oral presentation will be folded in with the grades for all the review reports.

Term project (35%): This will be a deeper analysis of a topic, including a written report (approx. 10 pages, with citations, in any reasonable format), and an oral presentation (approx. 8-10 minutes, no powerpoint, no script, written notes only). Here is a list of books that could be used for topics. Feel free to think of other topics as well, and run them by me for approval. My feeling is that a very wide range of topics is suitable. Many students have done traditional term papers that bring in multiple sources (rather than a single book). It's hard to write a very good term paper without letting the reader know what you feel about the topic you are covering. There are two milestones for your written report. The first milestone is a 1-2 page proposal (due date Fri 30 Oct). The second milestone is a 3-4 page draft (due date Fri 20 Nov). The due date for your written report is Fri 4 Dec. Please email everything to me (using the email address franklin@cs.ucdavis.edu).

Class Policies: All written material submitted must be legible. Late work will not be accepted without a doctor's excuse. Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated.

Supplemental Material: The course readings are intended to be self-contained, but you might find it helpful to consult a good basic introduction to ethical decision making, such as "A Framework for Thinking Ethically", Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University, 2008 (originally in Issues in Ethics:1(2), Winter 1988).

Class Schedule:

Fri 25 Sep:
in-class activities: Overview
read for next class: ACM Code of Ethics and IEEE Code of Ethics.

Mon 28 Sep:
in-class activities: discuss ACM and IEEE Codes of Ethics.
read for next class: Emily Pronin, How We See Ourselves and How We See Others, Science:320, May 2008.

Wed 30 Sep:
in-class activities: discuss Pronin article.
read for next class: nothing.

Fri 2 Oct:
in-class activities: Watch "Decalogue, Part I".
read for next class: Brin, The Transparent Society..

Mon 5 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss "Decalogue, Part I" and Brin article.
read for next class: Cowan, "Industrial Society and Technological Systems".

Wed 7 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Cowan article.
read for next class: Donovan, "Containerization and Globalization: An Innovation and Its Impact".

Fri 9 Oct:
CLASS CANCELED.

Mon 12 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Donovan article.
read for next class: Jonas, "Technology and Responsibility: Reflections on the New Task of Ethics".

Wed 14 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Jonas article.
read for next class: Davis, "Constructing the Professional Responsibility of Engineers".

Fri 16 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Davis article.
read for next class: Rauch, "Law and Disorder: Why too much due process is a dangerous thing"..

Mon 19 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Rauch article.
read for next class: Sharkey, "The Automation and Proliferation of Military Drones and the Protection of Civilians"
and Open Letter on Autonomous Weapons (July 2015)..

Wed 21 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Sharkey article.
read for next class: Joy, "Why the future doesn't need us"..

Fri 23 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Joy article.
read for next class: Baker, "Final Jeopardy".

Mon 26 Oct:
in-class activities: discuss Baker article.
read for next class: Carr, "Is Google Making Us Stupid?".

Wed 28 Oct:
in-class activities: in-class activities: discuss Carr article.
read for next class: nothing

Fri 30 Oct:
in-class activities: read and discuss The Runaway Trolley, The Afghan Goatheards, Michael Sandel, Justice, pp. 21-27.
Price Gouging, Michael Sandel, Justice.
NOTE: No written reports please.

Mon 2 Nov:
in-class activities: read and discuss Utilitarianism, missing page, Michael Sandel, Justice, pp. 31-35.
NOTE: No written reports please.

Wed 4 Nov:
in-class activities: Watch Citizenfour.

Fri 6 Nov:
in-class activities: Watch Citizenfour.

Mon 9 Nov:
in-class activities: Watch and discuss Citizenfour.

Wed 11 Nov:: Holiday

Fri 13 Nov::
in-class activities: Watch Food, Inc.

Mon 16 Nov:
in-class activities: Watch Food, Inc.

Wed 18 Nov:
in-class activities: discuss Food, Inc.

Fri 20 Nov:
in-class activities: 5 student presentations.

Mon 23 Nov:
in-class activities: 5 student presentations.

Wed 25 Nov:
in-class activities: 5 student presentations.

Mon 30 Nov:
in-class activities: 5 student presentations.

Wed 2 Dec:
in-class activities: 5 student presentations.