This year the Icelandic Centre of Excellence in Theoretical Computer Science celebrates the life and work of Alan Turing with a series of dedicated talks. The Turing Year Events at Reykjavik University are organized in collaboration with the School of Computer Science at Reykjavik University, the Icelandic Mathematical Society, CADIA and The Icelandic Institute for Intelligent Machines.

Of note is the joint talk on April 12th by Yngvi Björnsson on Alan Turing’s contributions to AI. The talk will be followed by a critique of the Turing Test by Kristinn R. Thórisson, followed by a question/answer session.

The news bulletin for the event follows in this post, including the schedule and description of talks. For slides, data and other related content, please see the Event’s Website.

ICE-TCS Turing Centenary Events: Preliminary Schedule

The year 2012 is the Alan Turing Year, a centenary celebration of the life and work of Alan Turing, who was, without doubt, one of the most influential scientists of the twentieth century.

With the events listed below, ICE-TCS hopes to offer a small contribution to the celebrations for the life and work of Alan Turing. The Turing Year events at Reykjavik University are organized in collaboration with the School of Computer Science at Reykjavik University, the Icelandic Mathematical Society, CADIA and The Icelandic Institute for Intelligent Machines.

• 12 January 2012: Talk by Luca Aceto on Alan Turing’s work on computability and the universal computer. (Joint with the Icelandic Mathematical Society.) The talk will be held in room M101 at Reykjavik University from 16:30 until 17:30.


• 17 February 2012: Talk by Ýmir Vigfússon on Alan Turing’s code-breaking work. (Joint with the Icelandic Mathematical Society.) The talk will be held in room M101 at Reykjavik University from 17:15 till 18:15.


• 15 March 2012: Talk by Bjarni V. Halldórsson on Alan Turing’s work on mathematical biology. (Joint with the Icelandic Mathematical Society.) The talk will be held in room M101 at Reykjavik University from 16:30 until 17:30.


• 22 March 2012: Talk by Magnús M. Halldórsson entitled The million dollar question: P vs. NP, and the legacy of Turing. (Joint with the Icelandic Mathematical Society.)


• 12 April 2012: Talk by Yngvi Björnsson on Alan Turing’s contributions to AI. The talk will be followed by a critique of the Turing Test by Kristinn R. Thórisson and a question/answer session with the attendees.
• Date TBA: Screening of a Channel 4 drama documentary on Alan Turing (Icelandic premiere). Location: Reykjavik University.

Further details on these events, as well as further events that will take place during the year 2012, will be posted on the event’s website regularly.