Designing a futuristic city is a fraught task — a mixture of ambition, state of the art technology, inevitable budget blowouts and the need to not just inspire, but awe. We get an update on the progress of two mega metropolises — Xiongan in China and Neom in Saudi Arabia. Also, how a better understanding of the brain can help deter future conflicts.GuestsDr Andrew Stokols — Assistant Professor of Urban Studies, Singapore Management UniversityEliot Brown — London-based reporter, Wall Street JournalDr Nicholas Wright — Neuroscientist, University College London and Georgetown University
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Ancient viruses, new threats
The global Covid 19 lockdown may seem like an eternity ago, but the threat of another full-scale pandemic has never resided. Scientists warn that as the Arctic permafrost continues to melt ancient viruses and bacteria are gradually being freed from the ice. The risks are significant, but researchers are working to identify potential threats and better prepare the world for future pandemics. Uppermost in many minds is the need to ensure future global cooperation in the event of another zoonotic outbreak. Original broadcast on March 26, 2023.GuestsDr Christine Prat – Director of Operations, European Virus Archive Dr Jean-Michel Claverie – Emeritus Professor of Medicine, Aix-Marseille University Dr Aaron Bernstein – Director, The Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
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Microplastic removal and decarbonising cement
Negotiations over a global treaty on microplastics have broken down. So, where to from here for one of the world's biggest environmental threats? We also get an update on new efforts to clean-up the cement production industry; and we look at AI chatbots and the increasing role they're playing as sources of advice and emotional support.GuestsDr Pratik Sachdeva — Senior Data Scientist, D-Lab, University of California, BerkeleyDr Shababa Selim — Senior Technology Analyst, IDTechEXProfessor Paul Fennell — Professor of Clean Energy, Imperial College LondonProfessor Jill Newby — Clinical psychologist, The Black Dog Institute, University of New South Wales
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Learning how to learn in the age of generative AI
It's exactly three years since ChatGPT burst onto the scene. In that short period of time the process of academic assessment has been in upheaval. Across the world educators are trying to address how students should be assessed and whether AI can be used for more than just helping a student to cheat. But a growing number of education researchers say the real emphasis should be on promoting critical thinking and ensuring future students learn how to learn.GuestsProfessor Dragan Gasevic — Head of the Centre for Learning Analytics, Monash UniversityProfessor Neil Selwyn — School of Education, Culture and Society, Monash UniversityProfessor Rupert Wegerif — Faculty of Education, University of CambridgeProfessor Phillip Dawson — Co-Director of the Centre for Research in Assessment and Digital Learning, Deakin University
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Disinformation, digital tech and democracy
In this programme we hear three thoughtful perspectives on the threat digital technologies pose for democracy. Henry Farrell from Johns Hopkins University argues disinformation must be tackled at a group level, not an individual one. Philosopher, John Tasioulas, says modern representative democracy is too easily corrupted by big tech. And AI specialist, Marcus Beard, introduces us to the phenomenon he calls "slopaganda".GuestsProfessor John Tasioulas — ethicist and immediate former Director of the Institute for Ethics and AI, University of OxfordProfessor Henry Farrell — Political Scientist, Johns Hopkins UniversityMarcus Beard — Digital, disinformation and AI specialist, Fenimore Harper CommunicationsFurther informationHenry Farrell - We're getting the social media crisis wrongJohn Tasioulas - The classical key to the AI revolution
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