The typewriter had left him on his deskwhere nothing was out of place: each theme identified was placed in a transparent folder, all were placed in a rigid folder so as not to be crushed in the suitcase. But those “American lessons” to Harvard Italo Calvino never kept them. Fortunately, however, his six proposals for the new millennium survived him. Take notes if, by chance, you do not know them: because lightness, speed, accuracy, visibility, multiplicity, and a sixth, consistency, which remained unfinished, are precious talismans, not a nostalgic testament, but an urgent ethical and cultural proposal, today more than ever. A compass to navigate the future, to distil meaning.
At the six “lessons”, in the forty -year of the posthumous publication, as many appointments are dedicated in the field of the Taobuk Festivalwhich today on the theme of “borders” opens in its literary part. “The collaboration between the University of Messina and Taobuk is now a consolidated and great value, through which we renew our commitment every year in promoting the encounter between academic knowledge and the cultural instances of contemporary society – The rector says, Giovanna Spatari – We are deeply convinced that the university cannot and should not be a place closed in itself, but must be promoter of dialogues, contamination and shared reflections ».
“The support – he adds – to the cycle of meetings dedicated to the anniversary of the” American lessons “by Italo Calvino fills us with pride: it is a work that, although conceived forty years ago, contains reflections of extraordinary lucidity and topicality. Calvino’s ability to question the future of literature, about the keywords to be delivered to the new millennium, still offers us precious tools to understand the relationship between human beings, knowledge and technology. We live in an era in which technological innovation advances at a dizzying rhythms, transforming the world. But precisely for this reason the need for a humanism that knows how to direct progress towards the common good, guarding the fundamental values of dignity, critical thinking, creativity, also grows exponentially. The University, with its academic community, wants to prove ready to interpret and promote those values of humanism and innovation from which, today more than ever, the construction of a sustainable and inclusive future passes ».
«This is Calvino’s great legacy – he explains Massimo Sideri, who will lead the six appointments And that, together with Andrea Prencipe, wrote the essay “Il Visconta Cibernetic”: humanism and technology can coexist ” – there is nothing apocalyptic in our time. The same writer had fun telling that he is the” black sheep “in a family of scientists: he chose the path of literature but did not stop interested in the scientific dimension. Constantly “. Prencipe: “Our contribution in an era dominated by technology can be precisely to put together the technological aspects with the ability to read typical of humanistic culture.
After forty years, therefore, that Calvinian intellectual project that was looking for a synthesis between humanistic culture and technological culture, resonates as a lucid and current prophecy. In a world dominated by artificial intelligence, predictive algorithms and augmented reality, Calvino’s words seem to indicate a way to preserve the human, despite technology. Or thanks to it. But what remains of the human when the machines begin to write, draw, speak, interpret data and even emotions? He was sure: technology and literature can proceed together towards a new digital humanism. And how to prevent technology from emptying the language of its poetic power? Visibility comes to the rescue: imagine beyond the algorithm. Because artificial intelligence generates images, but it doesn’t really imagine. The human, yes. Then it can only be called imagination that subtle and decisive border between person and machine.
The program
Of the “American lessons” we will begin to speak today (Piazza IX April at 19), during the Taobuk Festival, facing the theme in a panel entitled “American lessons and the boundaries between humanity and technology. Lightness”. Guests: the pianist and composer Giovanni Allevi (in connection), the outgoing president of the National Research Council, Maria Chiara Carrozza; the president of the Foundation Museum of Egyptian Antiquities of Turin, Evelina Christillin; The director of the Egyptian Museum of Turin, Christian Greco, the Full Professor of Constitutional Law at the Bocconi University, member of the European Agency for the protection of fundamental rights, Oreste Pollicino; The president of the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation and former Minister of Education, University and Research, Francesco Profumo, and the full professor of Italian Linguistics at the University of Messina and Academician of the Crusca, Fabio Rossi. The cycle – which will have five other stages and other interventions intended for an audience that cares natural intelligence in the era of artificial intelligence – will be moderated by Massimo Sideri, editorialist of the Corriere della Sera and is organized in collaboration with the University of Messina.
The subsequent appointments will be held tomorrow at 5 pm at Palazzo Corvaja (multiplicity); Saturday at the Palazzo dei Dukes of Santo Stefano at 11 (accuracy. The trilogy of ancestors), at 12 (speed, introduced by the rector Giovanna Spatari) and at 5 pm (consistency). The last Sunday at 12 at Palazzo Corvaja (visibility).