As we work to decouple carbon emissions and economic growth on the path to net zero emissions — so-called “clean growth” — we must also meaningfully deliver sustainable, inclusive growth with emerging technologies.
Category: Editorial & Opinion
Redefining and Renewing Humanism in the Digital Age
By Dirk Messner on August 19th, 2020 in Editorial & Opinion, Ethics, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
With more than 50% of the global population living in non-democratic states, and keeping in mind the disturbing trend to authoritarianism of populist leaders in supposedly democratic countries, it is easy to think of dystopian scenarios about the destructive potentials of digitalization and AI for the future of freedom, privacy, and human rights. But AI and digital innovations could also be enablers of a Renewed Humanism in the Digital Age.
Estimating Carbon Emissions of Artificial Intelligence
By Alexandra Luccioni on August 11th, 2020 in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Editorial & Opinion, Environment, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
While many of us hear about the latest and greatest breakthrough in AI technology, what we hear less about is its environmental impact. In fact, much of AI’s recent progress has required ever-increasing amounts of data and computing power. We believe that tracking and communicating the environmental impact of ML should be a key part of the research and development process.
Sustainability in the Digital Age
By Amy Luers on July 6th, 2020 in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Editorial & Opinion, Environment, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Disruptions can have positive as well as negative impacts on natural and human systems. Among the most fundamental disruptions to global society over the last century is the rise of big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and other digital technologies. These digital technologies have created new opportunities to understand and manage global systemic risks.
Apologies for the Inconvenience (But Please Use It Wisely)
By Jeremy Pitt on June 25th, 2020 in Editorial & Opinion, Environment, Ethics, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Some collective behavior that supports sustainability entails some individual inconvenience: many small acts of environmental kindness require some thought, effort, or consideration.
Smart Home Security: How Safe is Your Data?
By Kristina Milanovic on May 25th, 2020 in Editorial & Opinion, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Privacy & Security, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Security threats to smart devices are not just from hacking, but also from a lack of control over data access. The separation of security from convenience makes it difficult for the average user to determine how secure a smart device is.
From Trust and Loyalty to Lock-In and Digital Dependence
By Jeremy Pitt on March 25th, 2020 in Editorial & Opinion, Ethics, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Robotics, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Mega-platforms have, with the addition of one extra ingredient, combined lock-in and loyalty to create a grave, and perhaps unexpected, consequence. The extra ingredient is psychology; and the unexpected consequence is what might be called digital dependence.
Deepfake Videos and DDoS Attacks (Deliberate Denial of Satire)
By Jeremy Pitt on February 19th, 2020 in Editorial & Opinion, Ethics, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Democracy itself is under (yet another) threat from deepfake videos … deepfake videos could be used to create compromising material of politicians: for example, the digitally-altered video2 of U.S. House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi appearing to slur drunkenly was viewed millions of times and tweeted by the U.S. President, and although the video is demonstrably a hoax, the tweet remains undeleted.
Ethics and System Design in a New Era of Human-Computer Interaction
By Roba Abbas on February 10th, 2020 in Editorial & Opinion, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Contemporary and emerging digital technologies are leading us to question the ways in which humans interact with machines and with complex socio-technical systems. The new dynamics of technology and human interaction will inevitably exert pressure on existing ethical frameworks and regulatory bodies.
Ethics and System Design in a New Era of Human–Computer Interaction
By Roba Abbas on January 2nd, 2020 in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Editorial & Opinion, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
As technology pervades all aspects of our existence, and Artificial Intelligence and machine learning systems become commonplace, a new era of human-computer interaction is emerging that will involve directing our focus beyond traditional approaches, to span other intricate interactions with computer-based systems.
Lethal Autonomous Weapons: Meaningful Human Control or Meaningful Human Certification?
By M.L. Cummings on December 23rd, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Magazine Articles, Robotics, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
It is important to define autonomy in technology, which is not the same as automation. Automated systems operate by clear repeatable rules based on unambiguous sensed data. Autonomous systems take in data about the unstructured world around them, process that data to generate information, and generate alternatives and make decisions in the face of uncertainty.
Being Human in the Days/Daze of Big Data
By Jeremy Pitt on November 28th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Ethics, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Technology for Big Data, and its brother-in-arms Machine Learning, is at the root of, and is the facilitator of, deliberate string-pulling design choices. These design choices are made by people, and so the question actually becomes, do the design choices enabled by Big Data and Machine Learning have the capacity to alter, diminish and perhaps actually “destroy” what it means to be fundamentally human.
Transparent Ownership of Mobility-as-a-Service
By Jeremy Pitt on July 20th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Environment, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Why would anyone own, or even need to own, a driverless car, if they do not get to drive it? Which in turn begs the question, if the central tenet of the personal car ownership model (i.e., ownership) no longer holds, then what is the replacement business model?
Driverless Cars: Another Piece Of The Puzzle
By Teresa Galvao Dias on July 11th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
It is essential not only to estimate the sales potential of driverless cars, but also to debate how they will affect the society and cities’ livability.
The Resilience of “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles”
By Antonio Bucchiarone on June 29th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Meeting traveler’s expectations, and properly exploiting available transport resources, is becoming a more and more complex task.
Congestion, Safety, Economic, and Environmental Challenges of Vehicle Automation in Transport Systems
By Elena Psyllou on June 18th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Magazine Articles, Robotics, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
The role of driverless cars in future transport systems remains debatable, in terms of their potential to replace other transport modes or have a novel, unique, and complementary functionality.
Driverless Cars Will Make Passenger Rail Obsolete
By Yair Wiseman on June 18th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Magazine Articles, Robotics, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
In the age of driverless cars, rail — as a means of transportation that takes many people from one central station to another central station — has lost justification for its existence.
Poem – Sea of Seeds
By Alba Victoria on May 24th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Human Impacts, Magazine Articles, Podcasts, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact, Video & Podcasts
I am Alba Victoria
A biopsychologist highly interested in conservation
Dedicated to engaging science communication
Who is simply trying to find more sustainable ways
To support our current and future generations
Smart Cities through Smart Regulation
By Gustavo Gil Gasiola on April 26th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
Smart Cities demand new strategies and forms of control. The traditional model of public regulation is challenged by a renewed relationship between technology, government, and society. We highlight the difficulties and possible solutions for regulation in the context of a Smart City, provided by the largest city in Brazil: São Paulo.
The Democracy Lag
By Caroline Lucas on March 28th, 2019 in Editorial & Opinion, Magazine Articles, Social Implications of Technology, Societal Impact
U.K. democracy is out of date. It isn’t built to deal with digital tools that have unprecedented potential to manipulate the public.