CCSD Research Assistants
Syed AbuMusab
Tech Ethics, Social Relationships, Philosophy of Technology
Syed Aubmusab is a fifth-year PhD student at the KU philosophy department. His current research is about large language models such as chatbots. He argues that sophisticated chatbots are social agents. Further, their agency is multi-dimensional, and chatbots, as conversationalists, occupy the social dimension of agency. Social bots like chatbots are also construable as companions to older adults. The overarching project aims to establish chatbots as social agents capable of companionship to help lonely older adults. Many older adults have no other relationship available to exercise their social capacity to converse. Thus, chatbots, whether embodied, textual, or virtual, are suitable candidates to fill this social gap. In addition to his work on chatbots and social agency, he also explore the fact that we risk missing out on valuable insights from other cultures by focusing mainly on Western notions of technology ethics. Drawing on religious and cultural nuances like the "mahram" relationships, he proposes that carebots are a good solution for Muslims who avoid care homes due to religious constraints. His dissertation results from collaborations between psychologists, computer scientists, and philosophers.
Oluwaseun Damilola Sanwoolu
Artificial Intelligence, Social Relationships, Tech Ethics
I will be exploring how technology is changing the dynamic of how we form close personal relationships. This will involve looking particularly into the role technology is plays in dating and friendship formation.
Vanna Legler
Surveillance technologies, ethics of AI, social norms
I'm a senior undergraduate student pursuing a B.A. in philosophy and psychology. I am interested in the normalization of surveillance technologies in the U.S. after the turn of the 21st century, the affect developing technologies will have on the legal system, what it means to build ethical artificial intelligence, and how integration of technology into human experience erodes the line between humanity and machines. Currently, I am assisting with a CCSD literature review focused on the two-way relationship of social norms and AI and anticipating future directions and strategies for adaptation.