Version 29 February 2008
The audience for your paper is the community of computer scientists and software developers. In other words, your audience is the same one as for the Communications of the ACM.
You will develop your position paper over the course of the term, and will hand it in in three increments. Each handin will be both softcopy, via a Catalyst CollectIt dropbox, and hardcopy.
In this version, you should identify a particular technology that you believe raises important ethical questions (which could be good or bad). Indicate why you care about this topic - why it matters to you personally. You should also indicate why the rest of us should care.
This version should not be less than 1000 words. Avoid bulleted and numbered lists. Ensure that the technology or policy relates to computerization. You need to reference at least two bibliographic sources that you have read on this topic in your paper. In this and subsequent versions of your paper, you are free to use sources from the class readings, but these will not count toward the required number of sources. Be prepared to discuss your paper in class on the due date.
The technology can range from the specific (e.g. radio frequency ID tags) to the general (computers and the Internet). Choose a topic that fascinates you and that you think is important, but make sure that it relates computerization to society. Avoid writing a "consumer's guide" type of paper, e.g. "how to protect your computer from viruses".
The second version will be a position paper in which you make and defend an ethical position concerning an identified public policy that addresses a policy vacuum associated with the technology that you are investigating. Your paper should be not less than 2000 words in length. Somewhere in the paper make sure to discuss the technology whose impact you are investigating, the current public policy (or lack thereof), your proposed public policy, and an argument for why this policy should lead to better social outcomes, grounded in your conception of the good. To clarify what is meant by "public policy", I provide the following Policy Definitions.
In your bibliography, you should make reference to at least three peer-reviewed, scholarly journal articles that are at least 30 pages total in length; if their combined page count is less, then include as many peer-reviewed, scholarly journal articles as you need to make a minimum of 30 pages. Make sure to include page counts for each reference (including electronic references).
You should also provide a summary source analysis for each of your sources in the following summary source analysis table. Each source will be a row in the table. Identify the source name in the leftmost column. For each source, provide a numeric grade between 0 and 4 for each of the source analysis criteria, and a summary "score" for the source in the rightmost column. In addition, for the two sources that you scored as highest and lowest, do a 1-2 paragraph written source analysis, where you discuss each of the specific criteria for this source.
Substantiate each factual claim in your paper through a specific reference to one of your bibliographic sources or don't make the claim. Often, it is best to narrow the claim (e.g. from "all of us think that ..." to "a majority of respondents to a Harris poll indicated that ...").
Bring three hardcopies of your paper to class on the due date; one copy is for the instructor and two copies are for your reviewers. Your paper will be graded on a "no pass", "low pass", or "high pass" basis (equivalent to 0, 2, and 4). And please submit softcopy via CollectIt. Make sure to name your file yourname-v2.doc - this way I can easily identify your paper from its file name.
Based on feedback that you receive from students and the professor on version 2 and additional research that you do, you will rewrite your position paper. This version should be a minimum of 2000 words. You should include reference to two additional scholarly journal articles totaling at least 20 pages in this version. In total, your version 3 paper should reflect and integrate all of the topics that we have covered in the course: from the ethical theories as reflected in the policy position that you are taking, to the sorts of media sources that you are using, to the understandings that you are making concerning the social and political implications of the technology that you are addressing. Finally, make sure to choose your title wisely.
On the due date, please submit your paper hardcopy. And please submit softcopy via CollectIt. Make sure to name your file yourname-v3.doc.