In this minor, you explore the novel legal, ethical and societal dilemmas raised by these developments. You analyse, discuss and critically reflect upon the most important legal-ethical frameworks in this field, as well as recent and ongoing public and political debates on these technologies.
Explore the legal, ethical and social impact of new technologies
Overview courses
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Period 1 - Governance and Regulation of Emerging Technologies (6 EC)
This course introduces various regulatory instruments for the governance of emerging technologies, such as legislation, self-regulation, self-disciplining technologies, patents and other intellectual property rights, standards, etc. You will discuss these regulatory instruments and apply them to the context of various disruptive technologies and their applications, such as Uber and bitcoin.
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Period 1 - Robot law and Artificial Intelligence (6 EC)
This course discusses the possibly radical impact which the autonomy of technological constructs may have on today’s society, in close connection with its ethical consequences and legal implications. Among the topics that you will discuss are intelligent software, intelligent robots, drones and nano-bots. You will be trained to take a legally and ethically argued position on the consequences of the increasing robotisation of society.
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Period 2 - Philosophy and Neuroethics (6 EC)
In this course you are introduced to the most important schools of thought and key concepts in philosophical and ethical debates on the impact of neurotechnologies on society, more specifically, on healthcare and criminal law. Topics include the problem of mind and brain, history and philosophy of neuroscience, and assessments of criminal responsibility in light of neuroscientific developments.
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Period 2 - Data Analytics and Privacy (6 EC)
In this course you analyse and discuss the legal and ethical aspects of business analytics and data science. One of the main themes in the course is the role of fundamental rights and legal principles in the regulation of these issues, with a general focus on the right to privacy.
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Period 3 - Law and Ethics of Reproductive Technologies (6 EC)
In this course you explore the legal-ethical dilemmas that are raised by technologies at the intersection between genetics and reproductive medicine. These technologies make it possible to genetically screen, choose and, possibly, even design one’s future children. How can societies decide who may access these technologies to create what kind of children? Topics include prenatal testing, ‘designer babies’ (e.g. CRISPR), reproductive tourism, and commercial surrogacy.