On Tech Ethics with CITI Program

Discusses how the recent changes to the social media landscape may affect researchers and society.

Our guest is Nicholas Proferes, an Assistant Professor at Arizona State University’s School of Social and Behavioral Sciences. His research interests include users’ understanding of socio-technical systems such as social media, societal discourse about technology, and issues of power and ethics in the digital landscape.

Additional resources:

•  Coalition for Independent Technology Research: https://independenttechresearch.org/
• The Citizens and Technology (CAT) Lab at Cornell University: https://citizensandtech.org/ 
• Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University: https://knightcolumbia.org/
• “Twitter’s plan to cut off free data access evokes ‘fair amount of panic’ among scientists:” https://www.science.org/content/article/twitters-plan-cut-free-data-access-evokes-fair-amount-panic-among-scientists
• “What the end of Twitter’s free API means for research:” https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-00480-9

Discusses some of the unique ethical, logistical, and regulatory issues associated with big health data research.

Our guest is Sara Meeder, who is the Director of Human Research Protections at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, where she works on ethics and infrastructure for mobile health research, pain management studies, and AI in healthcare. Previously, she served as the Director of Research Compliance & Ethics for The Human Project at New York University, helping to define the ethical and regulatory processes for big data and emerging technologies studies. Sara specializes in the intersection between research ethics, regulations, infrastructure, and mobile health research.

Additional resources:

• CITI Program’s Big Data and Data Science Research Ethics course: about.citiprogram.org/course/big-data-and-data-science-research-ethics
• CITI Program’s Technology, Ethics, and Regulations course: about.citiprogram.org/course/technology-ethics-and-regulations
• Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research: primr.org
• Digital Medicine Society (DiMe): dimesociety.org

Discusses key considerations for data science researchers regarding ethical data and participant awareness.

Our guest is Katie Shilton, Ph.D. who is an associate professor in the College of Information Studies at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is the principal investigator (PI) of the PERVADE project, a multi-campus collaboration focused on big data research ethics. She is also a co-PI of the NSF Institute for Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence in Law & Society (TRAILS). She is the founding co-director of the University of Maryland’s undergraduate major in social data science.

Additional resources:

· PERVADE Data Ethics Tool: https://pervade.umd.edu/pervade-data-ethics-tool/
· PERVADE Selected Publications: https://pervade.umd.edu/selected-publications/
· CITI Program Big Data and Data Science Research Ethics course: https://about.citiprogram.org/course/big-data-and-data-science-research-ethics/

Discusses the impact of bots on online survey research, what Institutional Review Board (IRB) members should look for when reviewing related protocols, and how IRB members can proactively help researchers mitigate the impact bots may have on their research.

Our guest is Myra Luna-Lucero, EdD, the Research Compliance Director at Columbia University’s Teachers College. She spearheaded the College’s “Ethics & Safety Amid Uncertainty” initiative and co-chaired the Research Compliance & Safety Committee. She has also recently launched the “Research Writing & Ethics” internship program and oversaw an extensive transformation of the College’s IRB website. She regularly offers seminars and workshops on research compliance and IRB leadership. A researcher and teacher herself, Dr. Luna-Lucero has studied and published on student motivation in STEM fields, barriers to accessing education for students in rural communities, and community activism.

Discusses common technology transfer issues that university faculty and staff should be mindful of when developing technology that may be commercialized, ways to navigate those issues, current events they should be paying attention to, and additional resources they can utilize to navigate the commercialization of technology.

Our guest is Eric Wagner, Ph.D., JD who is the Director, Legal Affairs in Duke University’s Office for Translation and Commercialization (OTC). His responsibilities include preparing and prosecuting patent applications, assisting OTC staff regarding patent and licensing matters, and managing intellectual assets owned by Duke University.

Additional Resources:

· AUTM provides various resources on working with technology transfer offices: https://autm.net/

· The American Intellectual Property Law Association provides information on ongoing intellectual property matters, such as Section 101 of the Patent Act: https://www.aipla.org/detail/news/2022/10/21/aipla-comments-to-uspto-on-subject-matter-guidance

· More information on Amgen v. Sanofi can be found online

· CITI Program provides an online course on technology transfer: https://about.citiprogram.org/course/technology-transfer/

Discusses chimeric research, why it is important to scientific progress, and current recommendations for addressing the ethical and policy issues raised by chimeric research.

Our guest is Josephine Johnston, LLB, MBHL who is the Director of Research and a Research Scholar at The Hastings Center, and a Lecturer at The University of Otago’s Bioethics Centre. Her research addresses ethical, legal, and policy issues in medicine and science, with a focus on emerging biotechnologies in human reproduction and genetics.

Additional Resources:

· Research report discussed in this podcast: https://www.thehastingscenter.org/centerreports/clarifying-the-ethics-and-oversight-of-chimeric-research/

· The National Academies guidelines for human embryonic stem cell research: https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidelines-for-human-embryonic-stem-cell-research

· The National Academies consensus report on the emerging field of human neural organoids, transplants, and chimeras: https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/ethical-legal-and-regulatory-issues-associated-with-neural-chimeras-and-organoids

· The International Society for Stem Cell Research guidelines for stem cell research and clinical translation: https://www.isscr.org/guidelines

· CITI Program provides an online module on human-animal chimera research: https://about.citiprogram.org/course/technology-ethics-and-regulations/

Discusses the impact of AI on academic integrity, with a focus on ChatGPT.

Our guest is Chirag Shah, Ph.D. Chirag is a Professor of Information and Computer Science at the University of Washington. He is the Founding Director of InfoSeeking Lab and Founding Co-Director of the Center for Responsibility in AI Systems & Experiences (RAISE). He works on intelligent information access systems focusing on fairness and transparency.

Additional Resources:

· InfoSeeking Lab: https://infoseeking.org/
· RAISE: https://www.raise.uw.edu/
· “Situating Search” by Chirag Shah and Emily M. Bender: https://dl.acm.org/doi/fullHtml/10.1145/3498366.3505816

For more information about CITI Program, please visit: https://about.citiprogram.org/

Covers the challenges that Institutional Review Board (IRB) members face when reviewing research protocols that involve artificial intelligence (AI), strategies for addressing those challenges, current events and trends that may impact human subjects research involving AI, and additional resources that you can utilize if you are involved in this space.

Our guest is Tamiko Eto, MS, CIP who manages research compliance at the Division of Research at Kaiser Permanente. Tamiko also serves on the AI Ethics Advisory Board for Northeastern University’s Institute of Experiential AI.

Additional Resources:

• HHS definitions of human subject and research: https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/regulations-and-policy/regulations/45-cfr-46/revised-common-rule-regulatory-text/index.html#46.102
• Nils Nilsson definition of AI: https://ai.stanford.edu/~nilsson/QAI/qai.pdf
• Joanna Bryson and Jeremy Wyatt definition of AI: http://www.cs.bath.ac.uk/~jjb/web/whatisai.html
• OHRP list of ethical codes and research standards: https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/international/ethical-codes-and-research-standards/index.html
• SACHRP considerations for IRB review of research involving AI: https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/sachrp-committee/recommendations/attachment-e-july-25-2022-letter/index.html
• FDA guidance: https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/digital-health-center-excellence/software-medical-device-samd
• OSTP blueprint for AI bill of rights: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp/ai-bill-of-rights/
• EU proposed AI Act: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A52021PC0206
• CITI Program AI content: https://about.citiprogram.org/course/technology-ethics-and-regulations/
• PRIM&R webinars: https://primr.org/online-learning/webinars
• IRB reviewer checklist and decision tree: https://etohconsulting.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/ai-hsr-irb-reviewer-checklist-with-decision-tree.pdf
• White paper on IRB review of AI HSR: https://techinhsr.com/2022/08/25/how-to-conduct-an-effective-irb-review-of-artificial-intelligence-human-subjec/

Welcome to On Tech Ethics – With CITI Program, a podcast series about all things tech ethics. Through conversations with experts, you will learn about different technologies, the associated ethical issues, and other important considerations. Learn more in this introductory episode.

Additional Resources:

· Share ideas for topics to cover on the podcast and nominate guests using this nomination form - https://about.citiprogram.org/nominate-author-or-peer-reviewer/
· Learn more about CITI Program at https://about.citiprogram.org/  
· Follow CITI Program on social media (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook).