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Progress and the future

A person in protective gear disinfecting a cinema with an animated film playing on the screen in the background.

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The empathy gap that is imperilling future generations

To protect our descendants from catastrophe, we must overcome the emotional hurdles that make it easy for us to look away

by Matthew Coleman

Close-up of a person with glasses looking at a computer screen displaying lines of code, with code text reflected on the glasses.

Consciousness

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The myth of machine consciousness makes Narcissus of us all

The idea that AI can be conscious is a mistake. It’s just a very shiny mirror of humanity, reflecting what we want to see

by David Bentley Hart

Photo of a river with gravel banks winding through a red autumn landscape, mountains in the background under a cloudy sky.

Nature and the environment

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What does water want? Most humans seem to have forgotten

Asking what water wants sounds a bit mystical, even radical. But it’s a practical, proven path to creating a better world

by Erica Gies

Scene from a film with three men indoors, one holding a computer mouse. A badge reads “I quit smoking.”

Technology and media

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What the journey from Star Trek to Siri says about our culture

The talking computer in Star Trek takes the culture and technology of the present and dreams up future possibilities

by Liz W Faber

Cover art of a science fiction magazine showing a man in a spacesuit contemplating a pill with food images behind him.

Food and drink

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What our fantasies about futuristic food say about us

Once ‘future foods’ were powdered and automatic, but times change and today they have become about speed and social justice

by Kelly Alexander

Photo of four children lying on a rug eating from colourful trays on a wooden floor with a patterned carpet.

Progress and the future

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Over-optimism about racial justice is widespread and harmful

Achieving racial justice takes work, but narratives of ever-unfolding progress can make it seem as if the job is already done

by Michael Kraus

Painting of a rural scene with a factory, hills, a man with a horse and two people sitting on a hill overlooking a train track.

Progress and the future

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Utopian thinking prompts us to get real about society’s needs

Visions of utopia challenge what is considered to be realistic and help us start to see what must change in social life

by William Paris

A mannequin head with painted blue eyes and red lips, partially obscured by a blurred pink and white shape in the foreground.

Sex and sexuality

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The sex tech to come could offer more than ‘the real thing’

Sexbots and other artificial lovers might arouse discomfort, but their continued advances could have unexpected upsides

by Rob Brooks

Black and white photo of a bathroom with a pedestal sink, two taps and a geometric counter, on a tiled floor.

Architecture

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The sink in the hall: how pandemics transform architecture

From the sink in the hall to the UV light in the bus depot: how pandemics past and present can transform architecture

by Theodora Philcox

Photo of a person using facial recognition in a dimly lit hallway with illuminated screens on the walls.

Technology and media

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Should we be concerned that the decisions of AIs are inscrutable?

Machine learning is a black box – even when the decision is correct, how the algorithm arrived at it can be a mystery

by John Zerilli

Photo of a person holding a phone showing messages with exam results next to a school uniform badge.

Technology and media

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When a machine decision does you wrong, here’s what we should do

When a machine does you wrong, what should you do - litigate or regulate? Why AI decision-making should be fairer, by design

by Aziz Huq

Photo of a man sleeping on a bench against a white wall near a wooden door, with cobblestone paving below in sunlight.

Money and economics

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Why efficiency is dangerous and slowing down makes life better

The urge to do everything faster and better is risky. Far wiser to do what’s good enough for the range of possible futures

by Barry Schwartz