Science on Screen® Pulp Prophet: The Films of Philip K Dick.
Four visionary adaptations of one of Sci-Fi's most prolific visioneers and one strikingly Dickian documentary. With live presentations by notable figures from the world of science, technology, engineering and medicine.
Free for members.
What's so special about us? Comparing human intelligence to animal, artificial, and alien intelligences
with Dr. Karthik Panchanathan, Associate Professor of Anthropology, University of Missouri.
A recurring theme in fiction is the idea of an artificially created intelligence that matches or even surpasses human intelligence. Dr. Panchanathan explores some of the science behind other kinds of intelligence, including animal, artificial, and alien, as well as some of the philosophy of why these ideas bother us so much.
What do we mean by intelligence, where do we think it comes from, and should there be a sharp line between what we might consider "real" intelligence and everything else?
Film Synopsis:
Los Angeles, 2019. Replicant cyborgs hide amongst us. Blade runner Rick Deckard is called out of retirement to terminate four replicants seeking their creator.
Dr. Karthik Pancanthan is an associate professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Missouri. His research interests include the evolution of cooperation, cultural evolution, and the evolution of development. Pancanthan's courses include cultural anthropology, economic and ecological anthropology, the evolution of culture and cooperation, and statistics.
Science on Screen is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.