March 14, 2023 marked the beginning of a new era: Chat GPT-4 was released, fundamentally changing the way humans relate to language. In this talk, Professor Park will explore the implications of this pivotal moment. She will consider AI’s impact on the production of works of fiction and on creativity more broadly. Questions to be explored include: Does AI-informed writing have the potential to supplant traditional novel writing? In what ways can AI innovate creativity? How will the proliferation of generative AI impact our understanding of the role of human agency in the creative process? Professor Park will draw from her experience as head judge of a spring 2024 AI-inclusive short story competition sponsored by UCSB’s Mellichamp Initiative in Mind and Machine Intelligence. Audience Q&A and a reception will follow.

Dr. Sowon Park is Associate Professor of English at UC Santa Barbara. She specializes in Cognitive Literary Criticism and is Director of the Center for Literature and Mind. Her current research projects include a five-year investigation on “Trauma-Informed Pedagogy” (2021- 2026) and the ongoing neuro-literary research forum on “Unconscious Memory” (https://unconsciousmemory.english.ucsb.edu/).

https://www.ihc.ucsb.edu/event/inaugural-talk-ai/

Sponsored by the IHC’s Key Passages series

Sowon Park | Inaugural Lecture | AI: A New Passage to Human Creativity?

The IHC’s mission is to advance knowledge about human experience in cultural, historical, and social contexts and to do so through programs that foster human agency, social connectivity, and civic empowerment.

IHC events include lectures, seminars and conferences organized by IHC research focus groups and sub-units as well as events co-sponsored with campus departments. In addition, the IHC mounts year-long public programs on themes suggested by UCSB faculty and graduate students.

Sowon Park | Inaugural Lecture | AI: A New Passage to Human Creativity?

IHC UCSB