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Alex Garland: Ex Machina and the Question of Consciousness

Alex Garland: Ex Machina and the Question of Consciousness

Point of Inquiry · Center for Inquiry

May 18, 201532m 28s

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Show Notes

Ex Machina, a new film that tells the story of a billionaire programmer who creates an artificially intelligent female robot, is in theaters now, and its writer and director, Alex Garland, is our special guest on Point of Inquiry this week. Although this is Garland's debut as a director he has also written hit novels such as The Beach as well as written and produced screen plays such as 28 Days Later.

As the power of computers and the software that runs them rapidly advances year by year, the representation of artificial intelligence in sci-fi films like Ex Machina are inching closer and closer to reality. Josh Zepps talks to Garland about the science and philosophy behind consciousness, the future of self-aware machines, and the ethical considerations we’ve barely begun to ponder.