Pint of Science: English Night 1

He who pays the piper, calls the tune! Isn't it the same in news media, where owners decide what gets and doesn't get published? Not so easy. Depending on how a TV channel or a newspaper is organised, owners can have more or less say on what is published. Different models can also give more voice to a single rich family, to wealthy consumers or to working class citizens. That is why it is important to understand how media ownership relations work. This is the topic of our conversation. We will learn how control can be exerted and how it actually occurs throughout the European Union based on the latest results of the Euromedia Ownership Monitor.

The genius of AI systems lies in their power to analyse vast amounts of data, recognise patterns in the data and predict future events at an unprecedented speed. Consequently, AI systems provide humanity with spectacular insights into and control over reality. At the same time, humanity is confronted with immense challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic and the planetary climate crisis demonstrate the vulnerability of human beings and the uncontrollability of natural forces. Furthermore, because of the advances of technological control over nature and society, human beings find themselves living in a “disenchanted” world void of meaning.
But what are the implications of human beings conducting their daily affairs in an environment of AI systems? What does it mean to be human in the age of AI?

How do we make sense of our daily multisensory experiences? How does the brain integrate information from different senses to form a unified conscious percept? Is this process supported by brain-body interactions? These are some of the questions that are being investigated in the Salzburg Brain Dynamics lab using the one and only magnetoencephalogram in Austria.
In my talk I will try to give a tour through the research we do in our lab by talking both about the basics of human (neuro-)electrophysiology alongside some cutting edge research in cognitive neuroscience.