Promotion of Human Values (142)
Find narratives by ethical themes or by technologies.
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- 15 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
CW: Violence and Genocide
Stripe is a soldier in a generic war who, like all of his other fellow soldiers, is connected to a brain-computer interface known as a MASS implant that provides him with information about targets and missions. The supposed goal of the fighting is to “protect” citizens from roaches, the disturbing humanoid monsters which Stripe hunts and kills within the cabin. Directly after Stripe is hit with a digital device held by one of the roaches, he watches his squadmate kill a “roach” that Stripe perceived as a human. Ultimately, one of the roaches and the military psychologist Arquette explain exactly how the MASS implants alter the soldiers’ perceptions of their surroundings and their targets.
- Kinolab
- 2016
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- 15 min
- Kinolab
- 2016
The Militarization of the Digital Alteration of Reality
CW: Violence and Genocide
Stripe is a soldier in a generic war who, like all of his other fellow soldiers, is connected to a brain-computer interface known as a MASS implant that provides him with information about targets and missions. The supposed goal of the fighting is to “protect” citizens from roaches, the disturbing humanoid monsters which Stripe hunts and kills within the cabin. Directly after Stripe is hit with a digital device held by one of the roaches, he watches his squadmate kill a “roach” that Stripe perceived as a human. Ultimately, one of the roaches and the military psychologist Arquette explain exactly how the MASS implants alter the soldiers’ perceptions of their surroundings and their targets.
How are digital technologies responsible for pushing “us vs. them” narratives relating to wars? How could VR technology make soldiers less sympathetic to their victims? What role might smaller-scale virtual realities, such as violent video games, play in this larger narrative? Should the military ever have unfettered access to cutting-edge digital development? How can empathy be prioritized in the digital age?
Black Mirror: Don't Let Them Come-
- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Robert Daly is a programmer at the company Callister, which developed the immersive virtual reality game Infinity and its community for the entertainment of users. Daly is typically seen in the shadow of the co-founder of the company, the charismatic James Walton. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Daly possesses a personal modification of the Infinity game program, where he is able to upload sentient digital clones of his co-workers to take out his frustrations upon, as he does with Walton in this narrative.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Virtual Vindictiveness and Simulated Clones Part I: Daly and Walton
Robert Daly is a programmer at the company Callister, which developed the immersive virtual reality game Infinity and its community for the entertainment of users. Daly is typically seen in the shadow of the co-founder of the company, the charismatic James Walton. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Daly possesses a personal modification of the Infinity game program, where he is able to upload sentient digital clones of his co-workers to take out his frustrations upon, as he does with Walton in this narrative.
What should the ethical boundaries be in terms of creating digital copies of real-life people to manipulate in virtual realities? How would this alter the perception of autonomy or entitlement? Should the capability to create exact digital likenesses of real people be created for any reason? If so, how should their autonomy be ensured, since they are technically a piece of programming? Are digital copies of a person entitled to the same rights that their corporeal selves have?
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Chris is a driver at an Uber-esque company with a great amount of anxiety and disdain for the widespread addiction to smartphones. He inexplicably waits outside the same building every day to pick up clients. One day, he finally proceeds with a dastardly plan.
- Kinolab
- 2019
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2019
Ride-Hailing Hazards
Chris is a driver at an Uber-esque company with a great amount of anxiety and disdain for the widespread addiction to smartphones. He inexplicably waits outside the same building every day to pick up clients. One day, he finally proceeds with a dastardly plan.
How has digital addiction made the expectation for convenience so normalized that people are willing to put themselves into dangerous situations, as the passenger Jaden does here? What kinds of safety features have companies like Uber or Lyft built into their platforms so far, and how could they do even better?
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- 14 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Single mother Marie pays to have Arkangel, a brain-computer interface, installed into her daughter Sara. With this implant, Marie is able to not only track Sara’s location at all times, but can also access a feed of the audiovisual data which Sara is experiencing at any moment. After avoiding the system for a long time, Marie brings her Arkangel tablet back out to track and surveil Sara during her teenage years, going so far as to intervene in her love and social lives after watching the feed during intimate and private moments for Sara. Once Sara finds out, she revolts. For further reading, see the narrative “On TikTok, Teens Meme the Safety App Ruining Their Summer”
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 14 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Marie and Sara Part II: Helicopter Parenting and Young Adult Independence
Single mother Marie pays to have Arkangel, a brain-computer interface, installed into her daughter Sara. With this implant, Marie is able to not only track Sara’s location at all times, but can also access a feed of the audiovisual data which Sara is experiencing at any moment. After avoiding the system for a long time, Marie brings her Arkangel tablet back out to track and surveil Sara during her teenage years, going so far as to intervene in her love and social lives after watching the feed during intimate and private moments for Sara. Once Sara finds out, she revolts. For further reading, see the narrative “On TikTok, Teens Meme the Safety App Ruining Their Summer”
How do technologies that allow parents to surveil and track teenagers prevent these young adults from self-exploration and actualization? Is it possible to design location tracking services that allow for safety without diminishing privacy or autonomy? What would this look like? In what ways do digital technologies make the teenage experience more and less free than it was before the digital age?
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- 9 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
In a short vignette told by a museum curator, a doctor known as Dawson devises a brain-computer interface device which can allow him to feel the physical sensations of patients in order to deliver a quicker diagnosis. However, his ownership of this technology ends up bizarrely shaping his psychology, putting himself and others in danger.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 9 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Consequences of Digital Hyperempathy
In a short vignette told by a museum curator, a doctor known as Dawson devises a brain-computer interface device which can allow him to feel the physical sensations of patients in order to deliver a quicker diagnosis. However, his ownership of this technology ends up bizarrely shaping his psychology, putting himself and others in danger.
How should technology which allows us to feel the sensations of others be regulated? What are the pros and cons of hyperempathy technology? How can autonomy over one’s own body be assured when technology like this exists?
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
After his wife Carrie dies, Jack originally has her consciousness uploaded to his own brain as code. Once this solution is deemed unworkable, he has the coding of her consciousness transferred into a digital monkey toy which is gifted to their son Parker so that Carrie can continue to spend time with him. However, Carrie can only communicate in a binary manner, having access to only 2 phrases to express happiness or unhappiness.
- Kinolab
- 2017
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- 6 min
- Kinolab
- 2017
Digitally Immortal Vessels and Eternity
After his wife Carrie dies, Jack originally has her consciousness uploaded to his own brain as code. Once this solution is deemed unworkable, he has the coding of her consciousness transferred into a digital monkey toy which is gifted to their son Parker so that Carrie can continue to spend time with him. However, Carrie can only communicate in a binary manner, having access to only 2 phrases to express happiness or unhappiness.
How can developers of digital immortality technology ensure that it is ethical from the get-go? Can something like this ever be “piloted” when lives are at stake? How can people ensure that digital lives do not last for true eternity, especially if those existences are mundane? How can humans keep control of their existences in concepts such as this?