Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART I: FOUNDATIONAL ISSUES AND METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS: 1. Foundation of Information Ethics (Luciano Floridi) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Quote: “Our society is the information society because of the pivotal role played by intellectual, intangible assets (knowledge-based economy), information-intensive services (business and property services, communications, finance, and insurance), and public sectors (education, public administration, health care).” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn and to understand the “infosphere”, which they say that humanity is and will be flourishing.
Book Review: “Infosphere is a neologism coined years ago (see, e.g., Floridi (1999b) or Wikipedia) based on Biosphere, a term referring to that limited region on our planet that supports life. It denotes the whole informational environment constituted by all informational entities (thus including informational agents as well), their properties, interactions, processes, and mutual relations. It is an environment comparable to, but different from, cyberspace (which is only one of its subregions, as it were), since it also includes offline and analogue spaces of information.” When I first heard the word “infosphere” I automatically think that it means information cycle. Lucky me, I was right. It was a cycle, a cycle of information. When we were all children, we studied about cycles, life cycles, time cycles, etc. In our Science classes, we often hear the word “sphere”. Information sphere or infosphere for me is like the evolution of information. It explains how information evolves and progress as time goes on. I must admit, I haven’t thought that this cycle or rather the term “infosphere” exists. I used to think that information will just pop out of the blue when somebody discovers something. But I guess I am wrong. Even before, ages ago, we are all under information. It is where our life cycles. We are not just aware of it. But now, as we all know, information plays an important role in our lives. Even in an individual being, in our daily lives, we are all surrounded by information. At any places we go, what we will do, we have information. Information can be developed and eventually evolves. In the world we live in, now a day, we are valuing all the information that we have. Well, for me, every fruit of technology is based on information. For if there is no information, we wont have everything that we need. Let’s just simply explain this. Information is knowledge for everyone. If we know something, we can do something. We can explain and elaborate things that seem unexplainable before. We can do further studies and come up with a better result or better information. We live in an information society. The environment where we exist is made up of information that evolves every second in our life. In every corners of the world, we are surrounded by information. We might not be aware at first but when we think about it, we will discover and learn in our own little ways that every here and there, there is information. I believe that every technology that we are experiencing is because of information. For example, we have now, ipods, itouch, iphone, mp3 players, and the like. Have you ever come to think that these are all fruits of technology?
And this technology is only made possible by information. Information is a pivotal or the central aspects of our society today. It is the most crucial aspect in our environment. Citations: Luciano Floridi Integrative Questions: 1. What is infosphere? 2. What is an information society? 3. What is biosphere? 4. Is humanity will be flourished? 5. Is our society an information society?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART I: FOUNDATIONAL ISSUES AND METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS: 2. Milestones in the History of Information and Computer Ethics (Terrell Ward Bynum) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybernetics Quote: “The academic field of information ethics was born—unintentionally and almost accidentally—in the middle of the Second World War. At that time, philosopher/ scientist Norbert Wiener was working with a group of scientists and engineers who were involved with him in the invention of digital computers and radar, and the creation of a new kind of antiaircraft cannon that could (1) perceive the presence of an airplane, (2) gather information about its speed and trajectory, (3) predict its future position a fewseconds later, (4) decidewhere to aim andwhen to fire the shell, and (5) carry out that decision.” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn the history and every milestone of Information and Computer Ethics. I want to learn how it became possible that information played a very vital role in every aspect of life, during the early times.
Book Review: “Wiener’s cybernetic account of human nature emphasized the physical structure of the human body and the tremendous potential for learning and creative action that human physiology makes possible. To explain that potential, he often compared human physiology to the physiology of less intelligent creatures like insects.” “Cybernetics takes the view that the structure of the machine or of the organism is an index of the performance that may be expected from it. The fact that the mechanical rigidity of the insect is such as to limit its intelligence while the mechanical fluidity of the human being provides for his almost indefinite intellectual expansion is highly relevant to the point of view of this book . Man’s advantage over the rest of nature is that he has the physiological and hence the intellectual equipment to adapt himself to radical changes in his environment. The human species is strong only in so far as it takes advantage of the innate, adaptive, learning faculties that its physiological structure makes possible. (Wiener, 1954, pp. 57–58, italics in the original).” What is cybernetic? Have you already heard about it? Well for me, it was my first time to encounter the word “cybernetic”. I was sort of confused because I thought that if we already have information sphere or “infosphere” how come a new term arises. According to wikipedia, Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the structure of regulatory systems. Cybernetics is closely related to control theory and systems theory. In comparison, if information sphere is the life cycle of information, cybernetic is the interdisciplinary way of studying the theory of systems. Cybernetic is a wide field of study. As I first understand it, cyber means like technology, and the like, while ethics means moral or the righteous. But I guess my very own definition of cybernetics is somewhat true and somewhat false. It is said that it is the interdisciplinary study of systems theory. In the first part of this reading, it is explained there that the academic field of information ethic was born somewhere in the middle of the second war. Clearly, it was ages ago. It also stated that it was unexpected.
For me “cybernetic” is like studying a special field. A field of technology and information. But this studies involves morality and what is right and wrong. Citations: Terrell Ward Bynum
Integrative Questions: 1. What is computer history? 2. What are the milestones? 3. What is cybernethics? 4. What kind of study is cybernethic? 5. What is the role played by information in the society?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART I: FOUNDATIONAL ISSUES AND METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS: 3. Moral Methodology and Information Technology (Jeroen van den Hoven) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Quote: “Computer ethics is a form of applied or practical ethics. It studies the moral questions that are associated with the development, application, and use of computers and computer science. Computer ethics exemplifies, like many other areas of applied and professional ethics, the increasing interest among professionals, public policy makers, and academic philosophers in real-life ethical questions. Posing ethical questions about privacy, software patents, responsibility for software errors, equal access, and autonomous agents is one thing; answering them is another. How should we go about answering them, and how can we justify our answers? How should we think about practical ethical issues involving computers and information technology (IT)?” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn more about computer ethics.
Book Review: I must admit that it came with a bit of a shock when I first heard of IT ETHICS and Computer Ethics. I used to think that ethic is a short term for ethical, right manners and proper conducts. These ethical manners are to be observed when you are in fancy restaurants, if you are with your parents, aunts and uncles. I used to study this when I was in grade school during my Christian Living and Values Education. It was the first time I heard about ethics. And then when I have my theology classes in college, I also heard the word ethics or moral conducts. Even in my philosophy class, I studied ethical conducts and manner. So I was surprise and amazed when I encounter the word ETHICS in information technology. As I read this chapter, I come to think, what is computer ethic? What does ethic got to do with the computer system. And then I read this line: “The properties of IT may require us to revisit traditional conceptualizations and conceptions of privacy, responsibility, property; but they do not require a new way of moral thinking or a radically new moral methodology, which is radically different from other fields of technology and engineering ethics. Neuroscience, nanotechnology, and gene technology will provide us with problems we have not dealt with before, but our moral thinking has revolved in the past, and will revolve in the future, around a familiar and central question: how we ought to make use of technology to benefit mankind, and how to prevent harm to human beings, other living creatures, the environment, and other valuable entities we decide to endow with moral status.” Clearly, it is stated that although IT is like all about technology, which is a part of science, in some way however, there are some factors that we must insert our moral obligations. We must still think what can be the best for what we are doing without harming others. Even though Science and IT is as the same, since it studies how to perfect man’s life with technology, Morality issues are still involved. Morality and ethics, for me, can play an essential role in computer or IT systems. Maybe because technology may not be good for us if we don’t feel that it is right for us.
If what we have or what we experiencing now hurts other or destroy animal life or the environment, we should still consider thinking about moral values. We can have all what we want without harming others, or by just being ethical. Citations: Jeroen van den Hoven Integrative Questions: 1. What is computer ethics? 2. What are the morals? 3. What does computer ethics exemplifies? 4. What is ethics? 5. What are the requirements of the properties of ethics?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART I: FOUNDATIONAL ISSUES AND METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS: 4. Value Sensitive Design and Information Systems (Batya Friedman, Peter H. Kahn Jr., and Alan Borning) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Quote: “Value Sensitive Design is a theoretically grounded approach to the design of technology that accounts for human values in a principled and comprehensive manner throughout the design process. It employs an integrative and iterative tripartite methodology, consisting of conceptual, empirical, and technical investigations. We explicate Value Sensitive Design by drawing on three case studies. The first study concerns information and control of web browser cookies, implicating the value of informed consent. The second study concerns using high-definition plasma displays in an office environment to provide a “window” to the outside world, implicating the values of physical and psychological well-being and privacy in public spaces. The third study concerns an integrated land use, transportation, and environmental simulation system to support public deliberation and debate on major land use and transportation decisions, implicating the values of fairness, accountability, and support for the democratic process, as well as a highly diverse range of values that might be held by different stakeholders, such as environmental sustainability, opportunities for business expansion, or walk able neighborhoods. We conclude with direct and practical suggestions for how to engage in Value Sensitive Design.” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn and to understand the definition of Value Sensitive Design. I also want to know how to differentiate product design that is value sensitive and not, How do we easily distinguish what its difference features and specifications.
Book Review: In every product, design is important. It is what the buyers will first notice. Having a good design will surely be an eye-catchy for customers. As a buyer, when I am looking for something to buy, a cellular phone for example, I always ask what does it looks like. If it is the latest brand, the features, and the like. Design is important because it is what you and others will see. But of course, features and specifications are also important. For me, as a regular costumer, if the looks or the design is perfect but the features is not worth the money I’ll spend, I will just easily drop the chance or opportunity of buying the product, but for others, design means a lot. I have a friend who is so gaga about ipod shuffle before. She said it’s handy, cute and besides it apple. But there are also mp3 players that time. It is also handy and cute but design wise ipod shuffle is more fun to see. “Value Sensitive Design is a theoretically grounded approach to the design of technology that accounts for human values in a principled and comprehensive manner throughout the design process.” When we say Value, we often think monetary value and the like. We used to think that value and money are synonymous. How we use the term value is like how we use the term money. But as we all know, when we were still at our young age, we do encounter the term value. Have we all had the Christian Living and Values Education when we were in grade one up to our grade six? Surely all of us had an experience talking about Value in a different way. Different in a sense that
value is all about moral conducts not in a monetary term. In the reading, a broader framing of values has a long history. Since the time of Plato, for example, the content of value-oriented discourse has ranged widely, emphasizing “the good, the end, the right, obligation, virtue, moral judgment, aesthetic judgment, the beautiful, truth, and validity” Citations: Batya Friedman, Peter H. Kahn Jr., and Alan Borning
Integrative Questions 1. What is value? 2. What are moral conducts? 3. What is the content of value-oriented? 4. What is value-sensitive? 5. What is a product design?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART II: THEORETICAL ISSUES AFFECTING PROPERTY, PRIVACY, ANONYMITY AND SECURITY 5. Personality-Based, Rule-Utilitarian, and Lockean Justifications of Intellectual Property (Adam D. Moore) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism Quote: “Intellectual property is generally characterized as nonphysical property that is the product of cognitive processes and whose value is based upon some idea or collection of ideas. Typically, rights do not surround the abstract nonphysical entity, or res, of intellectual property; rather, intellectual property rights surround the control of physical manifestations or expressions. Systems of intellectual property protect rights to ideas by protecting rights to produce and control physical embodiments of those ideas.” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn and to understand Intellectual Property and Utilitarianism.
Book Review: Intellectual Property, according to Wikipedia, is the legal property rights over creations of the mind, both artistic and commercial, and the corresponding fields of law. Under intellectual property law, owners are granted certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets, such as musical, literary, and artistic works; ideas, discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs. Apparently, it is the things that we own, technically, or what are beyond our control. In my own words, I can say that intellectual properties are the one that you created or made. It is where you have the complete authority in it. For example, you are the one who invented the oven toaster; surely, you are the one who has the intellectual rights in it. You are the inventor so apparently you are the owner of the ideas. Speaking of Utilitarian, Utilitarianism is the idea that the moral worth of an action is determined solely by its contribution to overall utility: that is, its contribution to happiness or pleasure as summed among all persons. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined by its outcome: put simply, the ends justify the means. Utility, the good to be maximized, has been defined by various thinkers as happiness or pleasure (versus suffering or pain). It may be described as a life stance, with happiness or pleasure being of ultimate importance. Rule utilitarianism is a form of utilitarianism which states that moral actions are those which conform to the rules which lead to the greatest good, or that "the rightness or wrongness of a particular action is a function of the correctness of the rule of which it is an instance The main concept of Utilitarian is “The greatest good for the greatest number". I remember, we have this discussion at ITETHIC class about utilitarianism. The root word is utility which simply means object or things. As I recall, happiness is measured with pleasure. What is pleasurable and feels good will make you happy. But come to think of it, what if what makes you happy do not
make your neighbors happy? Isn’t that utilitarianism means that happiness must be in the greatest number, or which means, in happiness must be felt by everyone not only you in particular. So as I come to thinking, what if this certain thing makes you happy but do not make others happy, are you willing to risk or ignore your own feelings just to follow this concept? Citations: Adam D. Moore Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is rule-utilitarian? What is utilitarianism? What is intellectual property? What is the main concept of utilitarianism? What is consequentialism?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART II: THEORETICAL ISSUES AFFECTING PROPERTY, PRIVACY, ANONYMITY AND SECURITY 6. Informational Privacy: Concepts, Theories, and Controversies (Herman T. Tavani) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Quote: “We demand recognition of our right to privacy, we complain when privacy is invaded, yet we encounter difficulties immediately [when] we seek to explain what we mean by privacy, what is the area, the content of privacy, what is outside that area, what constitutes a loss of privacy, a loss to which we have consented, a justified loss, an unjustified loss. —H.J. McCloskey (1985, p. 343).” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn what privacy got to do with information. What are its theories, concepts and controversies?
Book Review: The book talks about private or privacy in particular. There are different forms or kinds of interest that this book tackles. These are Interest-Based Conceptions and Rights-Based Conceptions of Privacy. “Privacy interest privacy protects the interest individuals have in “sustaining a personal space, free from interference by other people and organizations.” Privacy does not simply protect ones “spatial interests,” nor does it merely protect ones “reputational interest” from potential harm that might result in a privacy intrusion, it also protects ones interest in being able “to think and plan ones conduct and to lead a rational life.” Other authors suggest that privacy protects a “tangible property interest” that individuals have with respect to their personal information. An interestsbased conception of privacy have suggested that privacy protection schemes can simply be stipulated (as a procedural matter) as opposed to having to be grounded in the kinds of philosophical and legal theories needed to justify rights. Discussions involving privacy in terms of an explicit right— moral, legal, or otherwise—have often become mired in controversy.” We all need some privacy in our life. But are we all clear about the word privacy? Privacy is the ability of an individual or group to seclude them or information about themselves and thereby reveal them selectively. The boundaries and content of what is considered private differ among cultures and individuals, but share basic common themes. Privacy is sometimes related to anonymity, the wish to remain unnoticed or unidentified in the public realm. The book discusses about the Four Distinct kinds of privacy: Physical/ Accessibility, Decisional, Psychological /Mental, and Informational Privacy. The book also discusses about Control Theory. Control Theory means privacy is directly linked to ones having control over information about oneself. Privacy just not means that you are the only one who knows something and the others are completely unaware of it. In other words, when you know something and the others have no idea about that fact, it does not mean that that thing is
something private. Some things become private when you have a complete control over it. When you can control and you have the complete charge on it, that’s the time you can call it a complete privacy. Citations: Herman T. Tavani
Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is the concept of privacy? What are the theories of privacy? What is privacy? What are the controversies in privacy? What are the Four Distinct kinds of privacy?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART II: THEORETICAL ISSUES AFFECTING PROPERTY, PRIVACY, ANONYMITY AND SECURITY 7. Online Anonymity (Kathleen A. Wallace) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anonymity Quote: “The idea of a kind of naturally occurring, “spontaneous anonymity” is embodied in characterizations of someone as a member of an anonymous mass or in expressions such as “the logic of anonymity in modern life.” There are two ideas at work here. One is the thought that anonymity could be the byproduct of sheer size as when one is among a throng of people who don’t know one another. The other is the thought that anonymity could be the byproduct of complex social organization, where society is organized such that one’s social locations are dispersed and not necessarily connected with one another.” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn and understand the definition of Anatomity. Book Review: Online Anonymity. When I first saw the title, I got a little confused. What is “anatomity”? Is Anatomy and Anatomity same? Anatomity means: “The term anonymity has been used to denote a number of related things: namelessness, detachment, unidentifiability, lack of recognition, loss of sense of identity or sense of self, and so on. Anonymity can also be brought about in a variety of ways and there are many purposes, both positive and negative, that anonymity could serve, such as, on the positive side, promoting free expression and exchange of ideas, or protecting someone from undesirable publicity or, on the negative, hate speech with no accountability, fraud or other criminal activity. Anonymity and privacy are also considered to be closely related, with anonymity being one means of ensuring privacy.”
According to wikipedia, Anatomity is derived from the Greek word which means "without a name" or "namelessness". In conversational use, the term typically refers to a person, and often means that the personal identity or personally identifiable information of that person is not known. a welldefined set, the "anonymity set”, "anonymity" of that element refers to the property of that element of not being identifiable within this set. If it is not identifiable, then the element is said to be "anonymous". The term "anonymous message" typically refers to message that does not carry any information about its sender and its intended recipient. It is therefore unclear if multiple such messages have been sent by the same sender or if they have the same intended recipient. Obviously, anatomity means anonymous. But what is the connection between going online and anatomity? Have you ever experience someone who’s sending you message but you have no clue who is it from? Anonymous sender, now a day is freaky no more. I suppose. We all encounter that thing when somebody sends us quotes and messages but we don’t know where it came from. I believe that the internet is a powerful tool. We can make the impossible, possible. The Internet as a social environment may be of concern in so far as it has the capacity to
increase the scope of natural or spontaneous anonymity as a by-product of or endemic to the nature of online communicative relations. Citations: Kathleen A. Wallace Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is online anonymity? What is anonymity? What is the idea of spontaneous anonymity? Is anonymity safe? Is anonymity legal?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART II: THEORETICAL ISSUES AFFECTING PROPERTY, PRIVACY, ANONYMITY AND SECURITY 8. Ethical Issues Involving Computer Security: Hacking, Hacktivism, and Counterhacking (Kenneth Einar Himma) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081022072100AAzcJGy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hack_(technology_slang) Quote: “There are two problems with this argument. First, assuming that hacking is a species of trespass, it doesn’t follow that all hacking is wrong because not all trespasses are wrong. It is permissible to trespass onto your land if doing so is the only way to capture a murderer fleeing the crime scene; committing a minor trespass is morally justified as the only way to secure the great good of stopping a killer. If hacking is trespass, then hacking necessary to secure some good that significantly outweighs the evil involved in trespass would also be justified. Second, and more importantly, it is not clear that the concept of trespass properly applies to digital intrusions. The term “trespass” has largely been reserved—at least in moral usage—to refer to acts in which one person enters upon physical space owned by another, but a hacker is not in any literal sense entering upon a physical space owned by another person. Perhaps digital intrusion is more like using heat sensors to see what is going on inside a house, which is not usually characterized as “trespass,” than like coming into the house without permission.” Learning Expectation: I expect to learn and really understand the Hacking, Hactivism and Counter hacking. What are the differences and are they illegal or not?
Book Review: I first heard the term hack or “hackers” when I first made my Yahoo Mail. My brother said to me that I should keep my password because somebody might “hack” it. I got a little confused. How come somebody can “hack” my password if the only person who knows it is me? It was so confusing. I thought that “hacking” is synonymous to stealing. But hacking is when you steal something online, like passwords, email address, and the like. But what is hacking? Is it really stealing? Hack or Hacking has several meanings in the technology and computer science fields. It may refer to a clever or quick fix to a computer program problem, or to a clumsy or inelegant solution to a problem. The term is also used to refer to a modification of a program or device to give the user access to features that were otherwise unavailable, such as DIY circuit bending. I read this article about “how to be a hacker” and it says: “The hacker mind-set is not confined to this software-hacker culture. There are people who apply the hacker attitude to other things, like electronics or music — actually; you can find it at the highest levels of any science or art. Software hackers recognize these kindred spirits elsewhere and may call them ‘hackers’ too — and some claim that the hacker nature is really independent of the particular medium the hacker works in. But in the rest of this document we will focus on the
skills and attitudes of software hackers, and the traditions of the shared culture that originated the term ‘hacker’.” Hactivism, on the other hand simply means “hacking actively” or the combination of the words, hack and activism, while counter hacking means “Defending yourself against hacking does not include counter-hacking though.” Citations: Kenneth Einar Himma
Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is Hacktivism? What is hacking? Is hacking legal? What is counterhacktivism? Is this also legal?
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART III: PROFESSIONAL ISSUES AND THE INFORMATION-RELATED PROFESSIONS 9. Information Ethics and the Library Profession (Kay Mathiesen and Don Fallis) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn what does librarian got to do with Information Ethics?
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What does library profession means in a different way?
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In what way does the librarian is considered as information provider?
Quote: “Librarianship as a distinct profession, however, is relatively a recent development. With the advent of the printing press, collections of works became larger and more complex, thus creating a greater need for someone devoted to organizing and cataloging such collections.” “We begin this chapter by considering the mission of the librarian as an information provider and the core value that gives this mission its social importance. Of course, librarians face the standard ethical issues that arise in any profession, but our focus here will be on those issues that arise in relation to the role of the librarian as an information provider. In particular, we will be focusing on questions of the selection and organization of information, which bring up issues of bias, neutrality, advocacy, and children’s rights to access information. All these issues bring up important challenges to what is commonly seen as the core value of librarianship—intellectual freedom.”
Book Review: In any libraries I’ve been to, there is always a librarian. The librarians are the one whom you can ask about where to find a book, what kind of books suits your question, what section you can find children books or novels, etc. In this reading, the introduction part describes the librarian as the information provider. Clearly, they are the ones whom you can ask for guide and assistance inside the library. Surely, they know the where abouts and what abouts inside the library. Librarianship is said to be a different or distinct profession. I have never known a librarian personally. I just meet them when I am inside a library. But I agree on the statement that they are an information provider. It is said that they face the standard in any ethical issues that arise in any professions. I believe that that this statement is also true. Since they are the information provider, their minds are open in all substances and circumstances or in any issue around them. The core value of the librarianship is said to be intellectual freedom. This statement explains that since librarians’ mind are open or always welcoming new thoughts, from the books and all the articles they have read, they are resilient or open minded in any situation that they will face. The way they think is based on many assumptions or many readings that they have.
Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Who are the information providers? What is the core value of librarianship? What are the issues that a librarian faces? What is said to be a distinct profession? Why greater needs for someone devoted to organizing and cataloging do arise?
What I have learned? • • •
I have learned that a librarian jobs is not just any ordinary job or task A librarian is an information provider The core of librarianship is intellectual freedom
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART III: PROFESSIONAL ISSUES AND THE INFORMATION-RELATED PROFESSIONS 10. Ethical Interest in Free and Open Source Software (Frances S. Grodzinsky and Marty J. Wolf) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn what the definition of ethical interest is.
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What does open source software means?
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What does ethical interest have to do with free and open source software?
Quote: “Both open source and proprietary developers share the professional ethical responsibility to develop solid, well-tested code. However, the influences on open source software developers to maintain this ethic differ substantially. Proprietary software establishes a strong distinction between developers and consumers. An interesting aspect of OSS is that this distinction can be less pronounced, suggesting that ethical models for analyzing that relationship need to be different. Most obviously, when developers and users of OSS neither get nor give payment, Financial self-interest is no longer a major concern. Developers are not “using” consumers to get their money. Users are not trying to negotiate an unfair deal for software. Instead, both developers and consumers in OSS are cooperating freely in the OSS project. The social pressure in the open source community to avoid code forking provides incentives for project leaders to ensure that the code is the best it can be. On the contrary, when an open source developer believes there is too much risk associated with a particular piece of code, he/she can rewrite it and release it. Although there is a reputation risk in doing so, there is the opportunity to publicly demonstrate that the forked product is superior.”
Book Review: Open source software, as I understand it, is free or something that you can use or see without even paying for it. I know that in the Ten Commandments on IT we discussed says that “Thou shall not copy or use proprietary software which you have not paid.” Since open source software means free software, using it is legal. I guess, using it for your own learning is okay but when you start using it for profit, that’s the time it can become illegal. It’s like selling something that you don’t own or you just steal. Proprietary software has a distinct relationship with their consumers. Of course, they are earning money from those people so a proper relationship must be build. Both proprietary and open source software developer have an ethical responsibility. Sure they are both working for other people sake, but it differs. Though they both develop a code, in some way or another, the
codes being offered by a proprietary software developer from an open source software developer differs. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is an Open Source Software? What is proprietary software? What are the differences between the two? Are the two have the same relationship with their consumers? Financial Interest is not the concern of what software?
What I have learned? • • •
I have learned about the difference from open source software from proprietary software. I have learned how does the proprietary software developer deals with consumers I have learned that although the two differs in some ways, it both have an ethical responsibility.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART III: PROFESSIONAL ISSUES AND THE INFORMATION-RELATED PROFESSIONS 11. Internet Research Ethics: The Field and Its Critical Issues (Elizabeth A. Buchanan and Charles Ess) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn what Internet Research Ethics is.
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What are the emerging issues that arise because of Internet?
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Is internet safe for minors?
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Are all the sources that we get in the internet are reliable?
Quote: “Internet research ethics (IRE) is an emerging multi- and interdisciplinary field that systematically studies the ethical implications that arise from the use of the Internet as a space or locale of, and/or tool for, research. No one discipline can claim IRE as its own, as various disciplines since the 1990s have used the Internet for research and, to some extent, grappled with the ethical implications of such research. Indeed, because Internet research is undertaken from a wide range of disciplines, IRE builds on the research ethics traditions developed for medical, humanistic, and social science research; this means in turn that a central challenge for IRE is to develop guidelines for ethical research that aim toward objective, universally recognized norms, while simultaneously incorporating important disciplinary differences in research ethics—a challenge frequently met in IRE through pluralistic approaches that conjoin shared norms alongside such irreducible differences. Indeed, at the heart of IRE is an intertwined convergence as IRE seeks to draw from the insights of applied ethics, research methods, information and computer ethics, and comparative philosophy, especially vis-_a-vis the possibility of developing a global IRE that simultaneously preserves irreducible differences defining diverse cultural traditions while developing a more global IRE for Internet research undertaken by researchers around the world.”
Book Review: Now-a-days, when we want to research something, instead of using books or encyclopedia, we are using the internet. Internet is one of the fruit of technology that we are experiencing. It can make our life easier. When we want to search for something, like stories, articles, you will just type it in a search engine, and just like that, answers will just pop out. One of my professor mentioned that what you see in the internet are not all reliable. Sometimes, different facts from different perspective were posted. We may post something that might be true or false in the internet.
There are a lot of issues arise when internet became popular. One common example is chatting. Most teen-agers are all into chatting, meeting friends online and stuff. Thru this a lot of crimes happened. Rape and stealing are common examples. Most cases are criminal cases that arise because of internet. Integrative Question: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is IRE? What are the common issues emerge because of internet? Is internet safe for teen-agers? Is internet a reliable source of information? What does IRE builds?
What I have learned? • • • • •
I learned that thru internet, life become fast moving. But the internet is not all about good stuffs and the like. Internet is not the most reliable source. Internet isn’t safe for minors. Most cases are reported because of the internet.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART III: PROFESSIONAL ISSUES AND THE INFORMATION-RELATED PROFESSIONS 12. Health Information Technology: Challenges in Ethics, Science, and Uncertainty (Kenneth W. Goodman) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn what Health Information Technology is.
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What are the so called challenges?
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Does Health Information Technology is accepted around the globe?
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How popular is Health Information Technology?
Quote: “..as a practical matter, it is often essential for individuals to disclose sensitive, even potentially embarrassing, information to a health care provider to obtain appropriate care. Trust in professional ethics and established health privacy and confidentiality rules encourages individuals to share information they would not want publicly known. In addition, limits on disclosure are designed to protect individuals from tangible and intangible harms due to widespread availability of personal health information. Individual trust in the privacy and confidentiality of their personal health information also promotes public health because individuals with potentially contagious or communicable diseases are not inhibited from seeking treatment. . . In an age in which electronic transactions are increasingly common and security lapses are widely reported, public support for the [National Health Information Network] depends on public confidence and trust that personal health information is protected. Any system of personal health information collection, storage, retrieval, use, and dissemination requires the utmost trust of the public. The health care industry must commit to incorporating privacy and confidentiality protections so that they permeate the entire health records system (National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, 2006).”
Book Review: Health Information Technology. I have leaned about this thru television. I watched a series which tackles this technology. If I am not mistaken, you will just type in your symptoms and what possible sickness you have will just pop out. Its like researching your condition. You will also see what possible medicines might cure your sickness. I think that this thing is totally an advanced technology. I was amazed. But I still don’t take chances. If I am sick, I won’t just type my symptoms and believe what the internet might say. I will definitely go to hospital and ask for medical advice. Maybe it isn’t bad to check yourself thru the internet but it is not safe to depend on the internet about your condition.
Busy people might be used to this but I still do believe that anything we read and see in the internet are not all hundred percent reliable. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is Health Information Technology? Is it safe? Is it reliable? Are most people relying on this now? What are the reasons why most people trust this technology?
What I have learned? • •
I have learned what is Health Information Technology I have also learned that most people trust this technology because of private reasons and confidentiality issues.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART III: PROFESSIONAL ISSUES AND THE INFORMATION-RELATED PROFESSIONS 13. Ethical Issues of Information and Business (Bernd Carsten Stahl) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn Business Ethics
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What are the issues involve in business ethics?
Quote: “Moral norms are important for the functioning of an economic system. If people did not honor contracts, pay their dues, give accurate information about products, and generally follow the moral code of society, economic transactions would become difficult to sustain (De George, 1999; Donaldson and Dunfee, 1999; Hausman and McPherson, 1996; Schwartz and Gibb, 1999; Sen, 1987). At the same time, ethics as the theory of morality plays an important role in justifying the economic system and thus allowing economic agents to feel legitimated in acting within the system. One justification of our current economic system is the utilitarian consideration that free trade creates the goods that allow individuals to satisfy their preferences and live a good life according to their own design (Gauthier, 1986; Good paster and Matthews,1982). Other streams of justification of a market-oriented constitution of society would be the natural rights tradition that can be used to ground a right in personal property (Nozick, 1974). Where personal property is accepted, market mechanisms can easily gain a measure of legitimacy.”
Book Review: We all know the meaning or the definition of ethics. Ethics or ethical manner is the right conduct that we should practice. It is a moral norm that most of us exercise. In business, there is also a norm or proper conduct that business people should follow. The quote above stated that moral norms are important for the functioning of the economic system. If we think about it, if there is no moral norm involve in a business, there might be a lot of thief and misconduct that will circulate in the business industry. If that happens, how can an economy rise? Business is like any other sectors. In school, we also have moral norms that we follow. Because of these moral norms, we are aware if what we do is wrong or right. Any sectors in the society may not function right if there are no moral norms that people follows. This may lead to the downfall of any area or zone in the society. Integrative Questions: 1. Are moral norms important? 2. In what system these moral norms are important?
3. Does business have its own set of moral norms? 4. What might happen if there is no business ethics? 5. Where do ethics as the theory of morality plays an important role? What I have learned? •
I have learned about business ethics. The moral norms involve in any sectors in the society.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART IV: RESPONSIBILITY ISSUES AND RISK ASSESSMENT 14. Responsibilities for Information on the Internet (Anton Vedder) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn if the internet is a reliable source of information.
Quote: “Interestingly, the typology of essential and significant information is not enough. As we saw, only part of the problems with regard to the assessment of online information are primarily caused by the providers, for example, through the presentation of the information. Often, the initial cause of the problems is the incompetence of users. Therefore, what is necessary is (1) The creation of new credibility-conferring systems, such as certification systems, allowing us to use pedigree criteria with regard to (online) information, when such systems are lacking. (2) Raising the visibility of indicators or markers of reliability of information (according to pedigree criteria). (3) Raising expertise and background knowledge in all users (to enable them to recognize reliability on the basis of pedigree criteria). (4) Raising the awareness of the varying qualities of information.”
Book Review: Is the information that we read and saw in the internet are reliable? One of my professor said that the internet is the fastest way of getting and receiving information. It is also complete.
Usually when we do our research, instead on using the traditional source of information and facts, the books, we tend to use the internet. Internet compared with book, internet is less hassle. Any where, any time, you can search for everything. In books, you need to drag yourself in the library or in a bookstore. You need to do a full time research. A lot of reading is also included. One advantage of the internet is that when you want to search for something, you will just search it in any search engines like Google, yahoo, etc. But is everything that we see in the internet are real and true? We all know that there are about a billion users of internet around the globe. Clearly, any users can simply add information, edit information. These information may be authentic or fraud. According to the quote above, there is a pedigree criteria. These criteria, as I understand it, helps us, internet users, if what we read and saw are really reliable. As I mentioned earlier in this paper, all the information that we read in the internet may be right and may be wrong, so with these pedigree criteria we will become aware if the information that we have are consistent. Integrative Question: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is a pedigree criteria? What is considered as one of the new credibility system? Is the information in the internet reliable? Why is pedigree criteria developed? Why does there is a need to raise expertise and background knowledge in all users?
What I have learned? •
I have learned that there is a criteria that checks whether the information from the internet are reliable.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART IV: RESPONSIBILITY ISSUES AND RISK ASSESSMENT 15. Virtual Reality and Computer Simulation (Philip Brey) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn how high the impact of virtual reality in our generation.
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What is computer simulation got to do with virtual reality?
Quote: “Virtual reality and computer simulation have not received much attention from ethicists. It is argued in this essay that this relative neglect is unjustified, and that there are important ethical questions that can be raised in relation to these technologies. First of all, these technologies raise important ethical questions about the way in which they represent reality and the misrepresentations, biased representations, and offensive representations that they may contain. In addition, actions in virtual environments can be harmful to others and raise moral issues within all major traditions in ethics, including consequentialism, deontology, and virtue ethics. Although immersive virtual reality systems are not yet used on a large scale, Non immersive virtual reality is regularly experienced by hundreds of millions of users, in the form of computer games and virtual environments for exploration and social networking. These forms of virtual reality also raise ethical questions regarding their benefits and harms to users and society, and the values and biases contained in them.”
Book Review: Virtual reality, I heard a lot about it thru TV series that involves robots, time machines, outer space. All that seems unrealistic and unbelievable to see are because of virtual reality. I believe that 3D is a part or is a virtual reality. Watching movies with 3D technology is very different with the traditional way. With Virtual reality, we can feel that it is real, though it is really not. Another common example of virtual reality is gaming, which is popular among teenagers. As we all know, Nintendo wii offers a different way of playing computer games. You can play golf or tennis just like you are in real courts. These technologies we have today make our life easier. Our own way of relaxation, like playing computer games, become more interesting because of all these innovations. In the introduction part of the reading says that this topic, virtual reality and computer simulation, have not received much attention. It is said that there are a lot of moral problems that should be raised on this topic. The way the virtual reality presents some scenes maybe immoral or biased. In playing computer games, for example, there are guns and bombs involve in some games. Maybe this thing can lead some children in different way of thinking. I believe that this reason is one of the main problems of virtual reality. Virtual reality may confused a child’s mind about what is the difference of reality from virtual reality.
Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is Virtual Reality? Is it considered biased? Does virtual reality receive attention from ethicist? Is virtual reality maybe harmful? Does virtual reality represent misinterpretation?
What I have learned: •
I have learned about some facts about virtual reality. Virtual reality is one fruit of technology that we have in our generation. For me, it makes our life more colorful. We can see things that feel so real. But there are some ethical issues with virtual reality, like it can be harmful especially with children.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART IV: RESPONSIBILITY ISSUES AND RISK ASSESSMENT 16. Genetic Information: Epistemological and Ethical Issues (Antonio Marturano) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn genetic information.
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Epistemology of genetic information.
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Ethical issues involving genetic information
Quote: “Genetics has utilized many concepts from informatics. These concepts are used in genetics at two different, albeit related levels. At the most basic level, genetics has taken the very notion of information, central to the field of informatics, to explain the mechanisms of life. An example is the famous “Central Dogma of Genetics,” which Crick (1958) describes as follows: The transfer of information from nucleic acid to nucleic acid or from nucleic acid to proteins may be possible . . . but transfer from protein to protein or from protein to nucleic acid is impossible. Information means here the precise determination of sequence, either of bases in the nucleic acid and or of amino acid residues in the protein. At a higher level, molecular biologists claim that cells and molecules are machinery similar to computers; this cell-machinery actually contains devices useful to build up unique biological beings starting from the information stored in a DNA.”
Book Review: The quote above compares information to nuclei acid. The terms used above are what a biologist studies. They say that computer is similar to molecules and cells. Cells and molecules are said to be machineries and these machineries stored information in a DNA. In this sentence, it explains that a computer is, clearly, machinery which can store information. When we hear the word genetic, the first thing that we think is family hereditary. In the reading the computer machineries is also compared with eggs. I think this chapter tries to explain that computer also has a history or beginning. Like a human life, computer also has birth and evolution. I believe that this statement is somewhat relevant. Since this chapter talks about genetics information, it simply says that computer also have traits that can be studied and compare to humans. Integrative Question:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is genetic Information? Computer machineries are compared with? Genetics utilized many concepts of what? What are these two that is been considered as machineries? Where the cell machinery does stored information?
What I have learned: •
I have learned that computer can be compared to human body. There are some similarities between us and the computers.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART IV: RESPONSIBILITY ISSUES AND RISK ASSESSMENT 17. The Ethics of Cyber Conflict (Dorothy E. Denning) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
I expect to learn The Law of Conflict Management.
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The Ethics of Cyber Conflict.
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Some examples of conflicts that can happened online
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Definition of cyberterrorism
Quote: “If the attacks are designed to be sufficiently destructive as to severely harm and terrorize civilians, they become “cyberterrorism”—the integration of cyber attacks with terrorism. Although cyberterrorism is abhorrent and clearly unethical, hacktivism raises ethical questions. For example: Is it ethical for a group of hackers to take down a Web site that is being used primarily to trade child pornography, traffic in stolen credit card numbers, or support terrorist operations? Can the hacktivists protest the policies or practices of governments or corporations by defacing Web sites or conducting web “sit-ins?” Can they attack vulnerable machines in order to expose security holes with the goal of making the Internet more secure?”
Book review: Even via the internet, there are so-called “cyber terrorism”. It is the combination of cyber attacks and terrorism. They attack civilians, probably the users, and do harm the innocents. I wasn’t aware that there is a term like cyber terrorism before. I thought, terrorism just happens in the war zone where you can kill and harm your opponent and the innocent people. Cyber terrorism is almost the same as terrorism. The only difference is, the damaging part happens in the cyber world. I wasn’t aware of this thing. A good example that I may give is that of people who “hacks” accounts and password of other people. Surely, they steal and do harm to other people. I can say that these people, who steal passwords, accounts, and the like, can be classified as “cyber terrorist”. Another example that I can site is that of people who spread virus online. A friend once told me that viruses in the internet were been done by others who sell anti-virus cd. At first I was shock. How come these people produce viruses and Anti-virus cd at the same time? But then I come to thinking, these people can’t earn money if they do not have any customer. So, they need to produce these things so that people will buy their product.
Integrative Questions:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is cyberterrorism? Cyberterrorism stands for? Is cyberterrorism ethical? Why? Or why not? Do hacktivist agree with cyberterrorism?
What I have learned: •
I have learned about cyberterrorism. Cyberterrorism is an integration of cyber and terrorist. In short, doing wrong and unjust actions via the internet,
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART IV: RESPONSIBILITY ISSUES AND RISK ASSESSMENT 18. A Practical Mechanism for Ethical Risk Assessment — A SoDIS Inspection (Don Gotterbarn, Tony Clear, and Choon-Tuck Kwan) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
Ethical Risk
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Risk Analysis.
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General Standards
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Software as a tool in business
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Risk Management
Quote: “Informaticians have been evolving and refining techniques to mediate risks of developing software products that meet the needs of their clients. The risks focused on include missed schedule, over budget, and failing to meet the system.s specified requirements (Boehm, 2006; Hall, 1998; Jones, 1994). This focus was later expanded to address software security as the highest risk (Stoneburner et al., 2002). In spite of this attention to risks, a high percentage of software systems are being delivered late, over budget, and not meeting all requirements, leading to software development being characterized as a “software crisis” and a mistrust of software systems.”
Book Review: As the introduction part says, all business needs high end software. Software is a necessary tool in any business structure. For example, how can you be one of the leading companies in the country if you don’t have advanced software? This will tell you that you can’t lead or have unique features for your business. But having an advance or pioneering software does not mean you have it all. You still have to consider some things. Assuming you have it all, a high end software, you will also need to know how to improve it. Of course, in any system, risks are involved. General standards, is said that it is available from almost all professional societies. I think it is the standard or the norms on what way you can approach each risk that may come along. There is thing called Risk Management. In this way, you can manage or maybe avoid risk and find solutions to your problems. In Risk Management, there are several steps you need to understand. In risk analysis, you will need to identify the potential risk that you may encounter. It’s like taking list of all the problems that your system might come across to. It is said that Risk Management is an iterative step. You need to analyze, evaluate and treat all risk. In ethical risk
part, stakeholders are been identified. The stakeholders are the one who did not directly uses the system but still can be affected if problems occur in the system.
.Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is Risk Management? Who are the stakeholders? What is Risk Analysis? What is necessary for business operations? After analyzing risk, next step is?
What I have learned? I have learned that business needs high end software. Software may break or make a business. A risk management is an iterative step in managing all risk that a system may encounter.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART V: REGULATORY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES 19. Regulation and Governance of the Internet (John Weckert and Yeslam Al-Saggaf) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
Internet Governance
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Effective Regulation
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The Current Situation
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Technical Issues
Quote: “Some of these are issues of political morality, while others are issues of prudential rationality: (1) Whether it is legitimate, as a matter of political morality, for use of the Internet to be subject to restrictions; (2) If so, what kinds of restrictions would be morally justified (e.g., would censorship of pornography? Or would limiting use of the web by businesses for commercial purposes, as has been demanded by some hacktivists?); (3) What kinds of enforcement mechanisms for otherwise justified restrictions would be morally permissible (e.g., the usual coercive enforcement mechanisms like threats of incarceration or code-based mechanisms that make the violation of these restrictions technologically impossible); (4) what sorts of enforcement mechanisms are likely to be most effective and hence conduce maximally to these prudential interests; and (5) What sorts of restrictions are prudentially justified as being in everyone’s best interest.”
Book Review: Internet governance is like a law that was been set or enforced by the government. Like any other law, it has the do’s and don’ts that an internet user must follow. There are several questions that were been raised with this issue. First, internet should be subject to restrictions. Well, we are all aware that nowadays, several groups are like anti-porn or anything that can harm the user physically and mentally. In some countries, like the sample in the book, blocks site. In China, Dalai Lama. I’ve never been into China before but I know the fact that some countries do block some sites because of the content. But I know that there are still internet freaks that can still find ways to upload tricky and non sense sites that fools people. As I know, the IP address is unique, so everyone are traceable, but as I said, there are some people who can find ways not to be caught red handed. To what extent this thing can be empowered? I think it can’t. Since there are about billions of internet users around the globe, these set of rules are sort of useless. Internet is a free world. You can say whatever you want to, be whoever you want to, have fun,
shop online, make reservations, call someone abroad, etc. There are a lot of things that you can do via the net. So I think if there are certain rules that an internet users should follow, these rules will eventually be worthless. Of course, most people will violate it. Thru the net we can have fun, there are no rules, and then suddenly rules are being put upon us. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is internet governance? What is the first question raised upon the internet governance? What is the site that has been blocked in China? What is an IP address? What are some technical issues in this problem?
What I have learned? I have leaned what is internet governance. There are still some questions that are been raised with this issue, it includes technical issues.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART V: REGULATORY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES 20. Information Overload (David M. Levy) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
Information Overload
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Information
Quote: “Information overload: Exposure to or provision of too much information; a problematic situation or state of mental stress arising from this. [OED Online, retrieved (June 11, 2007)]. Information overload . . . refers to the state of having too much information to make a decision or remain informed about a topic. Large amounts of historical information to dig through, a high rate of new information being added, contradictions in available information, a low signal-to-noise ratio make it difficult to identify what information is relevant to the decision. The lack of a method for comparing and processing different kinds of information can also contribute to this effect. Information overload, according to these two definitions, is a condition in which an agent has—or is exposed to, or is provided with—too much information, and suffers negative consequences as a result (experiences distress, finds itself in a “problematic situation,” is unable to make a decision or to stay informed on a topic, etc.).”
Book Review: Information is data that has been arranged systematically form a fact. We are all aware that we need information. Even in our basic living, we need to know the what about’s, the latest thing, etc. These things are called information. Now, the internet is the fastest and the latest source of information. As a student, when researching something, instead of using books, I use the internet. It is easy to use and way faster than books. The things that you researched are even the latest. You don’t need tons of books to find all the stuffs you needed because now there is internet. The internet, as a source of information, encounters some problems. Problems such as information overload. I assume that most of us know that when you type something in the internet, as you click on search, tons of information appears. I know for a fact that this information is not true or real. Sometimes, it is just an opinion from other people. Like what I have said earlier in this book review, some internet resources are fraud. It is because anyone can upload anything in the internet. Sometimes what you see or what you have researched in is more than information. Sometimes it is even a lie about something. Having information overload is said to confused people. I think it confused people in a way that tons of information is available and we
don’t know what is real and authentic. We tend to think or sometimes chose what we should believe and try to study. These things may really puzzle out our mind. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is information? What is information overload? Are all the things in the internet real and authentic? Are there problems arise because of information overload? Is information overload terrible situation?
What I have learned? I have learned about information overload. It is true that because of internet, research became easy. But we must all be aware of not all the things posted in the internet are real. Sometimes it’s a lie or an opinion. Not a fact. Information overload confuses people.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART V: REGULATORY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES 21. Email Spam (Keith W. Miller and James H. Moor) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam_(electronic) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail_spam Learning Expectation: •
Email
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Spam
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Junk mail
Quote: “If an email is a short message, perhaps an invitation to a local event, it is unlikely to be labeled “spam,” especially if it comes from someone the recipient knows. But, if the content of an email includes yet another routine advertisement for improving one’s sexual prowess, it will likely be classified as “spam.” Even worse, if it includes a disguised virus that erases the recipient’s hard drive that email will almost certainly be labeled spam by the enraged recipient. This designation will be made regardless of other characteristics below. Notice, however, that an email message that contains a virus can be sent to a specific individual (not part of a mass email) innocuously, by a friend, without any commercial aspect, and with a valid return address. Sometimes mass emailing itself will be enough to count as spam regardless of content, as happens in attempts to flood servers with messages to overwhelm them (denial of service).” Book Review: Email spam also known as junk email. According to Wikipedia, email spam is a subset of spam that involves nearly identical messages sent to numerous recipients by e-mail. A common synonym for spam is unsolicited bulk e-mail (UBE). Definitions of spam usually include the aspects that email is unsolicited and sent in bulk. A spam is the abuse of electronic messaging systems to send unsolicited bulk messages indiscriminately. While the most widely recognized form of spam is e-mail spam, the term is applied to similar abuses in other media: instant messaging spam, Usenet newsgroup spam, Web search engine spam, spam in blogs, wiki spam, Online classified ads spam, mobile phone messaging spam, Internet forum spam, junk fax transmissions, and file sharing network spam. When I first used yahoo mail, I noticed that there is bulk or spam folder. At first, I ignored it. But on the later I noticed why some of my mails do not directly go to the inbox folder. Some of it goes directly to this spam or bulk folder. I thought that this folder is just a special feature of the yahoo. I am still confused what does this folder got to do with email spam. In this reading, email spam is said to be a junk email. Email that is useless or trash. When we received email, it is usually from someone that we know. Messages are something
important or a forwarded quote, and sometimes a e-card or electronic card. A email spam is usually advertisements from random companies. I am quite sure that as internet users, we all encountered this email spam. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is email spam? What is email message? What is the difference between email spam and email message? Does email spam sometimes contain viruses? What is denial of service?
What I have learned? I have learned about email spam. It is really the first time that I read about some email spam contains viruses that can erase or affect the computer’s hard drive. I am aware about email spam but this virus thing is somewhat new to me.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART V: REGULATORY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES 22. The Matter of Plagiarism: What, Why, and If (John Snapper) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plagiarism Learning Expectation: •
Plagiarism
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The definition of plagiarism
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Some consequences in plagiarizing one’s work
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Cases about plagiarism
Quote: “As with most ethical concepts, there is plenty of room for debate over the definition of “plagiarism.” Plagiarism will be treated here very broadly as expression that improperly incorporates existing work either without authorization or without documentation, or both. The emphasis on impropriety is important. There are a wide variety of situations where it seems acceptable to repeat prior expressions while ignoring a possible attribution and making no attempt to seek permission from a putative source. We commonly repeat jokes and report established dates for historical events without citing sources, and we do so without qualms about plagiarism. An expression is only plagiarism if it is unacceptable on some established value. But we should be careful to avoid the error of being overly narrowing identifying any particular value or standard as the basis for condemning an expression as plagiarism.”
Book Review: I would begin this defining the word “plagiarism”. Plagiarism, as what I have understood, is copying or imitating one’s work. This definition is somewhat still vague. But let me explain to you the concept of plagiarism. Plagiarism is use or close imitation of the language and ideas of another author and representation of them as one's own original work. Plagiarism is not copyright infringement. While both terms may apply to a particular act, they are different transgressions. Copyright infringement is a violation of the rights of a copyright holder, when material protected by copyright is used without consent. On the other hand, plagiarism is concerned with the unearned increment to the plagiarizing author's reputation that is achieved through false claims of authorship. The definition above plagiarism and copyright infringement is according to Wikipedia. For me, copying one’s work is not illegal in some instances. For example, most school works or assignments are about definition of terms. Students often browse the web or books and copy what they have researched in. This scenario, for me, is not illegal, since it is used for education. I always site the name of the author whenever I copied something from the internet or books.
Plagiarism occurs when for example, someone claims that he wrote a book when the truth it he just copied the whole book from another book. When someone claims other’s work as his own and earn money from it, I think this scenario is a certified plagiarism. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is plagiarism? Is plagiarizing one’s work illegal? What is copyright infringement? Do all the scenarios that we copy someone else’s work considered as plagiarism? What are the exemptions in plagiarism?
What I have learned? I have learned about plagiarism. There are also some cases that we can and cannot be tagged as the one who plagiarized.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART V: REGULATORY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES 23. Intellectual Property: Legal and Moral Challenges of Online File Sharing (Richard A. Spinello) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property http://www.ipophil.gov.ph/mainframe_homepage.htm Learning Expectation: •
Online File Sharing
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Intellectual Property
Quote: “The recording industry in the United States has filed multiple lawsuits against purveyors of file sharing software. It has even initiated lawsuits against individuals who make substantial use of this technology (RIAA v. Verizon, 2003). The industry contends that the unauthorized “sharing” of copyrighted files is actually tantamount to the theft of intellectual property. The industry also contends that those companies that provide this software, such as Grokster and StreamCast, are culpable of secondary or indirect liability for such theft. This assertion is contentious, but recent court cases have tended to support the recording industry.s claims about secondary liability, especially when there is evidence of inducement.” “. . . all the goods of the Information Age—all of the expressions once contained in books or film strips or newsletters—will exist as thought or something very much like thought: voltage conditions darting around the Net at the speed of light, in conditions that one might behold in effect, as glowing pixels or transmitted sounds, but never touch or claim to “own” in the old sense of the word.”
Book Review: Online file sharing is simply sharing files via the internet. I don’t think that this is illegal. But the United States claims that this is illegal. Illegal, I think, in a way that most people instead of buying their own software just ask for a friend who already has it to send the software or the installer online. Obviously, this lessen the profit that a company can earned. The unauthorized sharing of copyrighted file is like stealing to intellectual property. Intellectual properties are legal property rights over creations of the mind, both artistic and commercial, and the corresponding fields of law. Under intellectual property law, owners are granted certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets, such as musical, literary, and artistic works; ideas, discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs. Common types of intellectual property include copyrights, trademarks, patents, industrial design rights and trade secrets.
In the Philippines, the role of IP Philippines is the effective management of the Intellectual Property system is vital to a nation's advancement and international competitiveness. The role of IP Philippines is to ensure that intellectual property is used as a tool for the social, economic and cultural development of our nation and that its benefits accrue to Filipinos.
Integrative Questions: 1. What is Intellectual Property? 2. What is the role of intellectual property in the Philippines? 3. Does US filed lawsuit against online file sharing? 4. Does unauthorized sharing of copyright is tantamount to theft on intellectual property? 5. What are the common types of intellectual property in the Philippines?
What I have learned I have learned that Philippines has also a Intellectual Property Rights organization. Also, I have learned that online file sharing is somewhat considered as theft on intellectual property.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART VI: ACCESS AND EQUITY ISSUES 24. Censorship and Access to Expression and Uncertainty (Kay Mathiesen) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
Censorship
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Access to expression
Quote: “Censorship limits access to an expression, either by deterring the speaker from speaking or the hearer from receiving such speech. By an “expression” I mean anything that may be composed by one person and communicated to another. This includes such things as speeches, personal communications, books, and articles, compilations of data, artworks, photographs, and music. Given that censorship limits access to expression, it is important to have clearly before us why access to expressions is valuable. Cohen (1993) provides an admirably clear and convincing account of the fundamental human interests that can only be satisfied if there is access to the expressions of others. Cohen links our concern with freedom of speech to three fundamental interests: (1) the interest in expression, (2) the interest in deliberation, and (3) the interest in information”
Book Review:
No one wants to be a censor. The introduction part of the book speaks about the word censor. As the quote above says: censorship limits access to an expression. Have you ever imagined yourself talking about a serious matter and yet no one is listening? Or have you ever experienced listening to some important details and someone is commanding you not to listen? The example given in the quote above explains that censorship is like stopping us to communicate to another person. All means of communication is banned. Books, arts and stuff are also limited. No one in this world can live like this. In my opinion, if I am the one who is been tagged as censored, I think I’ll be like a walking in a noisy room blind folded. You cannot hear other people’s thoughts and you can’t speak up what’s in your mind. As we all know, we live in a democratic country where all of us are free to express our thoughts, vision and mission in life. I think the term censorship would not be successfully launched in the Philippines since most Filipinos are democratic in mind and in heart. Most Filipinos express their thoughts and vision thru artworks and media.
Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is censor? What is censorship? What are the different accesses to expression? Does a person who is considered as censor free? What are the limitations of a person that is “censored”?
What I have learned I have learned that censorship and stuff are somewhat irrelevant to what our country is.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART VI: ACCESS AND EQUITY ISSUES 25. The Gender Agenda in Computer Ethics (Alison Adam) Library Reference: Chapter 1- Ethical Theories- Annette Baier: The Need for more than Justice Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
Gender Agenda
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Care perspective
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Feminist Ethics
Quote: “The idea that gender is a major (possibly even the major) way of classifying and ordering our world has been propounded by a number of authors, mainly, although not exclusively, writing from a feminist position.1 The recognition of continuing differences between men’s and women’s lots, at home, in the workplace, and in education, even in societies that have seen considerable opening up of opportunities for women in the space of a generation or so, has been a major force in developing contemporary feminist writing.2 Coupled with this, we continue to be fascinated by differences between men and women, putative differences in behavior, differences in interests, differences in management style, differences in parenting approach, and so on. This suggests that, in the process of ordering and classifying our world into that which is feminine, that is, belonging to or pertaining to women, and that which is masculine, that is, pertaining to men, we may polarize this binary in a search for, and perhaps even maintenance of, difference.”
Book Review: In all aspect, we might often see that men and women are challenging one another. I think it is the thing that women want to prove something. Women want to prove their worth and their capabilities. Men often ignored the fact that women are better in most cases. I have read in our previous book, the contemporary moral problem, about the care perspective. In the book says: Gilligan wants still wants to claim that women are most unlikely to take only the justice perspective, as some men are claimed to, at least until some mid-life crisis jolts them into “bifocal” moral vision. Gilligan in her book did not offer any explanatory theory of why there should be any difference between female and male moral outlook, but she did tend link naturalness to women of the care perspective with their role as the primary caretakers of young children, that is with their parental and specifically maternal role. Most men claimed to be of care perspective. For me, men should be classified as justice perspective. Care perspective, as the quote stated above, for woman, suits a woman. It comes with naturalness, a woman is the one who take care of an infant, raise a child, and discipline a person. There are things with this naturalness that only woman can do.
I think by not ignoring the fact that men and women can be equal in most cases can result to a brighter future. The debate about who is better and who’s not should be stop since men and women have different strengths and functionalities. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is Gender Agenda? What is Care perspective? What is the feminist ethic? Do men claim to be more of care perspective? Does gender is the way that we can classify and order our world?
What I have learned I have learned that male and female have still competitions since men often ignore the capabilities of women.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART VI: ACCESS AND EQUITY ISSUES 26. The Digital Divide: A Perspective for the Future (Maria Canellopoulou-Bottis and Kenneth Einar Himma) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: N/A Learning Expectation: •
Digital Divide
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Gap between rich and poor
Quote: “The digital divide is not any one particular gap between rich and poor, local and global, but rather includes a variety of gaps believed to bear on the world’s inequitable distribution of resources. There is, of course, a comparative lack of meaningful access to information communication technologies (ICTs); a gap in having the skills needed to use these resources; a gap between rich and poor in their ability to access information needed to compete in a global economy; and a gap in education that translates into a gap in abilities to process and absorb information. There are, of course, non digital gaps that contribute to the distribution of resources: poor nations have less highly developed infrastructure at every level needed to contribute to productive economic activity. There has also been the unfortunate result of pressure by organizations, such as the IMF, World Bank, and USAID, on poor nations to privatize their most economically prosperous resources, which typically get sold to a wealthy Western nation that profits from the privatization of recipient poor nations while protecting vulnerable markets such as agriculture against the competition of poor nations with subsidies that are (arguably) illegal under the World Trade Agreement.”
Book Review: Whenever I heard the term digital, I always think about innovative gadgets like the latest laptop, cellphone, ipod, and stuff. I think it is normal for me, as a student of a posh school, to be aware about the latest fads about digital stuff since its normal in my society or in my world. But for those who are not blessed to be in a posh society, innovations in the technology may not be one of the important things in their life. The digital divide includes the gaps not only between the rich and the poor but also I think gaps between the world’s resources. In the book, an example about the rich and the poor in US is given: There are gaps in access to information and information communication technologies within nations and between nations. Within the United States, for example, there are such gaps between rich and poor citizens, whites and blacks, and urban dwellers and rural dwellers. The difference between the rich and the poor are obviously serious. There are things that the poor can barely understand. Sometimes, these things are quite important. In the
Philippines, compared to US, we are outdated. We are one of the poor countries in the world so we have a not so innovative technology and we are always late in technological advancements.
Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is digital divide? Is digital divide only described rich and poor? What is gap between the rich and the poor? What can be our perspective for future? What are some gaps given in the example above? (from US example)
What I have learned I have learned that poor people are can’t afford to be well-informed about the innovations in the technological advancements.
Otsuka Hikaru ITETHIC Book: The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics Book Review: PART VI: ACCESS AND EQUITY ISSUES 27. Intercultural Information Ethics (Rafael Capurro) Library Reference: N/A Internet Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_ethics http://www.capurro.de/iie.html
Learning Expectation: •
Intercultural Information ethic
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Information Ethic
Quote: “Intercultural Information Ethics (IIE) can be defined in a narrow or in a broad sense. In a narrow sense it focuses on the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on different cultures as well as on how specific issues are understood from different cultural traditions. In a broad sense IIE deals with intercultural issues raised not only by ICT, but also by other media as well, allowing a large historical comparative view. IIE explores these issues under descriptive and normative perspectives. Such comparative studies can be done either at a concrete or optic level or at the level of ontological or structural presuppositions. The present IIE debate follows the international debate on information ethics that started with the “First International Congress on Ethical, Legal, and Societal Aspects of Digital Information” organized by UNESCO in 1997 in the Principality of Monaco and subsequent meetings, culminating in the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) (Tunisia, 2003, Geneva, 2005). These conferences were aimed particularly at reaching a consensus on ethical principles to be implemented through practical policy, as in the case of the “Declaration of Principles” of the WSIS.”
Book Review: Information Ethics is the field that investigates the ethical issues arising from the development and application of information technologies. It provides a critical framework for considering moral issues concerning informational privacy, moral agency, new environmental issues, problems arising from the life-cycle. Information Ethic is said somewhat related to computer ethic. For me, information ethic is about the morals on how you should react and response about IT. I have read in the internet about Intercultural Information Ethic. The word intercultural explains that in different cultures, we might have different perspective about information ethic. What is ethical for Filipinos may not be ethical to Chinese.
According to what I have read: Cultural reflection on information technology, with particular emphasis on the Internet, has already a history. Charles Ess and Fay Sudweeks have been organizing biennial conferences on cultural attitudes towards technology and communication. Integrative Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What is information ethic? What is intercultural information ethic? Do we all have the same information ethic? What is IIE? What is ICT?
What I have learned I have learned that from different cultures, different information ethic arises.