past event

February 16, 2007
"The Spotless Mind?
Policy, Ethics & the Future of Human Intelligence"
8:30 AM. - 5:00 PM
National Press Club
529 14th Street N.W.
Washington, D.C.

see event

Is a machine-dominated society á la The Matrix or a Borg-esque collective intelligence looming in humanity's future?

Emerging technologies in the areas of neuro-enhancement and artificial intelligence promise to drastically alter: our ability to augment human intellectual and sensory capacity; the role of machines; and how we connect, communicate, and share information. But, will such changes bring about the panacea promised by their proponents, or will they be akin to opening Pandora's Box? Even before such interventions become possible, their exploration should not be left to the realm of science fiction writers and pop-culture movie moguls. Rather, society, as a whole, must engage both science fact and science fiction in confronting the issues presented by these technologies - from who gets them to how they should be used.

To that end, the Institute on Biotechnology and the Human Future (IBHF) at Chicago-Kent College of Law/Illinois Institute of Technology is hosting a conference that brings together some of the key voices in the discussion of these critical 21st-century issues:

Keynoters:

• U.S. Representative Brad Sherman, J.D., CPA, (D-CA), member of the House Committee on Science;

• Carl Mitcham, Ph.D., professor of liberal arts and international studies at the Colorado School of Mines, and editor-in-chief of the four-volume Encyclopedia of Science, Technology, and Ethics;

• Patricia Smith Churchland, Ph.D., professor of philosophy at the University of California San Diego and author of Neurophilosophy: Toward a Unified Science of the Mind-Brain; and

• Charles T. Rubin, Ph.D., IBHF fellow, associate professor of political science at Duquesne University, IBHF fellow, and author of the forthcoming book Why Be Human? Defending Progress Against Its Friends.

Special Presenters:

• Ronald Bailey science correspondent at Reason Magazine;

• William P. Cheshire, Jr., M.D., neurology consultant at Mayo Clinic, associate professor of Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, and Center on Nanotechnology and Society fellow;

• Jim Davies, Ph.D., assistant professor at Carleton University's Institute of Cognitive Science;

• Linda MacDonald Glenn, J.D., L.L.M., faculty member in the Alden March Bioethics Institute at Albany Medical Center and in the University of Vermontıs College of Nursing and Health Sciences;

• Sigrid Fry-Revere, Ph.D., J.D., director of bioethics studies at the Cato Institute;

• Andrew Imparato, J.D., president and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities;

• Monica Metzler, J.D., M.A., founder and president of the Illinois Science Council, and vice president of Conlon Public Strategies;

• C. Ben Mitchell, Ph.D., IBHF fellow and associate professor of bioethics and contemporary culture at Trinity International University;

• Katrina Sifferd, J.D., Ph.D., IBHF affiliated scholar and adjunct faculty member at Elmhurst College; and

• Lee Zwanziger, Ph.D., visiting assistant professor in Science and Technology Studies at Virginia Tech, and science policy analyst with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The event will be chaired by Nigel M. de S. Cameron, Ph.D., president of IBHF, and associate dean and research professor of bioethics at Chicago-Kent College of Law/IIT.

RSVPs are required. There is no charge for the event.
To RSVP, contact
Institute on Biotechnology and the Human Future
E-mail: rsvp@thehumanfuture.org
Phone: 312.906.5337
Fax: 312.906.5388