Redes Sociales Y Filosofia

This is a preprint version of the following article:
Brey, P. and Søraker, J. (2009). ‘Philosophy of Computing and Information Technology’ Philosophy of Technology and Engineering Sciences. Vol. 14 of the Handbook for Philosophy of Science. (ed. A. Meijers) (gen. ed. D. Gabbay, P. Thagard and J. Woods), Elsevier.

Philosophy of Computing and Information Technology
Abstract Philosophy has beendescribed as having taken a ‘computational turn’, referring to the ways in which computers and information technology throw new light upon traditional philosophical issues, provide new tools and concepts for philosophical reasoning, and pose theoretical and practical questions that cannot readily be approached within traditional philosophical frameworks. As such, computer technology is arguablythe technology that has had the most profound impact on philosophy. Philosophers have studied computer technology and its philosophical implications extensively, and this chapter gives an overview of the field. We start with definitions and historical overviews of the field and its various subfields. We then consider studies of the fundamental nature and basic principles of computing andcomputational systems, before moving on to philosophy of computer science, which investigates the nature, scope and methods of computer science. Under this heading, we will also address such topics as data modeling, ontology in computer science, programming languages, software engineering as an engineering discipline, management of information systems, the use of computers for simulation, and humancomputerinteraction. Subsequently, we will address the issue in computing that has received the most attention from philosophers, artificial intelligence (AI). The purpose of this section is to give an overview of the philosophical issues raised by the notion of creating intelligent machines. We consider philosophical critiques of different approaches within AI and pay special attention to philosophicalstudies of applications of AI. We then turn to a section on philosophical issues pertaining to new media and the Internet, which includes the convergence between media and digital computers. The theoretical and ethical issues raised by this relatively recent phenomenon are diverse. We will focus on philosophical theories of the ‘information society’, epistemological and ontological issues inrelation to Internet information and virtuality, the philosophical study of social life online and cyberpolitics, and issues raised by the disappearing borders between body and artifact in cyborgs and virtual selves. The final section in this chapter is devoted to the many ethical questions raised by computers and information technology, as studied in the field of computer ethics.

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Table ofContents 1. Introduction 2. Philosophy of Computing 2.1 Computation, Computational Systems, and Turing Machines 2.2 Computability and the Church-Turing Thesis 2.3 Computational Complexity 2.4 Data, Information and Representation 3. Philosophy of Computer Science 3.1 Computer Science: Its Nature, Scope and Methods 3.2 Computer Programming and Software Engineering 3.3 Data Modeling and Ontology 3.4Information Systems 3.5 Computer Simulation 3.6 Human-Computer Interaction 4. Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence 4.1 Artificial Intelligence and Philosophy 4.2 Symbolic AI 4.3 Connectionist AI, Artificial Life and Dynamical Systems 4.4 Knowledge Engineering and Expert Systems 4.5 Robots and Artificial Agents 4.6 AI and Ethics 5. Philosophy of the Internet and New Media 5.1 Theories of New Media andthe Information Society 5.2 Internet Epistemology 5.3 The Ontology of Cyberspace and Virtual Reality 5.4 Computer-Mediated Communication and Virtual Communities 5.5 The Internet and Politics 5.6 Cyborgs and Virtual Subjects 6. Computer and Information Ethics 6.1 Approaches in Computer and Information ethics 6.2 Topics in Computer and Information Ethics 6.3 Values and Computer Systems Design...