Overview
- In the not so distant future, Theodore, a lonely writer, purchases a newly developed operating system designed to meet the user’s every need. To Theodore’s surprise, a romantic relationship develops between him and his operating system. This unconventional love story blends science fiction and romance in a sweet tale that explores the nature of love and the ways that technology isolates and connects us all.
- Artificial intelligence scientist, Stephen Fitz will present “Machine Consciousness” with a post-screening discussion following the film.Stephen Fitz is an artificial intelligence scientist with diverse interests in the field. Much of his current research focuses on the conditions under which minds arise: how information-processing systems come to model themselves and the external reality, form goals, relate to others, and adapt over time. He is especially interested in systems that exhibit emergent behavior: structures that are not designed explicitly but unfold through learning, interaction, and self-organization. Stephen is now predominantly focused on the emerging fields of machine consciousness, machine psychology, and neuroevolution, with the main goal of understanding the principles that give rise to awareness and agency.Stephen studied mathematics, linguistics, and computer science at Columbia University, the University of Cambridge, and the University of Chicago, and served as a specially appointed professor at Keio University in Tokyo, Japan. He is a founding member of the California Institute for Machine Consciousness and has sustained long-term collaborations with leading research centers in industry and academia across the US, Europe, and Asia.The Science on Screen® grant initiative brings science to cinemas nationwide by pairing current and classic films with expertise from the world of science, technology, and medicine.
