The Roger Mudd Center for Ethics

The Roger Mudd Center for Ethics advances dialogue, teaching, and research about issues of public and professional ethics across all three of the University's schools - the College, the Williams School, and the School of Law. 

Yearly Ethics Theme

2019-2020: The Ethics of Technology

Technological change is everywhere, sparking basic questions: Where are these changes taking us? What values should inform society's choices? In 2019-2020, the Mudd Center will engage a host of questions about "the ethics of technology." How should we think about developments in CRISPR technologies for editing human DNA, what ethical guidelines should apply, and what vision of humanity should the guidelines reflect? In the realm of robotics and artificial intelligence, what ethical considerations should inform the practices of designers, builders, and users? As governments and businesses increasingly use digital decision-making systems, what duties arise to prevent unfair treatment of citizens? As surveillance technologies become ever more pervasive and effective, how should privacy be understood, and what rules should protect it from invasion by the state or private entities? Should the practices of big tech companies - including unprecedented gathering and selling of information about individuals - be regulated, and if so, how? What benefits and risks are associated with Big Data algorithms, and how can the technological revolution be harnessed to contribute to the public good? The aim of this year's series is to explore these and related questions.

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