Three L.A.S.E.R. talks: Real and Artificial Minds, AI for Artists, Satirical Art

The LASERs (Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous) are an international program of evening gatherings that bring artists and scientists together for informal presentations and conversation with an audience. This evening, chaired by cultural historian Piero Scaruffi, will feature these talks:

- David Eagleman (Stanford) on "What will AI mean for artists?"

- Kathy Aoki (Santa Clara University) on "Art Attacks: Critical Wit in Absurd Times"

- Jay McClelland (Stanford/ Center for Mind, Brain and Computation) on "Shared Strengths and Weaknesses of Real and Artificial Minds"

David Eagleman is a neuroscientist at Stanford whose areas of research include sensory substitution, time perception, vision, and synesthesia. He is the author of many books, including Livewired, The Runaway Species, The Brain, Incognito, and Wednesday is Indigo Blue, as well as a bestselling book of literary fiction, Sum, which has been turned into two operas,. He has spun several neurotech companies out of his lab.

Kathy Aoki is a multi-disciplinary visual artist who uses satire to critique the absurd value systems that dominate gender, pop culture, and politics. She is a Professor of Studio Art at Santa Clara University. Her printmaking work can be found in major collections across the U.S. including the New York Metropolitan.

Jay McClelland is Co-Director of the Center for Mind, Brain, Computation and Technology at Stanford University, where he was formerly the chair of the Psychology Department.  In 1986 McClelland published a pioneering two-volume book of Connectionism, “Parallel Distributed Processing", with David Rumelhart.  He has co-developed major neurological theories of  human memory and human language.

Detailed bios at: http://www.lasertalks.com

The Stanford LASERs are co-sponsored by the deans of Humanities and Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, and by Chemical Engineering.