Keynote Speakers

Deborah G. Johnson recently retired as the Anne Shirley Carter Olsson Professor of Applied Ethics in the Science, Technology, and Society (STS) Program in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Virginia.  Best known for her work on computer ethics and engineering ethics, Johnson’s research examines the ethical, social, and policy implications of technology, especially information technology.
Johnson is the author/editor of seven books including most recently, Surveillance and Transparency as Sociotechnical Accountability: A House of Mirrors co-authored with Priscilla Regan (Routledge, 2014). She is currently working on Engineering Ethics: Contemporary Debates for Yale University Press.  In addition to her books, Johnson has published over 100 papers in a wide variety of journals and edited volumes.
In recognition of her contributions, Johnson received the Joseph Weizenbaum Award for life-long contributions to information and computer ethics from the International Society for Ethics and Information Technology in 2015. She received the John Barwise prize from the American Philosophical Association in 2004; the Sterling Olmsted Award from the Liberal Education Division of the American Society for Engineering Education in 2001; and the Making a Difference Award from the ACM Special Interest Group on Computers and Society in 2000.

Gerardo Con Diaz is an assistant professor of Science and Technology Studies at the University of California, Davis. His first book, a history of software patenting in the United States titled Software Rights, will be published by Yale University Press in October 2019. He is the Editor in Chief of the IEEE Annals of the History of Computing and Associate Editor for Technology’s Stories, and he serves on the editorial board of Information & Culture. His courses at UC Davis analyze the long-term relationships among science, technology, law, and business in the histories of computing, telecommunications, evolutionary thought, and biotechnology. He holds a PhD and two master’s degree in History of Science and Medicine (Yale University), an additional master's degree in history and philosophy of science (University of Cambridge, Trinity College), and a bachelor's degree in mathematics (Harvard University).