Our Complex Future

From science to technology, and from society to policy, we are heading into a future of change, instability, and complexity. To explore these interesting times Scientist-in-Residence at Lux Capital Sam Arbesman joins Dirk and Jon.

Sam Arbesman, Scientist-in-Residence at Lux Capital, who professionally identifies as a Complexity Scientist, joins Dirk and Jon to explore the lattice of complexities facing us in the near and medium-term futures. Taking deep looks at everything from science, to engineering, to policy, to automation, Sam provides insight in a variety of directions, finally suggesting how we might best prepare for the post-scarcity Utopia we all hope will someday come.

 

Memorable Quotes

"When machines and AI are creating art and music, how do we think about credit? How do we think about copyright?"

"The earlier we begin having these kind of really philosophical conversations as a society, the better we're gonna be because when people are already losing their jobs for all these kinds of things, a huge swath of the population, then it's already too late. So we need to really be having these conversations right now."

"In technology we have to kind've actually move a little bit away from this kind of traditional engineering mindset and move almost towards a biological mindset and then take some of the ideas of how biologists might query complex biological systems and use them even for our own technological systems."

"I happen to be a big believer of when you're dealing with a complex system that doesn't necessarily do what you intend for it to do, you begin tinkering with it and kind of slowly but surely and iteratively changing that system to kinda get it closer to what you want. Because if you scrap the thing and start from scratch your gonna end up with another really large, complex system that you might understand even less."

"I can see okay we have the world now kind of on the edge of maybe huge amount of automation, loss of jobs. And then maybe in several hundred years we're gonna be in this kind of like wonderful post scarcity utopia. But between now and then there could be a huge amount of disruption."

Who You'll Hear

Dirk Knemeyer, Social Futurist and Producer of Creative Next (@dknemeyer)

Jonathan Follett, Writer, Electronic Musician, Emerging Tech Researcher and Producer of Creative Next (@jonfollett)

Sam Arbesman, Scientist-in-Residence at Lux Capital (@arbesman)

 

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Sponsors

GoInvo, A design practice dedicated to innovation in healthcare whose clients are as varied as AstraZeneca, 3M Health Information Services, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. www.goinvo.com 

Design Museum Foundation, A new kind of museum, they believe design can change the world. They’re online, nomadic, and focused on making design accessible to everyone. Their mission: bring the transformative power of design everywhere. You can learn about their exhibitions, events, magazine, and more. www.designmuseumfoundation.org

BIF, As a purpose-driven firm, BIF is committed to bringing design strategy where it is needed most - health care, education, and public service to create value for our most vulnerable populations. www.bif.is