Cybernetics and the Chimeric Body with Hugh Herr and Ana Rajčević

For millennia, the boundaries of our physical selves have been dictated by the slow, unyielding crawl of natural selection. Evolution designed the human hand, the leg, and the eye, leaving us to navigate the world within rigid biological borders. Today, however, a quiet revolution on the fringes of bionic engineering and hybrid design is blurring the line between machine and organism—transforming the cyborg from a well-worn trope of science fiction into an imminent, lived reality.

Following presentations of their respective work, biophysicist Hugh Herr and artist-research scientist Ana Rajčević will sit down with Pioneer Works Director of Sciences Janna Levin to dismantle our assumptions about human anatomy. Herr approaches this frontier from the realm of extreme engineering, building highly responsive bionic limbs that fuse directly with human muscle and bone. Rajčević approaches it from the avant-garde, designing "chimeric embodiments"—neurally-controlled, animal-inspired appendages that look less like traditional prosthetics and more like evolutionary leaps.

The implications stretch far beyond standard medical therapy. Together, Herr and Rajčević are treating the human form not as a fixed biological inheritance but as an open canvas. Their collaborative research asks a radical question: What happens when the human brain is wired to operate an anatomy it was never built to control—like a soft, flexible appendage modeled after an octopus? When our nervous systems comfortably adapt to non-human forms, we are forced to redefine the very parameters of human identity.

Join us as we look past what our bodies were born to do, and confront what we might choose to become.

Before and after the conversation, enjoy stargazing in the garden with the Amateur Astronomers Association (weather permitting). Food available for purchase.

Please note that seating is limited and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Program Speakers

Hugh Herr is a pioneer of the Bionic Age. After losing both legs below the knee to severe frostbite following a 1982 climbing accident, he engineered his own specialized prostheses to return to the sport—becoming the first person with a major amputation to climb at an elite level. Today, he is a Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at the MIT Media Lab and co-leader of the K. Lisa Yang Center for Bionics. His breakthroughs, including the world’s first powered ankle-foot prosthesis, marry human physiology with electromechanics to restore mobility and push past natural biological limits. The author of over 200 peer-reviewed manuscripts and patents, Herr’s work aims to eradicate human disability through advanced cybernetics.

Ana Rajčević is an artist and research scientist whose work exists at the avant-garde intersection of anatomy, biomimetic design, and robotics. Holding a PhD in Artistic Research from the University of Applied Arts Vienna, she is a research scientist in Hugh Herr’s Biomechatronics group at the MIT Media Lab. There, she drives groundbreaking investigations into "chimeric embodiments"—non-anthropomorphic, animal-inspired wearables and appendages, such as neurally controlled tentacles, that challenge traditional boundaries of human form and cognition. Her award-winning work has been exhibited globally, including at the Smithsonian, the Venice Design Biennale, and the Science Museum London.

Janna Levin is a professor of physics and astronomy at Barnard College of Columbia University. A Guggenheim Fellow, she has contributed to our understanding of black holes, extra dimensions, and cosmology. She is the Founding Director of Sciences at Pioneer Works and the co-editor-in-chief of Pioneer Works Broadcast. She often contributes to news, documentaries, and radio, including as the presenter of the NOVA feature Black Hole Apocalypse on PBS and as a contributor to CBS. She has authored books on black holes and the universe—Black Hole Blues, How the Universe Got its Spots, and Black Hole Survival Guide—as well as a PEN award–winning novel, A Madman Dreams of Turing Machines. You can find her current writings on her Substack publication, Higher Dimensions.

This program is funded by the Simons Foundation International and administered by the Simons Foundation's Science, Society & Culture division.