LAW AND ETHICS OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
Alessia Farano, Laura Palazzani
Alessia Farano
afarano@luiss.it
Instructional goals
The Emerging Technologies Law and Ethics Course aims to present the ethical and legal implications of so-called emerging technologies (nanotechnology; biotechnology; artificial intelligence; cognitive science), providing students with the tools to understand the different philosophical and anthropological perspectives underlying the various regulatory issues raised by these technologies.
Prerequisites
Sufficient knowledge of general legal theory and extensive knowledge of the various branches of the legal system are required.
Intended learning outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding: Students will be expected to be familiar with the theoretical debate on the relationship between emerging technologies, ethics and law, and the legal and philosophical implications that such technological developments entail.
Ability to apply knowledge and understanding: Students will be able to identify the various theoretical and philosophical issues that the problems of regulation of emerging technologies pose.
Autonomy of judgment: Students, through the methodological tools acquired in class, will develop autonomy of evaluation and judgment on the topics of the module, and will be able to correctly set up the theoretical reflections solicited.
Communication skills: The student will have to learn the vocabulary proper to this area of study, and learn to expound his or her ideas in the debate solicited in the classroom.
Learning skills: The student will be able to independently frame the new ethical and legal problems raised by the advancement of emerging technologies, and to orient himself in the specialized scientific debate.
Course Contents
- Emerging and converging technologies. Definitions and normative framing.
- Philosophical perspectives on technology.
- Law, science and technology: the contribution of STS.
- Biotechnology: ethical and legal implications.
- Nanotechnology: ethical and legal implications.
- The AI challenges to law.
- Neuroscience: philosophical foundation; areas of legal application.
Reference Books
The teaching material will be pointed by lecturers during the course and shared on Luiss Learn.
Recommended readings:
S. Salardi, Intelligenza artificiale e semantica del cambiamento, Giappichelli, Torino 2023.
Teaching Methods
Acquisition: lectures, podcasts, documentaries
Investigation: analyzing ideas and information in a range of materials and resources, using conventional methods to collect and analyze data and comparing texts
Collaboration: small group project, discussing others’ output and building joint output
Discussion: seminars, group based class discussion, online forums and synchronous and asynchronous discussion
Production: essays, reports, presentations and blogs
Assessment Method
The final grade, expressed out of 30, will derive from the evaluation of the following items for the respective percentage share
20% active participation during classes
40% paper
40% final oral exam
Thesis assignment criteria
Manifestation of interest.
Week 1
I. Emerging technologies: NBICs (nano-bio-information-cognitive technologies).
II. Converging technologies: from biology to technology and vice versa.
III. Philosophies of the human in question: anthropology.
- The lesson will be held by an invited guest, with a particular expertise in the field of activity.
Week 2
I. Philosophical approaches to the ethics of emerging technologies
II. Public regulation of emerging technologies between morality and law. The role of ethics committees in the production of law.
III. Science and law: the paradigm of co-production.
Week 3
I. Biotechnology: where do we stand?
II. Reproductive biotechnology and gender studies.
- The lesson will be held by an invited guest, with a particular expertise in the field of activity.
Week 4
I. Moral bioenhancement.
II. Students will be invited to view a documentary on the subject.
- Divided into groups, after a brief discussion they will be invited to discuss the themes of the documentary.
Week 5
I. Overview of the technological evolution of intelligent machines.
The change of perspective in the definition of AI (machine learning and deep learning).
II. Artificial intelligence between principles and rules: the EU regulation (Trustworthy AI).
- The lesson will be held by an invited guest, with a particular expertise in the field of activity.
Week 6
I. AI challenges to law and ethics: Predictive justice and predictive policing.
- In-class group discussion on leading cases
II. AI challenges to law and ethics: Public administration 2.0
- The lesson will be held by a professional expert in the field of activity indicated, who will propose to the students activities of discussion and comparison
Week 7
I. AI challenges to law and ethics: Self driving Car
- In-class group discussion on paradigmatic cases
II. AI challenges to law and ethics: Robotic medicine
- In-class group discussion on paradigmatic cases
Week 8
I. Preliminary hints on neuroscience (historical genesis; design and intentions; how the human brain works; brain scanning techniques Neuroscience and philosophical anthropology
II. Neuroscience and law: forensic neuroscience; criminal neuroscience; regulatory neuroscience.
Week 9
I. Neuroscientific evidence: court cases
- Students, divided into groups will be asked to study a case, take a position and defend it in cross-examination with the opposing group.
II. The lie detector: the emergence of cognitive freedom
- Students, divided into groups will be asked to study a case, take a stand and defend it in cross-examination with the opposite group.
Week 10
I. Neuroscience, free will and imputability
- In-class group discussion of paradigmatic cases
II. Neuroscience and social dangerousness
- In-class group discussion on paradigmatic cases
Week 11
I. From machine judge to emotional judge
II. Behavioural economics and public regulation. The case of the nudge
- The lesson will be held by a lecturer expert in the field of activity indicated, who will propose to the students activities of discussion and comparison
Week 12
Presentation of Group’s works
- The students will be invited to pick a topic in the previous week, do some research about it and present a paper, which will be peer-reviewed during the last two classes.