BAN6 Conversations @ YBCA | Technotopia w/ Jaron Lanier and Doug Wolens (Part 1 of 3)

Bay Area Now 6 Conversations | Hype, Hope Or Hell: Cyber Skepticism And Technotopia

Presented at June 11, 2011 at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

It's impossible to discuss the extraordinary qualities of the Bay Area without including digital technology. It now permeates every aspect of our public and private lives. But as the dialogue becomes increasingly fanatical and we race to embrace all things new, we may be eliminating our history, and possibly our humanity. Are we paying attention? Or are we allowing ourselves to be pulled along by outside forces, without comment. Bay Area computer scientist, composer, visual artist, and author of You Are Not A Gadget, Jaron Lanier, will present his observations on contemporary technological practices.

Preceding Lanier, Doug Wolens will present clips and discuss his forthcoming documentary The Singularity: Will We Survive our Technology?, which showcases the promises and perils of future technologies such as nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, and robotics. Many serious thinkers in the science community are wowed by the techno-utopia promises of transcending our biology, merging with our machines, and creating greater than human intelligence. The film illustrates how these technologies may be achieved very soon, and examines what they could mean to humanity.

About BAN6 Conversations:
The unusual concentration of intellectual curiosity and creative energy in the Bay Area has fueled experimentation and innovation in a number of fields that have had significant impact on contemporary culture. For the sixth anniversary of our triennial — Bay Area Now 6 — we highlight six areas of influence — Food, Futurism, Community Activism, Radical Identities, Environment and Technology — through a series of roundtable conversations hosted by YBCA between February and June of 2011. Various 'experts' have been invited to participate in a public conversation with the BAN6 artists and YBCA curators. The public is also invited to observe and participate in a broader post-event conversation with the artists and guest speakers.

More @ http://www.ybca.org/ban-6-conversations-technology

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• BAN6
• Bay Area Now 6
• YBCA
• San Francisco
• art
• counterculture
• technology
• singularity
• artificial intelligence
• futurism
• nanotechnology
• utopia
• Doug Wolens
• Jaron Lanier
• robotics