EUGENE–"Will Spiritual Robots Replace Humanity by 2100?" is the provocative question that Pulitzer Prize-winning author Doug Hofstadter will discuss in a free public lecture at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 15, in Room 100 of Willamette Hall, 1371 E. 13 Ave. at the University of Oregon.

A professor of cognitive science and computer science at Indiana University, Hofstadter is most famous for his 1979 book, "Goedel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid," for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Literature. He is a 1973 graduate of the University of Oregon with a doctoral degree in physics.

In his talk, Hofstadter will address the future relationship between computers and humans–a timely subject in light of recent popular books such as Ray Kurzweil’s, "The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence," and Hans P. Moravec’s, "Robot: Mere Machine to Transcendent Mind" and "Mind Children: The Future of Robot and Human Intelligence."

Hofstadter’s talk is being sponsored by the UO Department of Computer and Information Science, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary.

For more information, call (541) 346-4408.

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