The technology created by computer science, both the algorithms and the hardware designs, really is a huge leap forward in the power available to humankind. Like any newly available power, the question of how to control and manage it is an important one. Questions about intellectual property and privacy are now being raised that were never an issue until the capabilities provided by computer technology arose. Some digital ethics topics are possibly the best way to understand this and they will be the focus of your class project. Below I have some example project topics as well as some online links to get you started thinking about those topics.
For this projet you'll be researching a digital ethics topic and give a report on it. This being a computer science course, it won't be some plain 5-10 page paper. You'll still need to do background research and present writing of the quality of a social scienes paper - but your display format will be a webpage. This gives you a chance to use some of those HTML and CSS skills you've learned.
Also, your report/website for this project will not simply be a listing of facts and references about your chosen issue. You should take the approach of "If I was in charge of making a decision on this issue...". This is similar to an argumentative essay or debate-style report, but with a twist. Don't just pick a side and start arguing in favor of it (and ignore any valid points for alternatives). Consider all (or at least the most relevant) possible approaches and solutions to come up with which you feel is the best solution. Your website should make it clear what issue your dealing with, what your idea or position on that issue is, and how you're supporting that position (with links to references as possible). You can probably do better than just having a single webpage with the text of a 5 page essay copy-and-paste'd in. This is the web, after all, so if you really cared about this issue you'd have to make your website interesting, easy to use, and informative to get people to take the time to look at your site.
Also, you don't have to be completely in favor of a single side of the issue. If you feel a compromise between competing sides is best, state that and defend your position. If you feel that the issue is completely wide open, state that and defend it. ...AND if you don't propose and strongly support some solution to the issue then you must propse and defend some research or experiments that would provide information sufficient for you to be able to decide on a solution for the issue. Some ethics issues - probably most - do not have a clean-cut "correct" side. Understand all important sides of the issue, present that in your report/website, and then propose and defend a solution or a method that would directly lead to a solution.
For this project your are encouraged to work in groups of 2. In this abbreviated summer course, and with less than 2 weeks to prepare your project, having a partner can really help. For this you'll need to (1) research and understand an issue while defending your position, and (2) give your information and report in a well-presented website. Step 1 is more important than step 2, but with two people working on it you should be able to do a good job on both.
For larger groups 3 people is the maximum but you will need to talk to me to get that approved and a 3 person group will be graded in the expectation that an extra person was working on it (i.e. more research, better written arguments, or more detailed or advanced presentation would be expected). If you have a partner that wants to work on the same topic as you, that's great. If not, let me know what topic(s) you're interested in and I'll put you in touch with anyone else interested in the same topics that is also looking for a partner.
For this project you will be creating .html files to present your research and information. For the final project your website should be posted in at least one student's public_html directory so your work is publicly viewable. There are 3 major due dates for this project: (1)topic selction, (2)update, and (3)final project. An initial topic for your project is due this Friday (yes, that's soon). This topic does not have to be your final choice. The idea is to make you at least consider some topics and find (and at least partially read) 2 references on that topic so that you can
In addition to website reports, we'll also have a couple days of class next week for informal debates/discussions about the digital ethic issues. A few points from your project grade will come from your participation in these discussions. Students will be expected to participate for discussions on the topic of their report, but are encouraged to participate for any topic.
Below is a listing of possible topics for your digital ethics project. These are just some issues related to computer science that I was aware of and was easily able to find some related online materials. The key aspect for you is to choose a topic that interests you and that you can be passionate about. The technology created by computer science does affect your life - you just need to find a digital ethics-related topic that matters to you. If you have a project topic other than one of the 4 listed below please ask me about it to get approval. The topic must be related to computer science and really should be ethics-related. I'll be more inclined to approve a project topic if you already found some references or done some background research so that you at least partially understand the topic already. Also, note that many of the links given below are merely opinion articles. Your report should be more than that. You don't have to be an expert, but you must have some research and evidence to support claims that you are making.
What rights or patents should be allowed on ideas or creative designs? Some things has small as the idea to pay for things online with a single click have been patented. Some designs have first been created by one group, but were later patented by another group copying that idea - forcing the first group to abandon the idea or pay royalties. In perhaps the most notable case in the debate over intellectual property, the music recording industry has waged war against online trading of music files.
Some companies have even sold CD's with special technology to attempt to prevent users from sharing their music - in some cases damaging users computers in the process! What should be allowed and what shouldn't? Should there even be such a thing as "intellectual property"? When considering this issue be sure to look at the viewpoints of both sides (or all sides if there's more than 2) and consider the long-term affects of any decision you make.
Links to get you started:
In the realm of digitally and technologically based companies markets evolve very quickly. This can lead to great progress, but it can also lead to a single company grabing huge market share when a new industry suddenly arises and quickly grows to a large size in both the amounts of money involved and how it affects people's everyday lives. The question is, for these near-monopolies with very large market shares, what should be done?
Microsoft had to face a widely publicied anti-trust case after it was alleged that they used their huge desktop operating system market share to stifle competition in many different software fields. Did Microsoft abuse its power? Should it have been allowed to? More recently, Google has faced litigation and criticism for things ranging from having a search market-share monopoly to whether it should share its information with the US government's searches to whether it should bow to censorship pressure from China's government.
Google and its large market share is relatively new (remember the old search engines by Lycos.com, Excite.com, Dogpile.com, or Ask.com?). Should this market be allowed to continue since its already fluxuated so much? Even if there isn't a monopoly, what happens if one company knows too much about what information the world wants to find or even controls what information the world is allowed to find on the web. Finally, while Apple has very little of the desktop OS market, it holds great power in the digital music and media industry. A case has been introduced by some European governments charging that Apple is abusing its power with iTunes and the iPod (it has its own private format for storing music files). These companies are just some obvious starting cases. You may find other current or potential industry monopolies that are worth considering.
Links to get you started:
Right now when you pass information across the internet it gets sent the same as anyone else's internet. That could change. The idea of net neutrality is to make it a requirement for the telecommunication companies that own the infastructure that makes up the internet to treat all data equally. An alternative would be for them to have different tiers of internet traffic passed at different speeds with certain kinds of information from certain users getting priority over others.
The argument against net neutrality might be that it limits incentives for developing different "high-speed" networks. The argument for net neutrality is that neutrality has worked so far and that if certain internet traffic could be preferred over other traffic, the internet start-ups and 1-2 person websites could be eliminated because they can't afford to pay to have their site be sent to users as quickly as sites made by larger corporations.
Links to get you started:
The issue of policing vs. privacy has been around for centuries. The big shift that's now occurring is that current computing technology gives society the ability to monitor a host of things that could never be monitored before. Where, if anywhere, should the line be drawn? What levels of privacy do we lose when someone maintains databases of information about our phone records, our emails, our web surfing, our...
Anything that you do that involved digital or computer technology, from using your credit card to swiping your ID to get into a dorm, can be monitored. With the increasing abilities of computer algorithms that information can be saved and can be searched with improving computer intelligence. Perhaps this is worrisome or perhaps it is not a concern and is merely necessary for catching today's criminals. Either way, the issue affects you. (The movie Enemy of the State gives a good "Hollywood" action-film introduction to this topic.)
Links to get you started:
Should the government subsidize or pay for computer or internet technology in underpriviledged areas?
Should direct recording electronic (dre) voting terminals be used in place of paper ballots? (In some places they already are, and that has brought up some accusations/theories of voting fraud in recent past elections.)
Should a university - or any other organization providing internet service - monitor how its network is used?
Find a topic that's interesting to you. Computer Science does affect your life, so choose a topic that affects you so that you might care more about researching that topic. It certain does not have to be one of the 4 above. Those are just some ideas to start with. When you do write your report, you must do your research and use some "specifics". Rather than speaking in general terms (i.e. "this could be bad") refer to specific systems and technologies that are affected and talk about the social, legal, and ethical implications of the topic. For example, your argument should not be a listing of the rights of record companies versus individuals or have "music should be free because the recording industry has enough money already" as its main supporting argument.