Option 2: Robot Combat and the Evolution of STEM (Cultural/Technical)
: Discuss the "moral offloading" that occurs when machines select targets. If a robot commits a war crime, is the programmer or the commander responsible?.
This essay focuses on the real-world implications of and the shift toward "robotic empire". Bot Wars
: Argue for an international regulatory regime that maintains "meaningful human control" over life-and-death decisions.
Because "Bot Wars" refers to several different concepts, here are three essay outlines based on the most common interpretations: a futuristic military ethics analysis, a reflection on robot combat as a sport, or a literary analysis of the Bot Wars novel series. Option 2: Robot Combat and the Evolution of
Option 1: The Ethics of Autonomous Warfare (Academic/Political)
This essay explores the legacy of the and the rise of robot combat as a sport like BattleBots . Bot wars: the arms race, SEAS-style : Argue for an international regulatory regime that
: Contrast the benefit of robots—who don't feel rage or fatigue—with the "dignity argument": the idea that humans have a right to be killed only by a moral agent who made a choice.