Jennifer Egan and Jaron Lanier

<p>This week, a conversation between two accomplished multi-disciplinary minds - writer Jennifer Egan and computer scientist and artist Jaron Lanier. Egan won a Pulitzer Prize for her novel <em>A Visit from The Goon Squad</em>. Now, a decade later, she’s written a sort of sibling to that book. It’s called <em>The Candy House</em> and it imagines a technology that allows people to access every memory they’ve ever had, and give away those recollections in exchange for access to the memories of other people.</p> <p>Technology’s dystopian potential is something scientist Jaron Lanier has given a lot of thought to… Lanier is a composer, artist, and a pioneer in the field of virtual reality. He’s both developed new technologies, as well as taken a critical approach to them – particularly in his research into their social impacts and political ramifications. Lanier’s books include <em>You Are not A Gadget</em>, and <em>Who Owns the Future</em>. </p> <p>On April 18, 2022, Jaron Lanier and Jennifer Egan sat down to talk to one another about the relationship between fiction and consciousness, and technology’s impacts - both good and bad.</p>