Are you ready for Interstices 2018? The library is! This year’s panel event presented by Wilkinson College, Beyond Human: Emotion and AI, will take place on Tuesday, February 13 at 7 p.m. and will explore how we are coming to terms with AI, the possibilities of this technology, how humans are being changed by the presence of sentient technologies, and the ways in which our futures may be shaped.

To celebrate Interstices 2018, the library has curated a display case featuring materials from our collection (and newly added items) of books, films, television series, and graphic novels, all revolving around the theme of emotion and artificial intelligence. You can find fiction works by authors such as Isaac Asimov and Robert A. Heinlein, and non-fiction by Ray Kurzweil and Brian Christian. Films such as Blade Runner (1982), Blade Runner 2019 (2017), Ex-Machina (2015), and television series like Westworld (2017) and Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009).

Interstices 2018

In collaboration with Interstices 2018, the Leatherby Libraries is hosting a Book Club on The Positronic Man, by Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg. Meetings on February 1 and February 8 will allow participants to discuss the work of these seminal science fiction writers and the relationships between robots and humans, and how these themes of emotion and AI remain engaging on the 25th anniversary of the novel. Book club participants have the option of reserved seating for the panel discussion on February 13. To learn more about this book club, and how to reserve your space, visit our blog post.

In the meantime, be sure to stop by the case to view these materials! You can pick up a copy of the bibliography (itemizing everything on display) from the reference desk or from the stand next to the display case, or access them on Digital Commons.