Teaching
Ethical AI Design of Sociotechnical Systems [214.3180]
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This course explores the ethical design of sociotechnical AI systems, focusing on integrating generative AI tools into Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) design. It is structured as a flipped classroom, where students prepare through readings and reflections, and class time is devoted to discussion, collaboration, and critical application.
Students examine sociotechnical systems, stakeholder-centered design, and value-sensitive approaches while learning to leverage generative AI for ethical and user-centered innovation. The course emphasizes anticipating unintended consequences, identifying design risks, and promoting ethical leadership without formal authority.
Through a combination of theory, case studies, and a culminating group project, students develop practical skills for designing responsible AI systems and critically engaging with the social impacts of emerging technologies.
Data Networks [214.2900]
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Modern-age life without computer networks is quite unimaginable. Landline and cellular telephone systems, office and state-of-the-art computer networks, cable television, and of course - the great wonder called "Internet" - are all just a few examples of the tremendous change that digital communication has brought to our lives. The course aims to uncover the ins and outs of the Internet. How is it possible that information found on one computer suddenly pops up on another? What are the main processes and algorithms that make up the world of communication? We will provide an overview of the basic concepts in computer communications (concepts such as networks, protocols, client-server models, routing, and network cards. The course focuses on the TCP / IP protocol suite, the most common network architecture on the market, and gives a comprehensive understanding and experience with client-server UDP and TCP programming.
Teaching Assistant
Weaam Shaheen
Seminar on Manipulation and Fake News [214.3180]
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This seminar examines the mechanisms behind digital manipulation and fake news in the modern information landscape. Students explore psychological, technological, and social strategies used to influence public perception, including the role of AI, filter bubbles, disinformation campaigns, and cognitive biases. Through critical reading, student presentations, and group discussions, participants develop analytical tools for understanding and responding to the challenges posed by misinformation in online environments.
Previous Courses
Social Network Analysis (SNA) [214.3550]
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"Over the past decade, there has been a growing public fascination with the complex “connectedness” of modern society. This connectedness is found in many incarnations: in the rapid growth of the Internet and the Web, in the ease with which global communication now takes place, and in the ability of news and information as well as epidemics and financial crises to spread around the world with surprising speed and intensity. These are phenomena that involve networks, incentives, and the aggregate behavior of groups of people; they are based on the links that connect us and the ways in which each of our decisions can have subtle consequences for the outcomes of everyone else." [1]
In this course, we will study the structure of these networks and links and understand the mechanisms that govern social and complex interactions and networks.
[1] Easley, David, and Jon Kleinberg. Networks, Crowds, and Markets: Reasoning about a Highly Connected World. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2010. ISBN: 9780521195331.