What kind of future is taking shape with current developments in science and technology? The Quantum Record publisher and host of the Plato's Pod podcast, James Myers, speaks with scientists, technologists, philosophers, and others about the latest discoveries and thinking at the frontiers of knowledge. In an increasingly complex and interconnected world, The Quantum Feedback Loop podcast aims to open the wonders of the scie ...
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Why do animals communicate, and why and how did their many different methods of communication evolve? It's fascinating to learn from Dr. Arik Kershenbaum about such a crucial part of everyday living in the animal kingdom that we humans tend to overlook in our daily lives. A zoologist at the University of Cambridge, Arik studies vocal communications in animals, including wolves, dolphins, and gibbons. Arik speaks with us about his new book, Why Animals Talk, coming out this August, and we discuss his 2021 book, The Zoologist’s Guide to the Galaxy, which takes us on a journey through the incredible variety of animals and their communication here on Earth and quite possibly beyond. As Arik says, animals are “not just automata, but living species with communicative intelligence not unlike our own,” and he introduces us to the vast and fascinating array of information that animals are exchanging all around us.
We sat down with Jessica West, who is a senior researcher in space governance with a depth of experience in a rapidly evolving and crucially important field, to talk about the challenges and opportunities for humanity beyond earth. With competing military and commercial activity in space, and large numbers of satellites and objects to track, Jessica has said that the situation is becoming tense and requires a lowering of the heat. Jessica explains the history of space governance, beginning with the United Nations’ 1967 Outer Space Treaty and its ideals, and the extent to which humanity’s presence in outer space has multiplied many times over since. As she outlines the present state of global discussions and activity at the UN, Jessica gives a sense of hope that we are on a path toward real progress in the peaceful use of outer space.
With his decades-long experience in virtual reality technologies, Louis Rosenberg talks about a new technological paradigm designed to facilitate a collective human superintelligence. Called Swarm AI, it's modelled after natural swarm intelligence among fish, bees, and other species, and aims to amplify the decision-making capacity of groups of people instead of the machine making the decision for them. Louis' new book, Our Next Reality, and his role with the Responsible Metaverse Alliance, highlight the crucial choices that lie ahead with increasingly powerful virtual reality applications, in building a future of humans, made by humans, and for humans. We can't know whether collective superintelligence is the answer, but the questions that Louis raises at the conclusion of the talk demand urgent attention and discussion.
Saima Fancy is a Privacy Specialist whose two decades of experience have spanned the explosion of AI and a series of privacy breaches of global consequence. With the profit-driven development of artificial general intelligence now underway, and large language models like GPT-4 in the forefront, why does privacy matter? When many believe technology leaves them with few options to protect their privacy, Saima provides a forceful answer to the question, encouraging a greater understanding of the data we are providing and our value as creative beings.
Professor of Physics and Astronomy Dr. Marcelo Gleiser shares a remarkably philosophical perspective on humanity’s relationship with the cosmos as we discuss his latest book, The Dawn of a Mindful Universe. Incorporating centuries of accumulated scientific knowledge, Marcelo’s book highlights the rarity of conditions for life in a vast universe, and our duty to protect the natural world that sustains life on Earth. Marcelo makes a passionate case for a biocentric perspective that appreciates and treasures the interwoven existence of the physical universe and life as he describes “a new wind of awakening” that brings promise to harmonizing human living with the limitless resources of the universe.