2/6/2001 6p Computer History Lecture: David Stork on "Hal's Legacy and the Vision of 2001: A Space Odyssey"
Dag Spicer
The Computer Museum History Center is delighted to present:
The HAL 9000 Computer
and the Vision of 2001: A Space Odyssey
David G. Stork
Chief Scientist
Ricoh Silicon Valley's California Research Center,
Consulting Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering Stanford University
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, February 6, 2001
Moffett Training and Conference Center
(Building 3)
Moffett Federal Airfield
Mountain View, CA
7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Reception at the History Center's
Visible Storage Exhibit Area
(Bldg 126)
Moffett Federal Airfield
ABSTRACT OF TALK:
2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke's 1968 epic
film about space exploration and the evolution of intelligence, was the
most carefully researched and scientifically precise feature film ever
made. Now, in its namesake year, we can compare the film's computer science
"visions" with current technological fact -- in particular those related to
its central character, the HAL 9000 computer, which could speak, reason,
see, play chess, plan and express emotions.
In some domains reality has surpassed the vision in the film: computer
chess, computer hardware, and graphics. In numerous others, reality has
fallen far short: computer speech, language, vision, lip-reading, planning,
and common sense. The film missed some trends entirely: the film showed no
laptops or PDAs and HAL as large as a school bus but in reality computers
instead got small. As such, the film provides a remarkable perspective on
the sweep of developments in the modern era of computer technology.
This non-technical talk is profusely illustrated with clips from 2001 and
current research and sheds new light on key moments of the film. You will
never see the film the same way again.
BACKGROUND ON SPEAKER:
David G. Stork is Chief Scientist at Ricoh Silicon Valley's California
Research Center and Consulting Associate Professor of Electrical
Engineering at Stanford University. His most recent books include HAL's
Legacy: 2001's computer as dream and reality (MIT Press) and Pattern
Classification (2nd ed.) by R. O. Duda, P. E. Hart and D. G. Stork (Wiley).
He is the creator of "2001: HAL's Legacy," a forthcoming television
documentary for PBS television.
RSVP: By Friday, February 2, 2001.
Reservations Required. Contact Wendy-Ann Francis at
fra...@computerhistory.org or +1 650 604 5205 .
The Museum collection is temporarily housed within a closed Federal
facility. All guests must register in advance to be admitted.
When you RSVP, please provide:
US citizens: Full name, affiliation, address, phone number. Please bring
your picture ID.
Green Card holders: Same requirements as for US citizens above plus Green
Card number. Please bring your Green Card.
Non-US citizens: Same requirements as for US citizens above plus
citizenship, VISA type and expiration date, passport number and expiration
date, date of birth, and country of birth. Please bring your passport.
DIRECTIONS: http://mtcc.arc.nasa.gov/directions.html
EVENT URL: http://www.computerhistory.org/events/lectures/stork_02062001/
*** There is still time to register for our lecture tomorrow (January 23)
by Burton Smith. If you wish to attend, please call Wendy-Ann ASAP. Event
URL for this lecture:
http://www.computerhistory.org/events/lectures/smith_01232001/ ***
--
Dag Spicer
Curator & Manager of Historical Collections
Editorial Board, IEEE Annals of the History of Computing
The Computer Museum History Center
Building T12-A
NASA Ames Research Center
Mountain View, CA 94035
Tel: +1 650 604 2578
Fax: +1 650 604 2594
E-m: spi...@computerhistory.org
WWW: http://www.computerhistory.org
For the latest news, check out CORE 1.4, our on-line newsletter at:
http://www.computerhistory.org/events/core/1.4/
<spi...@computerhistory.org> PGP: 15E31235 (E6ECDF74 349D1667 260759AD
7D04C178)
"All of human history, adequately examined, in the end is the history of
better tools."
Ernst Kapp, 1877
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