More than just ‘Science Fiction’
Dr Will Slocombe explores some of the dominant trends in science fiction and considers how they relate to our expectations of the future. The prospect and reality of Artificial Intelligence has long fascinated creators of fictional worlds. But they are not ‘merely’ science fiction, so what might such representations actually reveal? In a whirlwind tour of examples of the technology, from literature, film, and computer games, Dr Will Slocombe explores some of the dominant trends at work in these representations and considers how they relate to our expectations of the future. Dr Will Slocombe, Senior Lecturer in the Department of English, will be joined by guest AI scientist, Dr Louise Dennis.
Posted on: 7 May 2021
WoWFest Tax the Robots Event
Join UoL's Dr Will Slocombe, the Liverpool Geek Girls and others for an event on the future of tech, the gig economy and taxing robots.
Posted on: 10 May 2017
Nerve: a flawed but insightful film about the perils of social media
“Truth or Dare but without the Truth.” This scary tagline sums up Nerve, a social media game that drives the film of the same name. We follow 17-year-old Vee’s immersion in the game, where “players” earn money for completing dares to kiss strangers or shoplift $4,000 dresses. As you’d expect, the dares quickly escalate with the vicarious demands of the “watchers” (gamers who pay for the privilege of watching rather than taking part) – riding a motorcycle blindfolded at 60mph, for example. What emerges is a series of somewhat trite, but nonetheless pertinent, observations on social media and the politics of celebrity and voyeurism.
Posted on: 15 August 2016
What science fiction tells us about our trouble with AI
Given that the reality of AI may be fast approaching, it’s of the utmost importance that we work out what might a future with artificial intelligence might look like. Last year, an open letter with signatories including Stephen Hawking and Nick Bostrom called for AI to be of demonstrable benefit to humanity, or risk something that exceeds our ability to control it.
Posted on: 6 July 2016