Technologies (319)
Find narratives by ethical themes or by technologies.
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- 4 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
In an imagined future of London, citizens all across the globe are connected to the Feed, a device and network accessed constantly through a brain-computer interface. Danny is a teenager who has become so addicted to the cacophony of entertainment coming through the Feed that he is unable to interact with people in the real world once everything in his Feed is turned off.
- Kinolab
- 2019
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- 4 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Digital Withdrawal
In an imagined future of London, citizens all across the globe are connected to the Feed, a device and network accessed constantly through a brain-computer interface. Danny is a teenager who has become so addicted to the cacophony of entertainment coming through the Feed that he is unable to interact with people in the real world once everything in his Feed is turned off.
What are the potential consequences of getting teenagers addicted to virtual ways of interacting with content and with each other? How might this impact their ability to relate to other people in the real world? How do brain-computer interfaces which give constant, unbridled access to such entertainment and social networks exacerbate this problem? Will it become necessary in the future to “re-teach” young people how to interact offline?
The Feed: Danny's Addiction-
- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
In an imagined future of London, citizens all across the globe are connected to the Feed, a device and network accessed constantly through a brain-computer interface. Kate Hatfield, a new mother, discovers that someone has hacked into the device in her head, and thus was able to access some of her lived memories. Later, the culprit of this hack is revealed to be her father-in-law Lawrence, who was attempting to implant the Feed into Bea, the new baby.
- Kinolab
- 2019
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Consent and Control with Personal Data
In an imagined future of London, citizens all across the globe are connected to the Feed, a device and network accessed constantly through a brain-computer interface. Kate Hatfield, a new mother, discovers that someone has hacked into the device in her head, and thus was able to access some of her lived memories. Later, the culprit of this hack is revealed to be her father-in-law Lawrence, who was attempting to implant the Feed into Bea, the new baby.
What are the dangers that come with ‘backing up’ memory to some type of cloud account? What risks are posed by hackers and corporations that run such backing up services? Is there something special about the transient, temporary nature of human memory that should remain as it is? How much of our privacy are we willing to sacrifice in order for safety/connectivity? How should consent work in terms of installing a brain-computer interface into a person? Should a parent or other family member be able to decide this for a child?
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- 14 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
In an imagined future of London, citizens all across the globe are connected to the Feed, a device and network accessed constantly through a brain-computer interface. Tom is a member of the Hatfield family, the owner of the tech monopoly which created this technology. The Feed allows people to alter their perception of reality, whether this means changing the appearance of people and places or playing music over any environmental noise.
- Kinolab
- 2019
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- 14 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Omnipresent Technology and Altering Reality
In an imagined future of London, citizens all across the globe are connected to the Feed, a device and network accessed constantly through a brain-computer interface. Tom is a member of the Hatfield family, the owner of the tech monopoly which created this technology. The Feed allows people to alter their perception of reality, whether this means changing the appearance of people and places or playing music over any environmental noise.
What are potential consequences of getting large numbers of people addicted to brain-computer interface technologies that can easily be hacked? How does this deprive people of autonomy? How can digital addiction de-sensitize people to the “real world”? How could augmented reality fundamentally change industries such as interior design, event planning, and even travel? How can virtual reality tech be used to bring us closer, and connect people together? What will virtual meetings look like in the future, with the potential for holograms and a complete immersive experience?
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- 3 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. Bernard, a humanoid robot who previously believed himself to be a regular human, questions his maker, Ford, on what makes him different from humans, to which Ford replies that the line is very thin and arbitrary.
- Kinolab
- 2016
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- 3 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
Robot Consciousness
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. Bernard, a humanoid robot who previously believed himself to be a regular human, questions his maker, Ford, on what makes him different from humans, to which Ford replies that the line is very thin and arbitrary.
Why do humans cling to ‘consciousness’ as the thing that separates us from advanced machines? Is consciousness real or imagined, and if it is constructed in the mind, can it be replicated in AI’s ‘mind programming’? Would that be a same or different kind of consciousness? Should robots be given the capability for consciousness or self-actualization if that leads to tangible pain, for example in the form of a tragic backstory? If robots are to have consciousness, do they need to be able to essentially act like a human in every other way?
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- 3 min
- Kinolab
- 2020
Nora works as an “angel” figure, or assistant, in the digital afterlife known as Lakeview. Her job is to help digitally immortal residents of this afterlife, such as Nathan, acclimate to their surroundings and their digital existences. However, Nora decides to take her breaks from work in the same virtual reality in which she operates during her job.
- Kinolab
- 2020
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- 3 min
- Kinolab
- 2020
Real vs. Virtual Assistance
Nora works as an “angel” figure, or assistant, in the digital afterlife known as Lakeview. Her job is to help digitally immortal residents of this afterlife, such as Nathan, acclimate to their surroundings and their digital existences. However, Nora decides to take her breaks from work in the same virtual reality in which she operates during her job.
Should virtual reality spaces be operated, moderated, and served by human customer service reps, to ensure the best experience? Or is it possible to automate customer service too? How might virtual assistants such as Siri change the nature of people’s relationships with human service reps? Should the people who work on VR projects be given special access to it? Could VR worlds be used as a viable way for employees to relax during breaks?
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- 13 min
- Kinolab
- 2020
George Almore is an engineer working with a company which hopes to achieve singularity with robots, making their artificial intelligence one step above real humans. In doing this, he works with three prototypes: J1, J2, and J3, each one more advanced than the last. Simultaneously, he plans to upload his dead wife’s consciousness into the J3 robot in order to extend her life. The narrative begins with him explaining his goal to J3 as he has this robot go through taste and emotion tests. Eventually, J3 has evolved into a humanoid robot who takes on the traits of George’s wife, leaving the earlier two versions, who all have a sibling-like bond with each other, feeling neglected.
- Kinolab
- 2020
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- 13 min
- Kinolab
- 2020
Prototypes, Evolution, and Replacement with Robots
George Almore is an engineer working with a company which hopes to achieve singularity with robots, making their artificial intelligence one step above real humans. In doing this, he works with three prototypes: J1, J2, and J3, each one more advanced than the last. Simultaneously, he plans to upload his dead wife’s consciousness into the J3 robot in order to extend her life. The narrative begins with him explaining his goal to J3 as he has this robot go through taste and emotion tests. Eventually, J3 has evolved into a humanoid robot who takes on the traits of George’s wife, leaving the earlier two versions, who all have a sibling-like bond with each other, feeling neglected.
Are taste and emotion examples of necessary elements of creating advanced AI? If so, why? What good does having these abilities serve in terms of the AI’s relationship to the human world? Is it right to transfer consciousness or elements of consciousness from a deceased person into one or several AI? In the AI, how much is too much similarity to a pre-existing person? Can total similarity ever be achieved, and how? Can advanced AI feel negative human emotions and face mental health problems such as depression? Is it ethical to program AI to feel such emotions, knowing the risks associated with them, including bonding with former or flawed prototypes of itself? If an AI kills itself, does the onus fall on the machine or the human creator?