Let's talk robotics with Professor Rob Sparrow
Eps 18: Joining me today is Professor Rob Sparrow for a very interesting chat about ethics in robotics!
Rob’s research interests are political philosophy and applied ethics; he is interested in philosophical arguments with real-world implications. More specifically, he is working in or has worked in: political philosophy, bioethics, environmental ethics, media ethics; just war theory; and the ethics of science and technology. He is currently focussing on war at sea and is writing a paper about this.
He is a prolific writer and has published many papers - he is happy to provide copies of his papers upon request at Robert.Sparrow@monash.edu
His latest publications can be found here:
ttps://robsparrow.com/publications/
Sparrow, R. 2021. Why machines cannot be moral. AI & Society: Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Communication. Published Online: 21 January, 2021. DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-020-01132-6
The published version is read only here:
And a full text prepress is here:
https://robsparrow.com/wp-content/uploads/Why-machines-cannot-be-moral.pdf
Today we discussed
how many ethicist are there worldwide? Are your and other’s concerns being taken seriously? How did you end up specialising in robotics?
His research projects underway on the ethical issues associated with robotics, including military robotics, robotic companions, and robots in aged care. Can we start with military robots and what you are doing there?
His work in applied ethics in relation to the application of real or near term robots in various roles, what are real or near term robots?
Robotic companions – what’s happening in that space?
With our aging population and the emphasis of staying in your own home for as long as possible, assistive technologies is a growing market in Australia which includes robots. What are your thoughts on the use of robots and the aged?
HIs recent paper on how we treat our robots and what it could potentially say about us – could you tell us about it. Boston Dynamics dog Spot and the video.
AI and medicine, what are your thoughts about this field? Can you give us a few examples of how doctors and AI are already collaborating? How is this going to affect how we train doctors and what we can expect when going to see a doctor?