For the final project, create a fictional short story about a futuristic autonomous robot and a decision it makes that leads to an unexpected consequence, a perverse instantiation.
Story
Your story can take one of three forms:
- Text: Write a story in prose or draw a comic.
- Video: Create a video using your phone’s camera or an online animation tool.
- Audio: Record an audio story using your phone like the podcasts we have listened to for class.
Be sure to include enough information about the future world in which the robot exists. Including why it was created and the role it serves in society and its impacts on people’s lives. The decision that the robot makes should also have enough context for the audience to understand both the intended outcome and the unexpected consequences of the robot’s decision.
There are no length requirements for your story and you will not be graded on your story. However, you need to create a story that is interesting enough to complete the second part of the project.
Presentation
You will deliver a short presentation that both summarizes and analyzes your story. The presentation should include:
a description of your story including any details needed to understand it such as what the world is like and what the purpose of the robot is.
an explanation of how the robot is designed to make ethical decisions so that it does not hurt itself, people, or society.
a description of how the robot applies its ethical reasoning to make the decision described in your story and the result of that application.
an evaluation of the robot’s decision including both the strengths and weaknesses and your personal opinion.
a recommendation for how the unexpected consequence of your hypothetical situation could be prevented. Consider changes to the robot, the people who interact with it, and the world itself.
The presentation itself should:
- be no more than 7 minutes
- have slides
Peer Evaluation
We will do partnered peer evaluations of presentations during class on Wednesday, May 5th.
Evaluation
Your presentation will be evaluated according to the class [delivery rubric], [visual aids rubric], and the [ethical reasoning rubric].
Submission
Please submit your story on the course Inquire page before class on the day scheduled for your presentation, either May 10th, May 12th, or May 14th. Refer to the [presentation schedule] for the day you will be presenting.