News

16 April 2015
Testimony at Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) at UN Geneva on lethal autononomus weapons systems (LAWS)
The Right to Life and the Martens Clause

7 April 2015
Slate
Staying Healthy on the Red Planet

1 April 2015
Joint Force Quarterly
Will Humans Matter in the Wars of 2030?

27 March 2015
io9
A.I. Pilots Are Not The Solution To Preventing Airline Disasters

24 March 2015
The Daily Dot
Tesla's Robot Cars Are Nice, But We Should Still Be Allowed to Drive

18 March 2015
Canadian Government Executive
Are We Ready For Robots?

13 March 2015
TechRadar Pro
Automated Cars and AI: Reasons Why the Tech Industry Must Consider Ethics

2 March 2015
IEEE Spectrum
Will You Need a New License to Operate a Self-Driving Car?

1 March 2015
Financial Times
Driverless Cars Must Learn to Take Ethical Route

26 February 2015
Cal Poly 2014 Annual Report
The Ethics of the Future

23 February 2015
IEEE Spectrum
How Much Training Do You Need to Be a Robocar Test Driver? It Depends On Whom You Work For

21 February 2015
The Times (UK)
Philosopher Helps Teach Morality to Driverless Cars

17 February 2015
Folha (Brazil)
Legal and Ethical Issues Intrigue Creators of Autonomous Cars

10 February 2015
The Daily Dot
Who Do You Blame When a Driverless Car Crashes?

Jan-Feb 2015
Military Review (US Army)
Ethics and the Enhanced Soldier of the Near Future

9 January 2015
New York Times
Death By Robot

Winter 2015
Canadian Military Journal
The Ethics and Operational Considerations of Personal Augmentation in Military Operations

16 December 2014
io9
12 Reasons Robots Will Always Have An Advantage Over Humans

2 December 2014
The Globe and Mail (UK)
Even Stephen Hawking Fears the Rise of Machines

19 November 2014
Associated Press
Self-Driving Cars: Safer, But What Of Their Morals

10 November 2014
Defense One
The Cyborg Medicine of Tomorrow Is Inside the Veteran of Today

10 November 2014
Yahoo! Tech
Your Car May Be Programmed to Kill You — and 9 More Fun Facts About Self-Driving Vehicles

5 November 2014
Truck News
Navigating the Roadblocks (for Self-Driving Trucks)

20 October 2014
The Telegraph (UK)
The Real Cyborgs

14 October 2014
Les Echos (France)
What Legal Status for Robots?

11 October 2014
BioEdge
Mars Exploration Bioethics 101

6 October 2014
Slate
Introduction to Astronaut Bioethics

6 October 2014
New York Magazine
Drones and Everything After

22 September 2014
Discover (Romania)
Can We Trust Robots?

22 September 2014
Slate (France)
Intelligent Robots Will Not Save Us

16 September 2014
io9
10 Horrifying Technologies That Should Never Be Allowed To Exist

13 September 2014
Sydney Morning Herald
When a Robot Takes the Wheel, Who's In Charge?

13 September 2014
Tech Cocktail
The Current State of CyberWar in the World

11 September 2014
Medium / War Is Boring
Why Terrorists Probably Won’t Hijack Google’s Driverless Cars

5 September 2014
Brookings Institution
Our Cyborg Future: Law and Policy Implications

27 August 2014
OZY
The Moral Dilemma Presented by Driverless Cars

26 August 2014
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Cyberwarfare Ethics, or How Facebook Could Accidentally Make Its Engineers Into Targets

26 August 2014
The Next Web
Machines Are Taking Control of the World, So Why Stop Them?

24 August 2014
The Conversation
Self-Driving Cars Need ‘Adjustable Ethics’ Set by Owners

22 August 2014
PC Magazine
Who Should Be the Self-Driving Car's Moral Compass?

18 August 2014
Wired
Here’s a Terrible Idea: Robot Cars With Adjustable Ethics Settings

18 August 2014
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Don't Fear the Robot Car Bomb

14 August 2014
Big Think
An Ethics Meter Next to the Odometer? Not a Good Idea For Robot Cars.

28 July 2014
Forbes
What Google Cars Can Learn From Killer Robots

7 July 2014
Mashable
The Driverless Car Tipping Point Is Coming Soon

1 July 2014
Wall Street Journal
Facebook Experiment Tests Ethics of Manipulating Emotion

July 2014
Evaluation Engineering
Beware Autonomous Machines Making Decisions

30 June 2014
Wall Street Journal
Facebook Furor Is Overblown, Says Cal Poly Ethicist

24 June 2014
Paris Tech Review
Can Military Robots Adopt Ethical Standards?

22 June 2014
TagesWoche (Switzerland)
Big Data on Wheels

11 June 2014
Slate
The Facebook War: Would Taking Down the Social Network Justify a Real-World Attack?

6 June 2014
Time
How to Make Driverless Cars Behave

30 May 2014
National Post (Canada)
If The Only Way Out of Traffic Is a Robo-Car that May Murder Me, Fine

28 May 2014
The Guardian (UK)
Self-Driving Cars Face a Long and Winding Road to Success

21 May 2014
Motherboard
For Good or Bad, Intelligent, Swarming Nanobots Are the Next Frontier of Drones

20 May 2014
Popular Science
Robots Are Strong: The Sci-Fi Myth of Robotic Competence

14 May 2014
Slate
No, Driverless Cars Won’t “Choose” to Kill You

13 May 2014
Huffington Post (UK)
Should Robot Cars Be Programmed To Kill You If It Will Save More Lives?

13 May 2014
Die Zeit (German)
If Software Determines Life and Death

12 May 2014
Gizmodo
Should Your Driverless Car Kill You to Save Two Other People?

12 May 2014
Reason
Applied Philosophy: Who Do We Program This Car To Hit?

12 May 2014
La Repubblica (Italy)
Auto-Drone and Accidents. Who Lives and Who Dies?

6 May 2014
Wired
The Robot Car of Tomorrow Might Just Be Programmed to Hit You

29 April 2014
Newsweek Japan
Cover Story: Future and Humanoid Robots

2 April 2014
Mustang Daily (Cal Poly)
Cal Poly Group Questions Robot Ethics, Before It's Too Late

4 March 2014
Robotic Business Review
Global Hawk Drone Replaces U-2 Spy Plane: Here Comes Automated Warfare

27 February 2014
Foreign Policy
The Future of War: Enhancing Human Performance

18 February 2014
Wall Street Journal
Robots Are About to Have Their 'Watson' Moment

3 February 2014
Forbes
Inside Google's Mysterious Ethics Board

29 January 2014
The American Interest
Self-Driving Cars: An Advertiser’s Dream

27 January 2014
Re/Code
More on DeepMind (and Google's Ethics Board)

22 January 2014
The Atlantic
What If Your Autonomous Car Keeps Routing You Past Krispy Kreme?

6 January 2014
The Atlantic
Just the Right Amount of Cyber Fear

December 2013
IEEE Robotics & Automation
What Is Robot Ethics?

19 December 2013
National Research Council
Emerging and Readily Available Technologies and National Security — A Framework for Addressing Ethical, Legal, and Societal Issues

17 December 2013
The Verge
Google's Robotics Program Has Legs, but Where Is It Going?

14 December 2013
Les Échos (France)
Google Car: The Problem is the Human!

11 December 2013
Microsoft France's Digital Perspectives
Technologies Don't Always Address the Causes of Problems

3 December 2013
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I, For One, Welcome Our New Car-Driving Robot Overlords

21 November 2013
Popular Science
Why You Still Can't Sell Me A [Robot] Car

November 2013
Homeland Security Today
The Dark Web: The Place Where Digital Evil Lurks

2 November 2013
Washington Post
Automated Cars Rumble Toward the Starting Line

November 2013
Communications of the ACM
Legal Issues with Robots

21 October 2013
Bloomberg Businessweek (Poland)
Open-Source War

15 October 2013
Cal Poly Public Affairs
Cal Poly Philosophy Professor Receives NSF Grant for Cyberwarfare Project

14 October 2013
Reason
Making Sense Out of Autonomous Vehicle Claims

10 October 2013
Tested
Predicting the Ethical Dilemmas of Fully Autonomous Cars

8 October 2013
The Atlantic
The Ethics of Autonomous Cars

6 August 2013
Slate
Delivered by Drones

30 July 2013
Wired
The Ethics of Saving Lives With Autonomous Cars Are Far Murkier Than You Think

19 July 2013
Medium / War Is Boring
Someone Just Built a Robot Sentry Gun

16 July 2013
Wall Street Journal
Driverless Car Experts At Stanford Address Ethical Dilemmas

20 June 2013
Reuters
The Robots of War

20 June 2013
Times Union (Albany, NY)
Tech Valley Terror Target

12 June 2013
Medium / War Is Boring
China's Coming Drone Swarm

31 May 2013
Los Angeles Times
Some Companies Looking at Retaliating Against Cyber Attackers

20 May 2013
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Militaries’ Growing Use of Ground Robots Raises Ethics Concerns

15 April 2013
The Atlantic
Pain Rays and Robot Swarms: The Radical New War Games the DOD Plays

27 March 2013
Deutsche Welle (Germany)
Game of Drones

19 March 2013
PC Tech Magazine
The Dark Side of Computers

14 March 2013
ACM's Interactions
Humanoid (Robot) Hacking

28 January 2013
Press Release
Special Lecture on Food Ethics and Technology on Feb 8
Prof. Paul B. Thompson reveals surprising conflicts in key approaches to food ethics

22 January 2013
io9: Futurism
It Could Be a War Crime to Use Biologically Enhanced Soldiers

5 January 2013
BBC World Service Radio
Weekend Report (starts at 12.30)

4 January 2013
The Atlantic
Could Human Enhancement Turn Soldiers Into Weapons That Violate International Law?

1 January 2013
Press Release
New Report on Military Human Enhancements Tackles Ethical Dilemmas
Questions loom for bioethics, laws of war, military operations, and broader society

31 December 2012
The Raw Story
Group Warns Military: Prepare Now for Risks of ‘Mutant Soldier’ Future

31 December 2012
Digital Journal
Prepare for Future of Troops with 'Mutant Powers' Pentagon Urged

31 December 2012
End The Lie
New Report Highlights Ethics and Policy Dangers of “Military Human Enhancements”

31 December 2012
The Blaze
Report: Soldiers with ‘Mutant Powers’ Coming...But Is Anyone Considering the Implications?

31 December 2012
Wired's Danger Room
Military Must Prep Now for ‘Mutant’ Future, Researchers Warn

26 December 2012
Wired's Danger Room
This Scientist Wants Tomorrow’s Troops to Be Mutant-Powered

13 December 2012
Exhibit
Robot Ethics: What's Morals Gotta Do With Machines

21 November 2012
io9: Social Science
How Modern Technologies Made the Fighting in Gaza Even Worse

13 November 2012
Robotics Business Review
The Cyborg Agenda: Extreme Users

31 October 2012
ZDNet
"Robot Ethics": Book Review

27 October 2012
National Public Radio (NPR)
When A Robot Comes Knocking On The Door

22 October 2012
The European (Germany)
Beautiful New Friends
(English translation here)

27 September 2012
Homeland Security Newswire
Technology Soon To Make Drones Deadlier, More Autonomous

23 September 2012
Global Post
Deadlier Drones Are Coming (Special Report: The Drone Age)

22 August 2012
io9: Futurism
Who Should Pay When Your Robot Breaks the Law?

9 August 2012
Stars and Stripes
Intelligent, Autonomous Robots Set to Change Combat Landscape

26 July 2012
Wall Street Journal (Japan)
Use of Unmanned Drones: Ask an Expert in Robot Ethics
(English translation here)

26 June 2012
Big Think
The Ethics of War Must Be Engaged, Not Changed

19 June 2012
CSO (Chief Security Officer)
Should Best Cybercrime Defense Include Some Offense?

7 June 2012
Talking Points Memo
UN Tries to Navigate Cold Hard Politics of New Cyber War

7 June 2012
The Jerusalem Post
Cyber Warfare

6 June 2012
Practical Ethics (Univ. of Oxford, UK)
Just War Theory and Cyber Warfare

6 June 2012
Slate
Are There Ever Any "Good Guys" in Cyberwar?

5 June 2012
The Atlantic
Is It Possible to Wage a Just Cyberwar?

4 June 2012
Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews
Book review of "Robot Ethics"

7 May 2012
CSO (Chief Security Officer)
Does "Stand Your Cyberground" Stand a Chance?

30 April 2012
The Atlantic
"Stand Your Cyberground" Law: A Novel Approach for Digital Security

20 Mar 2012
Harvard Political Review
America, Drones, and the Future of Combat

March 2012
Communications of the ACM (CACM)
War 2.0: Cyberweapons and Ethics

March 2012
Journal of Military Ethics
Book Review: What Is Nanotechnology and Why Does It Matter?

22 Feb 2012
Boston Globe
Introducing Robot Ethics

16 Feb 2012
The Atlantic
More Than Human? The Ethics of Biologically Enhancing Soldiers

16 Feb 2012
Slate
The Big Robot Questions

12 Feb 2012
College Hill Independent (Brown University)
Manning the Unmanned: Taking a Closer Look at Drone Warfare

31 Jan 2012
Reuters (blog)
More Drones, More Robots, More Wars

5 Jan 2012
Nature
Robotics: Morals and Machines (book review)

5 Jan 2012
SLO New Times
Speaking Hypothetically (on technology ethics)

15 Dec 2011
The Atlantic
Drone-Ethics Briefing: What a Leading Robot Expert Told the CIA

15 Aug 2011
Engineering & Technology
Drone Warfare and the Geneva Convention

12 May 2011
Mustang Daily (Cal Poly)
Lecturer on Ethics of Facebook

12 May 2011
SLO New Times
"Like" It or Not: The Ethics of Facebook

9 May 2011
Wired Magazine (blog)
Killer Drone and Texan Philosophers

6 Apr 2011
Press Release
Ethics of Facebook to be Explored at Cal Poly on May 13
Social network continues to gain power but also feed worries

4 Apr 2011
Press Release
Ethics Group Joins Military Technology Consortium
Policy issues arising from cyberweapons, robotics, neuroscience, and more

3 Mar 2011
Mustang Daily (Cal Poly)
Robots-and-Sex Lecture to Discuss Technology and Ethics

23 Feb 2011
SLO New Times
Do the Robot

7 Feb 2011
Press Release
Ethics Professor to Discuss Sex-Robots at Cal Poly on March 4
Are there limits in exploiting human psychology? Can we find love in machines?

12 Jan 2011
Press Release
US Naval Academy Professor to Discuss War Technologies and Ethics at Cal Poly
Do new technologies lower barriers to waging war? What is the “principle of last resort”?

January 2011
Popular Science
The Terminator Scenario: Are We Giving Our Military Machines Too Much Power? (cover story)

30 Dec 2010
The Next Web
Ethical Robotics and Why We Really Fear Bad Robots

17 Oct 2010
San Francisco Chronicle
Ability to 'See' Advances Artificial Intelligence

4 Oct 2010
National Public Radio (NPR): Talk of the Nation
Can Unmanned Robots Follow the Laws of War?

Summer 2010
Nanotechnology Law & Review
Book Review of What Is Nanotechnology and Why Does It Matter?

19 June 2010
The Times (UK)
Are Robot Cops a Potential Disaster?
Reality of Robocops (excerpt)

13 June 2010
The New Atlantis (blog)
Patrick Lin on the Military's Push for Human Enhancement

21 May 2010
The Times (UK)
Looming Era of Robot Conflicts Redefine Ethics, Rules and Art of War&

13 May 2010
Mustang Daily (Cal Poly)
Professor Raises Questions on Science Fiction Becoming Reality

27 April 2010
Press Release
Ethics Professor to Discuss Military Technologies at Harvard University
Talks this spring include US Naval Academy, Cal Poly Science Café, local TEDx, others

5 April 2010
Mustang Daily (Cal Poly)
Stanford Law Professor Speaks About Neuroscience

1 April 2010
Pocket-Lint.com
Will the RoboCops Rise by 2015?

8 March 2010
Press Release
New Nanoethics Book Released by Wiley-Blackwell
Collaboration between two ethicists and nanoscientist reveals unique synergies and insights

25 February 2010
Press Release
Neuroscience and Ethics to be Explained by Stanford Professor on March 12
Issues include prediction, mind-reading, responsibility, consciousness, and more

23 February 2010
Times Live (South Africa)
Drones Hearld New Era in Warfare

17 February 2010
The Christian Science Monitor
New Role for Robot Warriors

8 February 2010
BBC News
Can Battlefield Robots Take the Place of Soldiers?

February 2010
Popular Mechanics
The 8 Evil Forms of AI That Gave Robots a Bad Name

February 2010
Popular Mechanics
The Uncertain Future for Social Robots

22 December 2009
Institute for Religion and Peace (Austria)
George Bekey on Ethics of Autonomous Robots

6 December 2009
Associated Press
Scientists, Lawyers Mull Effects of Home Robots

31 August 2009
Press Release
NSF-Funded Ethics Report on Human Enhancement Released Today
A format gives an easy-to-understand introduction and outline of key issues

3 August 2009
London Daily News
"Terminators" on the Battlefield Could Pose Threat to Human Beings

1 July 2009
Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News
Therapy and Enhancement: Is There a Moral Difference?

22 June 2009
Forbes (special AI report)
The Ethical War Machine

18 June 2009
Epoch Times
Nanotechnology: Tiny Particles Raise Big Concerns

1 June 2009
The Times (UK)
iRobot, Where the Terminator Is Coming to Life

June 2009
BBC Focus Magazine
Rise of the Machines (cover story)

22 Apr 2009
Reuters
Killer Robots and a Revolution in Warfare

20 Apr 2009
Press Release
Ethics of Facebook to be Discussed in May 4 Talk at Cal Poly
Does Facebook redefine friendship, promote only some relationships, affect self-identity?

23 Mar 2009
Press Release
Cal Poly to Host April 10 Talk on Ethics of Cyberweapons
Dr. Neil Rowe to also propose solutions to prevent war crimes arising from cyberattacks

20 Mar 2009
Science Channel: Brink (episode 117)
Lead story on our military-robotics work—no link to video available

16 Mar 2009
LiveScience
Robot Madness: Preventing Insurrection of Machines

2 Mar 2009
Press Release
Human Enhancement and Nanotechnology Conference to Convene at WMU
March 28-29 ethics meeting to cover issues in sports, military, policy, religion, and more

25 Feb 2009
NewScientist Magazine
Why Robots Can't Be Trusted With Weapons

25 Feb 2009
Fast Company (blog)
Teaching Ethics to Robo Warriors

24 Feb 2009
Encyclopedia Britannica (blog)
The Artificial Morality of the Robot Warrior

23 Feb 2009
Press Release
Cal Poly Researcher to Speak on War-Robots Panel at APPE 2009
Presentation to discuss benefits, ethics, and risk arising from military robots

23 Feb 2009
GlobalPost
Beware the Killer Robots

23 Feb 2009
Center for Responsible Nanotechnology (blog)
The Ethics of Killer Robots

20 Feb 2009
ZDNet (blog)
The Terminator Scenario: Perhaps Not So Fictional After All

17 Feb 2009
The Times (UK)
Military's Killer Robots Must Learn Warrior Code

11 Feb 2009
The Mustang Daily (Cal Poly)
Cal Poly Faculty Explore Military Robotics Issues

2 Feb 2009
Wired's Danger Room
What's Next? Robot Rights for Battlefield 'Bots?

2 Feb 2009
Press Release
Ethics Report on Autonomous Military Robots Released
Cal Poly researchers examine risks and concerns related to new trend in warfare

26 Jan 2009
Press Release
Public Lecture to Discuss NSF's New Requirement for Research Ethics
Challenges arise from lack of agreement on content and teaching strategies

15 Dec 2008
Press Release
Human Enhancement and Societal Challenges Featured in NanoEthics Journal
New collection of papers helps to navigate complex maze of issues

1 Dec 2008
Cal Poly Magazine
Caution in Wonderland

29 Sept 2008
Press Release
The Nanoethics Group to Speak at Environmental Nanotechnology Conference
Nanoparticles offer benefits but also risks to environment and health

19 Sept 2008
San Luis Obispo's New Times
Armageddon It - commentary on science experiments and risk

28 April 2008
Press Release
The Nanoethics Group Publishes Anthology with Springer
New volume focuses on the most urgent and near-term issues facing nanotechnology

29 October 2007
Press Release
The Nanoethics Group to Discuss Human Enhancement Debate at ICNT 2007
Nov. 6 San Francisco talk examines predicted applications and growing controversy

1 October 2007
Press Release
The Nanoethics Group to Speak in Yale University’s Lecture Series
Oct. 10 talk on possible societal and ethical issues arising from nanotechnology

26 Sept 2007
San Luis Obispo's New Times
Small Frontiers Carry Big Possibilities:
Nanotechnology with an Ethical Spin Finds a Home in San Luis Obispo

1 August 2007
Press Release
The Nanoethics Group Publishes Major Nanoethics Anthology with Wiley
First-of-its-kind collection explores full range of issues

* Not all news reports appear on this page, e.g., earlier work.

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