Katherine Halley Willcox Özsarı

FAE InstructorFBA / FL / FS Unitkatherine.ozsari@bilkent.edu.tr
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FAE Instructor
FBA / FL / FS Unit
AI, Cyborgs and Androids

Our fear of humanlike machines may reflect universal anxieties related to human nature, the artificial, and contamination. Cyborgs and androids in fiction often draw attention to our disturbing similarities to them, suggesting that we are or may become like them. This is particularly relevant today as we develop artificial intelligence and increasingly merge with technology, becoming cyborgs. 

This course centers on humanlike robots and robotlike humans to explore our anxieties about artificial intelligence and cyborg technologies. We discuss the line between conscious man and mindless machine, whether it can or should be crossed, and why it disturbs us. No previous knowledge of the topic is required. 

Katherine studied Comparative Literature (BA) and Spanish Literature (MA) at the University of Virginia. She earned her Certificate in Teaching English for Academic Purposes from Bilkent and has attended Oxford Training programs for teaching English for Specific Purposes and Learner Autonomy. She has worked as Preparatory School Instructor, Academic English Instructor (ENG 101, 102, 201; CHM 111, 112), and Head of Academic Writing Center in universities around Turkey. She worked as Spanish Instructor at the University of Virginia and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has also worked as editor and translator (Turkish to English, Spanish to English) for academicians and companies. She currently teaches ENG 101 (English & Composition) at Bilkent.