Personhood, Consciousness, and Technology: A Dialogue with Jaron Lanier

In this interdisciplinary dialogue, many of the scholars of the Human Flourishing in a Technological World project-Jens Zimmermann, Fr John Behr, Robert Doede, Thomas Fuchs, David Lewin, Eleanor McLaughlin, and Brent Waters-interview computer scientist and philosopher of technology Jaron Lanier, bringing together the disciplines of phenomenology, psychology, hermeneutics, historical theology, and more to interact with this prominent thinker. The conversation ranges over many topics and poses many questions. For example, what are the social and anthropological futures portended by technology? How should we conceive of the phenomenon of human consciousness vis-à-vis non-human animals and Artificial Intelligence? What are the understandings of personhood in Jewish, Christian, Tibetan, and other traditions, and how do they interact with technological development? What are the tactics employed by major technology companies (Google, Facebook, YouTube) to micromanage user interest for financial gain, and what notion of personhood enables such practices?.