Tuesday, May 24, 2016

My Presentation for the Governance of Emerging Technologies Conference


This week I'll be attending the 4th annual Governance of Emerging Technologies Conference in AZ. It is my third time attending this excellent conference. Here is my presentation:

New Technologies and Catastrophic Risk: Hubris in the Anthropocene:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/4pr8162epwy6h6i/New%20Technologies%20and%20Catastrophic%20Risks%20Hubris%20in%20the%20Anthropocene%20Emerge%202016%20FINAL.pdf?dl=0


4 comments:

  1. Excellent. Really attractive lay out. Material for a presidential debate in October.

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  2. As we know moderately intelligent and educated people pursue power. They become high level public officials and make policy. They make decisions on matters like Round-up, nuclear power plants, disease prevention and vaccination, education and so on. Being in positions of authority they are sought after by wealthy corporations who hope to influence them in their decision making. To imagine that these people usually manage to maintain their integrity and act honorably would be indeed naive. Most become to some extent corrupt--or they are passed over for advancements. We end up with rather bad people running the Show. While some are mostly puppets others are activists and get things done, often the wrong things. It is as if we have an ongoing struggle or war between this high level circle of power and the average citizen. Far from protecting the People they use Them for a wide range of experiments--economic, political, medical and so on. We are in effect the test subjects. If the tests are dangerous we end up sick or alienated. We end up broke and disoriented. Currently vast numbers of people are participating in the psychiatric medication and vaccination experiments. Also the radiation experiment. And finally the economic experiment. Not just anyone can qualify to run these experiments as it takes a certain calloused mentality. Most of us are way too soft hearted. Presently perhaps the main experiment is the experiment involving cell phones and other technological gadgets like GPS which seem harmless enough. Of course people seem more like robots so eventually we will need AI to run the society. When people can not do mathematics very well or read or write well or comprehend difficult literature, automatons will do it for us. I think Huxley's taxonomy in Brave New World is already helpful as one goes to the grocery store and sees large numbers of people in various stages of degeneration. This movement seems like an act of nature transcending even those that think they hold the power. Everyone is being swept along by a powerful tide. From the organic to the solid state.

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    Replies
    1. You've identified an important mechanism whereby this seems to occur:

      "Most become to some extent corrupt--or they are passed over for advancements."

      Institutions too often select the "wrong" kind of expertise for promoting sustainable and just policies and technologies.

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  3. "Russia’s Vladimir Putin is taking a bold step against biotech giant Monsanto and genetically modified seeds at large. In a new address to the Russian Parliament Thursday, Putin proudly outlined his plan to make Russia the world’s ‘leading exporter’ of non-GMO foods that are based on ‘ecologically clean’ production.

    Perhaps even more importantly, Putin also went on to harshly criticize food production in the United States, declaring that Western food producers are no longer offering high quality, healthy, and ecologically clean food."

    Putin is one of very few national leaders who cares for the people of his nation. Even the Catholic Pope seems to have deserted his flock in favor of Jews and Muslims. A trend.

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