Scholars in the Square
Centre for Studies in Religion and Society
Oct 3rd, 5:00 - 6:00
Dr. Martin Adam
Join us online: uvic.ca/csrs/events
AI Buddhas and Other Delusions along the Techno-Enthusiast Path to the Future
Can artificial general intelligence attain a degree of complexity sufficient to become conscious? Might machines one day be properly recognized as ethical agents? Drawing insights from within a Theravada Buddhist theoretical framework, I argue that there are good reasons to think that neither consciousness nor virtue can be instantiated in a machine environment--even in principle--and that there are very serious collective dangers in thinking otherwise.
Martin Adam is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pacific and Asian Studies at UVic. His present research centres on Buddhist Ethics and theories of consciousness in relation to AI.
Lansdowne Guest Lecturer
Religion and spirituality are not something we have (or do not have), they are something we do
Our commonsense ways of recognising and talking about ‘religion’ and ‘spirituality’ are problematic. Looking at phenomena as varied as rock music, meditation, and the asylum process, I argue that religion and spirituality are not something institutions or individuals possess but are rather constantly co-created and recreated in human interaction. In this lecture, I reflect on the ways our conventional understandings of ‘religion’ and ‘spirituality’ sometimes hinder rather than help us understand the world.
Dr. Titus Hjelm is a professor in the Study of Religion at the Department of Cultures, University of Helsinki.
Thursday, 24th October, 5:00 pm
David Turipin Building, Rm A110
Brought to you by both the RCS program and the Centre for Studies in Religion and Society.