ASU's Science Fiction TV Dinner to screen House, M.D., discuss future of science, technology

Arizona State University's Center for Science and the Imagination will present the latest rendition of its popular Science Fiction TV Dinner series at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 30, at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, focusing on the critically acclaimed medical drama House, M.D.

The event is free and open to the public, with reservations requested through housetvdinner.eventbrite.com. Local gourmet food trucks will offer dinner for purchase starting at 6 p.m.

The Science Fiction TV Dinner series is a launchpad for imaginative, engaging conversations about science, technology, art and society. Since 2012, the series has developed an enthusiastic following on and off campus, providing the opportunity for people of all ages and backgrounds to come together, learn and explore visions of the future in an entertaining and informal setting. Previous events have featured episodes of popular science-fiction shows such as The Walking Dead, Star Trek and Quantum Leap.

The event on Sept. 30 will feature a screening of the House, M.D. episode “Cane and Able,” in which misanthropic genius diagnostician Gregory House (played by acclaimed actor Hugh Laurie) and his team tackle the case of a young boy who believes he has been abducted and tortured by aliens. The story turns on a truth stranger than fiction: human chimeras who carry the DNA of more than one person in their bodies.

Following the screening, Center for Science and the Imagination editor and program manager Joey Eschrich will moderate a conversation with Dr. Cathy Seiler, the scientific liaison for the DNASU Plasmid Repository and the Virginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics at ASU's Biodesign Institute, and Dr. Kenneth S. Ramos, associate vice president of precision health sciences and professor of medicine at the Arizona Health Sciences Center of the University of Arizona.

“If we want a better future, we don't just need more scientific knowledge or more effective technologies. We also need to tell better stories about the kind of future we want to build and live in together,” remarked Eschrich. “The Science Fiction TV Dinner series provides an arena for inclusive, public conversations about the future, using science fiction as a meeting place for people from all walks of life to share their ideas and perspectives.”