| Semester 2, 2023 Online | |
| Units : | 1 |
| School or Department : | School of Humanities & Communication |
| Grading basis : | Graded |
| Course fee schedule : | /current-students/administration/fees/fee-schedules |
Staffing
Course Coordinator:
Requisites
Pre-requisite: Students must have completed two courses in their program
Overview
Technology often promises solutions to address specific problems and increase participation in government and democratic processe. Conversely, the misuse of technology threatens significant unintended social and economic consequences for privacy, equity and even security. This course looks at a variety of new and emerging technologies 鈥� including artificial intelligence, big data, and human enhancement 鈥� and the political decision-making which promotes, restricts or bans their use. It considers technology鈥檚 positive and negative consequences, and the actual or potential political conflicts which arise from these.
In this course, you will critically engage with arguments about the social and economic implications of new and emerging technologies. It has a strong focus on developing critical thinking skills, which will help you in evaluating arguments about the benefits and risks of technological change and engaging with specific problems and conflicts caused by particular technologies. You will explore the impact of automation and AI on the future of work, the privacy implications of Big Data, and the impact of human enhancement and life extension on social inequality. This course assumes no prior knowledge of technology, economics, or politics.
Course learning outcomes
On successful completion of this course students should be able to:
- explain and compare different approaches to technological change and the socio-economic implications of new technologies;
- discuss the potential benefits and harms caused by particular new and emerging technologies;
- apply critical thinking skills to analyse and evaluate arguments about the benefits and harms caused by particular technologies;
- compare and critically evaluate alternative public policy responses to new and emerging technologies.
Topics
| Description | Weighting(%) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Approaches to technological change and its socio-economic impacts | 20.00 |
| 2. | The Internet, Development, and Inequality | 20.00 |
| 3. | Big Data, Privacy, and Surveillance Capitalism | 15.00 |
| 4. | Disinformation, Deepfakes, and the Post-Truth Society | 15.00 |
| 5. | AI, Automation, and the Future of Work | 15.00 |
| 6. | Human enhancement, Life Extension, and Social Inequality | 15.00 |
Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed
Student workload expectations
To do well in this subject, students are expected to commit approximately 10 hours per week including class contact hours, independent study, and all assessment tasks. If you are undertaking additional activities, which may include placements and residential schools, the weekly workload hours may vary.
Assessment details
| Description | Group Assessment |
Weighting (%) | Course learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay 1 | No | 30 | 1,4 |
| Essay 2 | No | 50 | 2,3,4 |
| Workbook | No | 20 | 1,2,3,4 |