Bias Archives - Viterbi Conversations in Ethics

Fall 2023 Weekly News Profile

The Role of Bias in Scientific Research

The world is buzzing once again with supposed evidence of alien life. While under oath, Jaime Mausson presented two bodies he claims are of extraterrestrial origin to the Mexican Congress. However, experts are skeptical of his findings, claiming they have no real scientific basis. This case brings to question the role of bias in scientific research and how the resulting spread of misinformation can cross the line into becoming harmful.

Spring 2022 Weekly News Profile

The Bias and Contradiction of Dating Apps

VCE March 21, 2022 Algorithms Apps Bias Racial Bias User Interface

Many popular dating apps utilize subjective algorithms and addictive user interfaces to hook those in search of a connection, and the efficacy of dating apps is questionable when their purpose inherently pits the interests of the company against that of the user.

Summer 2020 Weekly News Profile

Explaining Artificially Intelligent Decisions

VCE July 27, 2020 Artificial Intelligence Bias Machine Learning Right to an Explanation

7/27/2020 AI decision-making is everywhere these days. Getting a loan, getting an apartment, getting bail: in all three of these cases, there could be analgorithm taking…

Featured Spring 2023 VCE Podcast

Electric Vehicles: Climate Saver?

VCE January 31, 2023

Hosts Maya and Josh discuss the ethics of lithium battery mining and electric vehicle use with a panel of engineering essayists.

Fall 2022 VCE Podcast

Predictive Policing

VCE October 31, 2022

In this episode, the Viterbi Conversations in Ethics team explores the ethics behind predictive policing.

Fall 2022 VCE Podcast

Clean Energy

VCE October 31, 2022

In this episode, the Viterbi Conversations in Ethics team explores the ethics behind clean energy.

Fall 2022 VCE Podcast

Cryptocurrency

VCE October 24, 2022

In this episode, the Viterbi Conversations in Ethics team explores the ethics behind cryptocurrency.

Fall 2022 VCE Podcast

Autonomous Vehicles

VCE October 24, 2022

In this episode, the Viterbi Conversations in Ethics team explores the ethics behind autonomous vehicles.

Featured Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

Redefining Societal Progress for Engineers

VCE March 29, 2023

Dr. Erin Cech’s critique of the National Academy of Engineering’s Grand Challenges focuses heavily on the pitfalls of technological determinism. This paper supports Cech’s argument through a discussion of current examples of the consequences of technological determinism, such as the Black Lives Matter and Me Too movements, medication accessibility, and facial recognition technology. Though the consequences of a zealous engineering mentality are commonplace in our society, there are also current examples of tech companies neglecting to develop technology due to its possible negative consequences.

Featured Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

How the Technical Sciences and the Social Sciences Should Go Hand-in-Hand

VCE March 29, 2023

The fourteen Grand Challenges presented by the National Academy of Engineers (NAE) fail to involve ethics as a part of the solution to these issues. Traditionally, engineers have kept their work separate from its societal implications. Engineers and their non-technical counterparts have an obligation to view all technical solutions under the moral lens of ethicists and futurists. Going forward, engineers must be aware of their limits and work with experts outside of their fields to develop solutions that will be cognizant of society as a whole.

Featured Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

The Lies We Tell to Inspire: Responding to the Engineering Double Standard

VCE March 29, 2023

The National Academy of Engineering’s Grand Challenges are critiqued by Dr. Erin Cech for what she describes as a double standard in engineering. Though Cech rightly discusses a lack of accountability and acknowledgement within the profession, her argument lacks nuance. The Grand Challenges were ultimately a promotional tool meant to inspire the next generation of engineers, yet Cech holds them to a standard of being professional rules and guidelines. This paper will discuss the distinctions that Cech’s argument lacks, including placing an unreasonable amount of responsibility on engineers and overstating their influence.

Featured Spring 2023 Volume 6 Issue 3

The Grand Challenges: Authorial Particularism and a Lost Opportunity for an Equitable Society

VCE March 29, 2023

The fourteen Grand Challenges were developed by the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in an effort to expose future generations to the wide range of innovation and technology that they could one day take part in. As detailed by the Challenges’ creators, the list includes challenges that are most significant to our current world. Dr. Erin Cech’s critique of the Grand Challenges is that a lack of diversity in the panel of engineering experts led to a lack of oversight into issues that are actually pertinent to developing nations. Cech’s argument that the Grand Challenges are a missed opportunity for social justice holds validity, but her mischaracterization of the lack of diversity requires further consideration.

Fall 2023 Featured Weekly News Profile

NASA’s “Asteroid Autumn” Reveals the Future of the Space Industry

VCE November 22, 2023

This “Asteroid Autumn,” NASA has made significant steps forward in three of their asteroid-focused space missions. On September 24, 2023, OSIRIS-REx successfully returned an estimated half-pound sample of asteroid rock. Psyche, launched on October 13, will travel out to examine the metal-rich asteroid 16-Psyche. Finally, on November 1, Lucy flew by her first asteroid out of the twelve along her planned trajectory. These missions highlight the growing interest in identifying and collecting the resources found in space. The economic and political advantages gained from access to space resources will shape the future of the space industry.

Fall 2023 Weekly News Profile

iPad Kids: A Generation in Danger

VCE November 13, 2023

People in Silicon Valley tend to be very strict about their children’s screen time because they have insider knowledge of just how addictive and harmful the algorithms they create are. Fed up with these algorithms, 33 general attorneys from 42 different states have come together to sue Meta for endangering children. Excessive screen use perpetuated by such algorithms has serious implications for the children who fall victim to them.

Fall 2023 Weekly News Profile

The Benefits of Scientific Controversy

VCE November 7, 2023

Timothy Nash recently brought a two-million-year-old fossil on a commercial voyage aboard Virgin Galactic’s V.S.S. Unity. The purpose was to symbolize how far humanity has come, though many scientists disagree with this stunt, stating the venture to be “unethical” and “reckless”. However, the resulting controversy has led to a great deal of public interest in the Cradle of Humankind, benefitting future research ventures through additional economic support.

Fall 2023 Weekly News Profile

Nobel Prize in Medicine Winner Demonstrates the Roadblocks of Academic Innovation

VCE November 1, 2023

This week, the recipients of the Nobel Prize in Medicine were recognized for their contributions to mRNA vaccine technology. However, their research was historically brushed off by colleagues, publications, and grant institutions before the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, Dr. Katalin Karikó was demoted from a tenure-track position and eventually forced to retire from her university. Her struggle for recognition reflects the roadblocks to innovation in academia that are amplified by limited funding and biases.

Fall 2023 Weekly News Profile

Electric Vehicles May Be Stalling a UAW Deal

VCE October 6, 2023

Members of the United Automobile Workers (UAW) union have been striking for nearly 3 weeks. As 25,000 Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis (formally Chrysler) employees walk the picket lines, the UAW is busy negotiating wages, job security, and pensions. While automakers feel that workers are asking for too much amidst the companies’ pricey transitions to EV production, EV production is what the UAW believes justifies some of their demands.