Week 3

Part 1

In general I struggle to study in part because I have difficulty concentrating at times. The website provides a variety of useful tips, some that I think will help me concentrate and be more productive are getting up and changing my environment and avoiding daydreaming by reflecting on the material. I will also make an effort to instead of simply taking a break, exercise for about 10 minutes to reduce my stress and help me regain my focus. 

Part 2

Review Program Policies

This week as part of one of our required readings we got an overview of policies and student support resources. It provides examples of actions that hinder our education and the performance of our team, as well as actions that can lead to academic sanctions, such as plagiarism, fabrication of false data, cheating, and assisting someone in committing these actions. It breaks down how the violations of the academic integrity policy are handled. Additionally, it details how student work is used to improve the program and the enrollment and grade policies, like what qualifies for incomplete status. Another key fixture of the reading focuses on the importance of professional effective communication. We must follow the Netiquette rules of online communication in discussion assignments, online meetings, and emails.

Ethics in the age of Al

One of the lectures we watched discussed some ethical questions around AI and technological advancement. The presenter began by highlighting four more pressing concerns: replacement of human labor, the perpetuation of unfair practices, the erosion of privacy, and the undermining of democracy through misinformation. As he sees it the more profound worry is whether technology will change what it means to be human. His discussion included: digital de-aging, the possibility of digitally recreating deceased actors, using an app to select potential partners, and the ability to create a digital copy of yourself. Through this discussion, the primary concern people expressed regarding these technologies was that they deprive us of human experiences and diminish human dignity. 

Code of Ethics of Association for Computing Machinery

For one of our readings, we learned about the code of ethics of association for computing machinery. The reading covered general ethical principles computer professionals should follow: use their skills to better society and the environment, mitigate damage and risk, be honest about their capabilities and software, promote fairness, respect the work of others, respect privacy and transparency, and protect confidential information and disclose it to authorities if laws are violated. The reading goes onto outline professional responsibilities like: prioritizing the quality of the processes and products, prioritize professional competence, seek review and provide review of the work of others, be objective about evaluations, help educate the public about technologies, should not access unauthorized systems unless in an effort to disrupt malicious systems, and ensure systems are secure before implementing. The reading also covers the responsibilities of those in leadership positions such as: uphold and promote principles, evaluate social responsibilities, be considerate of worker well-being and needs, create policies that follow the code and discipline violations, provide educational opportunities, be considerate of users when changing existing systems, and ensure systems are well monitored. Finally, the reading goes over principles of compliance such as: computing professionals should adhere to the code and contribute to improving, and ACM members should promote the code and report violations. 

TED Talk on Al

We also watched a lecture on AI. The lecture primarily focused on understanding what AI is and where it is headed. The speaker used a metaphor to help illustrate what AI is, describing it as a new digital species. As he sees it, it is important to understand what AI is to mitigate risk and benefit the most out of it. He describes how AI has and will revolutionize human experience. 

CST 349

For this week’s assignments we in our teams went over the CS curriculum writing a summary for each class. We also submitted our ILP and completed our weekly survey. 

CST 300

This week we got an introduction to ethics, went over some ethical concerns associated with technology, and had a quiz on ethics. We also completed our industry analysis paper and chose a topic for an ethics argument paper for approval. 

Part 3

This reading material is a valuable resource for computer science students. It provides topics we as computer science students should know and should familiarize ourselves with. It breaks down the topics, provides specific recommendations and projects, and recommends readings. 

It covers a wide range of topics such as Unix, computer architecture, discrete mathematics, and databases. 

Part 4

Integrity is important for all students because it enhances the learning experience of everyone. Integrity is also impotent because it is a characteristic highly valued by employers. Furthermore, you could face academic sanctions for violating the code of integrity.