Can a mobile phone motivate you to exercise? Does instant feedback on petrol use change how people drive? Do online rating systems inspire people to behave better online? Can a computer express emotions? Can a computer have a mind? The answers to these and many more questions will come under the spotlight at a prestigious symposium being held in Aberdeen next month.
The world's oldest Artificial Intelligence Society, the Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and Simulation of Behaviour (AISB), will hold its annual convention in the Granite City and preparations for this significant event are well underway.
The 2008 convention has the theme Communication, Interaction and Social Intelligence, and is being organised by the University of Aberdeen. This represents the return of the convention to Scotland after a nine year absence.
The AISB is being held on April 1-4, 2008 and technical papers and posters have now been selected for presentation. The convention is an annual event organised as a number of symposia along with invited plenary talks and poster sessions.
Delegates are expected to be attending from the UK, the Americas, Australia and from across Europe.
Drs Frank Guerin and Wamberto Vasconcelos, of the University of Aberdeen's Computing Science Department, are the Convention Chairs. Dr Guerin said: "As the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) matures, AI systems begin to take their place in human society as our helpers. AI technologies are working behind the scenes in the Internet applications we are all familiar with, as well as becoming embedded in consumer electronics, whether worn on the body, used in the home or in vehicles. It becomes essential for AI systems to have sophisticated social abilities to communicate and interact, and so to effectively support us in our activities.
"All of this underscores the importance of communication, interaction and social intelligence in current Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science research. In addition to providing a home for state-of-the-art research in specialist areas, next month's convention also aims to provide suitable ground for new collaborations to be forged between complementary areas."
Symposium topics include the role of virtual creatures in a computerised society; brain signals being used to improve computer interfaces; computer games (logic and the simulation of interaction and reasoning); forensic analysis of text (creative generation and identification of authorship); and asking the age-old questions about the nature of the mind and consciousness, which are at the intersection of computing and philosophy.
Dr Vasconcelos added: "It is great to see the University of Aberdeen associated with the prestigious AISB Convention. This demonstrates our strong commitment to and support for, computer science and artificial intelligence and the impact on all our lives.
"Major events such as the 2008AISBConvention are extremely important to us and they provide an opportunity for us to further strengthen our engagement with key players in this rapidly changing area."
The AISB 2008 Convention is inviting the world's computer science policy makers, scientists, engineers, and technologists to come to Aberdeen to discuss the challenges and perspectives for research in the area. The event gives excellent insight in the area to be used to define policies and strategies for research and development.
There will be a "Best Student Paper" award, with a £250 prize, which will be awarded at a public lecture being held on Thursday April 3 at the University's Elphinstone Hall. The event, 'The rise of the machines; when artificial intelligence takes its place in society' will begin at 6pm. The event will look at trying to make computers act and think like humans, and the consequences for society.
Registration and costs can be viewed at: www.aisb.org.uk/convention/aisb08/registration.html