This is SihuiLi’s personal blog. Thank you for visiting.
I am a postgraduate student in Buddhist Studies in the Department of Philosophy at The University of Hong Kong.
This is why I am obsessed with research on philosophy of science and techology, especially in the field of technology ethics. Such research can integrate philosophical reflection and the humanistic spirit into the consideration of technological phenomena. My graduation thesis, titled An Ethical Exploration of Brain-Computer Interfaces from the Perspective of Derek Parfit’s Theory of Personal Identity. In my view, the core issue of BCI ethics revolves around the relationship between humans and machines. Brain-computer technology integrates “human” with “machine” to form a new hybrid between the two parties. Humans possess free will and the capacity for independent thought. However, if humans and machines form a community, the subject of thought and decision-making becomes the human-machine community. The contemplation of subjectivity is not merely a philosophical issue; it is also a societal and legal concern. The subject making decision alters from humans to an unclear party, thus raising challenges in law and perception, including identity recognition, responsibility division and data security. Aimed at these ethical issues on BCI, my thesis is under the guidance of Derek Parfit’s theory of Personal Identity, which offers a unique explanatory framework for these issues. The significance of this paper extends beyond its accolades and publication success; it holds a profound personal value because it clarified my future research direction.
As Marx said, “The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it.” When I learned that HKU had introduced a PPE program last year, I was instantly captivated, as it closely aligns with the topics that have long fascinated me. Philosophical theories should not be confined to mere speculative exercises or detached metaphysics; rather, they should be intimately intertwined with economic phenomena, political structures, and social issues. This intersection of disciplines greatly piques my interest and has been a focal point of my undergraduate studies.
Starting from October, I served as a research assistant to Dr. Marcel Zaes Sagesser in the Sound Studies Group of Southern University of Science and Technology School of Design, collaborating with him on research topics related to sound, technology, and society. “Flowing sound” was the first project I participated in. We have collected the voices of street vendors and food delivery riders in Shenzhen, and transformed the collected materials into a dictionary and an art installation. What struck me most during this project was my understanding of the concepts of “noise” and “urban soundscape.” The sounds of street vendors using loudspeakers to hawk their wares and the honking of delivery riders weaving through alleys may be deemed noise by most people based on their decibel levels, but rarely are these sounds connected to the economic and social phenomena behind them. These Flowing sounds are an indispensable part of the lives of migrant workers in Shenzhen, a microcosm of their lives, and an expression of their social class.
“Urban Sound Diary” was the second project I participated in. In this project, we explored the shaping of Shenzhen’s urban soundscape and developed an app for recording city sounds. My primary responsibility was to read relevant literature on Henri Lefebvre’s theory of rhythm and the city, and to contribute ideas for enhancing the social module of the app. Lefebvre began to pay attention to the alienation of small, everyday things in the lives of individuals in contemporary capitalist society. This marked an important turn: a shift from criticizing the alienation of grand political and economic relations to criticizing the micro-alienation phenomena in daily life. However, how can we transform daily life? Lefebvre believed that the goal was to “make life an art,” aligning with the comprehensive development of the total person, where life becomes an end in itself. When people mention Shenzhen, they often think of monotonous rhythms like “tech parks” and “the two-point, one-line” routine, repeating this cycle of production day after day. I pondered how to break this mechanical rhythms and change people’s inherent impressions of the city. In Shenzhen, different groups live and work in various professions, each with their own unique life paths. If we collect the sound routes encountered by these different individuals, their sound paths will have intersections and differences. Recording city life through sound and generating personal urban sound maps gives everyone the opportunity to become an artist in their own life. This not only turns sound recording into a participatory art but also serves as a way to rebel against mechanical, rhythmic life and seek new social intersections. From the perspective of social media applications, we observe the connection between sound collection art and the critique of everyday life. This is what I learned and understood from this project.
After immersing myself in the realm of PPE, I wish to delve deeper into research concerning societies where humans are deeply intertwined with technology, particularly AI technology. How should humans use and adapt to technology? How can one maintain their self-assertion and subjectivity in the technological age? Subjectivity implies that individuals are able to steer their own lives. In traditional contexts, humans possess free will and the freedom to think and decide independently. Yet, in the technological age, humans and technology have become a community. Despite Heidegger’s call to recognize the dangers of technology, we can no longer reject it outright. Take personalized content recommendations on big data-driven social media platforms as an example: algorithms push content within specified ranges based on users’ preferences and labels, which, unseen, restrict people’s horizons and shape rigid thought patterns. The issue of human subjectivity in the technological age also touches on the crux of modernity. In technological societies, people may seem to be the masters of technology, but their lives are filled with a sense of meaninglessness. Perhaps our worry should not be about “Detroit: Become Human,” but about humans becoming machines. Humans are reduced to computing machines, and everyday life is infiltrated by machine thinking, turning into programmed and quantified routines. To paraphrase Nietzsche’s “God is dead,” the age of value reassessment has arrived once again. This time, it’s not that God is dead or that humans are dead, but that humans have become machines. More importantly, the issue of human subjectivity is not solely a philosophical one; it also pertains to law and human rights. Human subjectivity signifies the ability to think and decide independently, thereby taking responsibility for one’s actions. When machines and humans form decision-making communities or when deep neural stimulation of the human brain leads to changes in thinking, it creates gaps in traditional law. I am committed to exploring the depths of these complex issues, delving beyond their superficial manifestations to uncover their root causes and potential solutions.
With the completion of the PPE program, I aim to further my academic journey by pursuing a PhD in the field of philosophy of science. My ambition is to contribute to the formulation and enhancement of ethical and social regulations within the technology industry, leveraging my profound knowledge of philosophy and PPE to make a meaningful impact in public service. Nurtured by my father’s teachings on self-reflection and bestowed with the name ‘Si Hui’, which symbolizes the continuous examination and challenging of existing wisdom. I will uphold my father’s wisdom and engage in rigorous reflection and questioning of existing knowledge.