Research

Ethics in Biomedicine and Scientific Research

Professional Ethics & Corporate Responsibility

Environmental Ethics

International Development & Global Justice

Democracy, Legitimacy & Good Governance

Digital Media Lab

Digital Media Lab

For over 20 years members of our center have excelled in the use and development of interactive media. Pioneering programs such as ‘A Right To Die? The Dax Cowart Case” (Routledge, 1996) have garnered awards and served as test beds for both instructional design and formal assessment. See "Learning, Media, and the Case of Dax Cowart: A Comparison of Text, Film, and Interactive Multimedia" with Keith Weber in Interactive Learning Environments (2002) and "Applied Ethics in a Digital Age" in Resnick and Scott, Eds. The Innovative University (Carnegie Mellon Press, 2004).

Recently, our efforts have focused on the use of computer mediated communication tools to support online environments conducive to effective citizen deliberation. From 2001 – 2003, this work was funded by the NSF under the Project title “Developing and Testing A High Telepresence Virtual Agora for Broad Citizen Participation: A Multi-Trait, Multi-Method Investigation.” One of our current projects customizes the designs of the Virtual Agora Project to fit the model of James Fishkin’s Deliberative Poll. Called Project PICOLA (Public Informed Citizen Online Assembly), it enables students, faculty, staff and alumni to participate in ‘campus conversations’ involving issues of importance to the campus community (such as our Spring 2007 discussion of Public Art Policy).

The Lab is located in BH 148 and is headed by Robert Cavalier.