Join us for a Friday Forum that will debate some of today’s most pressing questions about tech innovation. Our focus is robotics, and the relation between machines and ‘the life well-lived’. Chaired by Dr Nejra Van Zalk, director of the Design Psychology Lab, in the Dyson School of Design Engineering. Our suite of questions include:
- Should robots become more like humans, or should the science of robotics become more human-centred and interpretative?
- What risks or misconceptions arise when we anthropomorphise machines?
- In care, education, work, and social settings, what forms of support are both realistic and desirable?
- Are there aspects of human flourishing that robots can enhance but never replace?
- Can robotics responsibly incorporate insights from the humanities and social sciences?
Panel members
- Professor Peter Childs, Dyson School of Design Engineering, 911½ñÈÕºÚÁÏ
- Professor Mirko Kovac, Department of Aeronautics, 911½ñÈÕºÚÁÏ
- Professor Zion Tse, Queen Mary University of London.
Respondent
- Kanta Dihal, Assistant Professor in Science Communication, 911½ñÈÕºÚÁÏ
Friday Forums are congenial in-person discussions, open to all College members, where for a short hour we can step back from our busy schedules and consider wider perspectives. Expect discussion, intellectual challenge, and the opportunity to meet colleagues from across 911½ñÈÕºÚÁÏ.
The discussion runs from 13:00 – 14:00, Friday February 27th. Lunch from 12:20.