5.6: Assignments
- Page ID
- 307763
This page is a draft and is under active development.
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)1. AI Governance Policy Lab (Expanded Policy Memo)
Format: 2–3 page policy brief + visual framework
You are serving as the Chief AI Policy Advisor for a country of your choice (or a fictional country grounded in real-world conditions). Your task is to design a human-rights-centered AI governance framework.
Your memo must:
- Apply a Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA) to AI governance
- Identify one high-risk AI domain (e.g., hiring, policing, healthcare, education)
- Propose 3–5 policy principles grounded in global norms (e.g., UNESCO AI Ethics)
- Analyze trade-offs between innovation, security, and rights
- Incorporate at least one framework:
- COM-B (behavioral impacts)
- Digital political economy (who benefits?)
- Algorithmic accountability (transparency + oversight)
Include a one-page visual model (flowchart or power map) of your governance system.
2. Digital Power Case Study (Repression vs. Resistance Analysis)
Format: 3–4 page analysis OR multimedia presentation
Select a real-world case (e.g., China, India, Russia, Iran, Kenya, Brazil, Hong Kong, or another approved case). Analyze how digital technologies shape both control and resistance.
Your analysis must:
- Identify the forms of digital power at play:
- State power
- Corporate/platform power
- Civil society resistance
- Apply the Power Mapping Framework (state–market–society–infrastructure)
- Evaluate how technologies (AI, surveillance, platforms) are used for:
- Repression
- Mobilization
- Assess the role of global networks and solidarity movements
Creative Option: Present your case as a “day in the life” narrative of a citizen navigating this system.
3. Design Justice + Algorithmic Audit (Upgraded Design Audit)
Format: Audit report + redesign proposal
Choose a digital platform (app, website, or AI system such as TikTok, LinkedIn, ChatGPT, a hiring tool, etc.). Evaluate it using design justice and algorithmic accountability frameworks.
Your audit must:
- Identify who benefits vs. who is excluded
- Analyze potential biases in design or algorithmic outcomes
- Apply:
- Design Justice (inclusion, equity)
- Algorithmic Accountability (transparency, explainability)
- Propose specific redesign recommendations
Stretch Option:
Create a mock redesign (wireframe, sketch, or slides) showing how your improved system would work.
4. Personal Data Ethnography (Upgraded Data Diary)
Format: Reflective analysis (2–3 pages) + data map
Track your digital activity for 5–7 days and analyze your digital life as a system of power and data flows.
Your reflection must:
- Map your data ecosystem:
- Platforms used
- Types of data generated
- Who likely collects/uses it
- Apply:
- Surveillance capitalism (Zuboff)
- Data colonialism or data justice
- Reflect on:
- Where you had control vs. where you did not
- Moments of consent (or lack of meaningful consent)
Creative Option:
Include a visual “data map” of your life (flow diagram of how your data moves).
5. Digital Futures Lab (Upgraded Group Project)
Format: Group project + presentation
Design a future-facing intervention that addresses a major digital rights challenge.
Choose one focus area:
- AI and work
- Surveillance and privacy
- Digital divide
- Misinformation and democracy
- Biometrics or neuro-rights
Your project must:
- Identify the core problem using course frameworks
- Apply at least two frameworks:
- HRBA
- COM-B
- Digital political economy
- Propose a solution, such as:
- Policy intervention
- Public campaign
- Platform redesign
- Educational initiative
Deliverables:
- Concept proposal
- Visual or prototype (slides, campaign, mock-up, etc.)
- Short presentation
6. “Build Your Own Digital Society” Simulation
Format: Scenario design + reflection
Design a fictional digital society from scratch.
You must decide:
- Who controls data?
- How AI is governed
- What rights exist (privacy, expression, etc.)
- How inequality is addressed
Then reflect:
- What trade-offs did you make?
- Who benefits most in your system?
- What unintended consequences might emerge?
Bonus
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Policy Memo: Draft a two-page brief proposing principles for a national AI-ethics law grounded in human-rights norms.
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Case Study: Analyze one instance of digital repression or activism (e.g., Hong Kong, Iran, Kenya) and evaluate the role of global solidarity networks.
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Design Audit: Evaluate an app or website through the lens of design justice. Recommend changes to improve accessibility and inclusivity.
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Data Diary: Track your own digital footprint for one week. Reflect on privacy, consent, and surveillance in daily life.
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Group Project: Build a prototype public-awareness campaign for digital literacy in your community linking online safety with civic participation.