Abeba Birhane
Biographic Data
| ID | 376741 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Abeba Birhane |
| GIVEN NAMES | Abeba |
| FAMILY NAME | Birhane |
| SIGNATURE | BIRHANE A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University College Dublin |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6319-7937 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 7 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 2 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 7 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Debunking robot rights metaphysically, ethically, and legally
In this work we challenge the argument for robot rights on metaphysical, ethical and legal grounds. Metaphysically, we argue that machines are not the kinds of things that may be denied or granted rights. Building on theories of phenomenology and post-Cartesian approaches to cognitive science, we ground our position in the lived reality of actual humans in an increasingly ubiquitously connected, controlled, digitized, and surveilled society. Ethi…
Undersea cables in Africa: The new frontiers of digital colonialism
The Internet has become the backbone of the social fabric. The United Nations Human Rights Council declared access to the Internet a fundamental human right over a decade ago. Yet, Africa remains the region with the widest Digital Divide where most of the population is either sparsely connected or has no access to the Internet. This has in turn created a race amongst Western big tech corporations scrambling to “bridge the Digital Divide”. Althoug…
Large models of what? Mistaking engineering achievements for human linguistic agency
In this paper we argue that key, often sensational and misleading, claims regarding linguistic capabilities of Large Language Models (LLMs) are based on at least two unfounded assumptions: the assumption of language completeness and the assumption of data completeness . Language completeness assumes that a distinct and complete thing such as “a natural language” exists, the essential characteristics of which can be effectively and comprehensively…
Taxonomy of Risks posed by Language Models
Responsible innovation on large-scale Language Models (LMs) requires foresight into and in-depth understanding of the risks these models may pose. This paper develops a comprehensive taxonomy of ethical and social risks associated with LMs. We identify twenty-one risks, drawing on expertise and literature from computer science, linguistics, and the social sciences. We situate these risks in our taxonomy of six risk areas: I. Discrimination, Hate …
Algorithmic injustice: A relational ethics approach
It has become trivial to point out that algorithmic systems increasingly pervade the social sphere. Improved efficiency-the hallmark of these systems-drives their mass integration into day-to-day life. However, as a robust body of research in the area of algorithmic injustice shows, algorithmic systems, especially when used to sort and predict social outcomes, are not only inadequate but also perpetuate harm. In particular, a persistent and recur…
Towards Decolonising Computational Sciences
This article sets out our perspective on how to begin the journey of decolonising computational fi elds, such as data and cognitive sciences. We see this struggle as requiring two basic steps: a) realisation that the present-day system has inherited, and still enacts, hostile, conservative, and oppressive behaviours and principles towards women of colour; and b) rejection of the idea that centring individual people is a solution to system-level p…
Algorithmic Colonization of Africa
We live in a world where technological corporations hold unprecedented power and influence. Technological solutions to social, political, and economic challenges are rampant. In the Global South, technology that is developed with Western perspectives, values, and interests is imported with little regulation or critical scrutiny. This work examines how Western tech monopolies, with their desire to dominate, control and influence social, political,…
Towards Decolonising Computational Sciences
This article sets out our perspective on how to begin the journey of decolonising computational fi elds, such as data and cognitive sciences. We see this struggle as requiring two basic steps: a) realisation that the present-day system has inherited, and still enacts, hostile, conservative, and oppressive behaviours and principles towards women of colour; and b) rejection of the idea that centring individual people is a solution to system-level p…
Algorithmic Colonization of Africa
We live in a world where technological corporations hold unprecedented power and influence. Technological solutions to social, political, and economic challenges are rampant. In the Global South, technology that is developed with Western perspectives, values, and interests is imported with little regulation or critical scrutiny. This work examines how Western tech monopolies, with their desire to dominate, control and influence social, political,…
Algorithmic injustice: A relational ethics approach
It has become trivial to point out that algorithmic systems increasingly pervade the social sphere. Improved efficiency-the hallmark of these systems-drives their mass integration into day-to-day life. However, as a robust body of research in the area of algorithmic injustice shows, algorithmic systems, especially when used to sort and predict social outcomes, are not only inadequate but also perpetuate harm. In particular, a persistent and recur…
Towards Decolonising Computational Sciences
This article sets out our perspective on how to begin the journey of decolonising computational fi elds, such as data and cognitive sciences. We see this struggle as requiring two basic steps: a) realisation that the present-day system has inherited, and still enacts, hostile, conservative, and oppressive behaviours and principles towards women of colour; and b) rejection of the idea that centring individual people is a solution to system-level p…
Taxonomy of Risks posed by Language Models
Responsible innovation on large-scale Language Models (LMs) requires foresight into and in-depth understanding of the risks these models may pose. This paper develops a comprehensive taxonomy of ethical and social risks associated with LMs. We identify twenty-one risks, drawing on expertise and literature from computer science, linguistics, and the social sciences. We situate these risks in our taxonomy of six risk areas: I. Discrimination, Hate …
Debunking robot rights metaphysically, ethically, and legally
In this work we challenge the argument for robot rights on metaphysical, ethical and legal grounds. Metaphysically, we argue that machines are not the kinds of things that may be denied or granted rights. Building on theories of phenomenology and post-Cartesian approaches to cognitive science, we ground our position in the lived reality of actual humans in an increasingly ubiquitously connected, controlled, digitized, and surveilled society. Ethi…
Undersea cables in Africa: The new frontiers of digital colonialism
The Internet has become the backbone of the social fabric. The United Nations Human Rights Council declared access to the Internet a fundamental human right over a decade ago. Yet, Africa remains the region with the widest Digital Divide where most of the population is either sparsely connected or has no access to the Internet. This has in turn created a race amongst Western big tech corporations scrambling to “bridge the Digital Divide”. Althoug…
Large models of what? Mistaking engineering achievements for human linguistic agency
In this paper we argue that key, often sensational and misleading, claims regarding linguistic capabilities of Large Language Models (LLMs) are based on at least two unfounded assumptions: the assumption of language completeness and the assumption of data completeness . Language completeness assumes that a distinct and complete thing such as “a natural language” exists, the essential characteristics of which can be effectively and comprehensively…
Sociology (6 works) · Computer Science (4 works) · Political science (4 works) · Engineering (3 works) · Epistemology (3 works) · Ethics and Social Impacts of AI (3 works) · Law (3 works) · Philosophy (3 works) · Psychology (3 works) · Colonialism (2 works)