Jun 2
Cinema Arts Centre Huntington, NY
TicketsDr. Benjamin Cowley
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Assistant Professor
The Fly— Seeing through new eyes
Program Description
Participate in a live Q&A with Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Assistant Professor Dr. Benjamin Cowley. As a preface to the Q&A, Dr. Cowley will briefly explain his laboratory's groundbreaking work modeling the fruit fly's visual system and explain why studying visual systems different from our own can offer new insights into human vision. He’ll also discuss how modern artificial intelligence models are being used to decode the complex processes behind how the fruit fly perceives its world, shedding light on how such research can deepen our understanding of sensory adaptation, both in the brain and in the context of genetic transformation.
Film Synopsis
When inventor Seth Brundle tests his new teleportation device on himself, a housefly slips in to the machine, causing man and insect to merge.
When scientist Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum) completes his teleportation device, he decides to test its abilities on himself. Unbeknownst to him, a housefly slips in during the process, leading to a merger of man and insect. Initially, Brundle appears to have undergone a successful teleportation, but the fly's cells begin to take over his body. As he becomes increasingly fly-like, Brundle's girlfriend (Geena Davis) is horrified as the person she once loved deteriorates into a monster.
Image courtesy of PHOTOFEST
About the Speaker
Benjamin Cowley, Ph.D., and the Cowley Group identify data-driven models of neural responses and behavior by coupling data collection with model training during closed-loop experiments. They condense these models into compact, interpretable forms—allowing for the description of the complicated computations of the brain in a clear and concise way.