At once bewildered and terrified, here we enter the age of artificial intelligence (AI). Can this new technology be the solution to all problems plaguing our societies? Or will it be the Pandora's Box? As heated discussions around AI take place around the world, this course will examine the deeper history of mechanizing the human mind. Students will explore the first attempts to build calculating machines, the origins of the information age that started much earlier than the invention of computers, the cybernetic revolution that transformed the meaning of the human, and the politics that drove the desire to invent the first artificial intelligence. We will collectively ponder the past of AI to see what the future holds.
Course Attributes: AS HUM; EN H