Nick Bostrom (Niklas Boström)
Professor, Oxford Future of Humanity Institute
Nick Bostrom is a philosopher at the University of Oxford known for his work on the anthropic principle and existential risk. His performance as an undergraduate set a national record in Sweden, and prior to becoming an academic, he dabbled in painting and poetry, and for a while did stand-up comedy in London. He currently holds a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics, which he received in 2000. In addition to his prolific writing for academic and popular press, he makes frequent media appearances to talk about transhumanism-related topics such as cloning, artificial intelligence, mind uploading, cryonics, and nanotechnology. In 1998, he co-founded the World Transhumanist Association with David Pearce. In 2004, he co-founded the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies with James Hughes. He currently serves as the Chair of both organizations. In 2005 he was appointed director of the newly created Oxford Future of Humanity Institute.
Dr. Bostrom is one of the world's leading experts on the consequences and ethics of anticipated technologies, including human enhancement, global catastrophic risks, and philosophical issues related to big picture issues for humanity. He has also done extensive work in the foundations of probability theory and philosophy of science. His book Anthropic Bias (New York: Routledge, 2002) presented the first mathematical theory of observation selection effects, phenomena which can introduce methodological bias into our reasoning if not properly understood and accounted for. He is the author of over 100 publications, including papers in Nature, Mind, Journal of Philosophy, Bioethics, Journal of Medical Ethics, Astrophysics & Space Science, and two edited volumes forthcoming with Oxford University Press, one on global catastrophic risk, and another on the ethics of human enhancement.
video
Artificial Intelligence and Existential Risk
video
2005 TED Talk,
Humanity's biggest problems aren't what you think they are
transcripts
Singularity Summit at Stanford,
Artificial Intelligence and Existential Risk
BBC Radio 3, "
In the Great Silence, there is Great Hope"
audio
Transvision 2003, '
"Our Human and Posthuman Dignity"
Transvision 2004, "
Transhumanism and Religion"
Singularity Summit at Stanford, "
Artificial Intelligence and Existential Risk"
7.19.07 "
Life, But Not As We Know It," BBC Radio 3 Lecture
9.04.07 Buzzoutloud 553:
Interview with Nick Bostrom