Hey, Where's My Robot Girlfriend?
Hybrids of sex and technology are flourishing in contemporary culture, from basement workshops where power tools are repurposed as bedroom aids to media genres devoted to robot-human couplings. The mechanical in service of the libidinal is rooted deeply in our cultural consciousness through the robot girlfriends of science fiction and real-world teledildonics projects.
Actual and imagined sexual technologies provide an unexpectedly cognizant perspective on the future of health and sexuality. Medical interest in sexuality is undergoing a renaissance with tech that seems straight out of sci-fi, from arousal-enhancing pharmaceuticals to orgasmic implants. What might this medical technology learn from its more explicitly carnal brethren though?
With examples from science fiction, the medical sciences and actual sexual robotics projects, this entertaining and educational talk will explore the social impact of sexual health technologies as they become ever more integrated into our lives.
Presenters
Laura G. Duncan is a lecturer and researcher whose work focuses on issues of stigma and social inequity within medicine. For the last three years has performed a multimedia research presentation about sexual robotics and the social impact of sexual health technologies. She has taught sexual health education in a variety of venues and currently works in addiction research as well as serving as a full-spectrum doula with The Doula Project. She is, disappointingly, not a robot.
Monday, March 11
