Coercion without war? Chinese maritime paramilitary and constabulary activities and the fallacy of the grey zone

Is it possible to sustain maritime coercion without it escalating into outright war? The paper reviews the posture and activities of the Chinese coast guard and maritime militias to address this question. In so doing, it challenges the widespread notion in the literature that Chinese maritime coercion in the East and South China Seas (ESCS) is best described as a grey zone strategy. The ‘grey zone’ notion uncritically assumes that the use of force is designed to remain below the threshold of war.

When AI Ethics Goes Astray: The Case of Autonomous Vehicles

Whether you believe self-driving cars will one day reach a full autonomy level or not, they still raise important ethical questions in terms of responsibility and privacy, as well as the particular vision they imply for the future of our societies. Some of these issues have been tackled by researchers, with most impactful works coming from the MIT Social Media Labs. In particular, the Moral Machine experiment succeeded in reaching a wide global audience.

Social Media Polarization Over Brexit

The polarization of social media discussion by online propaganda (including misinformation and disinformation from human trolls and bots) is the subject of growing public concern, particularly because of its possible disruptive effects on Western elections. This seminar will present a method of polarization analysis based on interactions among Twitter users in the context of Brexit. The speakers will also consider the need to clarify what we mean by polarization as a process and an outcome. Can we accurately identify social media actors?
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