Here's the film from my talk with Aubrey de Grey at Die Untoten in Hamburg last year.
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Here's the footage from my first talk at Die Untoten in Hamburg last year.
On 23rd, I give a talk in Helsinki for a lecture series at Aalto University, thematically associated with the World Design Capital in 2012.
Here's more info about the series, titled 'Human Design or Evolution', which includes Natasha Vita-More, Stelarc, Laura Beloff, Fiona Raby, James Auger & Jimmy Loizeau, Ritta Hari and Sissel Tomas (sadly not all at the same time).
Here's my talk, titled 'Design for Evolution':
How should we imagine the future of humanity in order to permit the utilization of human enhancement technologies, while remaining mindful of the risks that could arise from tampering with evolutionary processes. How can humanity design for its evolution, taking into account the range of capacities that humans may require in the future and considering the kinds of lives people wish to lead in the present? This talk will address the interface of design and evolution, so as to approach a responsible approach to human enhancement.
Presentation from Universitat Pompeu Fabra Law School last month
Tomorrow, I'll be heading to Russia to speak at Moscow State University for a Journalism conference. Here's the programme.
The 3rd International Media Readings in Moscow Mass Media and Communications – 2011 JOURNALISTIC CULTURES: FACING SOCIAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGES CONFERENCE PROGRAM November 10, 2011 (Thursday) Registration / Coffee 14.00 Round Table (Russian Language) 16.00-18.00 Room 103 Moderators Dr. Olga Minaeva / Dr. Irina Prokhorova To the 300th Anniversary of Mikhailo Lomonosov, the Founder of MSU Session 1-1 16.00-18.00 Room Newsroom Moderator Dr. Józef Kloch Religious Impact on Journalism Cultures A SPOKESMAN OF A CHURCH INSTITUTION AS A COMMUNICATOR, INTERPRETER AND NEGOTIATOR OF CHURCH’S REALITY IN THE ERA OF SOCIAL MEDIA Monika Przybysz, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, Poland RELIGION IN PUBLIC LIFE OF RUSSIA TODAY Roman Lunkin, Woodrow Wilson International Center, Washington, D.C., USA Institute of Europe, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia THE JOURNALIST ETHOS AND BIBLE PROFANATION Józef Kloch, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, Poland RELIGIOUS ETHOS AND JOURNALISM ETHICS: RUSSIAN CONTEXT Victor Khroul, Central European University, Budapest, Hungary Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia COMMEMORATIONS: THE BATTLE OVER MEMORY Mihai Coman, Universite Stendhal, Grenoble3, France College of Journalism and Mass Communication, Bucarest University, Romania FAIRNESS AND ACCURACY IN WRITING ABOUT RELIGION - TOO HARD A TASK? Anna Danilova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia MEDIA EVANGELISATION AS A TECHNICAL MEDIATISATION OF RELIGION Daria Klimenko, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia Session 1-2 (Russian Language) 16.00-18.00 Room 333 Moderator Prof. Svetlana Balmaeva ЖУРНАЛИСТ, СМИ И ДОВЕРИЕ ОБЩЕСТВА JOURNALIST, MEDIA AND THE SOCIETY’S TRUST Алла Александровна Ширяева, МГУ имени М. В. Ломоносова (Alla Shiryaeva, Lomonosov Moscow State University) СОВРЕМЕННАЯ ЖУРНАЛИСТИКА: РЕВОЛЮЦИЯ ЦЕННОСТЕЙ? MODERN JOURNALISM: REVOLUTION OF VALUES? Татьяна Ивановна Фролова, МГУ им. М. В. Ломоносова (Tatiana Frolova, Lomonosov Moscow State University) ЦЕНТР И РЕГИОНЫ РОССИИ В МОДЕЛИРОВАНИИ МЕДИАСИСТЕМЫ RUSSIAN FEDERAL CENTER AND REGIONS IN MEDIA SYSTEM MODELLING Юрий Михайлович Ершов, Томский государственный университет (Yury Ershov, Tomsk State University) ФОРМИРОВАНИЕ НОВЫХ СТАНДАРТОВ ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНОЙ КУЛЬТУРЫ ЖУРНАЛИСТОВ В ТРАНСФОРМИРУЮЩИХСЯ ПРАВОВОМ ПОЛЕ И КОРПОРАТИВНОЙ СРЕДЕ FORMING NEW STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL CULTURE FOR JOURNALISTS IN TRANSFORMING LAW AND CORPORATE ENVIRONMENT Сергей Павлович Булах, Дальневосточный федеральный университет (Sergey Bulakh, Dalnevostochny Federal University) ЭТИКА ФОТОЖУРНАЛИСТИКИ: ОБЛАСТЬ МОРАЛЬНОГО И ПРАВОВОГО РЕГУЛИРОВАНИЯ ETHICS OF PHOTO JOURNALISM: FIELDS OF MORAL AND LAW REGULATION Алексей Маслов, Воронежский государственный университет (Alexey Maslov, Voronezh State University) INSTANT PUBLISHING: РАСШИРЕНИЕ ПРОСТРАНСТВА МЕДИА INSTANT PUBLISHING: EXPANDING MEDIA SPACE Владимир Владимирович Харитонов, Гуманитарный университет Екатеринбурга (Vladimir Kharitonov, Humanitarian University in Ekaterinburg) Session 1-3 (Poster Session) 14.00-18.00 By the Registration Desk Excursions 18.30 November 11, 2011 (Friday) Opening Ceremony and Welcome Addresses to the Conference Participants 9.30-9.40 Room 232 Session 2 (Plenary – English Language / Synch. Translation) 9.40-11.30 Room 232 Moderator Prof. Elena Vartanova Yassen N. Zassoursky, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia GLOBAL JOURNALISTS: WHAT DO WE KNOW AND WHAT SHOULD WE KNOW? David H. Weaver, Indiana University, U.S.A. ACCOUNTING FOR DIVERSITY IN JOURNALISM CULTURES Thomas Hanitzsch, University of Munich, Germany POLISH JOURNALISTS TWO DECADES AFTER THE COMMUNISM Prof. Bogusława Dobek-Ostrowska, University of Wrocław, Poland REINVENTING COMMUNICATION: FROM SAGAS TO TWITTS Andrey Korotkov, State Institute of International Affairs (University), Russia Coffee Break 11.30-12.00 Session 3 (Plenary – Russian Language / Synch. Translation) 12.00-13.30 Room 232 Moderator Prof. Boris Lozovsky ЖУРНАЛИСТИКА В УСЛОВИЯХ ИНСТИТУЦИОНАЛЬНОГО КРИЗИСА JOURNALISM UNDER INSTITUTIONAL CRISIS Светлана Дашиевна Балмаева, Гуманитарный университет Екатеринбурга (Svetlana Balmaeva, Humanitarian University in Ekaterinburg) ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНАЯ КУЛЬТУРА И ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНОЕ СООБЩЕСТВО: МЕХАНИЗМЫ ВЗАИМОДЕЙСТВИЯ (PROFESSIONAL CULTURE AND PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY: MECHANISMS OF INTERACTION) Иосиф Михайлович Дзялошинский, Национальный исследовательский университет «Высшая школа экономики» (Josef Dzyaloshynsky, National Research University – The Higher School of Economics) СОВРЕМЕННЫЕ ТЕХНОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ ОСОБЕННОСТИ РАБОТЫ РЕДАКЦИЙ МЕЖДУНАРОДНОЙ ГАЗЕТНОЙ ГРУППЫ METRO И ИХ ВЛИЯНИЕ НА РЕДАКЦИОННУЮ КУЛЬТУРУ MODERN WORKING TECHNICS FOR NEWSROOMS OF METRO INTERNATIONAL AND THEIR IMPACT ON NEWSROOM CULTURE Борис Васильевич Коношенко, Генеральный директор-шеф редактор газеты Metro Москва (Boris Konoshenko, CEO/Editor-in-Chief Metro Moscow) РЕГИОНАЛЬНЫЕ СМИ РОССИИ: МУЛЬТИМЕДИА И ЭКОНОМИКА REGIONAL MEDIA IN RUSSIA: MULTIMEDIA AND ECONOMICS Валерий Викторович Бакшин, Дальневосточный федеральный университет (Valery Bakshin, Dalnevostochny Federal University) К ПРОБЛЕМЕ ТРАНСОФРМАЦИИ РЕГИОНАЛЬНЫХ МЕДИАКУЛЬТУР В СОВРЕМЕННОЙ РОССИИ: ЛОКАЛИЗАЦИЯ ИЛИ ГЛОБАЛИЗАЦИЯ? TRANSFORMATION OF REGIONAL MEDIACULTURES IN MODERN RUSSIA: LOCALIZATION OR GLOBALIZATION? Александр Валентинович Чернов, Гуманитарный институт Череповецкого государственного университета (Alexander Chernov, Cherepovets State University) Lunch 13.30-14.30 Session 4 Presentations of the European Journalism Research Groups 14.30-15.30 Room 232 Moderator Dr. Maria Anikina EUROPEAN JOURNALISM OBSERVATORY Natasha Fioretti THE WORLDS OF JOURNALISM STUDY Thomas Hanitzsch JOURNALISM IN CHANGE - PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTIC CULTURES IN RUSSIA, POLAND AND SWEDEN Gunnar Nygren Session 5-1 15.40-17.10 Room 333 Moderator Dr. Anastasia Alekseeva SOCIOLOGICAL CULTURE AS THE ESSENTIAL ELEMENT OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTIC CULTURE Maria Anikina, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia MOTIVATION BEHIND THE USE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES AMONG YOUTH IN INDIA Khattri Neeraj, Trinity Institute of Professional Studies, India A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF SOCIO-CULTURAL IMPACT OF NEW MEDIA ON USERS IN INDIA Usha Rani Narayana, University of Mysore, India JOURNALISM IN AN INNOVATION SOCIETY – A NEW ONTOLOGICAL STATUS? Marina Shilina, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia ETHICS IN JOURNALISM AND SOCIAL VALUES IN A PERIOD OF SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION Inessa Filatova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia Session 5-2 15.40-17.10 Room 103 Moderator Dr. Thomas Hanitzch JOURNALISM IN CHANGE – PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTIC CULTURES IN RUSSIA, POLAND AND SWEDEN Gunnar Nygren, Södertörn University, Sweden THE IMPORTANCE OF JOURNALISTIC COMPETENCES FROM DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES Carmen Koch, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), Institute of Applied Media Studies (IAM) Vinzenz Wyss, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), Institute of Applied Media Studies (IAM) MEASURING PRESS DIFFERENCES: AN UPDATE Xu Xiaoge, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore THE INSTITUTIONAL ROLE OF JOURNALISM IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CAMPAIGN FUNDING CRISIS IN FINLAND Sinikka Torkkola, University of Tampere, Finland Anne Koski, University of Tampere, Finland Session 6-1 17.20-18.50 Room 333 Moderator Annina Stoffel FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION OF JAPANESE JOURNALISM IN THE INTERNET AGE Watanabe Takesato, Doshisha University, Kyoto, Japan JOURNALISM RELOADED – OR WHAT JOURNALISTS NEED FOR THE FUTURE Alexandra Stark, MAZ – The Swiss School of Journalism, Switzerland NEW GENERATION OF RUSSIAN JOURNALISTS: FROM DIGITAL ADVANCEMENT TO DIGITAL ADDICTION Olga Smirnova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia NEW BRANDED MEDIA: THE FUTURE OF JOURNALISM Anastasia Alekseeva, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia Session 6-2 17.20-18.50 Room 103 Moderator Bogusława Dobek-Ostrowska RUSSIAN AND SWEDISH JOURNALISTS – PROFESSIONAL ROLES, IDEALS AND DAILY REALITY Elena Degtereva, Södertörn University, Sweden, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia Gunnar Nygren, Södertörn University, Sweden TRANSFORMING JOURNALISTIC CULTURES IN RUSSIA: RESEARCH PERSPECTIVE Maria Anikina, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia RUSSIAN JOURNALISM AS A SOCIAL LIFT Svetlana Pasti, University of Tampere, Finland DIFFERENT JOURNALISTIC CULTURES AND THE NATIONAL IDENTITY IN LATVIA Ainars Dimants, School of Business Administration Turiba, Latvia Dinner 19.00 November 12, 2011 (Saturday) Session 7 Plenary (English Language / Synch. Translation) 9.30-11.30 Room 232 Moderator Dr. Mikhail Makeenko RUSSIAN JOURNALISM; THE CLASH OF PROFESIONAL CULTURES Elena Vartanova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia THE LONG PASSAGE OF HISTORY: THE EVOLUTION OF PROFESSIONALISM AMONG JOURNALISTS AND THEIR INTERNATIONAL CONTACTS Kaarle Nordenstreng, University of Tampere, Finland MEDIA ETHICS IN AN AGE OF CONTROVERSY AND CONFUSION Clifford Christians, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA CRISIS OF THE FOURTH ESTATE AND RISE OF THE FIFTH ESTATE Gregory Simons, Uppsala University, Sweden SOCIAL MEDIA: CITIZEN JOURNALISM AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES Andy Miah, University of the West of Scotland Coffee Break 11.30-12.00 Session 8-1 12.00-13.50 Room 103 Moderator Dr. Greg Simons ARE JOURNALISTS REALLY THAT DIFFERENT? A COMPARATIVE LOOK AT THE DEMOGRAPHICS, ROLES AND VALUES OF JOURNALISTS AROUND THE WORLD David H. Weaver, Indiana University, U.S.A. BETWEEN NEWS DESKS, SOCIAL NETWORKS AND CLICK COUNTS – CATALYSTS OF CHANGE IN SWISS JOURNALISM Vinzenz Wyss, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), Institute of Applied Media Studies (IAM) Annina Stoffel, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), Institute of Applied Media Studies (IAM) AUTONOMY AND JOURNALISTIC CULTURE THREATS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN A COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE Jöran Hök, Södertörn University, Sweden NEWS CONTENT SHARING IN CONVERGENT AUSTRALIAN NEWSROOMS: THE ETHICS OF ONLINE REUSE CULTURE Tim Dwyer, University of Sydney, Australia POLISH JOURNALISTS AND NEW MEDIA: MAINTAINING PROFESSIONALISM OR DEPROFESSIONALIZATION? Bogusława Dobek-Ostrowska, University of Wrocław, Poland Michał Głowacki, University of Warsaw, Poland Session 8-2 12.00-13.50 Room 333 Moderator Dr. Galina Perypechina PUBLIC DISCUSSION AS A HOLISTIC POLISUBJECT TEXT Irina Fomicheva, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia CONTEMPORARY DEVELOPMENT OF DOCUMENTARY CINEMA THROUGH THE MEANS OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM Renate Cane, School of Business Administration Turiba, Latvia RADIO EKHO MOSKVY AS A PHENOMENON OF CONTEMPORARY BROADCASTING JOURNALISM Ludmila Bolotova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia EkaterinaBolotova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia JOURNALISTIC CULTURE OF THE RUSSIAN TV POLITICAL OBSERVERS: CONDITIONS FOR FORMATION Yulia Dolgova, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia TRAGEDY ON THE RUSSIAN TV SCREEN'11: ETHICAL AND NORMATIVE ASPECTS Yuliya Yakusheva, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia SPECIFIC FEATURES OF MULTIMEDIA CONTENT IN JOURNALISM Diana Kulchitskaya, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia Closing Remarks 14.00-14.20 Room 232 Lunch 14.30
thumbnail photo by David Gordillo, Flickr
On Nov 1st, I'll take part in a panel debate that will take place as part of FACT's Roy Stringer Lecture, which is given this year by Martha Lane Fox. The title for the event is 'The Democratising Role of the Web'
Here's a brief on the event:
FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology), in partnership with Amaze, presents the next Roy Stringer lecture with respected entrepreneur and digital champion, Martha Lane Fox. Martha is the UK's Digital Champion and heads up the Race Online 2012 campaign which aims to get the 8.3 million UK residents who have never used the Internet online. She came to prominence after setting up lastminute.com with Brent Hoberman in 1998. She is also a non-executive director of Marks & Spencer, Channel 4 and mydeco.com. Martha joins a panel of guests including Professor Andy Miah, community engagement expert Patrick Fox (FACT / Arena Housing), Director of Strategy at Aurora Media John Eagan, and Natalie Gross, Managing Partner at Amaze, to discuss the democratising role of the web, how digital content can help encourage people who have never been on the Internet to take their first steps online, and the role the cultural and creative industries can play in introducing off-liners to digital content. Andy Miah is Director of the Creative Futures Research Centre and Chair of Ethics and Emerging Technologies in the Faculty of Business & Creative Industries at the University of the West of Scotland. A Fellow of FACT, Miah regularly publishes in major newspapers around the world, which have included The Washington Post, the Guardian and the Independent and the Huffington Post. He is currently a columnist for the Guardian. Peter Barron is Google's head of public relations for Britain, Ireland and the Benelux countries. Before joining Google in 2008, the Belfast-born journalist was editor of the BBC programme Newsnight. Jon Eagan has worked as a communications professional for 25 years as a charity campaigner, political strategist and consultant. He is a regular contributor to regional print and broadcast media and is a director at Liverpool-based communications agency Aurora Media. Aurora developed the 'It's Liverpool' campaign to promote the city. The event will be chaired by Herb Kim (@herbkim). Herb is the CEO of Codeworks, founder of the Thinking Digital Conference and is included in the Wired Magazine & Media Guardian Top 100 lists.
Thumbnail image from Wikipedia
From 28-30 October, I'll be speaking at the Battle of Ideas in London. I'll take part in two sessions, both broadly focused on the ethics of biological modification. The first is on Saturday and are titled 'Designer people: is technology making us less human?' (Sun, 1230pm, Lecture Theatre 1) and 'Smart Drugs: Magic Bullet or Cheating Ourselves?' (Sun, 345pm, Lecture Theatre 1)
Here's a brief outline of the programme with other speakers:
http://www.instituteofideas.com FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday 12 August 2011 Media Contact: Patrick Hayes 07782 133399 / 020 7269 9222 7th Battle of Ideas Festival Programme Announced The Institute of Ideas today unveils the 7 th BATTLE OF IDEAS FESTIVAL programme, featuring a line-up of 350 speakers participating in 75 debates on society’s big issues and unresolved questions (see: http://www.battleofideas.org.uk/index.php/2011/overview/). The main weekend festival, held at the Royal College of Art, London on October 29-30, showcases keynote debates entitled: Battle against the fates; Profiting Responsibly? Business in the Big Society; Creativity and Curiosity: do we make stuff up or find it out? Has tolerance gone too far? Loyalty in an age of whistleblowing and Wikileaks; Is individualism bad for society? Seven strands run through the format of the festival weekend, allowing in-depth examination of a subject. They are entitled: Battle for the World, Battle for Morality, Food Fight, Society Wars, Battle for our Brains, Reassessing... Politics and Sporting Contests. In addition there are a large number of standalone discussions on subjects including: The Tea Party – defenders of the American Dream? Life off Earth: are the aliens out there? Burlesque: female empowerment or posh stripping? Islamophobia: the new racism or liberal angst? Ain’t misbehaving - do British children need the army to sort them out? Smart drugs: magic bullet or cheating ourselves? Olympic expectations: can't see the games for the legacy? Through a glass darkly: why do atheists love the King James Bible? Commenting on the launch of the festival programme, Claire Fox, Institute of Ideas director, said: ‘In a period in which we are seeing hugely important cultural shifts, from nihilistic rioters looting and burning up their own communities to many longstanding institutions – including the police, media and political parties – hollowing out and being called into question, never has the need for rational debate been more important.’ ‘The Battle of ideas festival 2011 will provide two days of the kind of high-level, thought provoking public debate that is currently urgently needed. We aim to avoid lazy platitudes and to interrogate what is really happening in society both in the UK and internationally. Free speech is allowed!’ Confirmed speakers at the Battle of Ideas festival 2011 include: David Aaronovitch, columnist, The Times; author, Voodoo Histories; Anne Atkins novelist, columnist and broadcaster; regular contributor to Radio 4's Thought for the Day; Simon Baron-Cohen, director, Autism Research Centre, University of Cambridge; author, Zero Degrees of Empathy; Daniel BenAmi, finance and economics journalist; author Ferraris for All: in defence of economic progress and Cowardly Capitalism; Melvin Burgess, award winning children's author, novels include Nicholas Dane, Junk and Kill All Enemies; John Cooper, leading criminal and human rights barrister; regular columnist, The Times and Observer; editor, Criminal Bar Quarterly; Claire Fox, director, Institute of Ideas; panellist, BBC Radio 4's Moral Maze; Frank Furedi, professor of sociology, University of Kent, Canterbury; author, Wasted, Politics of Fear and On Tolerance: in defence of moral independence; Clare Gerada, GP; chair, Royal College of General Practitioners; Tom Holland, award-winning historian; author, Rubicon: the triumph and tragedy of the Roman Republic; winner, 2007 Classical Association Prize; Simon Jenkins, columnist, Guardian; chairman, National Trust; author, A short history of England; Irma Kurtz, writer; broadcaster; agony aunt, Cosmopolitan Magazine; author, About Time: growing old disgracefully; Philippe Legrain, advisor to José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission; author, Aftershock: reshaping the world economy after the crisis; Kenan Malik, writer and broadcaster; presenter of Analysis, BBC Radio 4; author, The Quest for the Moral Compass (forthcoming); Paul Mason, broadcaster; author, Financial Meltdown and the End of the Age of Greed; Andy Miah, director, Creative Futures Research Centre, University of West Scotland; Tim Montgomerie, co-editor, Conservative Home; co-founder, ConservativeIntelligence.com; member, advisory board, Centre for Social Justice; Ruth Padel, poet and writer; author Darwin - A Life in Poems; Tariq Ramadan, professor of contemporary Islamic studies, University of Oxford; author,The Quest for Meaning: developing a philosophy of pluralism; Jeffrey Rosen, professor of law, George Washington University; legal affairs editor, The New Republic; author, The Supreme Court: The Personalities and Rivalries that Defined America; Brendan O’Neill, editor, spiked; William Saletan, journalist, Slate; author, Bearing Right: how conservatives won the abortion war; John Sutherland, Emeritus Lord Northcliffe Professor of English Literature, University College London; author, The Lives of the Novelists; George Szirtes, reader in creative writing, UEA; poet; editor; translator; author, The Burning of the Books and Other Poems; Raymond Tallis, author, thirty medical and non-medical books including Aping Mankind: Neuromania, Darwinitis and the Misrepresentation of Humanity; Gáspár Miklos Tamás, visiting professor, Central European University; president, Green Left; author, Les Idoles de la Tribu; Tom Watt, actor, writer and broadcaster: best known as Lofty from EastEnders, David Beckham’s ghostwriter and Fighting Talk’s Champion of Champions 2011; Martin Wolf, associate editor and chief economics commentator, Financial Times; author, Fixing Global Finance; Zoe Williams, columnist, The Guardian; Cathy Young, contributing editor Reason; and many more. Press passes for the weekend are available and a wide range of Battle of Ideas speakers are available for comment. Contact: Patrick Hayes 07782 133399 patrickhayes@instituteofideas.com Notes to editors: 1) The 7 th Battle of Ideas festival weekend is taking place on the weekend of 29-30 October at the Royal College of Art, London. For the full programme and list of confirmed speakers, visit: www.battleofideas.org.uk2) Battle Satellite events are organised with a range of national and international partners taking place throughout October and November. Full details of the programme can be viewed online here: http://www.battleofideas.org.uk/index.php/2011/satellites/ 3) Press passes for all events are available and a wide range of festival speakers are available for media comment on issues being discussed at the Battle of Ideas before and during the event. Contact: patrickhayes@instituteofideas.com 07782 133399 / 020 7269 9222
In Octubre, estare hablar sobre deporte, ética y derecho en Barcelona por el Universidad Pomeu Fabra. Es un conferencia en la escula de derecho y abajo tiene la programa. Within my talk, I will weave in themes about democracy, freedom and the good life...
Presentación: ¿Por qué es importante el deporte para la filosofía del derecho?
Prof. José Luis Pérez Triviño Prof. Titular de Filosofía del Derecho. UPF. 10-10,30 h.
Why Anti-Doping Will Not Last: Bioethics & Sport in an Era of Human Enhancement
Prof. Andy Miah Director Creative Futures Research Centre Chair of Ethics and Emerging Technologies University of the West of Scotland. 10,30-11,30 h.
Las lesiones deportivas y el Derecho Penal
Prof. José Manuel Ríos Corbacho Prof. de Derecho Penal. Universidad de Cádiz. 11,45-12,45 h.
Dopaje y paternalismo
Prof. Claudio Tamburrini Investigador del Centre for Healthcare Ethics. Facultad de Filosofía. Universidad de Estocolmo. 12,45-13,45 h.
thumbnail image by Andy Miah, Iraq 2003 protest in Barcelona
The Olympics, Doping and the Meaning of Sport: Performance enhancement technologies and the changing boundaries of human natureDate: Wednesday 5 October 2011, 6:30pm to 8:30pm Venue: The Millenium Room, The Carriageworks, Millennium Square, Leeds
Speakers: Dr David James, Professor Andy Miahand Professor Jim Parry
£5 waged/£3 unwaged on the door
With only a few months remaining before the London 2012 Olympic Games, British athletes are preparing hard in pursuit of a record haul of medals. To help them better the 47 won at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, an army of coaches, doctors and psychologists is at hand, along with a thriving sports technology industry, all backed by an unprecedented level of public and private investment.
National ambitions aside, we all want to see exceptional performances from the world's best athletes, such as Usain Bolt’s record-smashing sprints. Yet sometimes we are uneasy when athletes shatter old records, fearing it is artificial aids, and not the athlete’s individual effort, that accounts for the achievement. We seem to be hanging in a precarious balance between expecting a superhuman performance and fearing the crossing of nature’s boundaries.
When particular technologies have been 'too successful', such as Graeme Obree’s bicycle and riding position, or polyurethane-coated swimsuits, they have been banned for giving an unfair advantage. Some, like Rebecca Adlington refused to use the new swimsuits for ethical reasons even before they were banned, claiming they are a form of ‘technological doping’. And with such high stakes to play for and constant advances in medicine, the temptation of actual chemical doping looms as large as ever, and it is hard to demarcate precisely the line between legitimate medical treatment and unfair artificial advantage.
Many take such a hard line against doping, calling for life bans from the Olympics for athletes like Dwain Chambers, who has long served his sentence. Others point out that sport is a very unnatural pursuit, and the intensity of training and competition has become such that no doping techniques are as dangerous for the athlete’s body as the sport itself, many ‘doping’ techniques being necessary to restore the athletes’ body to a healthy state. Some argue that, as enhancement technologies become part of everyday life and the line between medicine and body enhancement is blurred, it will become increasingly difficult to keep them out of sport. They believe we should allow all sorts of enhancement technologies provided they are safe.
So where should we draw the line between the artificial and the natural in sport, between effective sports equipment and ‘technological doping’, between legitimate medical therapies and illegitimate, performance enhancement treatments, between the struggle to excel and the need to have fair and balanced competition, between the urge to go beyond the boundaries of human nature and the fear of losing our humanity?
On 6th October I will chair the launch of Professor Steve Fuller's new book 'Humanity 2.0'. Find below the brief for this sold out event:
How will we ascribe status to human life in a ‘post-human’ world? Should we take post-humanism seriously? If so, how do we define and value our humanity in the face of a future that will only otherwise confer advantage on the few? As we re-engineer the human body, and even human genome, are we attempting to realize dreams that hitherto have been largely pursued as social-engineering projects or are we doing something new?
From traders and dreamers to technogeeks and philosophers, whose ideologies run the gamut from collectivism to libertarianism, a large constituency is already engaged with our enhanced future. This constituency may radically reconfigure the global political space.
The RSA gathers a high-profile panel of speakers to explore the hidden agendas behind our values and attitudes toward the place of ‘the human’ in today’s societies, and debate what must now be a key issue for the 21st century.
Speakers: Professor Steve Fuller, Auguste Comte Chair in Social Epistemology, the Department of Sociology, the University of Warwick and author of 'Humanity 2:0'; Dr Rachel Armstrong, Senior TED Fellow and co-director, AVATAR (Advanced Virtual and Technological Architectural Research) in Architecture & Synthetic Biology, The School of Architecture & Construction, University of Greenwich; China Miéville, author of several works of fiction and non-fiction; and Sarah Chan, Research Fellow in Bioethics and Law, University of Manchester.
Artist John O'Shea is a dear friend and a great young artist whose latest work is titled 'Pigs Bladder Football'. I Chaired a debate during the #ANDfest about 'Fanaticism' inspired by his work. I also took part in making a pigs bladder football, while also doing reasonably well in keepy uppies, captured in this stunning action shot ;)
Find below a few shots from the weekend:
The game of Pigs Bladder Football
The shop on boldstreet
John getting things ready
Inflating the bladder
John working on a podcast
During the #ANDfest we had a Hacks and Hackers meeting run by ScraperWiki. Participants spent the day developing a story and scraping data to support it. This was an important step forward for #media2012. Here are some photos from the day.
Another #ANDfest passes, another weekend of great art/film/digital/networking/speaking etc. Here's a glimpse of my weekend. A lot is omitted from what took place, but this is what fell in front of my lens.
Mike Stubbs opening speech
Opening Night performance at Black-E, THE MODES OF AL-IKSEER, Harminder Singh Judge
Bicycle powered popcorn
Small Cinema in China Town
AND Salon with link to #Rewire conference
David Shrigley 'tattoo event'
Pigs Bladder Football with John O'Shea
Zee exhibition at FACT
#media2012 Hacks & Hackers day with ScraperWiki
CFPs 4th International Conference on the Histories of Media Art, Science and TechnologyLiverpool (2010, sep28-oct1) @UWScreative partner
From September 16-17, I was one of the invited speakers at 'Brain Gear' a conference on neurodevices and neurosocieties organized by the University of Groningen, Netherlands in conjunction with the European Neuroscience and Society Network.
Here's a link to more info and heres' the brief:
Brain Gear
Discussing the design and use of neurodevices in neurosocieties
[Click here for a PDF of the text below]
What are the implications of brain-changing instruments that change our individual and collective self-image? Does their rise imply a fundamental change in the meaning of human life and should societies rethink fundamental concepts of justice and responsibility?
Various kinds of braindevices are in the making or already available. Firstly, there are implantable ones such as instruments for deep brain stimulation (DBS), epidural cortical stimulation (EpCS), vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) and on a molecular leven neuronanotubes.
Secondly, there are external devices including apparatus for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) or repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS).
And, thirdly, there are digital tools like ambient intelligence (wireless microprocessors integrated in the body or the environment like clothes and walls), ‘digital drugs’ (audio files giving people a high) or software programs for neurobio-feedback built into computers as well as ‘neury bears’ (teddy bears training children’s brainwaves through sounds).
While many welcome this kind of apparatus as ways to eradicate the woes and inconveniences of human life, others fear they will cause a loss of human dignity and freedom. Do such devices blur old distinctions between ‘human beings’ versus ‘things’ or ‘nature’ versus ‘nurture’? Or were these untenable distinctions anyway? Do they imply fundamental changes because they operate directly on the brain or are they not that different from more traditional means of enhancement like cars, contact lenses, or microphones?
Chemical technologies inducing neurobiological changes are already widely in use. Maybe arguments about psychopharmacological changes of our selves can be directly applied to non-chemical molecular technologies. The analogy brings debates to mind about safety and efficacy, and the regulation of admission to the market. In addition, fundamental issues about individual freedom and responsibility also rise. Will the same social pressures that encourage people to use psychopharmacological drugs from childhood on make them use brain changing apparatus from childhood on? What to think of electric devices to boost children’s learning abilities?
Such debates unavoidably revolve around questions about the nature of responsibility. A number of neuroscientists argue these days that such concepts are superseded notions from the past, since the mind is nothing more than what the brain causes us to do. If so, it would not make a difference if the already material mind is extended with material hardware or software.
If ‘my brain made me do it’ my technologically enhanced brain made me do it no less. Legal philosophers however, argue that neurobiology can never have an impact on our notions of free will and responsibility since such notions do not need a non-material basis. Would that imply that we remain as responsible for our enhanced brain as we are for our non-enhanced brains?
These and related questions will be discussed during the workshop from various perspectives. Each in their own way scientists, sociologists, ethicists and artists will express their views and expectations.
The conference takes place on September 15 and 16 (departure September 17) 2011 in the artists’ center at The Palace in Groningen (www.hetpaleisgroningen.nl).
The University of Groningen offers a satellite program on Monday September 12 and a debate on Wednesday September 14 (http://studium.hosting.rug.nl).
Here is my talk:
This week I gave a a keynote lecture at The Sports Leisure & Marketing Conference & Workshop 'Examining the global impact of the Olympics', taking place in Northampton on July 13th. The focus of my talk was new media, which reminded me of this Olympic pin from Sydney 2000 - still the coolest pin out there!
Here is my presentation"
Here are more details about the event.
Description: The University of Northampton, together with The Academy of Marketing and the Chartered Institute of Marketing, presents the The Sports Leisure & Marketing Conference & Workshop 'Examining the global impact of the Olympics'. This event is a uniquely designed forum for debate & discussion surrounding the impact of the London Olympics in 2012 and the burgeoning field of Sports Leisure and Marketing. Category: Event Host(s): Alan Seymour Contact Phone: 01604 892036 Contact E-mail: business@northampton.ac.uk Starts On: 13 Jul 2011 09:00 AM GMT Ends On: 13 Jul 2011 04:00 PM GMT Begin Registration: 04 May 2011 09:00 AM GMT End Registration: 06 Jul 2011 09:00 AM GMT Location: Park Campus Address: The University of Northampton Park Campus Boughton Green Road Northampton NN2 7AL Details/Directions: For full directions to Park Campus, please visit www.northampton.ac.uk/findus
This retro conference took place at Warwick University on June 18-19 and was a real blast, with many of the the old guard of the cyberculture years returning to Warwick to revisit the Internet era. I gave one of the plenary talks and enjoyed meeting new people whom i've read for many years and catching up with some familiar folk. There was a lot of discussion about the intersections of biology and digital technology and my talk was titled 'There's nothing virtual about the future' and addressed the way in which life online has been theorized as non-space. Here's a link to the website and here's the prezi talk. My laptop died on the way to the conference, so an analogue/digital love story was inevitable...
Photos from the event
Today's event at @CheltSciFest was a blast #cheltscifest. I focused my talk around my 5 categories of human enhancement. Here's the prezi. Great discussion.
Claims that Craig Venter ‘created life’ may have been overblown, but humans can now go beyond tinkering with genetics and build a new organism from components. How is this possible – and how should we approach our new-found powers? Adam Rutherford, ethicist Andy Miah and social scientist Jane Calvert tackle the tricky ethical questions thrown up by what some would call an extension of biology and others suspect is ‘playing God’. To coincide with a Nuffield Council on Bioethics consultation on emerging biotechnologies, this debate at the Cheltenham Science Festival will consider the ethical issues raised by synthetic biology. Adam Rutherford, ethicist Andy Miah and social scientist Jane Calvert (member of the Nuffield Council Working Party on emerging biotechnologies) tackle the tricky ethical questions thrown up by what some would call an extension of biology and others suspect is ‘playing God’.
Here's a copy of my presentation:
Biographies
Following a degree in evolutionary biology Adam Rutherford completed a PhD in the genetics of the eye. Now Adam is an editor of science journal Nature. Adam recently presented BBC4 series “Cell” covering 4 billion years of evolution from the very first cell to the future of life itself.
Andy Miah is Director of the Creative Futures Research Centre within the Faculty of Business and Creative Industries at the University of the West of Scotland. His research focuses on questions concerning the future of humanity and which require transdisciplinary research solutions.
Jane Calvert is a social scientist and Research Fellow at the University of Edinburgh, based in the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Innogen Centre. Jane's broad area of research is the sociology of the life sciences.
photographs from Leicester's Community Media week, where I gave a brief overview of the East Midland's role in #media2012. great day.