Faculty: Faculty of Arts
Department Name: Philosophy
Course Acronym and Number: PHIL 1201 (unconfirmed)
Former Acronym and Number: N/A
Equivalent Courses: N/A
Cross-listed Courses: TBA
Credit Exclusion Courses: N/A
Credits: 3
Descriptive Title: Philosophy of Technology through Film
Banner Title: Philosophy of Technology through Film
Implementation date: 1-Sep-2021 (anticipated)
Calendar description:
Students will be introduced to current and emerging philosophical debates about technology
primarily by viewing, analyzing, and critiquing a selection of science-fiction films and
documentaries. Students will discuss metaphysical, epistemological, ethical, and/or political
implications of robotic technologies, information technologies, and/or biological technologies.
They will be introduced to key philosophical concepts and methods and gain a working
understanding of critical thinking, argument analysis, and rational ethical deliberation.
Required for the following credentials: N/A
Prerequisites: N/A
Corequisites: N/A
Learning outcomes:
A student who successfully completes the course will have reliably demonstrated the ability to:
- Recognize and understand emerging issues pertaining to technology
- Use critical thinking techniques to generate and evaluate informed decisions about
technologies and their social and natural impacts
- Distinguish between descriptive concerns about whether a given technology is possible and
normative concerns about whether a given technology is desirable
- Use ethical theory to guide decisions concerning future generations
- Apply effective teamwork to reach a decision or clarification on an ethical matter
- Apply fundamental principles and concepts from various philosophical schools and traditions
(analytic, pragmatist, postphenomenological, etc.)
- Develop a heightened awareness of approaches which may be used in the student’s own life
- Demonstrate knowledge of the relevant philosophical literature
- Make group presentations on selected philosophy of technology issues
- Write appropriately referenced papers
- Participate in online discussions and debates
Content:
Content will include, but is not restricted to, the following:
- The ethics of self-guided cars
- The short, medium, and long-term economic and social impacts of robotization and AI
- Research into and deployment of military robots and enhanced cyborg soldiers
- Questions about the nature of consciousness, intelligence, and the possibility of their artificial
replication
- The ethics and phenomenology of bionic limbs
- Brain implants enabling the enhancement and manipulation of perception, thought, and
action
- The philosophical implications of agents socially connected via computers and hive-minds
- The singularity and existential threat
- The role of public and private institutions in the storage, dissemination, and control of online
information
Learning Activities:
Activities may include, but are not restricted to, the following:
- Watching films and documentaries, either individually or collectively
- Attending lectures while taking notes
- Asking questions about the films and documentaries studied
- Applying philosophical concepts and comparing different philosophical views
- Analyzing arguments and setting them into diagrams or standard form
- Exploring and properly citing the relevant philosophical literature
- Participating in discussions and interacting with individuals with diverse backgrounds
- Completing journals, assignments, tests and/or exams
- Making group presentations
- Participating in live or online discussions and debates
Assessment Methods:
Grading system used: LETTER GRADE
Teaching Modes:
Classroom-Related Instruction (Lecture): 4
Class Size: 35
Duration (in weeks): 15
Learning resources:
Learning resources may include, but are not restricted to, the following:
FILMS:
- Her (2013, Spike Jonze)
- Gattaca (1997, Andrew Niccol)
- A.I. (2001, Steven Spielberg)
- I, Robot (2004, Alex Proyas)
- Automata (2014, Gabe Ibanez)
- Robot and Frank (2012, Jake Schreier)
- Eva (2011, Kike Maillo)
- Elysium (2013, Neill Blomkamp)
- Chappie (2015, Neill Blomkamp)
- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michel Gondry)
- Ex Machina (2015, Alex Garland)
TV SHOWS:
- Black Mirror (2011-16, Charlie Brooker)
DOCUMENTARIES:
- Genesis 2.0 (2018, Maxim Abugaev)
- Into Eternity (2010, Michael Madsen)
- The Age of AI, episodes 1-4, 6, 8 (2019, R. Downey Jr.)
- Humans need not Apply (2014, C.G.P. Grey)
TEXTBOOKS:
- Kaplan, Jerry. 2016. Artificial Intelligence: What Everyone Needs to Know. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
- Kaplan, Jerry. 2015. Humans Need Not Apply: A Guide to Wealth & Work in the Age of Artificial
Intelligence. New Haven: Yale University Press.
- Lin, Patrick, Keith Abney and George A. Bekey (eds.). 2012. Robot Ethics: The Ethical and Social
Implications of Robotics. Cambridge: MIT Press.
- Lin, Patrick Keith Abney, and Ryan Jenkins (eds.). 2017. Robot Ethics 2.0: From Autonomous
Cars to Artificial Intelligence. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Sandler, Ronald L. (ed). 2014. Ethics and Emerging Technologies. New York: Palgrave
Macmillan.
Course Developer(s): Marc Champagne
Department Chair: TBA
Dean/Associate Dean: TBA
Senate Vice Chair: TBA
Signed Date: 4-Feb-2021
Signed Date: TBA
Signed Date: TBA
Signed Date: TBA