Monthly Archives: August 2018

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Podcast Special Edition: 2017 Emotion AI Summit (RERUN)

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The second annual Emotion AI Summit, presented by Affectiva, will be held in Boston, MA on Thursday September 6.  For those who missed last year’s, or those who want a refresher, this is a rerun of the Seeking Delphi™ special edition podcast from the 2017 summit, held at the MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA,  September 13, 2017.

A link to information on the 2018 summit can be found here.

“Rational thoughts never drive people’s creativity the way emotions do.”–Neil deGrasse Tyson

 

This special edition of the Seeking Delphi™ podcast provides a summary overview of the first Emotion AI Summit, conducted by Affectiva, Inc.. at the MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, on September 13, 2017.   Interviews with participants were recorded on site, and include Affectiva co-founders Rana el Kaliouby and Rosalind Picard, Heartificial Intelligence author John C. Havens,  The Future of Happiness author Amy Blankson, and several others.

Podcast Special Edition:  2017 Emotion AI Summit

YouTube slide show of Special Edition Podcast

Related links and bios

Affectiva

MIT Media Lab

Rana el Kaliouby, PhD

Rosalind Picard, ScD

Cynthia Breazeal, ScD

Jibo, Inc.

Amy Blankson, The Future of Happiness

John C. Havens, Heartificial Intelligence

Seeking Delphi™ podcast #12 with Heart of the Machine author Richard Yonck

 Erin Smith

 

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News of The Future This Week: August 26, 2018

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“Teenagers who are never required to vacuum are living in one.”–Fred G. Gosman

 

Ah.  Parenting author Fred Gosman has a good point.  Maybe.  But what would he do with a teenager who wants to live in a vacuum?  This week’s lead story profiles the 17-year-old American girl who aims to literally do that–at least for the several months it would take her to get to Mars.

While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related  news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

 Space–In a profile from Inverse, learn about 17-year-old Alyssa Carson, who wants to be the first human to travel to Mars.  And you think your kid has big ambitions?

–Getting to Mars is hard enough.  What happens if astronauts experience a medical emergency en route?  The Verge reports that NASA is preparing for just that happenstance, in partnership with a Boston hospital.

  

Deep space medical simulation. Image credit: Brigham and Women’s Hospital

–Before going to Mars, NASA thinks it’s a good idea to go back to the moon–and for extended periods.  They unveiled plans to the media this week for a permanent orbiting manned gateway platform that could be used as a jumping off spot for extended excursions to the lunar surface. The project is targeted for completion by 2024.

–If plans go well, 2022 will mark the entry of a forth nation into the business of manned space flights.  India hopes to join the US, Russia and China as the only countries to launch human spacecraft.

Will the test pilot be named Jetson-san?

Future Cars, Flying and Self-Driving–Japan has embarked on a major push to develop flying cars.  A 21 organization consortium, including Boeing and Uber, has been enlisted to accomplish the goal of making those Jetson dreams a reality.

–Meanwhile, the New York Times reports that Uber’s path to self-driving cars has dimmed since the recent fatal crash in Arizona.

Artificial Intelligence–MIT Technology Review reports that weaponized AI is on the rise.   It may threaten the future of democracy.

Seeking Delphi™ podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

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News of The Future This Week: August 19, 2018

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“Those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future.” – John F Kennedy

 

What is a futurist? I get asked that all the time.  No, we don’t have crystal balls.  It’s not so much about predicting the future as it is about helping steer humanity to a better future.  This week’s news of the future kicks off with a new video by British futurist Ray Hammond that provides a succinct historical perspective on the study of the future.

While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related  news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

 Future Thinking–From Roger Bacon to Alvin Toffler and Ray Kurzweill,  Ray Hammond’s new video on The History of Futurists and Futurology provides a thoughtful perspective on thinking about things to come.

–And from last year’s annual meeting of The Association of Professional Futurists, my Seeking Delphi podcast, redux, asking the practitioners themselves, What is a Futurist?

 

Tesla semi (artist’s conception)

—Future transportation–Elon Musk continues to lead the way when it comes to inventing the future of transportation.  His Boring Company aims to create a 3 mile long tunnel to Dodger Stadium to help ease Los Angeles traffic, to be operative by late next year.  And Tesla looks to roll out its first electric semi- truck, also in 2019.

Space Exploration/Commerce–Want to mine the asteroids?  Now it’s possible to get a master’s degree, or even a Ph.D., dedicated to exactly that.  The Colorado School of Mines offers the program to study the “exploration, extraction, and use of [space] resources.”

—Meanwhile, China’s  announced plans to send two robots to explore the far side of the moon now has a launch target of this December. 

Graphene Jacket (image credit: Vollebak)

Material Science–A company called Vollebak has introduced the world’s first graphene jacket.  Light weight, water proof, and durable, it will only set you back $695.

Military Technology–Damn the cyber torpedoes, it’s full speed ahead for the US to build a megawatt laser weapon by 2023.  The aim is to intercept ICBM’s and hypersonic weapons.

The Human Condition–Millennium Project CEO and State of The Future lead author, Jerome Glenn, says that we have done better than most people expected.  He goes so far as to say, in the latest Seeking Delphi™ interview linked below, that “we are winning as a species.”  He does acknowledge critical issues that could derail the trajectory of progress, however.

Episode #24: The State of The Future, with Jerome Glenn

Seeking Delphi™ podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

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Podcast #24: The State of The Future, with Jerome Glenn

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“The future ain’t what it used to be.”–Yogi Berra

“We’re doing a lot better than people think.”–Jerome Glenn, on The State of The Future.

Ah, you have to love Yogi.  He had no idea what he was talking about.  But–surprise, surprise–the blind squirrel does occasionally find a nut.  Because the future and all of its possibilities–its challenges and opportunities–is constantly changing.  Just ask Jerome Glenn and his colleagues in Millennium Project,  who have issued 19 editions of The State of The Future over the past 20-plus years.  I did;  that is the basis for Seeking Delphi™ podcast #24: The State of The Future with Jerome Glenn.

All Seeking Delphi™  podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, and  YouTube.  You can also follow us on Facebook and on twitter @MarkSackler

 

Jerome Glenn: click for bio

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seeking Delphi™ Episode #24: The State of The Future with Jerome Glenn

YouTube slide show, Episode #24

The State of The Future on Amazon.com

Global Futures Intelligence System

A reminder that this and all Seeking Delphi ™podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, and  YouTube.  You can also follow us on Facebook and on twitter @MarkSackler

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News of The Future This Week: August 12, 2018

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“I could have gone on flying in space forever”–Yuri Gagarin

 

Move over, Buck Rogers.  The U.S. administration wants to build a space force. With budget deficits approaching 10 figures, it could just be posturing–or wishful thinking.   Elon Musk inisists he isn’t posturing on getting to Mars, though.  He’s all over the space news this week–for a change.

While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related  news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

 Space–U.S. vice president addressed the Pentagon with details of a proposed Space Force to be implemented by 2020.  With a trillion dollar deficit looming, and a congressional majority composed of Republicans who (supposedly) espouse smaller government, it will be interesting to see where the funding will come from.

–The space force may be in doubt, but it’s full speed ahead to Mars, as far as Elon Musk is concerned.  He convened a secret Mars workshop, attended by prominant scientists and engineers, to address colonization of the Red Planet.

—Meanwhile, Russia intends to compete with Elon and his SpaceX for heavy payload launch capability–eventually.  Their rocket with 70 ton launch capacity is targeted for a rollout in 2028.  Don’t look now, Vladimir, but with ten years lead time, Elon is bound to build something bigger.

TESS, image credit: NASA

–For you exo-planet fans, new estimates from NASA suggest it’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite could identify up to 10,000 new alien worlds over the next two years.  As many as 3500 of them could be smaller than Neptune, down to and including Earth-sized planets.

Automation/future of work–  Back on the ground, Elon Musk has other issues to deal with.  His plans to fully automate a Tesla plant haven’t gone so smoothly.

Alternative energy/Environment–Elon has competiton in the alternative-energy trucking space as well.  The ironically named Nikola has reportedly raised $100 million dollars for the launch its hyrdrogen-powered trucking venture.  

The Human Condition–Millennium Project CEO and State of The Future lead author, Jerome Glenn, says that we have done better than most people expected.  He goes so far as to say, in this Seeking Delphi™ interview linked below, that “we are winning as a species.”  He does acknowledge critical issues that could derail the trajectory of progress, however.

Episode #24: The State of The Future, with Jerome Glenn

Seeking Delphi™ podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

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News of The Future This Week: August 5, 2018

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“Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?”–Edgar Bergen

 

The future of work is a very “now” debate.  While many see an A.I. job-killing armageddon over the next 10-20 years, others are more sanguine.  This week’s stories include some new published points of view that lean to the more optimistic side.

While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related  news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

 Automation/Future of Work–Worried about losing your job to A.I, robotics, or some such form of automation?  According to this report in Next Big Future, the 2020’s AND 2030’S could see a tech-driven economic boom.   Maybe it won’t be so bad.

–Boom or no, technology is bound to kill at least some jobs.  Two technology authors, reporting in Forbes, discuss the job opportunities in the era of man/machine interface.

—To the above end, a Stanford scholar says that artificial intelligence will both disrupt and benefit workplace.

Image Credit: Tech Insider

—Artificial Intelligence–Read any good novels lately?  According to one computer scientist, artificial intelligence may be writing them within ten years.  

—Hackernoon explains the how and why of using A.I. to make better predictions.  Uh oh, I hope futurists won’t be rendered obsolete!

—DARPA aims to help keep the current U.S. lead in development of A.I.  They’ve initiated an excelerated program to award $1-million breakthrough development grants within three months of proposal submission, with an aim towards providing results within 18 months of award.

—A report from QY Research forecasts exponential growth in the market for A.I. software over the next few years.  They project the annual global market value to grow to $78 billion by 2025,  up from $2.65 billion in 2017.

Future Energy–A recent technology breakthrough could triple the output of solar cells.  Researchs in the UK have come up with a method to increase capture efficiency from 20% to 60%.

Award-winning Mars habitat design by Team Zopherus of RRogers, Arkansas

Space Exploration–Speaking of government research grants, NASA is in the game, too.  They’ve awarded $100,000 to five private enterprises competing to design a Mars habitat.

—NASA has named a class of 9 astronauts to fly the first commercially built manned spacecrafts. Their partnerships with Boeing and SpaceX hope to yeild the first mission before the end of next year.

—A new NASA report suggests it is impossible to terraform Mars.  Well, at least impossible using today’s technology.  Elon Musk isn’t buying it, and neither am I.  What about tomorrow’s technology?  What a bout Clarke’s first law?  “When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.”

Coming Soon–The next Seeking Delphi™ podcast will feature and interview with Jerome Glenn, co-founder and executive director of The Millennium Project, on their most recent edition of The State of The Future.

You can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on iTunes, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook