Author Panel: What Happens When AI, Science, and Fiction Are in Dialogue?

A conversation with authors in the new issue of Dædalus about how artificial intelligence intersects with narrative, science, and humanity. Join the American Academy of Arts & Sciences for the official in-person release of the latest issue of Dædalus! Dædalus is a quarterly, academic journal published by The MIT Press on behalf of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. This panel will bring together authors featured in the Dædalus issue to discuss how artificial intelligence intersects with narrative, scientific discovery, and human meaning across science, literature, and technology. Rather than viewing AI strictly through a technical lens, the panelists will examine what happens when speculative fiction, scientific rigor, and AI capability sit at the same table. Panelists include: • Daniela Rus, MIT Panasonic Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, will provide opening remarks and moderate the conversation. • Holly Case, Professor of History at Brown University and Deputy Director at the Data Science Institute, and Rick Moody, novelist, short story writer and Professor of the Practice in the School of the Arts and Sciences and in the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University. will be our two panelists in conversation for the evening. • Joanna Scott, Professor of English at the University of Rochester will provide closing remarks alongside David Leavitt, fiction writer, biographer, Professor of English at the University of Florida, and Founder and Editor of the literary journal Subtropics. Event Details • 5:30 PM: Doors Open – Grab a drink from the Lovestruck Bar & Cafe, settle in, and get ready for a great discussion! • 6:00 PM: Panel Discussion Begins – Hear from Daniela, Holly, Rick, Joanna and David. • 6:45 PM: Q&A Session – Your chance to ask the authors about this issue of Dædalus! • 7:00 PM: Mix and Mingle – Chat with the panelists and other event guests! Swap opinions and insights on artificial intelligence or shop the store. • 8:00 PM: Event Wraps Up – Thanks for joining us! Tickets are limited, so grab yours soon! If the event sells out, you can join the Eventbrite waitlist by selecting “Reserve a spot” followed by “Join Waitlist”. Should any spots open up, you’ll have 24 hours to register before we offer it to the next person. Accessibility Check-in will take place at our front entrance on Brattle Street. If you have any accessibility needs, you're welcome to use our side entrance (located on the right side of the building), which is wheelchair accessible and has a ramp. Guests who would benefit from priority seating or any additional assistance are encouraged to reach out in advance — just email us at [email protected]. We're more than happy to make arrangements to ensure you feel comfortable and supported. We’re always learning and looking for ways to make our events more accessible. If you have suggestions or feedback, we’d love to hear from you! About Dædalus Journal Dædalus is a quarterly, academic journal published by The MIT Press on behalf of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.Representing the intellectual community in its breadth and diversity, Dædalus explores the frontiers of knowledge and issues of public importance. Dædalus was founded in 1955 and established as a quarterly in 1958. The journal’s namesake was renowned in ancient Greece as an inventor, scientist, and unriddler of riddles. Its emblem, a maze seen from above, symbolizes the aspiration of its founders to “lift each of us above his cell in the labyrinth of learning in order that he may see the entire structure as if from above, where each separate part loses its comfortable separateness.” Drawing on the enormous intellectual capacity of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, whose members are among the world’s most prominent thinkers in the sciences, humanities, arts, and social sciences, as well as the professions and public life, each issue of Dædalus features multidisciplinary, authoritative essays centered on a theme or subject. About The Panelists Rick Moody is a novelist and short story writer. He is also Professor of the Practice in the School of the Arts and Sciences and in the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University. His books include Hotels of North America (2015), On Celestial Music: And Other Adventures in Listening (2012), and Demonology: Stories (2000). Holly Case is Professor of History at Brown University, where she is also a Deputy Director at the Data Science Institute. She is the author of The Age of Questions: Or, A First Attempt at an Aggregate History of the Eastern, Social, Woman, American, Jewish, Polish, Bullion, Tuberculosis, and Many Other Questions over the Nineteenth Century, and Beyond (2018) and Between States: The Transylvanian Question and the European Idea during WWII (2009). She has written on European history, literature, politics, and ideas for various maga-zines and newspapers, including The Guardian, London Review of Books, The Chronicle Review, Aeon, The Nation, Dissent, The Times Literary Supplement, Eurozine, and Boston Review. Daniela Rus, a Member of the American Academy since 2017, is the MIT Panasonic Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is also a Fellow of the National Academy of Engineering. She has published in Nature, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Science, and in professional journals such as International Journal of Robotics Research and IEEE Transactions on Robotics. Joanna Scott, a Member of the American Academy since 2001, is the Roswell Smith Burrows Professor of English at the University of Rochester. Her novels include Careers for Women (2017), De Potter’s Grand Tour (2014), Follow Me (2009), Liberation (2005), Tourmaline (2003), and Make Believe (2000). She is also the author of the short fiction collections Excuse Me While I Disappear (2021), Everybody Loves Somebody (2006), and Various Antidotes (1994). Lovestruck Books & Cafe is a Romance Bookstore and cafe in Harvard Square. Visit our website to sign up for our newsletter and be the first to know about events and other news. The Lovestruck Bar & Cafe is a cozy corner for settling in with a novel, sharing cheese & charcuterie over a glass of wine, grabbing a coffee before browsing the shelves, or treating yourself to something sweet. PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEO Your presence at the Lovestruck Books & Cafe event acknowledges that you have been informed of the potential to be documented as part of a video or photo release, and that you grant permission for your likeness to be included in publication of any footage.