Interdisciplinary Committee Report

The Interdisciplinary Committee was established to promote greater dialogue between psychoanalysis and other academic discourses, in an attempt to both invigorate psychoanalysis and enrich the thinking of other disciplines. Our main vehicle for the pursuit of this project continues to be the Out of the Tower, Off of the Couch series of events.

In its current incarnation, the series will present “Techno-Analysis,”; a three-day conference that brings together a variety of voices–those of analysts, writers, scientists, academics, cultural critics, and artists–to tackle one of the most important issues of our time, namely the human confrontation with a plethora of rapidly expanding technologies. The conference will take place October 3-5, 2003, at the UC Berkeley Art Museum in conjunction with the major art exhibit, Gene(sis): Contemporary Art Explores Human Genomics, which surveys the potential social, emotional, and ethical implications of life after the mapping of the human genome. The conference features two renowned keynote speakers: John Searle, an internationally recognized philosopher of mind from UC Berkeley; and Sherry Turkle, one of our leading cultural critics on technology and a professor at MIT. Three panels address key issues: online identity and the computer mind; interpreting the genetic code; and technological manipulations of the body. The panels bring together journalists, artists and scientists with psychoanalysts to investigate the novel possibilities and potential closures for the human subject. In keeping with our emphasis on a dialogue between disciplines, the conference also incorporates docent tours of the art exhibit.

The production of such an exciting project is always the fruit of collaboration and would not have been possible without a great deal of labor. The members of the committee gave generously of their time and were unflagging in their enthusiasm. They were nothing short of indefatigable and brilliant. It was great fun sharing bagels