Computers and Society: Modern Perspectives

by Ronald M. Baecker

Overview

The last century has seen enormous leaps in the development of digital technologies, and most aspects of modern life have changed significantly with their widespread availability and use. Technology at various scales - supercomputers, corporate networks, desktop and laptop computers, the internet, tablets, mobile phones, and processors that are hidden in everyday devices and are so small you can barely see them with the naked eye - all pervade our world in a major way.

Computers and Society: Modern Perspectives is a wide-ranging and comprehensive textbook that critically assesses the global technical achievements in digital technologies and how are they are applied in media; education and learning; medicine and health; free speech, democracy, and government; and war and peace.

Ronald M. Baecker reviews critical ethical issues raised by computers, such as digital inclusion, security, safety, privacy,automation, and work, and discusses social, political, and ethical controversies and choices now faced by society. Particular attention is paid to new and exciting developments in artificial intelligence and machine learning, and the issues that have arisen from our complex relationship with AI.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198827092
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	06/18/2019
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	550
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Ronald M. Baecker, Emeritus Professor of Computer Science, University of Toronto

Ronald M. Baecker is Emeritus Professor of Computer Science, Emeritus Bell Chair in Human-Computer Interaction, co-founder of the Dynamic Graphics Project, and founder of both the Knowledge Media Design Institute and the Technologies for Aging Gracefully lab (TAGlab), all at the University of Toronto.

He has been named one of the 60 Pioneers of Computer Graphics by ACM SIGGRAPH, has been elected to the CHI (Computers and Human Interaction) Academy by ACM SIGCHI, has been named an ACM Fellow, and has been given the Canadian Human Computer Communications Society Achievement Award, a Canadian Digital Media Pioneer Award, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Association of Computer Science.

He is also founding Editor of the Synthesis Lectures on Assistive, Rehabilitative, and Health-preserving Technologies (Morgan & Claypool, Publisher).

Table of Contents

1. Digital inclusion2. Digital media and intellectual property3. Computers in education and learning4. Computers in medicine and health care5. Free speech, politics, and government6. Law and order, war and peace7. Security8. Safety9. Privacy10. Automation, work, and jobs11. Artificial intelligence, explainability, trust, responsibility, and justice12. Lifestyle

Editorial Reviews

"An exceptional encyclopaedic review of the vital issues of our time - it's a remarkable accomplishment by a leading researcher, educator, and entrepreneur ... This astonishing book should be required reading for every computer science student to sensitize them to the realities of technology's impact on society. Instructors will appreciate the well-organized chapters with wise recommendations for research projects, debate topics, book reviews, ethical concerns, and almost 2000 references for further reading." — Ben Shneiderman, University of Maryland

From the Publisher