Questions for Exploring Computer Science Mindset
- Consider the following skills and attributes that a computer scientist might possess. You have 10 stones to distribute among the bins below, each of which represents a different skill or attribute. Please assign importance to each skill or attribute by distributing your stones among the bins (i.e. skills or attributes with greater importance get more stones). You may place multiple stones in any bin or leave a bin empty, but you must place exactly 10 stones in total and no fractional stone distributions are allowed.
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- Extensive technical knowledge
- The ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams
- The ability to interpret and analyze data
- An understanding of the ethical responsibilities associated with one’s work
- The ability to identify and solve technical problems
- The ability to synthesize and integrate knowledge across disciplines
- An understanding of the social and cultural impact of one’s work
- The ability to acquire new information or skills when needed
- Consider the following entities. You have 10 stones to distribute among the bins below, each of which represents a different entity. Please distribute the stones according to which entities are responsible for ensuring the impacts of technology benefit society and/or do not cause harm (i.e. entities with greater responsibility get more stones). You may place multiple stones in any bin or leave a bin empty, but you must place exactly 10 stones in total and no fractional stone distributions are allowed.
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- Legal departments inside companies
- Government (via regulation or laws)
- Those developing tech products (computer scientists, engineers, etc.)
- Those who use tech products (users)
- The media (journalists, social media activists, etc.)
- Senior leadership inside companies (CEOs, CTOs, etc.)
- Independent technology review groups
- Researchers at academic institutions
- Which statement best fits your view of technology and society?
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- Technology is a positive force that solves problems and enables society to progress and improve.
- Technology is neither good nor bad; it is neutral, and its effect depends on how it is used and by whom.
- Technology is not neutral because it is developed with certain values and goals that may impact different groups of society in different ways.
- Technology causes negative impacts on society and it allows decision makers to blame technology instead of taking responsibility for negative outcomes.