AI & Bioterrorism: an overview of the ethical risks involved
| dc.contributor.advisor | Smit, J. P. | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.author | Erasmus, Tristesse | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.other | Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Philosophy. | en_ZA |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2021-12-07T13:27:55Z | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2021-12-22T14:33:27Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2021-12-07T13:27:55Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2021-12-22T14:33:27Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2021-12 | |
| dc.description | Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2021. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In modern day society, we are becoming all the more dependent on technology and its continued advancements. Technological advancement, however, is not a wholly beneficial issue. The dual nature of technology is highlighted with research and developments that can be both beneficial and detrimental to society. The dual nature thus refers to technological advancements and developments or discoveries in research that have the potential or are likely to harm society just as much as a society can benefit from this innovation. This thesis will focus specifically on the dual nature of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its related technologies to highlight the potential for AI- enabled bioterrorism. A focus on our ethical obligations as members of society, scientists, doctors, academics, theorists, and the like will be present throughout. As the dual nature of AI is not something that can be overcome fully, the issue at hand pertains to the prevention and mitigation of bioterror incidents. What ethical measures should be put in place to prevent, detect, mitigate, and respond to AI-enabled bioterror incidents? AI has a long history of doom and gloom attributed to it, where the imaginings of filmmakers and scientists came together to determine that AI could be both our saving grace and our undoing. The notion of the AI-overlord that will become conscious and destroy humanity will not be the focus of this thesis. This thesis will focus on the notion that bioterrorism planning and perpetuation is eased with the use of biological data and AI. While it is entirely true that bioterror can be perpetuated without access to biological data, the use of biological data enables the attack to be far more accurate, efficient, and effective. Further, by using the currently available AI systems to perform computational tasks on this data, the process of planning and perpetuating a bioterror attack is sped up exponentially. I focus specifically on AI-enabled bioterror, aided by biological data, as bioterror incidents have seen a rapid increase since the 1990s. This forecasts that bioterror will either continue increasing at the same rate or increase over time and reflects the concern of this thesis directly. As technology advances, biological data and AI both contribute to the exponential threat of bioterrorism. This thesis is an overview of four distinct but wholly interrelated topics, namely Data Mining, Biological Data, Bioinformatics, and AI, and the ethical considerations involved in each level of AI evolution due to the prevalence of the dual nature of technology. This will serve as the reasoning behind the several recommendations that will be made in the final chapter, each focusing on a distinct aspects of bioterror prevention, mitigation, and response. AI is a dual nature technology, as are the technologies that lead to its development. However, the focus on evil, conscious, super AI is misguided and ignores very real and current issues that affect us today. This kind of AI simply is needed for the perpetuation of biological attacks. No matter how much time and effort we put into the ethical development of AI and its related technologies, the dual nature will remain. Therefore, we must do our best even when we know that we will never fully succeed. If we apply ethical considerations to each level of AI development, we will be in the best possible position to respond to bioterror ethically and effectively. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: n die moderne samelewing raak ons al hoe meer afhanklik van tegnologie en die vooruitgang wat dit bring. Tegnologiese ontwikkeling is tog, in geheel beskou, nie slegs voordelig nie. Die dualistiese aard van tegnologie is duidelik in navorsing en ontwikkeling wat beide voordelig en nadelig vir die samelewing kan wees. Die dualistiese aard verwys dus na tegnologiese vooruitgang en ontwikkeling of ontdekking in navorsing wat die potensiaal het om die samelewing te kan benadeel, net soveel soos wat die samelewing uit hierdie vernuwing kan voordeel trek. Hierdie tesis fokus spesifiek op die dualistiese aard van Kunsmatige Intelligensie en verwante tegnologie om sodoende die potensiaal vir KI-bemagtige bioterreur uit te lig. ‘n Fokus op ons etiese verpligtinge as lede van die samelewing, wetenskaplikes, doktors, akademici, teoretici en diesulkes sal deurgaan beskou word. Omdat die dualistiese aard van KI nie in die geheel oorkom kan word nie, het die kwessie op hande betrekking op die voorkoming en mitigasie van bioterreur insidente. Watter etiese beginsels behoort toegepas te word om KI-bemagtigde bioterreur insidente te voorkom, bespeur, te mitigeer and daarop te reageer? KI word gekoppel aan ‘n lang geskiedenis van somberheid en veroordeling daarvan, waar die verbeelding van filmmakers en wetenskaptelikes ontmoet om te bepaal dat KI beide ons redding en ons ondergand sal wees. Die idee van n KI-oorheerser wat ‘n werklikheid sal raak en die mensdom sal vernietig, sal egter nie die fokus van hierdie tesis wees nie ierdie tesis sal fokus op die feit dat bioterreur se beplanning en voortbestaan vergemaklik word deur die gebruik van biologiese data en KI. Alhoewel bioterreur wel kan gebeur sonder toegang tot biologiese data, kan die gebruik van biologiese data sulke aanvalle meer akkuraat en effektief maak. Verder, is dit ook die geval dat die gebruik van huidig beskikbare KI om berekeninge op sulke data uit te voer die beplanning en bestaan van bioterreur eksponensieel bespoedig. Ek fokus spesifiek op KI- bemiddelde bioterreur, d.m.v die gebruik van biologiese data, aangesien insidente van bioterreur vinning toegeneem het sedert 1990. Dit voorspel dat bioterreur of sal anhou groei of dat die toename self sal versnel en is 'n basiese motivering vir die kwesses bespreek in hierdie tesis. Soos tegnologie verbeter sal die gebruik van biologiese data en KI beide tot die eksponensiële gevaar van bioterreur bydra. Hierdie tesis is n oorsig van vier onderskeie maar in die geheel verbonde onderwerpe, naamlik Data Ontginning, Biologiese Data, Bioinformatika, asook die etiese oorwegings betrokke op else vlak van KI evolusie as gevolg van die voorkoms van die dualistiese aard van tegnologie. Hierdie sal die redenasie agter die verskeie aanbeveelings wees, soos in fie finale hoostuk, waar ek fokus op die aspekte can bioterreur voorkoming, mitigasie, and reaksie. KI is tegnologie van ‘n dualistiese aard, net soos die tegnologie wat daaraan ontstaan gegee het. Die fokus op bose, bewuste, super KI is egter misleidend en ignoreer vele werklike en huidige kwessies wat ons beïnvloed. Hierdie tipe KI is eenvoudig nie nodig vir die voortbestaan van biologiese aanvalle nie. Ongeag van hoeveel tyd en moeite mens in die etiese ontwikkeling van KI en verwante tegnologie insit, bly die dualistiese aard daarvan ‘n gegewe. Ons moet dus om daardie rede soveel as moontlik doen selfs al besef ons dat ons nooit volledig daarin sal slaag nie. Indien ons etiese oorwegings op elke vlak van KI ontwikkeling toepas, sal dit ons in staat stel om eties en effektief op bioterreur te kan reageer. | af_ZA |
| dc.description.version | Masters | en_ZA |
| dc.format.extent | 103 pages | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/123990 | |
| dc.language.iso | en_ZA | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | Stellenbosch University | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Bioinformatics -- Ethics | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | UCTD | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Bioterrorism | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Data Mining | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Artificial intelligence | en_ZA |
| dc.title | AI & Bioterrorism: an overview of the ethical risks involved | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_ZA |