AI Simulations and Literary Fictions

ogólnouniwersyteckie

The only prerequisite is to be able to do the readings in English. The written work will be done either in English or Polish, according to the individual choice of the student (students are also welcome to do their written work in French if they wish to do so).

Unless they receive my specific permission within the framework of a Research Project, students are not allowed to submit material generated by ChatGPT or any other Large Language Model. They can use ChatGPT for editorial purposes of the work they wrote themselves, on the condition however that they specify in writing the extent of ChatGPT use and provide the prompt as well as the original version of their work they submitted to ChatGPT.

The goal of the seminar is to trace the differences between AI simulation and literary fiction.

Computer games immerse us in virtual reality, while films and novels transport us into worlds projected on movie screens and described on printed pages. Generative AI converses with us using the same natural language that is used by fictional characters dialoguing in a novel. Besides the obvious differences in media technology – for instance, a computer screen vs. a theatrical stage – are there distinct features and modes of reception that differentiate simulations generated by machines from fictions staged and described by humans?

The leading question of the seminar is: how can we differentiate between virtual reality generated by machines and fictional worlds depicted in books and represented on movie screens as well as on theatrical stages?

The concepts under consideration should be understood in broad terms. AI simulation will encompass any computer-generated illusion of reality, from gaming 3D virtual worlds to verbal exchanges with chatbots. Conversely, literary fiction will pertain to poetry, narrative prose, theater, and film. The meeting point of these diverse electronic and analogous media will be the human subject interacting with computers and art. It is within human body and mind, that we will search for differences between computer-generated simulations and literary fictions by studying embodied cognition and interpretative techniques.

The readings of the seminar will be composed of approachable philosophical essays as well as literary and cinematographic works. They will be introduced through short lectures, to provide the basis for philosophical considerations, historical contextualization, and literary interpretation. The readings will be assigned in advance and equipped with indications regarding the issues to be considered while preparing for the seminar discussion. The in-class discussion will be conducted in English and will be closely related to the assigned readings and films viewings. Students will have the option of doing their written work in English, Polish or French.

During the last part of the semester students will be invited to work on their individual (or team) Research Projects. These projects may take the form of research papers or experiments with different electronic and artistic media. The results of Research Projects will be shared among participants of the seminar for peer review.

The course has three main goals:

• To train students’ interpretative skills through reading of philosophical and literary texts (in English) devoted to philosophical conceptualizations of computer simulations and literary fictions.

• To foster a constructive exchange of ideas in an academic setting.

• To promote the students’ original conceptualization of fundamental questions pertaining to the topic of the course.

The goal of this class is not to promote any particular philosophical or ideological agenda.

Plan of the course:

[UNIT 1] Introduction: Meaning and Information

• October 7: Ted Chiang, “The Evolution of Human Science” (2002); Alexander Weinstein, “Children of the New World” (2016)

[UNIT 2] Fictions and Simulations

• October 14: Cord Jefferson, American Fiction (2023)

• October 21: Meghan O’Gieblyn, God, Human, Animal, Machine (2021)

[UNIT 3] Reality and Virtuality

• October 28: David J. Chalmers, Reality +. Virtual Worlds and Problems of Philosophy (2022)

• November 4: Antonin Artaud, The Theater of Cruelty (1932)

[UNIT 4] Person and Object

• November 18: René Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy (1641)

• November 25: Terrence J. Sejnowski, The Deep Learning Revolution (2018)

[UNIT 5] Passion and Action

• December 2: Jean Racine, Phaedra (1677)

• December 9: Michel de Montaigne, “On Practice“ (1580-1595)

[UNIT 6] Life and Death:

• December 16: Tom Stoppard, The Hard Problem (2015)

• January 13: Jordan Harrison, Marjorie Prime (2016)

[UNIT 7] Conclusion:

• January 20: Seminar Symposium

Course Materials: They will be available on the Moodle page of the course. To get access to this webpage, please contact Prof. Miernowski immediately after registering at jmiernow@wisc.edu

[selective]:

- Alizart, Marc, Informatique céleste, Paris, Puf, 2017.

- Andler, Daniel, Intelligence artificielle, intelligence humaine : la double énigme, Paris, Gallimard, 2023.

- Artaud, Antonin, Œuvres, ed. Évelyne Grossman, Paris, Gallimard, 2004.

- Baudrillard, Jean, Simalacra and Simulation, Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press, 1994.

- Bender, Emily, et als, “On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots: Can Language Models Be Too Big?,” FAccT ’21, March 3–10, 2021, Virtual Event, Canada, ACM ISBN 978-1-4503-8309-7/21/03. https://doi.org/10.1145/3442188.3445922

- Brooker, Charlie, Be Right Back, 2013.

- Chabot, Pascal, ChatBot le Robot. Drame philosophique en quatre questions et cinq actes, Paris, Puf, 2016.

- Chalmers, David, Reality +. Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy, Norton, New York, 2022.

- Chalmers, David, The Conscious Mind. In Search of Fundamental Theory, Oxford University Press, 1996.

- Changeux, Jean-Pierre, and Paul Ricoeur, What Makes Us Think? Princeton, Princeton UP, 2000 [1998].

- Chiang, Ted, Stories of Your Life, Vintage Books, New York, 2022.

- Christian, Brian, The Alignment Problem. Machine Learning and Human Values, New York, W. W. Norton, 2020.

- Christian, Brian, The Most Human Human. What Artificial Intelleigence Teaches Us About Being Alive? New York, Anchor Books, 2011.

- Coleman, Flynn, A Human Algorithm. How Artificial Intelligence Is Redefining Who We Are, Berkeley, CA, Couterpoint, 2019.

- Devlin, Kate, Turned On: Science, Sex and Robots, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018.

- Ferraris, Maurizio, Âme et iPad, Montréal, Presses de l’Université de Montréal, 2014 [2011 for the Italian original]

- Ferraris, Maurizio, Where Are You? An Ontology of the Cell Phone, New York, Fordham UP, 2014 [original Italian edition 2009].

- Garland, Alex, Ex Machina, 2015.

- Jonze, Spike, Her, 2013.

- Jonze, Spike, I’m here, 2010.

- Ludlow, Peter et als (ed.), There is Something About Mary. Essays on Phenomenal Consciousness and Frank Jackson’s Knowledge Argument, Cambridge, MA, MIT Press, 2004.

- Harrison, Jordan, Marjorie Prime, New York, Theatre Communication Group, 2016.

- Malabou, Catherine, Métaphormphoses de l’intelligence. Que faire de leur cerveau bleu?, Paris, PUF, 2017.

- Massimini, Marcello and Giulio Tononi, Sizing Up Consciousness. Towards an Objective Measure of the Capacity for Experience, Oxford, Oxford Universiy Press, 2013.

- Metzinger, Thomas, The Ego Tunnel. The Science of the Mind and the Myth of the Self, New York, 2009.

- Minsky, Marvin, The Emotion Machine. Commonsense Thinking, Artificial Intelligence, and the Future of the Human Mind, New York, London, Toronto, Simon and Schuster, 2007.

- Moravec, Hans, Robot. Mere Machine to Transcendent Mind, New York-Oxford, Oxford UP, 1999.

- Nass, Clifford, and Corina Yen, The Man Who Lied to His Laptop, New York, Penguin, 2012.

- Nicole, Pierre, Traité de la comédie et autres pièces d’un procès du théâtre, éd. Laurent Thirouin, Paris, Champion, 1998.

- O’Neill, Kevin, Internet Afterlife. Virtual Salvation in the 21st Century, Santa Barbara-Denver, Praeger, 2016.

- Parmentier, Marc, Archives du virtuel, Paris, Vrin, 2023.

- Parsons, Thomas D., Cyberpsychology of the Brain. The Interaction of Neuroscience and Affective Computing, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2017.

- Picard, Rosalind W., Affective Computing, Cambridge, Massachusetts, The MIT Press, 1997.

- Riva, Massimo, Shadow Plays. Virtual Realities in an Analogue World, Stanford U. Press, 2022. https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=31488

- Seynowski, Terrence J., The Deep Learning Revolution, Cambridge, MA, MIT Press, 2018.

- Soni, Jimmy and Rob Goodman, A Mind at Play. How Claude Shannon Invented the Information Age, Simon and Shuster, New York, 2017.

- Stoppard, Tom, The Hard Problem. A Play, New York, Grove Press, 2015.

- Thirouin, Laurent, L’aveuglement salutaire. Le réquisitoire contre le théâtre dans la France classique, Paris, Champion, 2007.

- Thompson, Erica, Escape from Model Land. How Mathematical Models Can Lead Us Astray and What We Can Do About It, Basic Books, New York, 2022.

- Turing, A. M., “Computing Machinery and Intelligence,” Mind, 236 (59), p. 433-460.

- Zanin, Enrica, “La vraisemblance: un argument contre le théâtre ?” Littératures classiques, 99 (2019), p. 25-27.

MA Student:

K_W02 knows how to use terms used in humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences

K_W04 knows how to use methods of analysis and interpretation of scholarly texts

K_W06 knows how to use various methods of analysis and interpretation of cultural texts and artworks

MA Student:

K_U02 knows how to select and apply specific research tools to analyse artworks, scholarly publications, and visual materials

K_U05 knows how to use interdisciplinary research methods to analyse various cultural phenomena

K_U06 knows how to participate in academic conferences, symposiums, and debates

K_U07 knows how to complete an academic writing assignment using digital solutions and respecting the principles of protection of intellectual property

K_U08 knows how to analyse scholarly publications in the area of humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences in Polish and a foreign language

K_U09 has a good command of a foreign language at the upper-intermediate level

K_U10 knows how to outline and deliver a speech for target audiences

K_U11 understands and knows how to implement the principles of teamwork

MA Student:

K_K03 is competent to carry out a self-appointed task using appropriate solutions and methods

K_K05 is empathetic and respects the cultural diversity of a community

K_K06 respects the cultural and natural heritage of a community

K_K07 respects the cultural and natural diversity of a community

In order to be successful in this class you should:

- read and annotate carefully all the required readings and work on all the required lectures

- participate actively in all the in-class discussions

- strive to develop your own personal interpretation of readings and your own conceptualization of problems under discussion

- respect the deadlines of all the assignments in this course.

The final grade of the course is composed of:

- 50% for the Research Project;

- 30% for quizzes written during the semester. The quizzes will have the form of “take home exams”: the students will have up to 48 hours to complete each quiz and they will be allowed to use any notes or library sources they wish (all sources have to be acknowledged). 3 out of 4 best grades for the quizzes will count toward the final grade.

- 20% for the preparation of readings and film viewings, as demonstrated by the assiduity and the quality of participation in the discussions in class.

The class concludes with a Research Project.