Book Talk: ‘Digital Dreams Have Become Nightmares: What We Must Do’ — A Call To Action

The University of Toronto Department of Computer Science and the Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society invite you to join Professor Emeritus Ronald Baecker as he delves into his latest book, Digital Dreams Have Become Nightmares: What We Must Do.

An internationally recognized innovator, author, speaker, teacher and mentor, Professor Emeritus Ronald Baecker co-founded the Dynamic Graphics Project (DGP) and founded the Knowledge Media Design Institute (KMDI) and the Technologies for Aging Gracefully lab (TAGlab).

In this talk, Baecker will give a broad overview of the progress made in digital technologies over the last 80 years and the challenges that have arisen by bad actors subverting the creation of digital systems for ill-advised uses, such as hate speech and disinformation, and adverse effects including industry disruption, abuse of market dominance, mental distress, loss of privacy, and poor security and safety. He will focus especially on artificial intelligence, a technology of great potential for human betterment that may be negated by harms that arise when it is deployed before it is reliable and safe. Baecker’s talk will pivot to a positive call to action by exploring how digital technology students and professionals can help steer computer applications towards the service of good.