March of the Machines: Without Limits series presents “Ex Machina” screening, discussion
The College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at SUNY New Paltz invites students, faculty, staff and members of the community to a screening of the film “Ex Machina,” and a conversation about its exploration of artificial intelligence, paranoia and gender.
This event will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 5 p.m. in Lecture Center 102, and is free and open to the public.
“Ex Machina,” written and directed by Alex Garland and released in 2015, builds on the science fiction tradition of using artificial intelligence to examine human morality, and puts a fresh and challenging emphasis on how gender and sexuality might affect our responses to robotic life forms.
The screening kicks off the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences’ annual “Without Limits: Interdisciplinary Conversations in the Liberal Arts” series, which is returning to campus for its fourth year with a slate of events organized around the theme “March of the Machines: Artificial Intelligence, Interactivity, and Automation in the Digital Age.”
At a point in human history when immersion in digital interfaces are a fact of daily life for an increasing percentage of the global population, our thoughts and feelings about technology are growing more and more heated. Automated and digital technologies are creating anxiety in labor markets, disrupting the public’s sense of trust in media, and shaping the contexts and venues in which we interact with one another.
The humanities and social sciences play an important role in helping us recognize these trends, providing tools for critically examining the new forms of connectedness that define 21st century life.
Without Limits events in 2018-19 will examine the year’s theme from a variety of perspectives in order to promote dialogue and reflection on emergent forms of artificial intelligence, digital interactivity, and automation.
The Nov. 13 screening of “Ex Machina” will be hosted by the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences and led by Associate Professor Jed Mayer. An audience-led Q & A will follow the film. “Ex Machina” is rated R; viewer discretion is advised.
Visit the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences online to learn more about the Without Limits series.