This year's venue is Magdalene College (pronounced "maudlin"), Cambridge, England. On the banks of the River Cam, Magdalene is a mediaeval building, dating from 1428, and was the alma mater of Samuel Pepys, whose library is housed in the college. Pepys (who was a contemporary of Isaac Newton) looks down at us from the wall of the ancient dining hall, where electricity has never been installed and dinner is served by candlelight. A perfect location for intense round-table discussions and creative thought! 
Conference accommodation is provided in the college itself, which also has secluded gardens just right for informal group conversations. Just across the river are CyberLife's offices, where the technology starved will find email, technology demonstration facilities and the other comforts of modern life.
Programme
The spirit of Digital Biota 2 is lively, provocative discussion, rather than an unending series of stagnant presentations. We are fortunate to have guest presenters to stimulate each discussion drawn from a range of backgrounds, from both academia and industry.
Evening dinner lectures are provided by eminent guest speakers, with a keynote on the first night delivered by the world-renowned scientist, lecturer and author Richard Dawkins, Professor for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University.
| Day |
Time |
Event |
Speaker |
Title |
|
| Thursday, |
15:00 |
Registration and Official Conference Treasure Hunt |
| September 10th |
18:45 |
Welcome |
Steve Grand |
|
|
19:00 |
Keynote |
Richard Dawkins |
The view from real life |
|
|
|
(Evening sponsored by Coopers and Lybrand) |
|
20:00 |
Dinner |
|
21:30 |
Discussion and Relaxation |
|
|
|
Friday,
|
9:00 |
Talk |
Steve Grand |
Where Newton went wrong |
| September 11th |
9:45 |
Talk |
Bruce Damer |
How and why is life trying to get into digital space? |
|
10:30 |
Coffee |
|
|
|
11:00 |
Talk |
Richard Harris |
Uses and function of Artificial Life |
|
11:45 |
Talk |
Sue Wilcox |
State of the art - a summary |
|
12:30 |
Lunch |
|
|
|
13:30 |
Talk |
Larry Yaeger |
The evolution of life and intelligence |
|
14:15 |
Talk |
Tom Ray |
Digital biospheres |
|
15:00 |
Reception, Demonstrations and Tea, sponsored by Scientific Generics |
|
17:00 |
Relaxation |
|
|
|
19:00 |
Dinner |
|
|
|
20:30 |
Debate |
Douglas Adams |
|
|
Saturday,
|
9:00 |
Talk |
Demetri Terzopoulos |
Artificial Animals |
| September 12th |
9:45 |
Talk |
T.B.A. |
|
|
10:30 |
Coffee |
|
|
|
11:00 |
Talk |
Steven Rooke |
Symbiogenesis |
|
11:45 |
Talk |
Aaron Sloman |
What sorts of brains can support what sorts of minds? |
|
12:30 |
Lunch |
|
|
|
13:30 |
Talk |
Chris Winter |
Analogue: the 2nd coming |
|
14:15 |
Talk |
Gordon Selley and Jane Prophet |
Technosphere |
|
15:00 |
Tea |
|
|
|
15:30 |
Social event - Punting on the River Cam |
|
18:30 |
Keynote |
Maggie Boden |
The Social Implications of Artificial Life |
|
19:30 |
Dinner |
|
|
|
Sunday,
September 13th |
9:00 |
Talk |
Rudy Rucker |
Artificial life and science fiction |
|
9:45 |
Talk |
Stuart Gold |
Architecting Cyberspace |
|
10:30 |
Coffee |
|
|
|
11:00 |
Closing Keynote |
Chris Langton |
Summing up |
|
12:00 |
Thanks |
Bruce Damer/
Steve Grand |
|
|
12:30 |
Lunch |
|
|
|
Printable version of this website
