Control Factor

Disaster scenarios in cinema go something like this: with scientific understanding comes the ability to control and, hence, to lose control. We are punished for our knowledge. But can good science make a good narrative? What if robots or viruses helped humanity, instead of wiping it out? Is there better living through brain chemistry? Dr. Angela Belcher (professor of materials science and engineering and biological engineering at MIT) , moderator Tracy Day (cofounder and executive director of the World Science Festival), anthropological biologist Dr. Helen Fisher (author of Why We Love), biologist Dr. Robert Full (professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley), Gwyn Lurie (cowriter of The Music Never Stopped), (Alex Rivera (Sleep Dealer), and Jake Schreier (Robot and Frank) explore the limits of control and the positive potential of engineering our future. Supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.