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Critical Perspectives on AI2023HT
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Course plan
No of lectures
6-8 seminars (exact number depends on number of participants)
Recommended for
The course is mainly intended for PhD students in cognitive science, computer science, and related disciplines (but see also Prerequisites below).
The course was last given
The course was last given spring 2022.
Goals
The main goal is to familiarize students with critical perspectives addressing limitations, risks, misperceptions, etc. of AI research and technology.
Prerequisites
Some background in AI, cognitive science, and/or human-computer interaction. Students do not necessarily need much technology/computing background, though, so PhD students who have a strong interest in AI, but come from other research areas (e.g., science & technology studies, gender studies, or applications of AI in education, healthcare, etc.), are also welcome.
Organization
The course mainly consists of discussion seminars and student presentations.
Contents
The course consists of:
- one introductory lecture/seminar that goes through 'old' criticisms of AI
discussed in the 1960s-90s (e.g., frame problem, common sense problem, symbol
grounding problem), and
- 5-7 seminars discussing 5-7 recent books (2019-2023) that address critical
perspectives on AI (see Literature for details).
Literature
The course literature mainly consists of 5-7 of the following books:
- Aylett & Vargas (2021). Living with Robots: What every anxious human needs
to know. MIT Press.
- Christian (2020). The Alignment Problem - Machine Learning and Human
Values. Norton & Company
- Crawford (2021). Atlas of AI: Power, politics, and the planetary costs of
artificial intelligence. Yale University Press.
- Larson (2021). The Myth of Artificial Intelligence: Why computers can't
think the way we do. Harvard University Press.
- Russell (2019). Human Compatible: Artificial intelligence and the problem
of control. Viking Press.
- Smith (2019). The Promise of Artificial Intelligence: Reckoning and
judgement. MIT Press.
- Strengers & Kennedy (2020). The Smart Wife: Why Siri, Alexa, and other
smart home devices need a feminist reboot. MIT Press.
- Zweig (2022). Awkward Intelligence: Where AI goes wrong, why it matters,
and what we can do about it. MIT Press.
NB: The list above is updated from the spring 2022 edition of the course
and might be updated/extended a bit further if relevant new books appear in
late 2022 or early 2023.
Lecturers
Tom Ziemke
Examiner
Tom Ziemke
Examination
Mandatory student presentations, active participation in seminar discussions, and some written coursework.
Credit
6 hp
Comments
The course can be given in Zoom if there are non-local participants.
Page responsible: Anne Moe
