Today’s Objective

Continuing the examination of AI's infrastructure, Week 6 zooms in on the sociotechnical aspects, politics of data, and ethical considerations. Students will explore how materiality and data systems shape societal norms, power dynamics, and ethical frameworks.

Lecture Notes

<insert slides link>

Key Concepts

• Materiality: The physical or tangible substance of something (from Edwards's "A Vast Machine").
• Data Systems: Organized collections of symbols and processes that may be used to operate on such symbols (from Edwards's "A Vast Machine").

To Read (Before Class)

Primary

• Kate Crawford and Vladan Joler’s "Anatomy of an AI System" (2018)

Anatomy of an AI System

Anatomy of an AI System - The Amazon Echo as an anatomical map of human labor, data and planetary resources. By Kate Crawford and Vladan Joler (2018)

anatomyof.ai

Student Facilitation Reading

Check the Google Sheet for your presentation date

"Sorting Things Out: Classification and Its Consequences" by Geoffrey C. Bowker and Susan Leigh Star 📕Sorting Things Out (Read & Present on Introduction and Chapter 1)

Summary: This reading explores the role of classification systems in shaping human and technological interaction. It offers insights into how categorization influences AI practices and connects with the theme of AI's performativity.

Critical Questions:

1. How do classification systems impact the development and functioning of AI systems?
2. What ethical or social issues may arise from AI classification practices?
3. How does this reading relate to the concept of "mangle of practice" in AI?
4. How do classification systems embody cultural or societal values?
5. Can classification in AI be truly objective, or is it inherently biased?

To Do