All Narratives (328)
Find narratives by ethical themes or by technologies.
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- 8 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
Westworld, a western-themed amusement park, is populated by realistic robotic creatures known as “hosts” that are designed in a lab and constantly updated to seem as real and organic as possible. One of these hosts, Maeve, is programmed to be a prostitute who runs the same narrative every single day with the same personality. After several incidences of becoming conscious of her previous iterations, Maeve is told by Lutz, a worker in the Westworld lab, that she is a robot whose design and thoughts are mostly determined by humans, despite the fact that she feels and appears similar to humans such as Lutz. Lutz helps Maeve in her resistance against tyrannical rule over robots by altering her core code, allowing her to access capabilities previous unavailable to other hosts such as the ability to harm humans and the ability to control other robotic hosts.
- Kinolab
- 2016
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- 8 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
Maeve Part III: Robot Resistance and Empowerment
Westworld, a western-themed amusement park, is populated by realistic robotic creatures known as “hosts” that are designed in a lab and constantly updated to seem as real and organic as possible. One of these hosts, Maeve, is programmed to be a prostitute who runs the same narrative every single day with the same personality. After several incidences of becoming conscious of her previous iterations, Maeve is told by Lutz, a worker in the Westworld lab, that she is a robot whose design and thoughts are mostly determined by humans, despite the fact that she feels and appears similar to humans such as Lutz. Lutz helps Maeve in her resistance against tyrannical rule over robots by altering her core code, allowing her to access capabilities previous unavailable to other hosts such as the ability to harm humans and the ability to control other robotic hosts.
Should robots be given a fighting chance to be able to resemble humans, especially in terms of fighting for their own autonomy? Should robots ever be left in charge of other robots? How could this promote a tribalism which is dangerous to humans? Can robots develop their own personality, or does everything simply come down to coding, and which way is “better”?
Westworld: Core Code-
- 7 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
Westworld, a western-themed amusement park, is populated by realistic robotic creatures known as “hosts” that are designed in a lab and constantly updated to seem as real and organic as possible. Dolores, one of these hosts, begins to fall in love with William, a human visitor, and he reciprocates those feelings as he expresses his unhappiness with a planned marriage waiting for him in the real world outside the park. After Dolores is initially angry, she nonetheless rejoins forces with William to search for a place beyond the theme-park Western reality that she has always known.
- Kinolab
- 2016
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- 7 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
Relationships and Escapism with AI
Westworld, a western-themed amusement park, is populated by realistic robotic creatures known as “hosts” that are designed in a lab and constantly updated to seem as real and organic as possible. Dolores, one of these hosts, begins to fall in love with William, a human visitor, and he reciprocates those feelings as he expresses his unhappiness with a planned marriage waiting for him in the real world outside the park. After Dolores is initially angry, she nonetheless rejoins forces with William to search for a place beyond the theme-park Western reality that she has always known.
Is William’s love for Dolores ‘true’ love, or is it impossible for a human to truly love an AI and vice versa? If AI are programmed to feel emotions, can their love be equally as real as human love? What issues may arise if robots become a means through which humans escape their real life problems and complicated relationships? What are the potential consequences for both robots and people if robots escape the scenario for which they were specifically engineered, and try to live a life in the real world? Should this be allowed?
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- 10 min
- New York Times
- 2019
Racial bias in facial recognition software used for Government Civil Surveillance in Detroit. Racially biased technology. Diminishes agency of minority groups and enhances latent human bias.
- New York Times
- 2019
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- 10 min
- New York Times
- 2019
As Cameras Track Detroit’s Residents, a Debate Ensues Over Racial Bias
Racial bias in facial recognition software used for Government Civil Surveillance in Detroit. Racially biased technology. Diminishes agency of minority groups and enhances latent human bias.
What are the consequences of employing biased technologies to survey citizens? Who loses agency, and who gains agency?
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- 15 min
- Hidden Switch
- 2018
A hands-on learning experience about the algorithms used in dating apps through the perspective of a created monster avatar.
- Hidden Switch
- 2018
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- 15 min
- Hidden Switch
- 2018
Monster Match
A hands-on learning experience about the algorithms used in dating apps through the perspective of a created monster avatar.
How do algorithms in dating apps work? What gaps seemed most prominent to you? What upset you most about the way this algorithm defined you and the choices it offered to you?
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- 3 min
- CNET
- 2019
US Government agencies rely on outdated verification methods, increasing the risk of identify theft.
- CNET
- 2019
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- 3 min
- CNET
- 2019
Thanks to Equifax breach, 4 US agencies don’t properly verify your data, GAO finds
US Government agencies rely on outdated verification methods, increasing the risk of identify theft.
If the government does not ensure our cyber security, then who does? Can any digital method for identity verification be completely safe, especially given how much of our personal data lives in the digital world?
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- 7 min
- The New York Times
- 2019
Biometric facial recognition software, specifically that used with arrest photos in the NYPD, makes extensive use of children’s arrest photos despite a far lower accuracy rate.
- The New York Times
- 2019
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- 7 min
- The New York Times
- 2019
She Was Arrested at 14. Then Her Photo Went to a Biometrics Database
Biometric facial recognition software, specifically that used with arrest photos in the NYPD, makes extensive use of children’s arrest photos despite a far lower accuracy rate.
How can machine learning algorithms cause inequality to compound? Would it be better practice to try to make facial recognition equitable across all populations, or to abandon its use in law enforcement altogether, as some cities like Oakland have done?