CSE 40175 is one of the core classes in the Computer Science and Engineering program at the University of Notre Dame. The purpose of the course is to develop a solid foundation for reasoning about ethical, professional, and social issues that arise in the context of computer science and engineering. Emphasis is placed on identifying appropriate legal, professional and moral contexts and on applying sound critical thinking skills to a problem. Topics covered include professional codes of ethics, safety-critical systems, whistle blowing, privacy and surveillance, freedom of speech, intellectual property, and cross-cultural issues. This course relies heavily on case studies of real-world incidents.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
Communicate effectively about a wide range of ethical, professional, and social issues regarding computer science and engineering in a variety of mediums and platforms.
Analyze complex moral and technical issues by identifying stakeholders, exploring opposing positions, and considering short and long-term consequences.
Discuss the impact of computing and technology in the past, the issues and obstacles facing society in the present, and the opportunities for the future.
Evaluate different ethical, professional, and social issues in the context of computer science and engineering and in terms of Catholic social teaching.
Unit | Date | Topics | Assignments |
---|---|---|---|
Responsibility | Mon 08/26 | Reading Quiz | Reading 00 |
Tue 08/27 | Syllabus, Ethics, Code of Ethics Slides Slides | ||
Thu 08/29 | Talents, Responsibility Slides | ||
Sat 08/31 | Writing Reflection | Writing 00 | |
Identity | Mon 09/02 | Reading Quiz | Reading 01 |
Tue 09/03 | Computer Science, Hackers Slides | ||
Thu 09/05 | Meritocracy, Philanthropy Slides | ||
Sat 09/07 | Writing Reflection | Writing 01 | |
Employment | Mon 09/09 | Reading Quiz | Reading 02 |
Tue 09/10 | Hiring Slides | ||
Thu 09/12 | Negotiation, Contracts, Promotion, Mobility Slides | ||
Sat 09/14 | Writing Reflection | Writing 02 | |
Mon 09/16 | Reading Quiz | Reading 03 | |
Tue 09/17 | Immigration Slides | ||
Workplace | Thu 09/19 | Work-Life Balance Slides | |
Sat 09/21 | Group Project | Project 01 | |
Mon 09/23 | Reading Quiz | Reading 04 | |
Tue 09/24 | Diversity Slides | ||
Thu 09/26 | Codes of Conduct Slides | ||
Sat 09/28 | Writing Reflection | Writing 03 | |
Engineering Disasters | Mon 09/30 | Reading Quiz | Reading 05 |
Tue 10/01 | Mission Critical Slides | ||
Thu 10/03 | Whistleblowing Slides | ||
Sat 10/05 | Writing Reflection | Writing 04 | |
Privacy vs Security | Mon 10/07 | Reading Quiz | Reading 06 |
Tue 10/08 | Government Surveillance Slides | ||
Thu 10/10 | Responsible Encryption Slides | ||
Sat 10/12 | Writing Reflection | Writing 05 | |
Pervasive Computing | Mon 10/14 | Reading Quiz | Reading 07 |
Tue 10/15 | Cloud Computing, Online Advertising Slides | ||
Thu 10/17 | Internet of Things Slides | ||
Sat 10/19 | Group Project | Project 02 | |
Fall Break | |||
Corporate Conscience | Mon 10/28 | Reading Quiz | Reading 08 |
Tue 10/29 | Social Responsibility Slides | ||
Thu 10/31 | Antitrust Slides | ||
Sat 11/02 | Writing Reflection | Writing 06 | |
Freedom of Speech | Mon 11/04 | Reading Quiz | Reading 09 |
Tue 11/05 | Network Neutrality Slides | ||
Thu 11/07 | Online Censorship Slides | ||
Sat 11/09 | Writing Reflection | Writing 07 | |
Mon 11/11 | Reading Quiz | Reading 10 | |
Tue 11/12 | Fake News, Memes Slides | ||
Thu 11/14 | Anonymity, Trolling, Cyberbullying | ||
Sat 11/16 | Group Project | Project 03 | |
Artificial Intelligence | Mon 11/18 | Reading Quiz | Reading 11 |
Tue 11/19 | Face Recognition Slides | ||
Thu 11/21 | Automation Slides | ||
Sat 11/23 | Writing Reflection | Writing 08 | |
Mon 11/25 | Reading Quiz | Reading 12 | |
Tue 11/26 | Self-Driving Cars Slides | ||
Thu 11/28 | Thanksgiving | ||
Intellectual Property | Mon 12/02 | Reading Quiz | Reading 13 |
Tue 12/03 | Patents, Patent Trolls Slides | ||
Thu 12/05 | Copyright, DMCA, Piracy Slides | ||
Sat 12/06 | Writing Reflection | Writing 09 | |
Education | Mon 12/09 | Reading Quiz | Reading 14 |
Tue 12/10 | Computer Science Education | ||
Thu 12/12 | Writing Reflection | Writing 10 | |
Reading Days | |||
Final | Mon 12/16 | Group Project | Project 04 |
Component | Points |
---|---|
Readings Weekly reading quizzes. | 14 × 5 |
Writings Weekly writing reflections. | 10 × 5 |
Projects Periodic group projects. | 4 × 30 |
Participation Regular class attendance and contribution to course community. | 60 |
Total | 300 |
Grade | Points | Grade | Points | Grade | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
A | 280-300 | A- | 270-279 | ||
B+ | 260-269 | B | 250-259 | B- | 240-249 |
C+ | 230-239 | C | 220-229 | C- | 210-219 |
D | 195-209 | F | 0-194 |
Unless specified otherwise:
Students are expected to attend and contribute regularly in class. This means answering questions in class, participating in discussions, and helping other students.
Foreseeable absences should be discussed with the instructor ahead of time.
All Reading Quizzes must be completed individually and submitted the the appropriate Google Form. Students may make multiple submissions (with the one with the highest score chosen as the final grade).
All Writing Reflections should be posted to each student's individual blog. Choice of blog platform is up to each student, but the student must provide a valid RSS or ATOM feed to their blog at the beginning of the semester for easy syndication and monitoring.
In the case of a serious illness or other excused absence, as defined by university policies, coursework submissions will be accepted late by the same number of days as the excused absence.
Otherwise, a late penalty, as determined by the instructor, will be assessed to any late submission of an assignment. In general, the late penality is 25% off for less than a week and 50% off for more than a week. The instructor reserves the right to refuse any unexcused late work.
Any student who has a documented disability and is registered with Disability Services should speak with the professor as soon as possible regarding accommodations. Students who are not registered should contact the Office of Disabilities.
Any academic misconduct in this course is considered a serious offense, and the strongest possible academic penalties will be pursued for such behavior. Students may discuss high-level ideas with other students, but at the time of implementation (i.e. writing), each person must do his/her own work. Use of the Internet as a reference is allowed but directly copying code or other information is cheating. It is cheating to copy, to allow another person to copy, all or part of an exam or a assignment, or to fake program output. It is also a violation of the Undergraduate Academic Code of Honor to observe and then fail to report academic dishonesty. You are responsible for the security and integrity of your own work.
For the assignments in this class, you may discuss with other students and consult printed and online resources. You may quote from books and online sources as long as you cite them properly. However, you may not look at another student's solution, and you may not look at solutions.
The following table summarizes how you may work with other students and use print/online sources:
Resources | Solutions | |
---|---|---|
Consulting | Allowed | Not Allowed |
Copying | Cite | Not Allowed |
See the CSE Guide to the Honor Code for definitions of the above terms.
If an instructor sees behavior that is, in his judgement, academically dishonest, he is required to file either an Honor Code Violation Report or a formal report to the College of Engineering Honesty Committee.
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