Description:
The seminar will address the topic of the impact of AI on: the economy, the environment, and society. On the first date, an introduction into the topic and into the form of the seminar will be given (E. Baudrier), and the three areas will be presented. Students will form teams of three, with ideally one student from each of the participating universities (UNIBAS, UHA, UNISTRA). Each team will select pertinent papers for their topic and present the results of their analysis to their supervisors (approx. end of October) beforehand. Each team should prepare a 25-30 min presentation, which will be followed by 15-20 min discussion. For each topic, an external expert will be invited to join the discussion.
Schedule
Monday 7 October, 2024, 14:30 - 17:30 in Strasbourg (UFR Math-Info, room 301)
- Introduction to the seminar topic (E. Baudrier)
- Introduction to the form of the seminar (E. Baudrier)
- Eucor overview (D. Ruire)
- Presentation of seminar areas and topics (E. Baudrier)
- Definition of deadlines and meetings per team (E. Baudrier)
- Initial discussion within the teams
Friday 15 November, 2024, 14:30 - 17:30 in Strasbourg (UFR Math-Info, room 301)
Area: Impact on the environment. Guest: Amanda Sessim Parisenti
Topics:
- Environmental issues (“Data Center Energy Consumption: Study of the carbon footprint of HPC infrastructures and solutions for energy optimization”, “Electronic Component Manufacturing: Analysis of the ecological impact of the production of chips and other components essential to AI”, “Electronic Waste Management: Recycling the electronic equipment used in AI”)
- Sustainable AI (“Ecologically Responsible Algorithms: Designing algorithms to minimize the ecological footprint.”, “AI for CO2 Emission Reduction: Projects and case studies where AI helps reduce emissions in various sectors, such as transportation and industry.”, “Policies and Regulations: Discussion of the regulatory frameworks needed to frame the use of AI in a sustainable way.”)
- AI to support adaptation to climate change (“Climate Modeling and Prediction: Using AI to improve the accuracy of weather forecasts and climate models”, ”Natural Resource Optimization: AI applications for better management of water, energy and agricultural resources”, “Biodiversity and Conservation: AI tools for monitoring and protecting endangered species and natural habitats.”)
Friday 22 November, 2024, 14:30 - 17:30 in Mulhouse
Area: Impact on the economy. Guest: tbc
Topics:
- Job issues (Job replacement, underpaid workers in poor countries, modern slavery, reskilling and skill loss)
- Impact on the computing industry (programming: time saving, bugs)
- Impact on healthcare (Toward personalized medicine/diagnostic, data privacy and ethical concerns, reliability of AI-driven decisions)
Friday 6 December, 2024, 14:30 - 17:30 in Basel.
Area: Impact on society. Guest: tbc
Topics:
- Impact on learning (AI and student use, AI as a Learning Assistant (AI in Academic Integrity), AI and teacher use (AI and Student Engagement, AI in Automating Assessments and Feedback))
- Privacy (Copyright infringement (e.g., learning data bases of generative AIs), use of personal data, cybersecurity issues)
- Perception of reality (AI as a facilitator for fake news, conspiracy theories, deepfakes, etc., bias propagation)
- AI and democracy, AI and public opinion formation
Student schedule
For all students:
- Introduction of areas: 7 October, 2024
- Short (one page) summary, list of relevant publications, three questions per topic for the audience: 1st November, 2024
- Feedback from EB: 8 November, 2024
- Presentation slides (all): 15 November, 2024
- Final report: one week after presentation
Testimonial Laura Engist, participant of the Eucor seminar 2023
What did motivate you to participate in the Eucor seminar in Computer Science?
My motivation to participate lied in the collaboration with students from other universities. I wanted to get to know different perspectives, ideas, and arguments. As Computer Scientists, we all share a good foundation of background knowledge and a fascination for Artificial Intelligence. Bringing ethical thinking into the picture opens new views and points for discussion. Furthermore, I wanted to take the chance to visit other cities and universities (we even went to the Christmas market in Strasbourg – huge recommendation!).
How was the seminar structured?
We formed groups of 2-3 students from different universities. My group consisted of a student from the University of Freiburg, one from the Université de Haute-Alsace, and myself from the University of Basel. First, we chose “AI and ethics” as our main topic, in particular, “Data sharing in Healthcare / medical health records”. As a group, we explored the existing state-of-the-art research and examined the ethical implications associated with the integration of AI in healthcare. In our case, we focused on the identification and analysis of major ethical concerns to propose possible ways to address them. Furthermore, we identified concrete gaps in research to prohibit harm from unethical conduct and suggested focusing on new approaches for regulations and education regarding the use of AI in healthcare.
What were your takeaways from the seminar?
I enjoyed getting to know different perspectives and learning from others. One main takeaway for me is the importance of dealing with ethical concerns regarding Artificial Intelligence. As a Computer Science student, I believe it is beyond valuable to not only get in touch with the technologies we can create but also with concerns that are arising in parallel.
Seminar Material and Content
Course material will be shared on the Moodle platform of the University of Strasbourg (details will follow).