In case you are around Boston on Monday, May 11, 2009, here is the chance to hear Ray Kurzweil live.
The Coolidge Corner Theatre wraps up the 2008-2009 season of its acclaimed Science on Screen series with a special program, An Evening with Ray Kurzweil on Monday, May 11 at 7:00 p.m. I formally invite Jeff Markowitz to settle the score on our Kurzweil controversy once and for all…..

Here is the complete post:

The celebrated futurist, inventor and entrepreneur will give a multimedia presentation based on his best-selling book The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology and show a trailer of the upcoming film of the same name. Audience members will also get a sneak peek at Transcendent Man, director Barry Ptolemy’s documentary charting Kurzweil’s journey to bring the ideas from The Singularity to a worldwide audience. Kurzweil will lead a question-and-answer session following his talk.

According to Kurzweil, the onset of the 21st century is the beginning of an era in which the very nature of what is means to be human will be both enriched and challenged. As our species breaks the shackles of its genetic legacy, we will achieve inconceivable heights of intelligence, material progress, and longevity. Computation, communication, biological technologies, knowledge of the human brain, and human knowledge in general are all accelerating at an unprecedented pace. Three-dimensional molecular computing will provide the hardware for human-level “strong” artificial intelligence well before 2030. The more important software insights will be gained in part from the reverse engineering of the human brain, a process well under way. While the social and philosophical ramifications of these changes will be profound, and the threats they pose considerable, Kurzweil will present an inspiring vision of our ultimate destiny.

One of the leading inventors of our time, Kurzweil has developed pioneering technologies in the areas of music synthesis, speech and character recognition, reading technology, virtual reality and cybernetic art. He is the recipient of the MIT-Lemelson Prize for invention, the National Medal of Technology, awards from three U.S. presidents, 18 honorary doctorates, and many other honors. He has written five books, of which four have been national best sellers. The Age of Spiritual Machines has been translated into nine languages. The Singularity is Near was a New York Times best seller and the #1 book on Amazon in both science and philosophy.

Admission: $9.75 regular admission or $7.75 for seniors, students, and Museum of Science members. Tickets available in advance at www.coolidge.org/science or at the Coolidge box office, located at 290 Harvard Street in Brookline. For more information, visit the Coolidge website or call 617/734-2500.

About Science on Screen

With Science on Screen, the Coolidge presents a feature film, documentary, or film preview with a basis in science, paired with exciting presentations by notable scientific figures. Previous programs have included Theremin with composer and music technology pioneer Tod Machover, Sleeper with Harvard Stem Cell Institute Executive Director arBrock Reeve, Groundhog Daywith physicist and science historian Peter Galison, A Clockwork Orange with evolutionary biologist Marc Hauser, Star Trek: The Wrath of Kahn with former NASA astronaut Jeffery Hoffman, 2001: A Space Odyssey with cognitive scientist Marvin Minsky,Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind with memory expert Daniel Schacter, Richard Feynman: No Ordinary Genius with scientist, business leader and author Stephen Wolfram, and Forbidden Planet with artificial intelligence pioneer Rodney Brooks. The monthly series, launched in 2005, is co-presented by The Museum of Science, Boston and New Scientist magazine.