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2001 A Space Odyssey

Mar 24

2026

Cornell Cinema Ithaca, NY

Tickets
with

Dr. Shaun Nichols

Distinguished Professor of Arts & Sciences in Philosophy, Cornell University

2001: A Space Odyssey— The A.I. Alignment Problem

Our world is abuzz with concerns about the rise of artificial intelligence and its potential impacts on our jobs, social relationships, the environment, and society. As artificial intelligence systems become more powerful, one of the core challenges is ensuring that they remain aligned with the moral values and desired outcomes of their human creators, which are often subjective, nuanced, and difficult to articulate.

This challenge is known amongst researchers as the A.I. alignment problem. Perhaps no figure better illustrates this challenge than HAL 9000, the fictional antagonist of Stanley Kubrick’s science fiction masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), whose unyielding execution of his pre-programmed mission has catastrophic consequences for the astronauts aboard the spacecraft.

2001: A Space Odyssey is a sprawling drama of man versus machine that begins in our prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps forward millennia into colonized space, and ultimately whisks astronaut Bowman into uncharted space, perhaps even into immortality. Widely considered among the greatest films of the 20th century, Kubrick’s film was also remarkably prescient in its depiction of artificial intelligence technologies.

In this Science on Screen event, Dr. Joe Halpern and Dr. Shaun Nichols will discuss how HAL 9000 helps us understand the A.I. alignment problem. Their conversation will touch on the historical development of artificial intelligence systems since the 1950s and new ethical challenges presented by autonomous decision-making in algorithmic data models.

This event is part of the National Evening of Science on Screen. Learn more.

Cornell Cinema Ithaca, NY

Tickets

Film Synopsis

Humanity finds a mysterious, obviously artificial object buried beneath the Lunar surface and, with the intelligent computer HAL 9000, sets off on a quest.

Dr. Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea) and other astronauts are sent on a mission to discover the origin of a mysterious monolith discovered beneath the Lunar surface. As the team heads toward Jupiter, their ship's computer system, HAL, begins to display increasingly strange behavior, leading to a tense showdown between man and machine that results in a mind-bending trek through space and time. Director Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of Arthur C. Clarke's best-selling book is a landmark production, perhaps the most respected science-fiction film of all time. The groundbreaking special effects and trippy visuals offer a mix of imagination and science, and the film itself serves as a profound commentary on man's relation to machines, the universe, and life itself.



About the Speaker

Shaun Nichols is the Distinguished Professor of Arts & Sciences in Philosophy at Cornell. He works at the intersection of philosophy and cognitive science. Most of his research aims at understanding the psychological and cultural underpinnings of philosophical thought.