Tom Sgouros has written and performed eight solo shows (almost all of which have premiered at Providence's Perishable Theatre). He has toured North America and Europe with Judy for five years, performing at over 50 different universities, and some theatres besides. His work has been funded by the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, the Rhode Island Committee on the Humanities, and the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie-Mellon University.

For more information on Tom Sgouros' work link to http://sgouros.com/.

Sponsored by the Center for Ethics

"Since the dawn of the computer age, oceans of ink have been spilt writing about the intelligence of computers. Some researchers say that computers will eventually attain super-human intelligence. Others call these claims poppycock. Oddly, in the search for the truth of the matter, both camps have overlooked an obvious strategy: interviewing a computer and asking its opinion. Intrepid researcher Sgouros has leapt into this lacuna, and presents some preliminary findings in a new not-quite-solo show. (You could call it "My Dinner with Android.") The central question is: if you build a robot smart enough to do the dishes, will it also be smart enough to find them boring?"

Sgouros arrives with a full-fledged robot ready to engage in dialogue with him, and the play lasts about 90 minutes. This play has received extremely favorably reviews over the past couple years since Sgouros began performing it at campuses and similar venues.

Judy herself was built in Tom's basement, over the course of several months, from pieces of some old computers, a couple of bicycles, a copy machine, marine stove, and yes, someone's kitchen sink. After literally weeks of intensive tutoring in phonics, elocution, and the elements of logic, Judy made her public debut in January, 2000, at Providence's Perishable Theatre.

Prof. Daniel Dennett of Tufts University had this to say about the show:

"Tom Sgouros's witty play, co-starring the charming robot Judy, is an imagination-stretcher that delights while it exercises your mind. If you think you can't imagine a conscious robot, you're wrong -- you can, especially once you've met Judy."

An Academic and Family Production Everyone will enjoy!
May 13, 2008 @ 7:30 P.M.
Wilson Hall, Room 126 (Google map of this location)
Free and Open to the Public