Michael Falgoust
University of Twente
Department of Philosophy
Drienerlolaan 5
7522 NB Enschede
The Netherlands
Current Position
Assistant Professor of Ethics
University of Twente
Areas of Specialization
Social/Political Philosophy
Philosophy of Technology
Ethics
Skype: 504-684-4631
Mobile: 06 17933817
m.falgoust@utwente.nl
http://technovana.blogspot.com/
2013-present
Enschede, the Netherlands
Areas of Competence
Core Analytic History
Philosophy of Mind
Asian Philosophy
Aesthetics
Education
PhD in Philosophy
2012
Tulane University
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Dissertation: Freeing the Culture, Freeing the Self: An Intellectual Property
Rights Argument
MA in Philosophy
2006
University of British Columbia
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
BA in Philosophy/English
2003
University of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Language Proficiency
English – native
German – reading proficiency
French – basic understanding
Dutch – beginning understanding
Publications
 “The Incentives Argument Revisited: A Millean Account of Copyright.” The
Southern Journal of Philosophy. Forthcoming.
◦ Analysis of copyright law with regard to free expression
 “Information Ethics in the Context of Smart Devices” co-authored with Brian
Roux, PhD. Ethics and Information Technology. Available online.
◦ Analysis of privacy law and policies with regard to smart devices
 “Derivative Works, Original Value.” Philosophy in the Contemporary World June
2012
◦ Analysis of fair use and free speech issues in derivative works

“Ethical Issues Raised by Data Acquisition Methods in Digital Forensics
Research” co-authored with Brian Roux. Journal of Information Ethics April
2012
◦ Analysis of privacy law and social norms relative to digital forensics research
ethics, including best practices recommendation
Presentations
Upcoming
 “Computer Ethics for Digital Natives – A Textbook Proposal” with Johnny
Søraker at CEPE Conference in Paris, June 2014
 “Balancing Security and Privacy: A Problem of Consent” at 3TU.Ethics Annual
Research Day in Utrecht, May 2014
Past
 “IE Confidential” at Technology and Values Research Meeting November 2013
 “Privacy and Information Analytics Research” at Responsible Research and
Innovation Unbound Workshop October 2013
 “Privacy Implications of Smart Devices and Market Stalking” at the NolaSec
(New Orleans Security Group) Meeting August 2012
 “Extended Cognition and the Privacy of Smart Devices” (co-author Brian Roux)
at the Information Ethics Roundtable April 2012
 “Communication, Capitalism and Democratic Participation” at the Crisis of
American Democracy Conference organized by the Human Rights Institute of the
IPFW Center for Applied Ethics April 2012
 “Derivative Works, Original Value” at the American Philosophical Association
Pacific Division Conference April 2012
 “The Incentives Argument Revisited: A Utilitarian Account of Intellectual
Property” at the Association for Political Theory Conference October 2011
 “Derivative Works, Original Value” Tulane University Graduate Studies Student
Association Summer Colloquium Series July 2011
 “Natural Rights, Ethereal Objects: The Incentives Argument on Millian Grounds”
at the 2011 Midwest Political Science Association Conference
Works in Progress
 “IE Confidential” in submission
◦ Reviewing the political and ethical implications of the burgeoning information
economy, I argue that there is a need for information vendors to establish
explicit confidentiality relationships with clients in the long-term interest of
protecting client privacy.
 “Maintaining Justice in Cyber-Conflict” in submission
◦ Extended analysis of cyber-conflict and Just War Theory focused on
Distinction in cyber-attacks.
 “Data Science and Designing for Privacy” in submission
◦ As information analytics produces more efficient tools for finding meaningful
patterns in data, informational privacy becomes more vulnerable. In this
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climate, we have to revisit our moral means of protecting privacy. It may be
appropriate to employ misinformation to protect our privacy just as we
employ physical force in cases of self-defense.
“Information Privacy in Deliberative Democracy” in submission
◦ Examination of the information economy and potential consequences for
autonomy and, by extension, democratic governance.
“Closing the Knowledge Gap: Epistemic Opportunities in Interface Design”
◦ Description of user interface design conventions and their impact on
increasing user knowledge about IT.
“Balancing Security and Privacy: A Problem of Consent”
◦ The connection between autonomy, privacy, and consent indicates that
trading privacy for security is inconsistent with democratic ideals.
“Toward a Philosophy of Political Technology”
◦ Initial framework for a bridge between philosophy of technology and political
theory.
Past Positions
Visiting Assistant Professor
Tulane University
2012-2013
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Adjunct Instructor
Tulane University
2007-2012
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Adjunct Instructor
Dillard University
2007-2012
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Teaching Assistant
University of British Columbia
Writing Tutor
University of New Orleans
2004-2006
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
2001-2004
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Courses Taught (graduate courses in bold)
University of Twente
Introduction to Philosophical Theories and Methods
Computer Ethics
Ethics and Technology
History of Psychology
Engineering Ethics
Ethics of New Media
Tulane University
Phil 3500 Buddhism
Phil 1030 Ethics
Phil 1030 Ethics and Technology
Dillard University
Phil 200 Perspectives in Philosophy
Phil 202 Logic
Phil 301 Ethics
Phil 402 Philosophy of Religion
University of British Columbia (as Teaching Assistant)
Phil 230 Introduction to Moral Philosophy
Phil 312 Medieval Philosophy
Phil 378 Philosophical Wisdom of Early India
Phil 388 Buddhist, Brahmanical, and Jain Philosophers in Interaction
Courses Prepared to Teach
Introduction to Philosophy
Political Philosophy
Philosophy and Technology
Philosophy of Psychology
Logic (symbolic logic through quantification)
Graduate Coursework
Tulane University
Political Philosophy
Social Philosophy
Epistemology
Aristotle
University of British Columbia
Space and Time
Empiricism and Phil of Science
Metaphysics (Causation)
Ethics
Medical Ethics
Critical Thinking
Philosophy of Film/Literature
Asian Philosophy
Metaphysics (Free Will)
Philosophical Logic
Philosophy of Thomas Hobbes
Philosophy of Mind
Biology and Modernity
Philosophy of Nietzsche
American Pragmatism
References
Dr Bruce Brower
Dr Jonathan Riley
Dr Alison Denham
Dr Johnny Søraker
bbrower@tulane.edu
jonriley@tulane.edu
adenham@tulane.edu
j.h.soraker@utwente.nl
Department Chair, Tulane University
Full Professor, Tulane University
Associate Professor, Tulane University
Assistant Professor, University of Twente
Dissertation Description
Title: Freeing the Culture, Freeing the Self: An Intellectual Property Rights
Argument
My dissertation concerns recent arguments about intellectual property rights,
especially copyright. I argue that a system of intellectual property rights must take into
consideration the needs of the audience as well as the author. Beginning with a discussion
of some of the key values required in a liberal democracy, I focus on the account of
autonomy and pluralism as given by John Stuart Mill. Mill's understanding of autonomy
incorporates the need for freedom of expression, self-regarding liberty, and critical selfdevelopment. Creative works, the subject of copyright law, serve as a means of
expression, so I argue that much of what Mill has to say about free speech can be said of
creative freedom. Furthermore, Mill's understanding of property rights as a means for
individuals to achieve their security adapts easily to the Incentives Argument for
intellectual property rights. The Incentives Argument states that intellectual property
rights are justified as providing incentives to creators. In exchange for publishing novels
or making known inventions, creators and innovators are granted rights to control those
creations. Creators are then able to secure their living through their creative labor, and the
public benefits from increased innovation in the arts and sciences.
Having established that foundation, I go on to give a Millian version of the
Incentives Argument, recasting it in terms of a more sophisticated utilitarianism.
Resorting to a Millian background for the incentives argument allows for more satisfying
responses to criticisms of utilitarian justifications for intellectual property rights and
provides a more complete description of the benefits sought by both creators and the
public. Creators desire sufficiently strong intellectual property rights, such that they can
use those rights to earn a living. Nevertheless, the need to provide creators strong enough
rights to motivate creative labor is not inconsistent with the need to limit those rights in
order to secure public goods. The benefits sought by the members of the audience have
not been given extensive attention, but those benefits can be understood against the
background of Mill's emphasis on critical self-development.
I argue that the audience members should not be understood as mere passive
consumers of media. Instead, the members of the audience must be understood as
engaged in the cultivation of their own characters, and part of that cultivation involves
being active participants in the creation of culture. Intellectual property rights must be
sufficiently weak to accommodate the audience's creative engagement, allowing
individuals to enter into dialogue with other creators and the culture at large. As such, I
argue that fair use is an important limitation of copyright and must be understood as a
right held by members of the public, rather than an affirmative defense. First sale, which
facilitates wide distribution of works through libraries and secondhand retailers, must
also be maintained in order to preserve the ability of all individuals, regardless of socioeconomic standing, to access creative works.
Following the more complete account of the Incentives Argument, I criticize the
Neo-Lockean approaches to intellectual property rights which have become increasingly
common in the literature. Influenced by Nozick's interpretation of Locke's Prosviso in
terms of Pareto-optimality, some intellectual property scholars, such as Adam Moore,
advance justifications of very strong intellectual property rights which fail to take into
account the public goods intellectual property rights are supposed to secure. In order to
criticize Neo-Lockean accounts of intellectual property, I discuss the information
commons and its role in the creation of new works. Surveying different models or
metaphors for the information commons, including geographic descriptions and
comparisons to raw materials, I settle on a model that emphasizes the important
relationship between creative works, authors, and audience members. I argue that the
information commons must be preserved and expanded to avoid disadvantaging future
creators who may find that the works which most influenced them cannot be represented
in their own work.