This edited volume brings together philosophers and scholars in disparate fields who have engaged in Professor Deborah G. Johnson’s body of work throughout her long career. It appeals to both students and researchers and introduces Johnson’s thought to a broader audience. This text shows how with due to the resurgence of AI research, her work is more relevant than ever. The volume will help a new generation of scholars benefit from the conceptual insights that Johnson has provided. Her work on algorithmic accountability sets the tone in particular. Chapters illustrate how combining philosophy of technology across disciplines helps clarify the complex intricacies of AI and societies, in particular the topic of accountability. Other themes covered include moral agency and responsibility, transparency, gender and technology as well as ethics education.
Dr. Merel Noorman is assistant professor in AI, Robotics and STS at the Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology and Society at Tilburg University in the Netherlands. Her research interests include the governance and regulation of AI and robotics, with a particular focus on the responsible development and use of complex intelligent technologies. In her current work she explores the relations between AI and democracy. She studied artificial intelligence and science & technology studies at the University of Amsterdam and Edinburgh University and received her PhD from Maastricht University. Since then, she has worked on various research projects in the U.S. and Europe looking at the ethical and social aspects of complex and intelligent computer technologies. One of these projects was a collaboration with Prof. Johnson on the topic of autonomous artificial agents and moral responsibility. Noorman has also worked as advisor for the Dutch Council for Social Development (Raad voor Maatschappelijke Ontwikkeling) and was managing director for the software company VicarVision.
Dr. Mario Verdicchio is a researcher and lecturer at the University of Bergamo, Italy. He is the author of the book “L’informatica per la Comunicazione” (in Italian: Computer Science for Communication Sciences, 2016) and of a number of articles published on international journals (including Minds and Machines, Ethics and Information Technology, the International Journal of Social Robotics) and conference proceedings. In 2013 he co-founded the Conference on Computation, Communication, Aesthetics and X (xcoax.org), for which he works in multiple roles, including chief editor of the proceeding books. His scholarly works tackle issues in artificial intelligence, computer art and philosophy of computer science. He is a member of the Berlin Ethics Lab at the Technical University Berlin, Germany.
