Where is the boundary between Science Fiction and Fantasy?
Science Fiction and/or Fantasy? (Free Conference)
“Any sufficiently advanced technology appears to be magic.” Arhur C. Clerk
The question we wish to pose is: “When looking at those times when science fiction has seemed to predict a change in technology or social behavior, are we witnessing a real effect, or only a coincidental alignment of circumstances?” Can 'Art,' in general, influence technology and society?
Did the Sinclair Lewis novel "It Can't Happen Here" prevent the rise of a demagogue in the USA in the 1930’s? Are we seeing George Orwell’s 1984 vision of “Big Brother is watching” in the NSA surveillance of our phone calls and email messages and in the rise of universal facial recognition software in China?
We have asked our keynote speaker and our panelists to consider these questions and analyze them from several points of view:
Is the linkage real, or just a fanciful illusion?
If the effect is real, are the authors aware of any influence they may have?
Given the views of many possible futures, can Science Fiction help us change our future for the better?
And, what about ‘Magic’? Arthur C. Clarke, the brilliant futurist and writer said: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." What can we do with those phenomena that have been observed but not yet scientifically understood? Do we dismiss them, seek to bring them into the scientific discourse, or embrace the mysticism?
Come join us for this FREE Conference: engage with our speakers and join in the panel discussions and networking sessions embedded in the schedule. We look forward to greeting you all and engaging in both serious discussions and flights of fancy.
Date and Time
Location
Hosts
Registration
- Date: 05 Oct 2024
- Time: 09:00 AM to 12:00 PM
- All times are (GMT-05:00) US/Michigan
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Add Event to Calendar
- Contact Event Host
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Online Host: TBD
Panel Organization: Karen Burnham: Karen.Burnham [at] gmail.com.
SEM: IMC - Kimball Williams: k.williams [at] ieee.org
Speakers
Keynote:
Android Science Fiction as Gedankenexperiment:
By the early 21st century, the initiative to develop humanoid robots that had begun in Japan in the 1960s had spread to research labs around the world. Researchers repeated to the press the mantra that after all, why bother to convert human spaces like homes and care institutions to accommodate robots, when it might be possible to develop intelligent robots that could operate in a human environment?
The social challenges of integrating humanoid robots or androids into human society had been described in science fiction for many decades, and a number of robotics researchers have acknowledged the influence of science fiction on their career paths. These stories not only described the technical innovations that would make this possible, but operated as a kind of thought experiment, considering the potential social, economic, and ethical challenges inherent in developing machines that could compete both intellectually and physically for the same environmental niche as humans.
This keynote focuses on how such issues played out in android stories written between the 1920s and the late twentieth century, when the first real humanoid prototypes were exhibited to the public.
Address:New Jersey, United States
Karen Burham of IEEE Southeastern Michigan Section
Panel Organizer & Moderator
Karen Burnham has participated in various science fiction conventions and conferences in different capacities. She served as the Vice President of the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts, which holds an academic and writers conference each Spring in Florida. She was the head of the Academic track of Programming at the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention in San Antonio, TX in 2013. She has also produced and hosted three podcasts: the Locus Roundtable, SF Crossing the Gulf with Karen Lord for SFSignal.com, and Small Blue Planet with Cheryl Morgan, all appearing at Locus Magazine’s website. In January 2017 she was the Science Guest of Honor at ConFusion in Michigan..
Biography:
Karen Burnham is vocationally an engineer and ‘avocationally’ a science fiction reviewer. She writes for venues such as Locus Magazine, Strange Horizons, and Cascadia Subduction Zone. She was nominated for the British Science Fiction Award for Non-Fiction in 2012 and 2014. She works as an electromagnetic scientist, engineer, and modeler in Colorado where she lives with her husband and two sons.
Email:
Address:Colorado, United States
Agenda
8:30 Sign-in - Networking
9:00 Noon Keynote Address - TBD: “<<>>”
9:00 1st Panel / "Where does SF become Fantasy and visa-versa?"
10:00 2nd Panel / “In what ways may SF and Fantasy help guide our future?"
10:30 3rd Panel / “We see Science Fiction Influence Technical and Social Change, what does Fantasy do?
11:00 Roundtable Open Discussion.
12:00 Wrap up & conclusion of conference.
(We look forward to seeing you all here next year to expand the discussion.)
Sponsored by IEEE Southeastern Michigan EMC-Society Chapter