THE
PRESENTS
PANEL
DISCUSSIONS & R.U.R (ROSSUM’S UNIVERSAL ROBOTS)
We
present four discussions by invited speakers on the topic of what robots can
tell us about what it means to be human
23RD – 26TH MAY 2006
ALL DISCUSSIONS BEFORE THE PERFORMANCES OF R.U.R
ALL EVENTS AT MICHAELHOUSE,
DOORS OPEN AT 6PM
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TUESDAY 23RD MAY 2006
DISCUSSION 6.30
R.U.R: THE FIRST ROBOTS
Karel Čapek invented
robots in his 1920s play – R.U.R. To mark the 85th anniversary of the
first performance of R.U.R we present a talk about robots and the relations
between fiction, science and technology.
SPEAKERS
Dr Katy Price, Department of English, Communication, Film
& Media, Anglia Ruskin University
Dr Alan Blackwell, The Computer
Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Dr Murray Shanahan, Department of Computing, Imperial
College London
Bill Thompson, Technology Writer
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WEDNESDAY 24TH MAY 2006
DISCUSSION 6.30
MAKING ROBOTS & HUMAN-LIKE MACHINES
The robot was invented in a play but now researchers are building the kinds of
robots and human-like machines that once were only found in fiction. We explore
what kind of technology is being developed and why.
SPEAKERS
Peter Jaeckel, Robotics
Laboratory, University of West of England
Dr Satinder Gill, School of
Computer Science, Middlesex University
Kathleen Richardson, Department of Social Anthropology, University of Cambridge
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THURSDAY 25TH MAY 2006
DISCUSSION 6.30
EMOTION, LOVE AND THE ROBOT
The themes of emotion and love run repeatedly in
cultural representations of the robot. Why have human emotions played such an
important role in distinguishing human beings from machines?
SPEAKERS
Dr Joanna Bryson, Department of Computer Science,
University of Bath
Dr Mark Witkowski, Department of
Computing, Imperial College London
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FRIDAY 26TH MAY 2006
DISCUSSION 6.30
WHAT IS HUMAN IN AN AGE OF TECHNOLOGY?
Contemporary writers suggest that advances in technologies and the ubiquitous
use of these technologies in human life have called into question human
uniqueness. How do robots, machines and new technologies Impact on what it
means to be human.
SPEAKERS
Professor Steve Torrance, Informatics, University of Sussex
Professor
Owen Holland, Department of Computer Science, University of Essex
Rob Clowes, Department of Cognitive Science, University of
Sussex
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DISCUSSION
INCLUDED IN R.U.R TICKET PRICE
TICKET PRICES £5.00/£6.00
IMPORTANT NOTE: THE PRODUCTION OF R.U.R WILL TAKE PLACE IN THE CHAPLE
SPACE OF MICHEALHOUSE. THIS IS NOT A CONVENTIONAL THEATRE SPACE AND THERE IS
SOME RESTRICTED VIEW DURING THE PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCES FINISH BY 11PM