Human Innovation, Artificial Intelligence, and the Uncertain Future of Cyber Warfare with WIRED's Kevin Kelly
In this episode we discuss the inevitable technology shifts that will be impacting our future, the second industrial revolution, the importance of having an open mind, critical thinking and seeking dis-confirming evidence, we explore how to ask better questions (and why it’s so important that you do), and talk about some of the biggest technology risks with Kevin Kelly.
Kevin Kelly is the Senior Maverick and Co-Founder of Wired Magazine. Kevin is also the co-founder of The All Species Foundation, which seeks to catalogue and identify every living species on earth as well as The Rosetta Project, building an archive of ALL documented human language and much much more. He is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of several books including The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future, his work has been featured in Forbes, Smithsonian, and more!
We discuss:
The 12 inevitable forces that are shaping the future of humanity and our lives
How the physics of the “technological” terrain make tectonic technological shifts INEVITABLE and what you can do about it
Why cars, telephones, light bulbs, and the internet were also “inevitable"
Evolution keeps trying to make “minds” - is AI the next attempt?
How we are “cognifying" the world around us and what that means
How we will fill the world with a zoo of possible minds that think differently
AI will become a commodity like electricity - it will be a utility that anyone can get or use
What can I do with 1000 minds (like 1000 horsepower) working on a problem
The second industrial revolution and how it will impact our entire society
How our lack of understanding of intelligence currently hinders our ability to truly understand what makes intelligence
You can’t optimize every dimension - there will always be trade-offs
How much of today’s technology is akin to “flapping wings” versus artificial flight using fixed wings
The chief asset for innovation and wealth generation in this new economy is being able to THINK differently
How do we focus our attention in a world with such infinite possibilities of things to do and focus on?
How do we battle against fake news, alternative facts, and the temptation to only filter information we want to hear?
In the future - we may have to teach the “literacy” of filtering and understanding information as Kevin calls it “techno literacy”or “critical thinking”
The vital importance of being open to having your mind changed - and how travel can be a tool to do that
Why you should allow yourself to be challenged by other views
Why asking great questions will be one of the most valuable skillsets and assets in the future
How we can start to ask better questions right now
There are no dumb questions - never be afraid to ask if you don’t understand - and then really listen for the answer
Why we should use lateral thinking to approach a question or challenge from a completely different angle - how we ask a question that has never been asked before
How you can believe you are a martian and ask questions as if you were a machine and you didn’t know all the things humans normally know
Don’t be afraid of obvious questions
Why Kevin describes himself as a “protopian” - technology produces as many new problems as it solves. Progress is real even though technology creates additional problems
The technology trend that Kevin Kelly is most afraid of and thinks is the biggest risk to humanity
What would Kevin say to someone who doesn’t think that these technological forces are inevitable?
Why AI is often defined as “that which we can’t do”
AI is going to impact all areas of our lives - buy some AI from google tensor flow and start fooling around with it - see what happens
Be a tinkerer - don’t be afraid to play with and try new technology
And much more!
Thank you so much for listening!
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SHOW NOTES, LINKS, & RESEARCH
[Personal Site] Kevin Kelly
[Amazon Author Page] Kevin Kelly
[Book] The Inevitable by Kevin Kelly
[Twitter] Kevin Kelly
[Website] Recomendo