How Did the Computer Learn to See?
Humanities Council New York University
October 12, 2017 · 4:30 pm—6:00 pm · 010 East Pyne
On Thursday, October 12, the Humanities Council will host the first lecture in a new, six-part, year-long speaker series about the field of Media Studies, Positions and Prospects, organized by Devin Fore (German). Alexander R. Galloway, New York University, will address the question “How Did the Computer Learn to See?”
Abstract
How did the computer learn to see? A common response is that the computer learned to see from cinema and photography—that is, from modernity’s most highly evolved technologies of vision. In this talk we will explore a different response to the question: that the computer learned to see not from cinema but from sculpture. With reference to the work of contemporary artists, along with techniques for digital image compression, we will explore the uniquely computational way of seeing the world.
Speaker
Alexander R. Galloway is a writer and computer programmer working on issues in philosophy, technology, and theories of mediation. A professor in the Department of Media, Culture, and Communication at New York University, Galloway is the author of several books, most recently a monograph on the work of François Laruelle.
Sponsored by the Humanities Council.
