Robot Babies

Speaker: Melinda Snodgrass
Host: Prof. Milind Tambe
This lecture is part of CS499 "Intelligent agents and science fiction". Abstract:
This talk is designed to raise several questions.The first is to examine the purpose of the robot in fiction. Aliens can also serve this purpose because they, like robots, are The Other. Ultimately we use the robot as a way to explore issues that confront humans. What does it mean to be human? What is morality?In fiction we often treat the robot as a blank slate or even as a child learning the ways of the world. Which leads to the second question --Why build an AI? Is this driven by the human need to create? A night of unprotected sex can accomplish that. Why build a machine? I would like to involve the audience in this part of the discussion.Finally I will look at how I find dramatic stories regarding robots/AI.s, and also how the stories have changed as our world has become ever more wired. You notice there aren.t very many stories about power hungry computers taking over the world any longer because we.ve all faced the Blue Screen of Death. We live and work with computers every day, and we know they are fundamentally stupid.So, if we build an AI do we make it smart enough to be venal?Biography:
Melinda Snodgrass was born in Los Angeles, but her family moved to New Mexico when she was five months old so she considers herself a native. She was educated at the University of New Mexico graduating Magna cum Lauda in History. During her undergraduate days she took a year off to study opera at the Conservatory of Vienna in Vienna, Austria. Upon her return from Europe she entered the U.N.M. School of Law.After graduation she practiced for three years, and discovered that while she loved the study of law she didn't particularly love lawyers so she began a career in writing. She has written numerous science fiction novels, and helps edit and writes for the WILD CARD anthologies.In 1988 she accepted a job on Star Trek: The Next Generation, and began her Hollywood career. Her most recent Hollywood position was as Consulting Producer on the N.B.C. show PROFILER. She has written television pilots and feature films.Her novel, THE EDGE OF REASON, an occult thriller, has just been released by Tor books, and the second novel THE EDGE OF RUIN will be published in June of 2009. she is hard at work on her story for the next Wild Card's Anthology, and she is working with Ian Tregillis to adapt his novel, BITTER SEED, as a screenplay. Her passion (aside from writing) is riding Grand Prix dressage on her Lusitano stallion Vento da Broga.

Location: Seeley Wintersmith Mudd Memorial Hall (of Philosophy) (MHP) - 101

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: CS Colloquia