Conversations (Fall 2026)

No lecture, just conversation and pizza.

This series is an opportunity for students across disciplines to talk about timely technology-related topics and the timeless philosophical questions they raise.

Every other Tuesday from 1 - 2pm at the Ahmanson Lab.

Conversation Topics

  • illustration of the light phone 3

    The Light Phone

    & Rethinking Our Devices

    Designed as a response to smartphone overuse and exploitative tech practices, the Light Phone offers the bare minimum of functionality. For between $299 and $699, you can get a phone that does much less. Is it dumb?

    Questions:
    What is your ideal relationship with your phone?
    What exactly is sacrificed on the switch to a “dumb”phone?
    What exactly is gained?
    RSVP - Sept 8, 2026
  • illustration of starship HLS, a rocket ship standing upright on the moon. Astronauts in suits are seen walking on the lunar surface.

    Starship HLS

    & The Goals of Innovation

    Renewed interest in space travel brings up old questions about our goals as a society. New questions emerge as private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin join the cutting edge of astronautics. Starship HLS is the proposed landing system being developed by SpaceX for the Artemis IV crewed mission to the moon.

    Questions:
    Why are we returning to the moon now?
    What do you want out of the advancement of space technologies?
    Is it worth it? Why or why not?
    RSVP - Sept 22, 2026
  • illustration of a disassembled laptop with hands holding a component to install.

    The Framework Laptop

    & The "Right to Repair"

    Framework Computer Inc. have developed a line of laptops designed to be easily disassembled and upgraded. Buyers can choose to save money by assembling it and installing an operating system themselves.

    Questions:
    How do you feel about the idea of the “Right to Repair?”
    Would you get a DIY laptop? Why or why not?
    How do you feel about the shift of labor from the producer to the consumer?
    RSVP - Oct 6, 2026
  • illustration of a paper with a plume pen on it. A tree made of nodes that resemble circuits comes up from the point where the pen meets the paper.

    Claude's Constitution I

    & Value Alignment

    In this two-part series, we’ll be taking a look at “Claude’s New Constitution,” a document written for Claude AI to guide itself by. It is Anthropic’s answer to ethical concerns about the behavior of large language models, but are its values our values?

    Questions:
    Is it possible to ensure ethical behavior from an AI?
    How do you determine your own values?
    How would you transfer a group’s values to an AI?
    RSVP - Oct 20, 2026
  • abstract illustration of a figure in thought, with a series of nodes connected to its head

    Claude's Constitution II

    & AI Personhood

    In this two-part series, we’ll be taking a look at “Claude’s New Constitution,” a document written for Claude AI to guide itself by. In the second session, we’ll be focusing on issues of “AI personhood,” the consideration of a model as a conscious entity.

    Questions:
    What does it mean to think of these systems as having internal mental states (consciousness or near consciousness) that grant them personhood like humans?
    Is this just hype or is it earnest?
    RSVP - Nov 3, 2026
  • Illustration of a seastead, a set of buildings on a platform over the sea, with boats around it.

    Seasteading

    & Tech Utopias

    A term used several ways, from an institute backed by Peter Thiel to Silicon-Valley-sourced floating island proposals, “Seasteading” describes the idea that we could make small new countries in international waters with “startup governments."

    Questions:
    If you could make a new government, what would it be like?
    What are the dangers of such a project?
    What are the opportunities?
    RSVP - Nov 22, 2026