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AI, Ethics and the Law (LAWS10009)
Undergraduate level 1Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
For information about the University’s phased return to campus and in-person activity in Winter and Semester 2, please refer to the on-campus subjects page.
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable(opens in new window)
Contact information
Please refer to the LMS for up-to-date subject information, including assessment and participation requirements, for subjects being offered in 2020.
Overview
Availability | Semester 2 |
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Fees | Look up fees |
This subject will be delivered online in 2020 over the scheduled dates.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and new digital technologies are affecting almost every aspect of modern society. These developments have many beneficial consequences. The varied uses of AI also raise a host of concerns, including about their impact on employment, health and safety, interpersonal relationships, human rights, discrimination, and human autonomy. Developing sound ethical, policy and legal responses to AI requires expertise from the technical fields, especially maths, computer science and engineering, and also the social sciences and humanities, including sociology, psychology, criminology, history, ethics, and philosophy. This subject uses interdisciplinary perspectives to investigate AI, ethics and the law.
Topics will include investigating:
- What is AI?
- Current uses of AI in society
- Frameworks for ethical AI, including fairness, accountability and safety
- Technical responses, including transparency and explainability in AI
- Legal regimes, including privacy, consumer law, discrimination and human rights law
- Public and private accountability.
These issues will be explored through the use of case studies, including:
- Uses of AI in the workplace
- AI home assistants
- Autonomous vehicles
- AI and robots in medicine
- AI in media, including social media platforms
- AI in decision-making by governments, courts, police and other public institutions
- Military uses of AI.
Intended learning outcomes
A student who has successfully completed the subject should have:
- Acquired an understanding of the contribution from different fields, including science and the humanities, into the policy and legal questions raised by AI.
- Analysed and applied the legal responses to AI in a range of current contexts.
- Obtained a general knowledge of the legal issues raised by AI.
- Have the communication skills to clearly articulate and convey complex information regarding AI to relevant specialist and non-specialist audiences.
- Have developed skills to be an engaged participant in debate regarding emerging and contemporary issues in the field of AI.
Generic skills
On completion of this subject, students should have developed skills in:
- Reading inter-disciplinary material in preparation for class;
- Analysing conceptual and practical human rights problems;
- Using legal norms as the basis for advocacy;
- Writing clearly for assignments; and
- Verbal communication through group discussions in tutorials.
Last updated: 19 April 2024
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 19 April 2024
Assessment
Due to the impact of COVID-19, assessment may differ from that published in the Handbook. Students are reminded to check the subject assessment requirements published in the subject outline on the LMS
Description | Timing | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Blog post or media article
| From Week 4 to Week 6 | 30% |
Research essay (from a choice of 6 topics)
| End of semester | 70% |
Last updated: 19 April 2024
Dates & times
- Semester 2
Coordinator Jeannie Paterson Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours Recorded lectures (1.5 hours) plus discussion boards; 1 x 1 hour Zoom tutorial Total time commitment 150 hours Teaching period 3 August 2020 to 1 November 2020 Last self-enrol date 14 August 2020 Census date 21 September 2020 Last date to withdraw without fail 16 October 2020 Assessment period ends 27 November 2020
Last updated: 19 April 2024
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
Subject materials may be made available from Melbourne Law School.
- Breadth options
This subject is available as breadth in the following courses:
- Bachelor of Arts
- Bachelor of Biomedicine
- Bachelor of Commerce
- Bachelor of Design
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Acting)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Animation)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Film and Television)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Music Theatre)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Screenwriting)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Theatre)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Visual Art)
- Bachelor of Music
- Bachelor of Science
- Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
- Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students
This subject is available to students studying at the University from eligible overseas institutions on exchange and study abroad. Students are required to satisfy any listed requirements, such as pre- and co-requisites, for enrolment in the subject.
Last updated: 19 April 2024