851-0732-06L Law & Tech
| Semester | Autumn Semester 2020 |
| Lecturers | A. Stremitzer, J. Merane, A. Nielsen |
| Periodicity | yearly recurring course |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Comment | Number of participants limited to 30. |
Courses
| Number | Title | Hours | Lecturers | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 851-0732-06 S | Law & Tech
 The lecturers will communicate the exact lesson times of ONLINE courses. | 42s hrs |
| A. Stremitzer, J. Merane, A. Nielsen |
Catalogue data
| Abstract | This course introduces students to legal, economic, and social perspectives on the increasing economic and social importance of technology. We focus particularly on the challenges to current law posed by the increasing rate of tech innovation and adoption generally and also by case-specific features of prominent near-future technologies. |
| Learning objective | The course is intended for a wide range of engineering students, from machine learning to bioengineering to human computer interaction, as well as for law students interested in acquiring a better understanding of state-of-the-art technology. The course will combine both an overview of major areas of law that affect the regulation of technology and also guest lectures on the state-of-the art in a variety of important technologies, ranging from autonomous vehicles to fair artificial intelligence to consumer-facing DNA technologies. The course is open to ETH students through the Science in Perspective program of the Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences. |
| Content | The planned course outline is below 1. Overview of science, law, and technology a. Studies of law and technology b. Should science be regulated, and if so, how? c. Technology as a social problem 2. Designing technology for humans a. Attention fiduciaries and the digital environment b. Does technology weaponize known problems of bounded human rationality? c. Should technology be regulated as a psychotropic substance? An addictive substance? d. Can technology make life easier? e. Psychological effects of surveillance 3. Governing tech a. Can small governments regulate big tech? b. National and supranational legislation c. Enforcing the law with technology d. Can enforcement be baked into technology? 4. AI and fairness a. Discrimination b. Privacy c. Opacity d. AI and due process 5. Trade secret and technological litigation a. Trade secret is a long-standing tool for litigation but does it enjoy too much deference? b. Trade secrets and the rights of employes 6. Enforcement against tech a. Big tech and antitrust b. Consumer protection 7. The Digital Battlefield a. Technology for spying b. Spying on technology companies c. Race to be AI superpower d. Immigration policy 8. Contract law a. Smart contracts b. Modernizing contract law and practice c. Regulating cryptocurrencies 9. Tort law a. Applying existing tort law to new autonomous technologies b. Personhood and personal responsibility c. Victim entitlements 10. Self-driving cars and other autonomous robotics a. Legal regimes b. Diversity in morality judgements related to autonomous vehicles 11. Biometrics a. Widespread use of facial recognition b. Law enforcement c. Connecting biometrics to social data d. Solving crimes with biometrics 12. New Biology and Medicine a. Unregulated science (biohackers) b. Promising technology before it can be delivered c. Connecting medicine to social data d. Using technology to circumvent medical regulations |
Performance assessment
| Performance assessment information (valid until the course unit is held again) | |
Performance assessment as a semester course | |
| ECTS credits | 3 credits |
| Examiners | A. Nielsen, J. Merane, A. Stremitzer |
| Type | graded semester performance |
| Language of examination | English |
| Repetition | Repetition only possible after re-enrolling for the course unit. |
| Additional information on mode of examination | Students will be assessed via a midterm exam. The midterm exam will be a 50 minute proctored online exam of short-answer essay questions to take place during the first half of class on October 20. The grade will be based on a midterm (20%) and a final exam (80%), both online and proctored. There is also an optional grade enhancement (up to +0.5) based on participation in class discussion.“ |
Learning materials
| No public learning materials available. | |
| Only public learning materials are listed. |
Groups
| No information on groups available. |
Restrictions
| General |  : Special students and auditors need a special permission from the lecturers |
| Places | 30 at the most |
| Waiting list | until 27.10.2020 |
