Meeting Information
Sharon Kalwani, president of SEMCO, will start the meeting and make general announcements.
Since May 12, 2024 we have been using a Hybrid Zoom and IN PERSON format for our meetings.
For In Person location see below. Come and join us in person if you can.
Zoom details are same as before. Click here to be connected to the meeting.
Please join the meeting around 1:15 PM or later. This link will be active on the day of the meeting.
Members will also receive an e-mail on the day of the meeting, with the link and any further details and instructions about how to log into the meeting.
Nominations for Officers and Board Members-at-Large. The following nominations were taken during the December 2025 meeting.
Sharan Kalwani for President, Jeff Pynnonen for Vice President, Trevor Karty for Treasurer, Julie Comptois for Secretary, and Robert Clyne and Sikander Rashid for the two Board Members‑at‑Large positions.
The ballots have been mailed to all members. Completed ballots can be turned in at the General meeting on January 11, 2026 or sent by mail (no on-line voting). Ballots in the mail must be received by the Secretary by Sunday January 18th at 11:59 p.m. to be counted.
When: Sunday, Jan 11, 2026 at 1:30 P.M.
Where: In person at the Rochester Hills Public Library, 500 Olde Towne Rd., Rochester, MI 48307 in the Multipurpose Room.
Directions to the Rochester Hills Public Library
Use Waze: https://waze.com/ul/hdpsfu660v
Use Google Maps: https://maps.app.goo.gl/JxbWGF42WCZNASed6
SIG Computing Topic: A Future Worth Hoping For: Artificial Intelligence and Human Destiny
Presented by Nathaniel Borenstein
In this talk I will discuss the nature and diversity of intelligence, the options that information technologies are offering humanity, and the kind of future we should try to envision. Some of the fundamental questions we face include:
• How might we create an economy based on abundance rather than scarcity?
• How will access to today’s vast sea of information change our fundamental beliefs and traditions, and the nature of the human journey?
• What rights should non-human intelligences have, and how do they affect our notion of what it means to be human?
• Can we work in harmony with Artificial Intelligence for the benefit of all living things, biological and artificial, human and animal?
As food for radical thought, I suggest how the economic security of a Universal Basic Income might allow the elimination of many laws and regulations, including copyright, minimum wage, and many kinds of worker protections. I also imagine a world in which lifelong AI companions help protect and raise children far better than any human parents could do alone, and where all AIs are required to be open source. Understanding the widest possible range of options may not lead us to utopia, but might help us to envision and pursue a better world for our descendants.
Nathaniel is best known for his pioneering email research that culminated in MIME, the standard for multimedia data on the Internet. He founded four companies, holds 33 patents, and was Mimecast’s Chief Scientist and a Distinguished Engineer at IBM. He tells the story of his fifty years as an activist and student of how information technology will change the human journey in his forthcoming book, “The Spirit of a Cyborg: AI, the Internet, and a Future Worth Hoping For.” You can read more about him at https://guppylake.com or his wikipedia page.
Also: Questions and Answers following the presentation.
When: Sunday, Jan 11, 2026 at 1:35 P.M.
Where: Meetings will be Hybrid in person and online. Details shown above.
SIG-Linux Topic: no meeting this month
Presented by Sharan Kalwani
no meeting
Sharan Kalwani is a High-Performance Computing Aficionado, a specialist for all things open source, soft skills, and contemporary IT Knowledge Expert. He is open to a wide variety of training & knowledge delivery projects.
Also: Questions and Answers following the presentation
When: Sunday, Jan 11, 2026 at 3:00 P.M.
Where: Meetings will be Hybrid in person and online. Details shown above.
