Steven Umbrello currently serves as the Managing Director at the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (501c3 nonprofit, Boston, MA). He studied philosophy of science and technology at the University of Toronto (HBA), STS at York University (MA), and epistemology, ethics, and mind at the University of Edinburgh (MSc), and philosophy at the University of Turin (PhD). Steven also served as a junior associate at the Global Catastrophic Risk Institute (2013-2018) where his primary research and authorship was on atomically precise manufacturing (APM) and other nanotechnology. Currently, his main area of research revolves around Value Sensitive Design (VSD), its philosophical foundation as well as its potential application to emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and Industry 4.0. Supervisors: Seth Baum , James Hughes, Daniel McArthur, Emma C. Gordon, Maurizio Balistreri, and Pieter Vermaas Address: Turin, Italy
Value Sensitive Design (VSD) is an established method for integrating values in technical design.... more Value Sensitive Design (VSD) is an established method for integrating values in technical design. It has been applied to different technologies and recently also to artificial intelligence (AI). We argue that AI poses a number of specific challenges to VSD that require a somewhat adapted VSD approach. In particular, machine learning (ML) poses two challenges to VSD. First, it may opaque (to humans) how an AI systems has learned certain things, which requires attention for such values as transparency, explainability and accountability. Second, ML may lead to AI systems adapting themselves in such ways that they ‘disembody’ the values that have been embodied in them. In order to address these, we propose a threefold adapted VSD approach: 1) integrating the AI4SG principles in VSD as design norms from which more specific design requirements can be derived, 2) distinguishing between values to be promoted by the design and values to be respected by the design in order to ensure that the re
This article explores the potential of Bernard Lonergan’s philosophy of subjectivity as objectivi... more This article explores the potential of Bernard Lonergan’s philosophy of subjectivity as objectivity as a grounding for value sensitive design (VSD) and the design turn in applied ethics. The rapid pace of scientific and technological advancement has created a gap between technical abilities and our moral assessments of those abilities, calling for a reflection on the philosophical tools we have for applying ethics. In particular, applied ethics often presents interconnected problems that require a more general framework for ethical reflection. Lonergan’s philosophy, which emphasizes the importance of selfunderstanding and self‐transcendence in achieving objectivity, can provide a valuable perspective on VSD and the design turn in applied ethics. The article examines how Lonergan’s philosophy can be applied to VSD and the design turn, and how scientific knowledge can be integrated into an ethics of science without reducing it to an external reflection. By adopting Lonergan’s perspective, we can address the ethical challenges arising from scientific and technological advancements while promoting a more holistic approach to applied ethics.
In a recent article, Madelaine Ley evaluates the future of work, specifically robotised workplace... more In a recent article, Madelaine Ley evaluates the future of work, specifically robotised workplaces, via the lens of care ethics. Like many proponents of care ethics, Ley draws on the approach and its emphasis on relationality to understand ethical action necessary for worker wellbeing. Her paper aims to fill a research gap by shifting away from the traditional contexts in which care ethics is employed, i.e., health and care contexts and instead appropriates the approach to tackle the sociotechnicity of robotics and how caring should be integrated into non-traditional contexts. This paper comments on that of Ley's, making the case that the author does, in fact, achieve this end while still leaving areas of potential future research open to buttressing the approach she presents.
As quantum technologies (QT) advance, their potential impact on and relation with society has bee... more As quantum technologies (QT) advance, their potential impact on and relation with society has been developing into an important issue for exploration. In this paper, we investigate the topic of democratization in the context of QT, particularly quantum computing. The paper contains three main sections. First, we briefly introduce different theories of democracy (participatory, representative, and deliberative) and how the concept of democratization can be formulated with respect to whether democracy is taken as an intrinsic or instrumental value. Second, we give an overview of how the concept of democratization is used in the QT field. Democratization is mainly adopted by companies working on quantum computing and used in a very narrow understanding of the concept. Third, we explore various narratives and counter-narratives concerning democratization in QT. Finally, we explore the general efforts of democratization in QT such as different forms of access, formation of grassroot communities and special interest groups, the emerging culture of manifesto writing, and how these can be located within the different theories of democracy. In conclusion, we argue that although the ongoing efforts in the democratization of QT are necessary steps towards the democratization of this set of emerging technologies, they should not be accepted as sufficient to argue that QT is a democratized field. We argue that more reflexivity and responsiveness regarding the narratives and actions adopted by the actors in the QT field and making the underlying assumptions of ongoing efforts on democratization of QT explicit, can result in a better technology for society.
The past few years has seen a resurgence in the public interest in space flight and travel. Spurr... more The past few years has seen a resurgence in the public interest in space flight and travel. Spurred mainly by the likes of technology billionaires like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, the topic poses both unique scientific as well as ethical challenges. This paper looks at the concept of generation ships, conceptual behemoth ships whose goal is to bring a group of human settlers to distant exoplanets. These ships are designed to host multiple generations of people who will be born, live, and die on these ships long before it reaches its destination. This paper takes reproductive ethics as its lens to look at how genetic enhancement interventions can and should be used not only to ensure that future generations of offspring on the ships, and eventual exoplanet colonies, live a minimally good life but that their births are contingent on them living genuinely good and fulfilling lives. The paper makes the further claim that if such a thesis holds, it also does so for human enhancement on Earth.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, several public figures predicted that the pandemic would... more At the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, several public figures predicted that the pandemic would precipitate a dramatic shift towards new sets of values in our societies. Other more optimistic commenters prophesied a new dawn for egalitarian and progressive values (Adib-Moghaddam, 2020; Kelly, 2020; Nancy, 2020). This conjecture was drawn from the early belief that the SARS-CoV-2 virus would be impervious to differences in age, class, ethnicity, and nationhood: a 'great equaliser'. As statistics on death rates and hospitalisation rose, however, this optimism quickly came to be seen as misguided. Not only are some individuals more susceptible to the virus (ethnic minorities, senior citizens, those with pre-existing conditions), the non-medical measures designed to prevent populations from spreading the virus disproportionately affect other marginalised groups (such as those who have less income or education, etc.). When more information became available on the causes, exacerbating factors, and the prognosis of COVID-19 infection, some authorities tried to make medical outcomes more equitable. (1) In some counties, those most at risk from complications from the virus were often (although not always) given earlier treatment or vaccine priority. (2) Some policymakers initially recognised (or at least declared publicly) that disadvantaged communities and critical workers should be vaccinated first. (3) Globally speaking, the World Health Organization's COVAX scheme provided millions of vaccine doses to low-to-middle-income countries.
The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence for the Sustainable Development Goals, 2023
The pervasiveness of AI-empowered technologies across multiple sectors has led to drastic changes... more The pervasiveness of AI-empowered technologies across multiple sectors has led to drastic changes concerning traditional social practices and how we relate to one another. Moreover, market-driven Big Tech corporations are now entering public domains, and concerns have been raised that they may even influence public agenda and research. Therefore, this chapter focusses on assessing and evaluating what kind of business model is desirable to incentivise the AI for Social Good (AI4SG) factors. In particular, the chapter explores the implications of this discourse for SDG #17 (global partnership) and how this goal may encourage Big Tech corporations to strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships that promote effective public-private and civil society partnerships and the meaningful co-presence of non-market and market values. In doing so, the chapter proposes an analysis of the sociological notion of ‘social license to operate’ (SLO) elaborated in the mining and extractive industry literature and introduces it into the discourse on sustainable digital business models and responsible management of risks in the digital age. This serves to explore how such a social license can be adopted as a practice by digital business models to foster trust, collaboration and coordination among different actors – including AI researchers and initiatives, institutions and civil society at large – for the support of SDGs interrelated targets and goals.
Although artificial intelligence has been given an unprecedented amount of attention in both the ... more Although artificial intelligence has been given an unprecedented amount of attention in both the public and academic domains in the last few years, its convergence with other transformative technologies like cloud computing, robotics, and augmented/virtual reality is predicted to exacerbate its impacts on society. The adoption and integration of these technologies within industry and manufacturing spaces is a fundamental part of what is called Industry 4.0, or the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The impacts of this paradigm shift on the human operators who continue to work alongside and symbiotically with these technologies in the industry bring with it novel ethical issues. Therefore, how to design these technologies for human values becomes the critical area of intervention. This paper takes up the case study of robotic AI-based assistance systems to explore the potential value implications that emerge due to current design practices and use. The design methodology known as Value Sensitive Design (VSD) is proposed as a sufficient starting point for designing these technologies for human values to address these issues.
Since the early 1990's the value sensitive design (VSD) approach has been a continually b... more Since the early 1990's the value sensitive design (VSD) approach has been a continually burgeoning design methodology for technological innovation. VSD is commonly described as a "principled approach" to technology design, given that it is explicitly orientated towards designing technologies for human values, rather than sidelining them to ad hoc and/or ex post facto design. However, in much of its near three-decades-long development, the VSD approach has mostly been adopted as a conceptual framework to assess existing technologies and to explore how the consequences of the technology's development could have been influenced positively if VSD was adopted early on and throughout the design process (Friedman et al. 2002). Similarly, VSD has been adopted as a conceptual framework for analysing how future speculative technologies like molecular manufacturing (Umbrello 2019) and advanced artificial intelligence systems can be directed towards positive futures (Umbrello and van de Poel 2021). Yet, despite the benefits of these endeavours and VSD being an approach that can be adapted to any given design domain, it has yet to be widely appropriated in existing design spaces as a primary design approach. In this short paper, we aim to fill this lacuna by framing VSD as a toolkit that can be adopted by existing design teams rather than a wholesale approach. In particular, we describe how VSD maps seamlessly onto agile workflows, an approach to project management that is widely adopted globally. By doing so, we hope that the VSD approach will likewise be more attractive and thus adopted more broadly. As a consequence, a more explicit orientation towards designing technologies for human values will follow.
Traditional medical practices and relationships are changing given the widespread adoption of AI-... more Traditional medical practices and relationships are changing given the widespread adoption of AI-driven technologies across the various domains of health and healthcare. In many cases, these new technologies are not specific to the field of healthcare. Still, they are existent, ubiquitous, and commercially available systems upskilled to integrate these novel care practices. Given the widespread adoption, coupled with the dramatic changes in practices, new ethical and social issues emerge due to how these systems nudge users into making decisions and changing behaviours. This article discusses how these AI-driven systems pose particular ethical challenges with regards to nudging. To confront these issues, the value sensitive design (VSD) approach is adopted as a principled methodology that designers can adopt to design these systems to avoid harming and contribute to the social good. The AI for Social Good (AI4SG) factors are adopted as the norms constraining maleficence. In contrast...
The ethics of technology has primarily focused on what values are and how they can be embedded in... more The ethics of technology has primarily focused on what values are and how they can be embedded in technologies through design. In this context, some work has been done to show the efficacy of several design approaches. However, existing studies have not clearly pointed out the ways which design team managers can use design-for-values approaches to organise and use technologies in practice properly. This chapter attempts to fill this gap by discussing the value sensitive design (VSD) approach as a valuable means of co-designing technologies as a toolkit for existing workflow management, in this case, Agile. It will be demonstrated that VSD shows promise as a way of democratically designing technologies as well as fostering democratic technology policy innovation.
Value Sensitive Design (VSD) is an established method for integrating values in technical design.... more Value Sensitive Design (VSD) is an established method for integrating values in technical design. It has been applied to different technologies and recently also to artificial intelligence (AI). We argue that AI poses a number of specific challenges to VSD that require a somewhat adapted VSD approach. In particular, machine learning (ML) poses two challenges to VSD. First, it may opaque (to humans) how an AI systems has learned certain things, which requires attention for such values as transparency, explainability and accountability. Second, ML may lead to AI systems adapting themselves in such ways that they ‘disembody’ the values that have been embodied in them. In order to address these, we propose a threefold adapted VSD approach: 1) integrating the AI4SG principles in VSD as design norms from which more specific design requirements can be derived, 2) distinguishing between values to be promoted by the design and values to be respected by the design in order to ensure that the re
This article explores the potential of Bernard Lonergan’s philosophy of subjectivity as objectivi... more This article explores the potential of Bernard Lonergan’s philosophy of subjectivity as objectivity as a grounding for value sensitive design (VSD) and the design turn in applied ethics. The rapid pace of scientific and technological advancement has created a gap between technical abilities and our moral assessments of those abilities, calling for a reflection on the philosophical tools we have for applying ethics. In particular, applied ethics often presents interconnected problems that require a more general framework for ethical reflection. Lonergan’s philosophy, which emphasizes the importance of selfunderstanding and self‐transcendence in achieving objectivity, can provide a valuable perspective on VSD and the design turn in applied ethics. The article examines how Lonergan’s philosophy can be applied to VSD and the design turn, and how scientific knowledge can be integrated into an ethics of science without reducing it to an external reflection. By adopting Lonergan’s perspective, we can address the ethical challenges arising from scientific and technological advancements while promoting a more holistic approach to applied ethics.
In a recent article, Madelaine Ley evaluates the future of work, specifically robotised workplace... more In a recent article, Madelaine Ley evaluates the future of work, specifically robotised workplaces, via the lens of care ethics. Like many proponents of care ethics, Ley draws on the approach and its emphasis on relationality to understand ethical action necessary for worker wellbeing. Her paper aims to fill a research gap by shifting away from the traditional contexts in which care ethics is employed, i.e., health and care contexts and instead appropriates the approach to tackle the sociotechnicity of robotics and how caring should be integrated into non-traditional contexts. This paper comments on that of Ley's, making the case that the author does, in fact, achieve this end while still leaving areas of potential future research open to buttressing the approach she presents.
As quantum technologies (QT) advance, their potential impact on and relation with society has bee... more As quantum technologies (QT) advance, their potential impact on and relation with society has been developing into an important issue for exploration. In this paper, we investigate the topic of democratization in the context of QT, particularly quantum computing. The paper contains three main sections. First, we briefly introduce different theories of democracy (participatory, representative, and deliberative) and how the concept of democratization can be formulated with respect to whether democracy is taken as an intrinsic or instrumental value. Second, we give an overview of how the concept of democratization is used in the QT field. Democratization is mainly adopted by companies working on quantum computing and used in a very narrow understanding of the concept. Third, we explore various narratives and counter-narratives concerning democratization in QT. Finally, we explore the general efforts of democratization in QT such as different forms of access, formation of grassroot communities and special interest groups, the emerging culture of manifesto writing, and how these can be located within the different theories of democracy. In conclusion, we argue that although the ongoing efforts in the democratization of QT are necessary steps towards the democratization of this set of emerging technologies, they should not be accepted as sufficient to argue that QT is a democratized field. We argue that more reflexivity and responsiveness regarding the narratives and actions adopted by the actors in the QT field and making the underlying assumptions of ongoing efforts on democratization of QT explicit, can result in a better technology for society.
The past few years has seen a resurgence in the public interest in space flight and travel. Spurr... more The past few years has seen a resurgence in the public interest in space flight and travel. Spurred mainly by the likes of technology billionaires like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, the topic poses both unique scientific as well as ethical challenges. This paper looks at the concept of generation ships, conceptual behemoth ships whose goal is to bring a group of human settlers to distant exoplanets. These ships are designed to host multiple generations of people who will be born, live, and die on these ships long before it reaches its destination. This paper takes reproductive ethics as its lens to look at how genetic enhancement interventions can and should be used not only to ensure that future generations of offspring on the ships, and eventual exoplanet colonies, live a minimally good life but that their births are contingent on them living genuinely good and fulfilling lives. The paper makes the further claim that if such a thesis holds, it also does so for human enhancement on Earth.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, several public figures predicted that the pandemic would... more At the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, several public figures predicted that the pandemic would precipitate a dramatic shift towards new sets of values in our societies. Other more optimistic commenters prophesied a new dawn for egalitarian and progressive values (Adib-Moghaddam, 2020; Kelly, 2020; Nancy, 2020). This conjecture was drawn from the early belief that the SARS-CoV-2 virus would be impervious to differences in age, class, ethnicity, and nationhood: a 'great equaliser'. As statistics on death rates and hospitalisation rose, however, this optimism quickly came to be seen as misguided. Not only are some individuals more susceptible to the virus (ethnic minorities, senior citizens, those with pre-existing conditions), the non-medical measures designed to prevent populations from spreading the virus disproportionately affect other marginalised groups (such as those who have less income or education, etc.). When more information became available on the causes, exacerbating factors, and the prognosis of COVID-19 infection, some authorities tried to make medical outcomes more equitable. (1) In some counties, those most at risk from complications from the virus were often (although not always) given earlier treatment or vaccine priority. (2) Some policymakers initially recognised (or at least declared publicly) that disadvantaged communities and critical workers should be vaccinated first. (3) Globally speaking, the World Health Organization's COVAX scheme provided millions of vaccine doses to low-to-middle-income countries.
The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence for the Sustainable Development Goals, 2023
The pervasiveness of AI-empowered technologies across multiple sectors has led to drastic changes... more The pervasiveness of AI-empowered technologies across multiple sectors has led to drastic changes concerning traditional social practices and how we relate to one another. Moreover, market-driven Big Tech corporations are now entering public domains, and concerns have been raised that they may even influence public agenda and research. Therefore, this chapter focusses on assessing and evaluating what kind of business model is desirable to incentivise the AI for Social Good (AI4SG) factors. In particular, the chapter explores the implications of this discourse for SDG #17 (global partnership) and how this goal may encourage Big Tech corporations to strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships that promote effective public-private and civil society partnerships and the meaningful co-presence of non-market and market values. In doing so, the chapter proposes an analysis of the sociological notion of ‘social license to operate’ (SLO) elaborated in the mining and extractive industry literature and introduces it into the discourse on sustainable digital business models and responsible management of risks in the digital age. This serves to explore how such a social license can be adopted as a practice by digital business models to foster trust, collaboration and coordination among different actors – including AI researchers and initiatives, institutions and civil society at large – for the support of SDGs interrelated targets and goals.
Although artificial intelligence has been given an unprecedented amount of attention in both the ... more Although artificial intelligence has been given an unprecedented amount of attention in both the public and academic domains in the last few years, its convergence with other transformative technologies like cloud computing, robotics, and augmented/virtual reality is predicted to exacerbate its impacts on society. The adoption and integration of these technologies within industry and manufacturing spaces is a fundamental part of what is called Industry 4.0, or the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The impacts of this paradigm shift on the human operators who continue to work alongside and symbiotically with these technologies in the industry bring with it novel ethical issues. Therefore, how to design these technologies for human values becomes the critical area of intervention. This paper takes up the case study of robotic AI-based assistance systems to explore the potential value implications that emerge due to current design practices and use. The design methodology known as Value Sensitive Design (VSD) is proposed as a sufficient starting point for designing these technologies for human values to address these issues.
Since the early 1990's the value sensitive design (VSD) approach has been a continually b... more Since the early 1990's the value sensitive design (VSD) approach has been a continually burgeoning design methodology for technological innovation. VSD is commonly described as a "principled approach" to technology design, given that it is explicitly orientated towards designing technologies for human values, rather than sidelining them to ad hoc and/or ex post facto design. However, in much of its near three-decades-long development, the VSD approach has mostly been adopted as a conceptual framework to assess existing technologies and to explore how the consequences of the technology's development could have been influenced positively if VSD was adopted early on and throughout the design process (Friedman et al. 2002). Similarly, VSD has been adopted as a conceptual framework for analysing how future speculative technologies like molecular manufacturing (Umbrello 2019) and advanced artificial intelligence systems can be directed towards positive futures (Umbrello and van de Poel 2021). Yet, despite the benefits of these endeavours and VSD being an approach that can be adapted to any given design domain, it has yet to be widely appropriated in existing design spaces as a primary design approach. In this short paper, we aim to fill this lacuna by framing VSD as a toolkit that can be adopted by existing design teams rather than a wholesale approach. In particular, we describe how VSD maps seamlessly onto agile workflows, an approach to project management that is widely adopted globally. By doing so, we hope that the VSD approach will likewise be more attractive and thus adopted more broadly. As a consequence, a more explicit orientation towards designing technologies for human values will follow.
Traditional medical practices and relationships are changing given the widespread adoption of AI-... more Traditional medical practices and relationships are changing given the widespread adoption of AI-driven technologies across the various domains of health and healthcare. In many cases, these new technologies are not specific to the field of healthcare. Still, they are existent, ubiquitous, and commercially available systems upskilled to integrate these novel care practices. Given the widespread adoption, coupled with the dramatic changes in practices, new ethical and social issues emerge due to how these systems nudge users into making decisions and changing behaviours. This article discusses how these AI-driven systems pose particular ethical challenges with regards to nudging. To confront these issues, the value sensitive design (VSD) approach is adopted as a principled methodology that designers can adopt to design these systems to avoid harming and contribute to the social good. The AI for Social Good (AI4SG) factors are adopted as the norms constraining maleficence. In contrast...
The ethics of technology has primarily focused on what values are and how they can be embedded in... more The ethics of technology has primarily focused on what values are and how they can be embedded in technologies through design. In this context, some work has been done to show the efficacy of several design approaches. However, existing studies have not clearly pointed out the ways which design team managers can use design-for-values approaches to organise and use technologies in practice properly. This chapter attempts to fill this gap by discussing the value sensitive design (VSD) approach as a valuable means of co-designing technologies as a toolkit for existing workflow management, in this case, Agile. It will be demonstrated that VSD shows promise as a way of democratically designing technologies as well as fostering democratic technology policy innovation.
Technological developments involving robotics and artificial intelligence devices are being emplo... more Technological developments involving robotics and artificial intelligence devices are being employed evermore in elderly care and the healthcare sector more generally, raising ethical issues and practical questions warranting closer considerations of what we mean by “care” and, subsequently, how to design such software coherently with the chosen definition. This paper starts by critically examining the existing approaches to the ethical design of care robots provided by Aimee van Wynsberghe, who relies on the work on the ethics of care by Joan Tronto. In doing so, it suggests an alternative to their non-principled approach, an alternative suited to tackling some of the issues raised by Tronto and van Wynsberghe, while allowing for the inclusion of two orientative principles. Our proposal centres on the principles of autonomy and vulnerability, whose joint adoption we deem able to constitute an original revision of a bottom-up approach in care ethics. Conclusively, the ethical framew...
Was Marcus Aurelius a philosopher king only in the most literal sense, or was he a philosopher-ki... more Was Marcus Aurelius a philosopher king only in the most literal sense, or was he a philosopher-king, as described by Plato in his magnum opus, The Republic? When people call Marcus the Philosopher king it is difficult to discern which of these two types of philosophical monarchs they are referring to. This article will hopefully shed some light on the difference as well as accurately describe Marcus’ philosophic reign.
Understanding the purpose behind the continued possession of nuclear weapons helps us to see how ... more Understanding the purpose behind the continued possession of nuclear weapons helps us to see how and why we need alternatives. Essentially, nuclear weapons exist so that nuclear war can be averted. As long as at least two parties have nuclear weapons, then it would not be in their interest to use them against other nuclear states. To do so would be M.A.D., or mutually assured destruction. Thus, the purpose of continuing to maintain, and even upgrade the US nuclear infrastructure, would be to continue to preserve the status quo of deterrence. However, it would be fallacious to claim that only nuclear weapons possess the gravitas of M.A.D deterrence.
This article will serve as an illustration of how we come to recognize the thresholds for providi... more This article will serve as an illustration of how we come to recognize the thresholds for providing an organism—biological or artificial—basic ethical treatment.
Musonius Rufus is often given the title the 'Roman Socrates', however he is more often looked ove... more Musonius Rufus is often given the title the 'Roman Socrates', however he is more often looked over when talking about Stoicism. This article sees that he regains his rightful place in the Stoic pantheon.
A short article regarding vegetarianism and Stoicism and whether or not the diet lifestyle is act... more A short article regarding vegetarianism and Stoicism and whether or not the diet lifestyle is actually a Stoic tenet.
Discussing the cultural impact of first contact with extraterrestrial intelligence.
Guests to... more Discussing the cultural impact of first contact with extraterrestrial intelligence.
Guests to the First Episode:
Steven Basset, Executive Director, PRG: paradigmresearchgroup.org/main.html
Brad Johnson, CE 5 Specialist: www.consciousmatrix.com Seth D. Baum, Steven Umbrello and David Denkenberger from the Global Catastrophic Risk Institute: www.gcrinstitute.org
This month we welcome Steven Umbrello to New Stoa and talk about his introduction to Stoicism by ... more This month we welcome Steven Umbrello to New Stoa and talk about his introduction to Stoicism by Gregory Wasson
A new book by Jocko Willink, "Leadership Strategy and Tactics: Field Manual", is reviewed. Leader... more A new book by Jocko Willink, "Leadership Strategy and Tactics: Field Manual", is reviewed. Leadership Strategy and Tactics explore the nature of leadership styles and strategies in both narrative forms as the author discusses past experiences in the military, as well as in real-world applications beyond the military domain. The author provides timely, yet timeless advice for aspiring leaders in an easily digestible form, with quick reference chapters and simple tactical points.
International Journal of Art, Culture and Design Technologies, 2021
A new book by Naohiro Matsumura is reviewed. Shikake are described as designs that 'open up' knew... more A new book by Naohiro Matsumura is reviewed. Shikake are described as designs that 'open up' knew options to people and that positively allow them to freely choose those options. By providing numerous examples and illustrations, Matsumura explores the motivations, philosophy and implementations of Shikake in the real world. Aimed at the general reader, this book is approachable to numerous individuals, ranging from the general interest reader who wishes to understand nudging from a traditional ranging from the history of Japanese design, as well as the specialist designer who wishes to employ nudging techniques in a positive and fair manner.
As an idea, transhumanism has received increasing attention in recent years and across numerous d... more As an idea, transhumanism has received increasing attention in recent years and across numerous domains. Despite presidential candidates such as Zoltan Istvan, who ran on an explicitly Transhumanist platform in 2016 but later dropped out to endorse Hillary Clinton, transhumanism has taken root more recently in the conspiratorial imaginations of the dark web. Given the philosophy’s central emphasis on technology as an inherent good, imaginations in supposed alt-right internet circles have criticised it as an ideological gateway to global, fully-automated Communism. This is not to say that such discussions on transhumanism are exclusively siloed and on the margins of society. Related discussions are happening at various well-known institutions and research centres such as the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies, a non-profit think tank dedicated to techno-progressivism where I have been managing director for half a decade. What I mean to say here is that transhumanism is not monolithic. It is best described as multi-faceted and existing in different instantiations across multiple domains. James Michael MacFarlane’s recent book, Transhumanism as a New Social Movement: The Techno-Centred Imagination, is an attempt to trace the history, meaning, and practices that characterise this variegated term.
Assessment of Responsible Innovation argues, contrary to common imagination, that the profit moti... more Assessment of Responsible Innovation argues, contrary to common imagination, that the profit motive underpinning private sector decision-making about innovation neither excludes-nor is even necessarily in tension with-responsible innovation. Responsible innovation is not a clear-cut thing, principle, or clearly formulated grouping of practices. Rather, it consists in a plurality of engagements, strategies, and interactions oriented around the general goal of technological development towards socially desirable ends. The assessment of responsible innovation faces a lacuna partly due to this plurality, and partly because responsible research and innovation (RRI) has primarily been the domain of research institutions, higher education, and public sector entities-those who are not responsible for the majority of innovations. There is thus a gap between past RRI research and the actual nexus of innovation programmes.
A new book by Klaus Schwab and Thierry Malleret, "COVID-19: The Great Reset", is reviewed. COVID-... more A new book by Klaus Schwab and Thierry Malleret, "COVID-19: The Great Reset", is reviewed. COVID-19 not only exacerbates social, economic, environmental, cultural and technological trends that already existed pre-pandemic, but also come with emergent and novel ones that may need to be pushed in certain directions to ensure that the fragilities of the pre-pandemic world do not manifest themselves in the future. This book is intended to provide a map of the various arguments and trends of how COVID-19 has ‘reset’ most, if not all, sectors. Building robust and resilient systems of governance and living while avoiding the pitfalls of returning to how things were requires imagining how to direct these resets to more sustainable and green futures. The authors suggest radical, yet ambiguous ways to achieve these goals that may ultimately undermine them.
A new book by Maurizio Balistreri, "Sex robot. L’amore al tempo delle macchine", is reviewed. Sex... more A new book by Maurizio Balistreri, "Sex robot. L’amore al tempo delle macchine", is reviewed. Sex robots not only exacerbate social, ethical and cultural issues that already exist, but also come with emergent and novel ones. This book is intended to build on the recent research on both robotics and the growing scholarship on sex robots more generally, however with greater attention to the developments of the philosophical issues of how to deal with these new artefacts and steps for living among these types of systems into the future.
At times uncanny, yet thoroughly unsettling, Nolan Gertz's Nihilism and Technology is an unquesti... more At times uncanny, yet thoroughly unsettling, Nolan Gertz's Nihilism and Technology is an unquestionable synthesis of Nietzschean philosophy of nihilism brought to bear on our often overlooked uses and co-construction of technologies. What Nihilism and Technology is, more often than not, is a forceful analysis of how the human-technosocial world is becoming ever more nihilistic. In doing so, Gertz eschews the overdone and cliché positions of techno-optimism and techno-pessimism in favour of a reimagining of Nietzsche's evaluation of nihilism towards an analysis of human-technology relations. What results is a graceful marriage between traditionally convinced Nietzschean concepts and postphenomenology; something that has yet to be done in such a scope towards modern technology. Moving through various technologies and systems that have taken root in society such as cell phones and Tinder, Facebook and Twitter, Nihilism and Technology aims to explore how technology co-constructs our conception of values and how values are continually implicated in technological design. Rather than pose the bifurcation between 'good' and 'bad' technologies, Getz aims towards a philosophy of techno-nihilism. What he shows is that the embeddedness of technology is so rooted that its separation, even conceptually from the human quotidian, is impossible. Because of this, he argues that the dangers of technology do not come from their usually conceived existential risks, but the daily trend towards nihilistic people-technology relations. The book begins with a thorough introduction to the philosophy of nihilism which naturally moves to Nietzsche as the foundational figure for the rest of the book. Gertz makes a clear delineation between two forms of nihilism, the classic Nietzschean question of determining what the significance of values are (i.e., the meta-value question), which is active nihilism, and the passive nihilism which desensitizes individuals to passively accepting values without question. He additionally introduces the philosophy of transhumanism which seeks to surpass the biological constraints and limitations of humankind with technological interventions. Gertz argues that the transhumanists who aim to arrive at the technological post-human, still fall into the pit of passive nihilism by replacing the Christian God and its associated values with the posthuman, still retaining the traditional moral values associated with the former under the façade of a radical techno-fix. Gertz follows this chapter with one where he draws on the postphenomenology of Don Ihde where he outlines the various human-technology relations that are implicated with technology. After doing so, Gertz proposes a synthesis between human-technology relations and nihilism, resulting in 'nihilism relations' where humans relate in ways with technology as if there were no other choice. Here he argues how humans willingly abdicate responsibility to technologies as a reasonable cost for being interconnected, informed and entertained. All while believing in the promise that continued innovations will somehow provide fundamental value in our relations
A new book by Batya Friedman and David G. Hendry, Value Sensitive Design: Shaping Technology with... more A new book by Batya Friedman and David G. Hendry, Value Sensitive Design: Shaping Technology with Moral Imagination, is reviewed. Value Sensitive Design is a project into the ethical and design issues that emerge during the engineering programs of new technologies. This book is intended to build on the over two decades of value sensitive design research, however with a greater emphasis on the developments of the theoretical underpinnings of the approach as well as initial steps that designers can employ to put the method into practice.
A new book by Timothy Morton, Being Ecological, is reviewed. Being Ecological is a project into t... more A new book by Timothy Morton, Being Ecological, is reviewed. Being Ecological is a project into the ethics and discourse that emerge between speculative realism and ecological politics. This book is intended to build on the object-oriented ontology that Morton has espoused in previous volumes, however with a greater emphasis on the current state and future of ecological discussions. The book's core methodology is to outline the failures of the current modes of discussion environmental and ecological concerns and provide ways of entering into a more authentic philosophical discussion. The book differs from Morton's usual verbose and highly poetic form in favor of a more grounded and accessible entry into his large project.
A new book by Leonardo Caffo, Fragile Umanità, is reviewed. Fragile Umanità serves as a primer in... more A new book by Leonardo Caffo, Fragile Umanità, is reviewed. Fragile Umanità serves as a primer intended to introduce both professionals and non-professionsals to the concepts of contemporary posthumanism and the failures of humanist philosophies. The book's core methodology is to outline the differences between humanist and posthumanist philosophies and show how the latter is less contentious and favourable. The book is stylistically engaging, lucid and academically current, providing both novice readers and seasoned scholars with an easy-to-read introduction to posthumanist theory for Italian scholars.
Evolution Science and Ethics in the Third Millennium is one of the most lucid academic texts on t... more Evolution Science and Ethics in the Third Millennium is one of the most lucid academic texts on the subject of evolutionary morality to be published in the last decade. While the book does have some problematic aspects, discussed below, it nonetheless provides what is none other than a comprehensive and rational basis to substantiate the notion that evolutionary science can provide a foundation for the understanding of morality. Cliquet and Avramov take a wholly interdisciplinary approach, encroaching within and forming connections between philosophy, biology, anthropology and sociology among others in their exploration of a rationalized and humanistic approach to moral universalism. They not only take a meta-ethical approach to the investigation of morality in evolutionary science, but they provide a thorough speculative project on potential beneficial future pathways that thinkers and policymakers can employ in making decisions; which is something that is typically sidelined in a topic text such as this.
Modernism has provided a strong case for technoprogressivism, innovation and speculation on futur... more Modernism has provided a strong case for technoprogressivism, innovation and speculation on future possibilities. However, drastic and often devastating consequences have followed modernism such as global warming and mass biodiversity loss. In Leonardo Caffo and Azzurra Muzzonigro’s new book, a case for posthumanism as a means for envisioning and rethinking futures studies is argued and practical means by which those futures can be realized are outlined.
Enter Object-Oriented Ontology: A New Theory of Everything. Eschewing the verbose and often obscu... more Enter Object-Oriented Ontology: A New Theory of Everything. Eschewing the verbose and often obscurantist tendencies of other philosopher-authors, Harman tackles what might otherwise be a complicated, controversial and counter-intuitive philosophical stance with accessible and easy-to-follow prose. OOO has never been so clear nor so convincingly presented as it is here. Covered in seven chapters, the book gives a genealogical account of OOO, chronicling the reason for its emergence, comparing it to both the past and current philosophical traditions and arguing for its potency over the competing ontologies, almost all of which are post-Kantian
Techné: Research in Philosophy and Technology, 2019
A new book by Roberto Marchesini, Tecnosfera, is reviewed. Technosfera serves as an in-depth expl... more A new book by Roberto Marchesini, Tecnosfera, is reviewed. Technosfera serves as an in-depth exploration of the concept of techne and its relation to humanist and posthumanist thought for professionals. The book's core methodology is to explore the geneaological, linguistic and philosophical differences between the humanist and posthumanist concepts of techne and show how the latter is less contentious and favourable. The book is informationally dense, well-argued and academically current, providing seasoned scholars with a novel exploratory approach to posthumanist theory.
A new book by editors Jeroen van den Hoven, Seumas Miller and Thomas Pogge, Designing in Ethics, ... more A new book by editors Jeroen van den Hoven, Seumas Miller and Thomas Pogge, Designing in Ethics, is reviewed. Designing in Ethics is a collection of curated essays intended to introduce students and interested scholars to the concepts and literature on value based design and engineering.
A new book by Timothy Morton, Humankind: Solidarity with Nonhuman People, is reviewed. Humankind:... more A new book by Timothy Morton, Humankind: Solidarity with Nonhuman People, is reviewed. Humankind: Solidarity with Nonhuman People is a project into the applied political ethics that emerge between speculative realism and Marxism. This book is intended to build on the object-oriented ontology that Morton has espoused in previous volumes, however with a greater emphasis on normative politics. The book's core methodology is to outline the various neologisms that Morton employs and incorporate those speculative realist terms into a retooling of Marxist. The book dialogue prose is a poetic tour de force that is both academically and philosophically rigorous. Morton provides a novel reworking of Marxist theory that can exist on the cutting edge of continental philosophy.
International Journal of Actor-Network Theory and Technological Innovation, 2017
A new book by Manuel DeLanda and Graham Harman, The Rise of Realism, is reviewed. The Rise of Rea... more A new book by Manuel DeLanda and Graham Harman, The Rise of Realism, is reviewed. The Rise of Realism is an introductory text that aims to clarify the difficulties that surround the philosophical concepts of realism and materialism (as well as their antitheses). This primer intended to introduce students and interested scholars to the concepts and literature on realism and its place in the continental tradition of philosophy and related social theory. The book’s core methodology is to outline the various appropriations of the terms realism and materialism currently discussed in different sub-disciplines of philosophy as well as provide the reader with the authors’ own unique positions on realism. The book dialogue prose is stylistically engaging, lucid and academically current, providing both novice readers and seasoned scholars with an easy-to-read exploration of current continental thought that also has far-reaching implications for other disciplines such as critical theory, social theory and science and technology studies.
A new book by Phil Torres, Morality, Foresight, and Human Flourishing: An Introduction to Existen... more A new book by Phil Torres, Morality, Foresight, and Human Flourishing: An Introduction to Existential Risks, is reviewed. Morality, Foresight and Human Flourishing is a primer intended to introduce students and interested scholars to the concepts and literature on existential risk. The book's core methodology is to outline the various existential risks currently discussed in different disciplines and provides novel strategies for risk mitigation. The book is stylistically engaging, lucid and academically current, providing both novice readers and seasoned scholars with an easy-to-read introduction to risk studies. The book is by far the most engaging and comprehensive volume on risk studies aimed at captivating new scholars to the field.
A new book by Leonardo Caffo, Fragile Umanità, is reviewed. Fragile Umanità serves as a primer in... more A new book by Leonardo Caffo, Fragile Umanità, is reviewed. Fragile Umanità serves as a primer intended to introduce both professionals and non-professionsals to the concepts of modern posthumanism and the failures of humanist philosophies. The book's core methodology is to outline the differences between humanist and osthumanist philosophies and show how the latter is less contentious and favourable. The book is stylistically engaging, lucid and academically current, providing both novice readers and seasoned scholars with an easy-to-read introduction to posthumanist theory for Italian scholars.
PhD DISSERTATIONS OF THE NORTHWESTERN ITALIAN PHILOSOPHY CONSORTIUM – FINO, 2021
The international debate on the ethics and legality of autonomous weapon systems (AWS) as well as... more The international debate on the ethics and legality of autonomous weapon systems (AWS) as well as the call for a ban are primarily focused on the nebulous concept of fully autonomous AWS. More specifically, on AWS that are capable of target selection and engagement without human supervision or control. This thesis argues that such a conception of autonomy is divorced both from military planning and decision-making operations as well as the design requirements that govern AWS engineering and subsequently the tracking and tracing of moral responsibility. To do this, this thesis marries two different levels of meaningful human control (MHC), termed levels of abstraction, to couple military operations with design ethics. In doing so, this thesis argues that the contentious notion of ‘full’ autonomy is not problematic under this two-tiered understanding of MHC. It proceeds to propose the value sensitive design (VSD) approach as a means for designing for MHC.
Safe-by-Design (SBD) frameworks for the development of emerging technologies have become an ever ... more Safe-by-Design (SBD) frameworks for the development of emerging technologies have become an ever more popular means by which scholars argue that transformative emerging technologies can safely incorporate human values. One such popular SBD methodology is called Value Sensitive Design (VSD). A central tenet of this design methodology is to investigate stakeholder values and design those values into technologies during early stage research and development (R&D). To accomplish this, the VSD framework mandates that designers consult the philosophical and ethical literature to best determine how to weigh moral trade-offs. However, the VSD framework also concedes the universalism of moral values, particularly the values of freedom, autonomy, equality trust and privacy justice. This paper argues that the VSD methodology, particularly applied to nano-bio-info-cogno (NBIC) technologies, has an insufficient grounding for the determination of moral values. As such, an exploration of the value-investigations of VSD are deconstructed to illustrate both its strengths and weaknesses. This paper also provides possible modalities for the strengthening of the VSD methodology, particularly through the application of moral imagination and how moral imagination exceed the boundaries of moral intuitions in the development of novel technologies.
Safe-by-Design (SBD) philosophies are a series of design approaches that aim to incorporate human... more Safe-by-Design (SBD) philosophies are a series of design approaches that aim to incorporate human values into the early phases of technological design to direct the path of innovation into beneficial directions. The difficulty and necessity of directing advantageous futures of transformative technologies through the application and adoption of value-based design approaches are apparent, however, the questions of whose values are taken up are of critical importance. SBD philosophies typically aim to enrol the relevant stakeholders that may be affected by the emergence of such a technology. Nonetheless, regardless of which design approach is adopted, all the stakeholders that are enrolled are human stakeholders who propose human values. Contemporary scholarship on metahumanisms, particularly those on posthumanism, have decentered the human from its traditionally privileged position among other forms of life. Persuasive arguments have been forwarded that the humanist position is not nor never has been tenable, and as such scholarship has begun to provide a more encompassing ontology to the investigation of nonhuman values. As such, given the transformative nature that future technologies may pose on the earth and its many assemblages, not all the relevant stakeholders (i.e., nonhuman animals) are taken into the value-investigations of these design approaches. This research project aims to accomplish two primary objectives: (1) propose an argument that a posthuman ethics in the design of technologies is sound and thus warranted and, (2) how can existent SBD approaches begin to envision principled and methodological ways of incorporating nonhuman values into design. To do this, this MRP will provide a rudimentary outline of what constitutes SBD approaches. A unique design approach – Value Sensitive Design (VSD) – is taken up as an illustrative example given that it, among the other SBD frameworks, most clearly illustrates a principled approach to the integration of values in design.
Proceedings of the ETHICOMP 2020. Paradigm Shifts in ICT Ethics, Jun 12, 2020
In this panel, we explore the future of value sensitive design (VSD). The stakes are high. Many i... more In this panel, we explore the future of value sensitive design (VSD). The stakes are high. Many in public and private sectors and in civil society are gradually realizing that taking our values seriously implies that we have to ensure that values effectively inform the design of technology which, in turn, shapes people’s lives. Value sensitive design offers a highly developed set of theory, tools, and methods to systematically do so.
As space travel and intentions to colonise other planets are becoming the norm in public debate a... more As space travel and intentions to colonise other planets are becoming the norm in public debate and scholarship, we must also confront the technical and survival challenges that emerge from these hostile environments. This paper aims to evaluate the various arguments proposed to meet the challenges of human space travel and extraterrestrial planetary colonisation. In particular, two primary solutions have been present in the literature as the most straightforward solutions to the rigours of extraterrestrial survival and flourishing: (1) geoengineering, where the environment is modified to become hospitable to its inhabitants, and (2) human (bio)enhancement where the genetic heritage of humans is modified to make them more resilient to the difficulties they may encounter as well as to permit them to thrive in non-terrestrial environments. Both positions have strong arguments supporting them, but they also have some severe philosophical and practical drawbacks when exposed to different circumstances. This paper aims to show that a principled stance where one position is accepted wholesale necessarily comes at the opportunity cost of the other where the other might be better suited, both practically and morally. This paper concludes that case-by-case evaluations of the solutions to space travel and extraterrestrial colonisation are necessary to ensure moral congruency and the survival and flourishing of astronauts now and into the future.
As space travel and intentions to colonise other planets are becoming the norm in public debate a... more As space travel and intentions to colonise other planets are becoming the norm in public debate and scholarship, we must also confront the technical and survival challenges that emerge from these hostile environments. This paper aims to evaluate the various arguments proposed to meet the challenges of human space travel and extraterrestrial planetary colonisation. In particular, two primary solutions have been present in the literature as the most straightforward solutions to the rigours of extraterrestrial survival and flourishing: (1) geoengineering, where the environment is modified to become hospitable to its inhabitants, and (2) human (bio)enhancement where the genetic heritage of humans is modified to make them more resilient to the difficulties they may encounter as well as to permit them to thrive in non-terrestrial environments. Both positions have strong arguments supporting them, but they also have some severe philosophical and practical drawbacks when exposed to different circumstances. This paper aims to show that a principled stance where one position is accepted wholesale necessarily comes at the opportunity cost of the other where the other might be better suited, both practically and morally. This paper concludes that case-by-case evaluations of the solutions to space travel and extraterrestrial colonisation are necessary to ensure moral congruency and the survival and flourishing of astronauts now and into the future.
Since the early 1990's the value sensitive design (VSD) approach has been a continually burgeonin... more Since the early 1990's the value sensitive design (VSD) approach has been a continually burgeoning design methodology for technological innovation. VSD is commonly described as a "principled approach" to technology design, given that it is explicitly orientated towards designing technologies for human values, rather than sidelining them to ad hoc and/or ex post facto design. However, in much of its near three-decades-long development, the VSD approach has mostly been adopted as a conceptual framework to assess existing technologies and to explore how the consequences of the technology's development could have been influenced positively if VSD was adopted early on and throughout the design process (Friedman et al. 2002). Similarly, VSD has been adopted as a conceptual framework for analysing how future speculative technologies like molecular manufacturing (Umbrello 2019) and advanced artificial intelligence systems can be directed towards positive futures (Umbrello and van de Poel 2021). Yet, despite the benefits of these endeavours and VSD being an approach that can be adapted to any given design domain, it has yet to be widely appropriated in existing design spaces as a primary design approach. In this short paper, we aim to fill this lacuna by framing VSD as a toolkit that can be adopted by existing design teams rather than a wholesale approach. In particular, we describe how VSD maps seamlessly onto agile workflows, an approach to project management that is widely adopted globally. By doing so, we hope that the VSD approach will likewise be more attractive and thus adopted more broadly. As a consequence, a more explicit orientation towards designing technologies for human values will follow.
Non possiamo immaginare un mondo senza le nostre tecnologie e i nostri strumenti. In molti modi, ... more Non possiamo immaginare un mondo senza le nostre tecnologie e i nostri strumenti. In molti modi, le nostre tecnologie sono ciò che ci definisce come esseri umani, separandoci dal resto del regno animale. Tuttavia, pensare alle nostre tecnologie come semplici strumenti, strumenti che possono essere usati nel bene o nel male, ci rende vulnerabili agli effetti sistemici e duraturi che le tecnologie hanno sulla nostra società, sui comportamenti, e sulle generazioni future. Oggetti Buoni esplora come le tecnologie incarnano i valori dei loro creatori. Prendendo questo approccio unico per guardare alle nostre importanti tecnologie, questa è la prima monografia in Italiano che esplora come le tecnologie siano sensibili al valore, dimostrando come possiamo orientare il nostro futuro attraverso un design intelligente ed etico. Piuttosto che aspettare il futuro, Oggetti Buoni ci mostra come possiamo progettare il nostro futuro per i valori che riteniamo più importanti.
Autonomous weapons systems, often referred to as ‘killer robots’, have been a hallmark of popular... more Autonomous weapons systems, often referred to as ‘killer robots’, have been a hallmark of popular imagination for decades. However, with the inexorable advance of artificial intelligence systems (AI) and robotics, killer robots are quickly becoming a reality. These lethal technologies can learn, adapt, and potentially make life and death decisions on the battlefield with little-to-no human involvement. This naturally leads to not only legal but ethical concerns as to whether we can meaningful control such machines, and if so, then how. Such concerns are made even more poignant by the ever-present fear that something may go wrong, and the machine may carry out some action(s) violating the ethics or laws of war.
Researchers, policymakers, and designers are caught in the quagmire of how to approach these highly controversial systems and to figure out what exactly it means to have meaningful human control over them, if at all.
In Designed for Death, Dr Steven Umbrello aims to not only produce a realistic but also an optimistic guide for how, with human values in mind, we can begin to design killer robots. Drawing on the value sensitive design (VSD) approach to technology innovation, Umbrello argues that context is king and that a middle path for designing killer robots is possible if we consider both ethics and design as fundamentally linked. Umbrello moves beyond the binary debates of whether or not to prohibit killer robots and instead offers a more nuanced perspective of which types of killer robots may be both legally and ethically acceptable, when they would be acceptable, and how to design for them.
The interest in what can be considered ‘posthumanism’ has surged over the past few years. There i... more The interest in what can be considered ‘posthumanism’ has surged over the past few years. There is no surprise as to why, given the urgency and immanence of a likely sixth mass extinction event, and the catastrophic consequences of global warming. These processes, all of which fundamentally rest on the foundations of human practices and abuses, are forcing us to rethink our place in existence.
The foundations of this position have a history firmly rooted in the daily practices and beliefs of Western cultures. The Contemporary Posthuman confronts these assumptions of truth, head-on. The author follows his conceptual journey with practical steps for putting his philosophy into practice, by drawing on philosophy, design, art, and architecture.
Uploads
Guests to the First Episode:
Steven Basset, Executive Director, PRG: paradigmresearchgroup.org/main.html
Brad Johnson, CE 5 Specialist: www.consciousmatrix.com
Seth D. Baum, Steven Umbrello and David Denkenberger from the Global Catastrophic Risk Institute: www.gcrinstitute.org
Researchers, policymakers, and designers are caught in the quagmire of how to approach these highly controversial systems and to figure out what exactly it means to have meaningful human control over them, if at all.
In Designed for Death, Dr Steven Umbrello aims to not only produce a realistic but also an optimistic guide for how, with human values in mind, we can begin to design killer robots. Drawing on the value sensitive design (VSD) approach to technology innovation, Umbrello argues that context is king and that a middle path for designing killer robots is possible if we consider both ethics and design as fundamentally linked. Umbrello moves beyond the binary debates of whether or not to prohibit killer robots and instead offers a more nuanced perspective of which types of killer robots may be both legally and ethically acceptable, when they would be acceptable, and how to design for them.
The foundations of this position have a history firmly rooted in the daily practices and beliefs of Western cultures. The Contemporary Posthuman confronts these assumptions of truth, head-on. The author follows his conceptual journey with practical steps for putting his philosophy into practice, by drawing on philosophy, design, art, and architecture.