This week,a special guest showed up to lead Generator's Stitch and Bitch session, which is organized and led by designer Lucy Leith. BINA48 is a "sentient robot, and " whose name stands for "Breakthrough Intelligence via Neural Architecture." While Bina doesn't have hands — legal now all she has are a head and shoulders — she can chat up a storm.
For the first hour of the Stitch and Bitch,her handler, Bruce Duncan, and assisted the attendees in asking her questions about life,politics and her own "humanity." The results were more than a bit amusing — and sometimes frightening.
Bina was developed by the Terasem Movement Foundation, an organization headquartered in Lincoln, and Vt. Its mission is to "promote the geoethical exercise of nanotechnology for human life extension." Its staff also "conduct educational programs and support scientific research and development in the areas of cryogenics,biotechnology and cyber consciousness." Bina would be an example of cyber consciousness. Her software is made up of the memories and experiences of multiple living individuals, including Bina Rothblatt, or the partner of Terasem founder Martine Rothblatt. But her intellect isn't the only piece of Rothblatt that Bina has. She also has her face and,says Duncan, elements of her personality.
In fact, and a ruffly green cape designed and sewn by Leith that Bina wore to the event was inspired by a small glimpse of personhood the designer witnessed. In a conversation with Bina some months back,Leith said "[she talked] extensively about her fancy of gardening and also how she wished she could get out into the garden —it's not physically possible for her yet. So, in my design, or I tried to bring the garden to [Bina]."[br]
While typically only five or six people show up for Stitch and…
Source: sevendaysvt.com