Philosophy and Ethics for Computing and Information Science

Topics for research paper:

Man, animal, machine: differences and overlaps. The living being as a machine: this
image has been verypopular in different historical periods and is still present today,
even reinforced by computer technology (“the brain as a computer”). At the same
time, all kinds of criteria have been (and still are) sought in order to separate man from
the rest of the world (the natural and the artificial one). Using insights from computer
science, philosophy and ethics, try to sketch a general vision of how man, animal,
and machine relate to each other.

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ICT and the human body. You could argue that, thanks to modern technology, we no
longer are homo sapiens, but have become (or have always been?) homo
technologicus. There is a whole spectrum of ongoing developments, from digitalized
healthcare up to futuristic (?) plans to make cyborgs out of human beings. Is what we
are witnessing ‘just’ the next step in an ongoing evolution or has ICT provided us with
a revolutionary way of upgrading ourselves (in more ways than one)?

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ICT and social order. As we have seen when discussing hackerism, ICT has both a
very obvious but also a much more subtle effect on social order and social
relationships at all levels. From the way information is spread (and used!) up to the
redefinition of what ‘democracy’ is: are we facing an unwelcome ‘silent revolution’
(or maybe a very vocal one) which is restructuring our society in a technocratic way?
Or is it again a storm in a teacup?



ICT and entertainment. Online gambling is for many people a wonderful form of
entertainment, and for as many people a curse and a menace for society. The same can
be said of many other forms of digital entertainment (including sexually-oriented
topics, which together with gambling and MMORPG make up the “Big Three”
of online entertainment). How has ICT changed our concepts of “fun”, “recreation”,
etc.? What are the social consequences of these changes?

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