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What to Expect

What to Expect

A Day at Camp

The PACT Summer Camp will explore the session theme through a weeklong series of fun, engaging activities. Each in-person day will include creative projects and learning activities around our beautiful campus, including our seminar room, lecture halls, and the Oval. Throughout the week, campers will have the opportunity to discuss the issues that matter most to them. In several sessions, campers will hear lively and interactive presentations from Ohio State professors on core philosophical questions. Still other sessions will explore our topic through examining practical scenarios through the eyes of leading philosophers around the world. 

A typical in-person day will be split into several sessions, each lasting 1-2 hours. Campers are expected to arrive at camp every day by 9:00 a.m. at the latest. Campers will depart Monday-Thursday between 4:00 and 4:30pm. On Friday afternoon, parents/guardians are invited to a showcase featuring the week’s highlights. 

 

2026 Session 1 Theme: Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence

Questions we will explore through guest lectures from our world-class faculty, interactive discussions, media, and debates:

  • Can a computer system be "intelligent" or "conscious"?
  • How and why can artificial intelligence improve human decision-making?
  • How and why does the use of algorithms or machine learning enshrine bias or other forms of injustice?
  • Who is responsible when a self-driving car or social media algorithm produce bad outcomes?
  • Can AI create art?
  • Does the potential for a super-intelligent AI system pose an existential threat to humanity?

 

2026 Session 2 Theme: Philosophy and Identity

Questions we will explore through guest lectures from our world-class faculty, interactive discussions, media, and debates:

  • If you lost your memories, would you still be the same person? 
  • What are racial and gender identities? 
  • Can identifying as a member of a group make you who you are? 

  • How much can something change before it becomes a different thing?

     

Learn more about PACT:

Overview

Eligibility

Tuition

What to Expect

Instructors

FAQs

Application