Bbetween 2026 – Digital | 6–29 October 2026
The programme Beyond the Mirror of Technology: Social Scoring, War and Control explores the role of emerging technologies as instruments of surveillance and social control, highlighting their implications for individual lives, social relationships and the exercise of fundamental rights.
Through screenings of three episodes of the television series Black Mirror, the programme invites participants to critically examine how technologies can shape perceptions of individuals’ social worth, transform parenting and educational practices, and redefine the dynamics of armed conflict. These issues will be explored from legal, ethical, psychological and computer science perspectives.
The programme consists of four sessions: an introductory meeting followed by three events featuring screenings of Black Mirror episodes, each serving as a starting point for guided discussions and roundtable debates with experts from different academic disciplines.
The initiative aims to promote greater awareness of the opportunities and risks associated with emerging technologies, encouraging critical reflection on the social, political and cultural transformations they bring about and on possible strategies to safeguard human dignity, fundamental rights and democratic principles.
The programme is part of the New Technologies, Rights and Society series and is proposed by members of the interdisciplinary research laboratory TecSEDU – Emerging Technologies, Society, Ethics and Human Rights.
Programme
6 October 2026 | 16:30–17:30
Introduction to the Programme’s Main Theme
Sala Lauree Giurisprudenza, second floor, Building U6-Agorà, Piazza dell’Ateneo Nuovo 1, Milan.
Presented by TecSEDU members Silvia Salardi, Carla Gulotta, Marta Sosa Navarro, Francesco Stocchi and Douglas Luis Binda Filho.
13 October 2026 | 16:00–18:00
The Value of a Person in Five Stars
Screening of the Black Mirror episode Nosedive.
Room 4057, former Council Room, Di.SEA.DE, fourth floor, Building U7-Civitas, Via Beccaro 20, Milan.
Chair: Elena Di Carpegna Brivio (Di.SEA.DE, University of Milano-Bicocca).
Discussants: Andrea Rossetti (Department of Law, University of Milano-Bicocca) and Giuseppe Vizzari (DISCo, University of Milano-Bicocca).
21 October 2026 | 14:30–16:30
Surveillance in the Name of Protection
Screening of the Black Mirror episode Arkangel.
Room 4057, former Council Room, Di.SEA.DE, fourth floor, Building U7-Civitas, Via Beccaro 20, Milan.
Chair: Francesca Gasparini (DISCo, University of Milano-Bicocca).
Discussants: Stefania Garassini (Patti Digitali and Orientaserie) and Paolo Riva (Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca).
29 October 2026 | 14:30–16:30
Enhanced Soldiers: Augmentation or Dehumanization?
Screening of the Black Mirror episode Men Against Fire.
Room 4057, former Council Room, Di.SEA.DE, fourth floor, Building U7-Civitas, Via Beccaro 20, Milan.
Chair: Stefano Pietropaoli (Department of Legal Sciences, University of Florence).
Discussants: Antonino Alì (Faculty of Law, University of Trento) and Alberto Gallace (Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca).
Participation and Registration
The programme is open to students, university staff and members of the public. Participation is free of charge, with a maximum of 60 participants.
All sessions will take place in person only. No livestreams or recordings will be available. Participants must sign the attendance register at each session. Attendance will be considered valid only if participants attend at least 90% of the duration of each event.
Digital Certification – Open Badge
The Open Badge will be awarded to participants who attend at least three of the four sessions and successfully complete the assessment, which consists of writing a paper.
Students enrolled at the University of Milano-Bicocca who earn the Badge may request academic credit recognition from the Teaching Coordination Council of their degree programme. Recognition and the number of credits awarded are at the Council’s discretion.
Registration: Click here to register for the programme.
For further information, please consult the initiative’s FAQ section or contact bbetween@unimib.it.
Programme contacts: Dr Marta Maria Sosa Navarro, Dr Aurora Saibene and Dr Francesco Stocchi.
Scientific and Organizing Committee: Prof. Silvia Salardi, Prof. Carla Gulotta, Prof. Francesca Gasparini, Dr Marta Sosa Navarro, Dr Aurora Saibene, Dr Francesco Stocchi and Dr Douglas Luis Binda Filho.