Track: Transhumanism – ISDC

10:00 am - 10:10 am Transhumanism 101 video Karen Mermel Board of directors and Vice President of Development for NSS Natasha Vita-More Professor, University of Advancing Technology; Chairman, Humanity+; and Co-Editor and Author: The Transhumanist Reader 10:10 am - 10:40 am Artificial General Intelligence & Space Development Peter Voss Founder and CEO, Adaptive Artificial Intelligence Inc. Peter Voss is an entrepreneur with a background in electronics, computer systems, business and technical software, as well as management. He has a keen interest in cognitive science and the inter-relationship between philosophy, psychology, ethics and computer science. Since the early 90's he has been researching and developing AGI (artificial general intelligence). In 2001 started Adaptive A.I. Inc., with the express goal of developing a human-level general-purpose AI engine. In addition he founded Smart Action, a commercial company that offers intelligent call automation solutions based on a first-generation AGI engine. More recently he shifted his focus back to longer-term R&D to resume the pursuit of high-level general machine intelligence. Peter is actively involved in futurism, free-market ideas, and extreme life-extension. He envisions a near future where AGI plays a crucial role in helping us more effectively develop space by utilizing intelligent autonomous machines. 10:40 am - 11:00 am The Future of Education for Transhumanism and Space Development Fred Stitt Architect Architect Fred Stitt founded the San Francisco Institute of Architecture in 1990 to provide a new kind of architectural education, to encourage innovation and visionary expression, to advance education in architectural technology and management, and to make a total commitment to green building and sustainable design. His first textbook on ecological design titled The Ecological Design Handbook (McGraw-Hill) was recently translated into Chinese, and is used at universities around the world. His next book, Frank Lloyd Wright Green, describes how Frank Lloyd Wright invented most of what we know as todays green building design methods and technology. Among other awards, Fred received the 2009 Award for his Universal Green Education Initiative from the Sustainable Buildings Industry Council at a Congressional Briefing and Award Ceremony in Washington, DC. 11:00 am - 11:20 am Mainstreaming Transhumanism in Universities and Beyond Kim Solez, MD Professor of Pathology, University of Alberta, and President and CEO, Transpath Inc. Kim Solez, M.D., FRCPC is Professor of Pathology at the University of Alberta, and President and CEO of Transpath Inc., is one of the worlds foremost kidney pathologists and medical Internet leaders. He is a popular blogger on internetevolution.com, and directs NKF cyberNephrology, a joint venture of the National Kidney Foundation (U.S.) and the University of Alberta. Kim has also created many educational videos for the Lifeboat Foundation. Having held leadership roles in medicine and technology for over 20 years and directed major music and arts events, Kim is convinced that very useful cross-fertilization can come from mixing these disciplines. The Canadian poet/singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen called Kim a great master of the surreal, juxtaposing things others would never think of juxtaposing. Kim hopes that by putting things together in new ways he can stimulate people to think about the future and our increasing association with machines and devices in a new and more positive way. Website: https://twitter.com/KimSolez 11:20 am - 11:50 am CryoSpace: Cryopreservation and Suspended Animation for Extended Space Voyages Max More Strategic futurist who writes, speaks, and organizes events about the fundamental challenges of emerging technologies. (Bio)

Max More is an internationally acclaimed strategic futurist who writes, speaks, and organizes events about the fundamental challenges of emerging technologies. Max is concerned that our rapidly developing technological capabilities are racing far ahead of our standard ways of thinking about future possibilities. His work aims to improve our ability to anticipate, adapt to, and shape the future for the better.

Dr. More co-founded and until 2007 acted as Chairman of Extropy Institute, a diverse network of innovative thinkers committed to creating solutions to enduring humanproblems. He authored the Principles of Extropy, which form the core of a transhumanist perspective. As a leading transhumanist thinker, Max strongly challenges traditional, limiting beliefs about the possibilities of our future.

When not working, he can be found at home playing with his cats Quark and Quasar and his dog Oscar. Max is the CEO of Alcor Corporation.

Lunch and Transhumanist Meetup

Jeannie Novak is the Lead Author and Series Editor of Delmar Cengage Learnings widely acclaimed Game Development Essentials series, winner of the 2013 About.com Readers Choice Award), co-author of Play the Game: The Parents Guide to Video Games, and co-author of three pioneering books on the interactive entertainment industryincluding Creating Internet Entertainment. She is Co-Founder of Novy Unlimited and e CEO of Kaleidospace, LLC (d/b/a Indiespace, founded in 1994)where she provides services for corporations, educators, and creative professionals in games, music, film, education, and technology. Jeannie oversees one of the first web sites to promote and distribute interactive entertainment and a game education consulting division that focuses on curriculum development, instructional design, and professional development. Jeannie received an M.A. in Communication Management from USCs Annenberg School, and a B.A.in Mass Communication/Business Administration from UCLA. As Online Program Director for the Game Art & Design and Media Arts & Animation programs at the Art Institute Online, Jeannie produced and designed an educational business simulation game that was built within the Second Life environment. She was a game instructor and curriculum development expert at UCLA Extension, Art Center College of Design, Academy of Entertainment & Technology at Santa Monica College, DeVry University, Westwood College, and ITT Technical Instituteand she has consulted for several educational institutions and developers such as UC Berkeley Center for New Media, Alelo, and GameSalad. More recently, Jeannie has consulted on projects funded by the National Science Foundation and Google for Lehigh Carbon Community College (LCCC) and the University of Southern California (USC) Information Sciences Institute. An active member of the game industry, Jeannie has served as Vice Chair of the International Game Developers Association-Los Angeles (IGDA-LA) and Vice President at Women in Games International (WIGI). She has participated in the Online Gameplay and Connectivity selection committees for the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences DICE awards since 2003 and has developed game workshops, panels, and breakout sessions for events and organizations such as the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX), GDC Next, Macworld Expo, Digital Hollywood, USCs Teaching Learning & Technology Conference, and the Los Angeles Games Conference. She has been profiled in numerous media outletsincluding CNN, Billboard Magazine, Sundance Channel, Daily Variety, and the Los Angeles Times.

John Spencer, M. Arch. is Founder and President of the Space Tourism Society, which he founded in 1995 and who has built a career that balances the design and development professions. He is a pioneer in what we call The Design Frontier. He is a leading expert in creation and design of real space facilities and space ship interiors for NASA and private space enterprise, as well as space and future-themed simulation attractions, resorts, camps, and media for the general public. He is the founder and chief designer of the Space Experience Design Studio (SED). Over $340 million has been invested into building his original space/future themed concepts to date.

Natasha Vita-More is a Professor at the University of Advancing Technology. She has been called an early adapter of revolutionary changes by Wired magazine and a role model for superlongevity by the Village Voice. Natasha is an expert in the field of the emerging technology of human enhancement. Her research combines technology and social narrative, which scholarship covers the social and ethical issues of human futures, including radical life extension, morphological freedom, and identity diversity. Her prototype "Primo Posthuman" (1997) unmasks the probable outcomes of biotechs regenerative media, nanorobotics, and artificial general intelligence. Platform Diverse Body (2012) and Substrate Autonomous Persons (2012) offer insights into how technology diversifies not only human physiology, but issues of identity. Natasha is co-editor and contributing author of the Transhumanist Reader: Classical and Contemporary Essays on the Science, Technology, and Philosophy of the Future Human. Her essays have been published in the journals Nanotechnology Perceptions, Technoetic Arts, Evolution haute couture, Technology Imagination Future, Metaverse Creativity, New Realities: Being Syncretic, Beyond Darwin, AI Society and DARS. Natasha received Special Recognition at Women in Video and has exhibited artistic, design-based works at London Contemporary Art Museum, Niet Normal, Moscow Film Festival, and GOGBOT. She has appeared in more than 24 televised documentaries and featured in Wired, LAWeekly, The New York Times, U.S. News & World Report, Net Business, Teleopolis, and The Village Voice. She is Chairman of Humanity+, Fellow of Institute for Ethics & Emerging Technologies. Website: http://www.natasha.cc

David Reisner has been consulting in entertainment and technology for 25 years. He was a key participant in the motion picture industrys transition from film to digital, requiring high image quality from scene to screen to support both artistic intent and audience experience. He designed the first Very Long Instruction Word computer, co-designed the first highly portable programmable computer, the first popular hand-held video player, did early work on internet-based music and movie distribution and pervasive computing, and trained killer whales. As a member of the Space Dermatology Foundation, he participated in space medicine meetings at Kennedy, Johnson, and Ames. He received a 2014 Academy Award - Technical Achievement and a 2012 Primetime Emmy Engineering Award.

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Track: Transhumanism - ISDC