Georgetown professor’s Transformers face off against Old Georgetown Board Published 7:05 PM Optimus Prime and Bumblebee have temporarily moved into the Georgetown historic district, though some neighbors believe they have overstayed their welcome. Georgetown University research professor Newton Howard is in an ongoing dispute with the Old Georgetown Board (OGB) over two life-sized Transformers sculptures displayed outside his home, which the board argues disrupt the historical character of the neighborhood. Howard, who studies neuroscience and artificial intelligence, says the Transformers represent the possibility of machines and humans working alongside one another to treat certain neurodegenerative diseases. The controversy over the sculptures, he argues, raises deeper questions about how people think about the relationship between history and futuristic technology.