Current Event - 9/24/2015

Current Event #2 is one that's a little closer to my heart than many issues in technology today. As you may know, the mayor of New York City recently made an announcement that the city would be requiring public schools to teach computer science classes. In the wake of that announcement, speculation has arisen regarding the merits of such an idea. To give examples, some argue that such a curriculum is perfect preparation for increasingly ubiquitous technology jobs, whereas others believe that our schools should be focusing on the basics before we reach for something more complicated and elective as computer science. I'm not superbly well informed on the specifics of Mayor de Blasio's plan to implement this curriculum, but regarding what I do know, my stance is firmly in the middle.

First of all, I think the argument against the proposal given in the second article I linked to is a very good point. There are plenty of students in public schools that don't do well at all with the standard curriculum that most schools have now. Computer science is a very nuanced topic that many people don't grasp well at all, so throwing students into such a class when they may already be struggling is a recipe for disaster. However, I very much agree with the opposite side that such preparation can and will be very beneficial to young people growing up in an increasingly computer-oriented world.

Now what does this have to do with a computer ethics class at BYU? Directly, very little, but indirectly I think there is some ethical background to the dilemma. For one, I think determining whether adding such a curriculum will ultimately help or harm students is a bit of an ethical issue. Isn't it our duty to make sure that everyone gets a fair shake at succeeding in whatever they choose? If we introduce material that can potentially hinder a child's education, is that ethical? Probably not. I don't think we should handicap anyone, especially school-age children in their developmental prime. There may be other ethical sides to the die that I haven't even thought of.

To skip back to why this issue is a dear one to me, I'll simply say that my schooling was very vanilla in terms of curriculum. I learned all of the basics and learned them well. I never had trouble in school and I was halfway through high school before I so much as got a B in any class I took. I've also had an interest in computers since about age 5. In elementary school, I had the chance to participate in a somewhat advanced program where they taught us some computer skills, but they were skills to help us know our way around operating a computer, not anything related to the actual workings of the computer itself. Had I had access to such a curriculum and a gateway into the world of computer science, I feel I can confidently say that I would have jumped in with both feet and been ten years ahead of my current self. I switched to the Computer Science major from Microbiology when I was a year from graduation. If I'd had the opportunity to learn computer programming, even if it were only in high school, I don't think I would have put three years into a Microbiology program. I would have realized years beforehand that I'm interested enough in computers to pursue a career in computer science.

To sum up, if I were forced to take a side on the matter, I think I'd be in favor of adding a computer science curriculum in public schools, but I'll add the caveat that I think it should be elective. My elementary school wasn't familiar with the concept of an elective class, but if you're going to offer a computer science class, I think that has to be balanced out for the sake of those kids who struggle in school. For my part, I would have loved it all and I don't believe it would have harmed my performance in school one bit.

Study Journal 1

The other type of assignment that we have is a Study Journal: at least three points from each day of the section we're talking about in class. This round is going to be a little short because I've missed a couple days of the module because of goings-on related to recently having had surgery on my wrist. Here goes!

September 8:

• The aim of ethics is to do good and to become good. I'm reminded of the saying that goes something like "Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character." It's not enough to know what is right and wrong, that knowledge must be ingrained and applied in life.
• Ethics vs. Morals: Then and Now - Aristotle's ethics and morals were the same thing. Today, they're separate concepts. Ethics are secular and evolutionary. Morals are religious and immutable.
• "An ethical man follows, while a moral man acts", which goes hand-in-hand with another thought mentioned in class, "An ethical man knows it's wrong to cheat on his wife, but a moral man wouldn't". Again, the juxtaposition of knowing and doing.

September 15

• "Facts are stupid things until brought into connection with some general law"
• If you're given a fish, don't simply dismiss it, take a closer look. This is related to a reading assignment in which a man studying entomology is given a fish and told to "look". Too many of us don't pay any attention to anything unless we're directly affected by or interested in it. As related to computer science, ethics is the fish - something none of the CS majors really want to talk much about, but need to be concerned with anyway.
• Knowledge in itself is not the end, but the vehicle. It should not simply be gained, but used to do and to become something more.

September 17

• Can laws be unethical? Certainly. Think of Nazi Germany. Think of Missouri's extermination order against the Mormons. Simply because it is passed into law does not make it ethical.
• When you share the gospel, just share the message. Prof. Dougal shared a story with us about sharing from the Doctrine and Covenants with a man with whom he worked. Had this Evangelical Christian man known the source of the scripture, he may well have rejected it, but the word of the Lord is recognizable to any who actually seek to hear it.
• "He that takes offense when it is not intended is a fool. He that takes offense when it is intended is a greater fool" - I believe the quote was from Brigham Young. This is not something with which I struggle, but it is, nonetheless, food for thought. A fool can mistake an innocent comment for an offensive one, but if offense is intended, it is all the more foolish to go along with the intent.

Current Event - 9/9/2015

First assignment is a current event. To this point in class, we've mostly just talked about ethics, what ethics and morality are, the difference between them, and so on. I actually haven't read anything recently that stuck out to me when I think of ethics in technology or anywhere for that matter, so I turned to Bing and Google news searches for some material.

The most prominent hit (and by that, I mean it turned up four or five different sources in the top results) was this article about a top Republican consultant who lied about the work he did for a Georgia congressman. It looks like this consultant worked for the congressman in an official capacity, for which work he should have been paid from office accounts, but he also helped the congressman with campaign activities and debate preparation, for which he should have been paid using campaign funds. Apparently, the deal was that he was paid using funds that should not have been used to pay him and then he lied about it. He was "charged with a federal crime for lying to the House Office of Congressional Ethics" and it looks like this is the first time that this has ever happened.

I thought it was particularly ironic that not only was he unethical in that he was lying about the type of work he did and how he was paid for it, but that his unethical deeds were committed while speaking to the group that is in charge of making sure that everyone in the political circles of Congress behaves in an ethical manner. Seems like a good time to bring up the old adage, "cheaters never prosper".

Who, What, Where, When, Why, And How?

For anyone stumbling across this blog, intentionally or otherwise, here's the deal. I've never been very active in social media and I've certainly never been the blogging or journaling type, so this blog is a new experience for me. Thank my CS404 professor at BYU, Duane Dougal, for this foray into blogging. I think it's going to be an interesting experience for me and maybe even a grand adventure (hence the name of the blog). Mostly, the entries here will be current events regarding the content we're talking about in ethics as they concern technology and computing, along with study journals containing things that stuck out to me in our class discussions every once in a while. I may enjoy this more than I thought, so here goes!