Horgan Seminar Blog

 Eco-Culprits Unmasked By Kirstin Halliday In the theater of global climate change, a narrative steeped in evasion and finger-pointing plays out on a grand scale. While the world burns, melts, and gasps for breath, the spotlight is cunningly shifted away from the architects of our demise towards those least equipped to effect real change: the individual consumer. Corporations and governments skillfully avoid responsibility by carefully shifting the blame, sustaining the false narrative that individual decision-making is sufficient to prevent environmental disaster. So what is the truth behind this smokescreen? The underlying cause of our environmental deadlock is a long-standing philosophical ailment, originating from the works of philosophers such as Descartes, who promoted a dualism between nature and humans, viewing the latter as nothing more than a resource for human use. By portraying nature as an endless resource at humanity's disposal, this worldview has justified the unrele...

Climate Adversity Stacy Shang Despite the innately scientific nature of climate change, in our current social climate, it is not solely an environmental issue. The intersection between climate change and social justice was a topic that I researched as my final paper at the end of my first college semester. Through these explorations, I became aware of the significant disparities that climate change had on people and the displacements it could cause. Against the backdrop of the heightened social justice awareness of 2020, the dynamics between climate change and social justice were a popularly discussed topic. However, as time has gone on, discussions of performative social justice have increased, and more eye-catching headlines clouding out talks of climate change, the attention to this topic has dwindled concurrently. Despite changes in public discourse, the fundamental interconnectedness of these issues underscores a persistent challenge: achieving equity in the face of climate advers...

  Matthew Feroz Professor Horgan 3/20/24 The Siren Call of Using Artificial Intelligence             Every time I look through the black void of my powered-off computer monitor, I question whether it’s worth using the computer at all. The computer is a Pandora’s box. It contains vast insurmountable amounts of data that could swathe the entire world, albeit the universe, in its ceaselessness. A computer can be the vessel for one to commit unspeakable crimes with the swipe of a keystroke. It’s even powerful enough to rewire the very delicate symphony of a developing human brain. I try to not think about these things when I use a computer. I don’t think most people do either. To most, a computer is a mere tool, it cannot think, it’s just another piece of technology like that of a fork or shovel. I need a fork to eat or else I’ll make a mess all over myself. I don’t think about how the fork has impacted society or changed t...

  Aidan Munoz   Prof essor Horgan   Seminar in Science Writing   20 March 2024   Determinator 2: Our A.I. Judgement Day   How do we determine how far is too far? When do the capabilities of the things we create become too advanced for us to control? Sky n et, from the famous Terminator franchise, is a fictional artificial neural network-based conscious group that waged war with humanity with an army of Terminators (extremely advanced murderous cyborgs). Now, this is obviously a dramatized and very extreme version of what the future of A.I. could be, but it does make us question what realistic danger we may face in our near future. With the power held inside a limitless thought process, one imitating human action and reaction, scanning th ousands of algorithms in mere seconds creates a powerful source of information and creativity. What issues , or benefits, can this create when used in artistry? Medical f ields? Automobiles? Courts of law? It f...