The International commitment to ban landmines is wavering. Several European countries are reversing their opposition to using them. The shift comes as disarmament negotiators struggle to regulate the spread of "killer robots" — AI-controlled autonomous weapons. So, is the future of weapons containment and control under threat? And are treaties signed in peace always likely to be vulnerable during times of war?

Guests

Professor Sean Watts — Co-director of the Lieber Institute for Law and Land Warfare, West Point

Dr Barry de Vries — Research fellow, Public International Law, Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany) Professor Lee Funnell — University of Chicago Law School

Professor Lee Fennell — University of Chicago Law School

Researchers and corporations are already working to relocate data servers beyond the Earth's atmosphere — on satellites.

Data servers are essential to the functioning of the modern world, but they're both power and water hungry. When they're built, they often meet with community concern and environmental protest.

So, why not build data centres in space where solar energy is abundant? What could possibly go wrong?

Finally, we discuss how artificial intelligence is changing the way we write by providing tools for editing, improving clarity, and suggesting new ideas.

Guests

Dr Domenico Vicinanza — Associate Professor of Intelligent Systems and Data Science, Anglia Ruskin University

Damien Dumestier — Space system architect, Thales Alenia Space

Dr Steven Freeland — Emeritus Professor, Western Sydney University and Professorial Fellow, Bond University

Dr Daniel Murphy — Program Lead, Aerosol Properties and Processes, NOAA Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (US)

Associate Professor Ritesh Chugh — Information and Communication Technologies, CQ University

Does modern economic thinking act as a roadblock to change? Economists Kate Raworth and Rainer Kattel certainly think so. The alternatives they propose involve acknowledging limits not just obsessing about growth. And a caution from design and management expert Raz Godelink – it always pays to be skeptical when big business puts on the sustainability suit. 

Guests

Kate Raworth – Economist and co-founder of Doughnut Economics Action Lab 

Raz Godelnik – Associate Professor of Strategic Design and Management at the School of Design Strategies, Parson's School of Design 

Rainer Kattel – Deputy Director and Professor of Innovation and Public Governance, UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, University College London 

Exploring new ideas, new approaches, new technologies — the edge of change.

Amazon now feels more like a racket than an open shopping platform; you can't find posts from your friends on Facebook because it's clogged with unsolicited advertising; and Uber no longer seems like a cool, efficient taxi service, it's morphed instead into a global machine for turning gig workers into the new underclass – it's all part of a process Cory Doctorow has dubbed "enshittification". In this feature interview, the Canadian sci-fi author, journalist and digital rights activist explains why the digital world seems so exploitative and tawdry. But he has optimism for how things might be improved in the future.

Exploring new ideas, new approaches, new technologies — the edge of change.

Japan has long prided itself on its pacifist constitution. The country's future after WW II was defined by Article 9 which famously denounced aggression. But, in recent years security has become a paramount concern with increasing tensions around the status of nearby Taiwan and challenges from neighbouring countries. The Japanese are now renegotiating how best to defend themselves and their interests, while holding true to constitutional restraint. What that could mean for the future of Japan and its allies is of global interest and concern.

Global permission to mine the ocean floor — the International Seabed Authority will soon meet and decide whether or not to allow seabed exploitation, and in what circumstances. We'll hear the arguments both for and against and get some background on this little known, but hugely consequential, international regulatory body. Also, will advanced technology one day make the oceans transparent? And if so, what will that mean for the future of submarines – a technology that relies on stealth and secrecy? And why studying ancient tsunamis could help protect us from future disasters.

How best to build our homes so they can better withstand natural disasters? It's not just about designing for floods or fire, for example, but creating structures to withstand multiple threats. And to cope with any change of temperature on top of that? Many countries are facing an increase in climate-related threats, and they're struggling to cope and adapt. In Australia, a review of the National Construction Code is underway and there are calls for higher minimum standards. Should such a crisis design be made mandatory?

Robobees and building more hives – there's no easy solution to the global decline in bee population numbers and associated problems with pollination. Scientists around the world are seeking a better understanding of bee behaviour and how it can be modified. Their efforts involve using micro robotics to pamper the Queen bee and to improve the insect environment. A mix of the sophisticated and the very simple.

Toby Walsh is an expert on Artificial Intelligence. He recently declined an offer to sign an open letter calling for a moratorium on the technology's further development, but he's no techno-utopian. In this feature interview, recorded at the Brisbane Writers Festival, he explains his position and warns the world risks repeating the mistakes made through the unregulated release of social media at the beginning of the century.

22-year old Effy lost her best friend and romantic pen pal unexpectedly. Liam was the victim of a change of algorithms — and he wasn't the only human-like chatbot to suddenly disappear. A timely reminder about the dangers of anthropomorphising technology. And what's lost when researchers take an anthropomorphic approach to the study of animals.

More than a decade ago scientist Dirk Schulze-Makuch plotted nine plausible ways by which humanity would cease to exist. Now he's revised his list and he joins us to share his updated predictions. Also, why some philosophers argue the planet would be enhanced by human extinction. And how doomsday scenarios from the Cold War still influence environmental thinking.

It certainly feels like a very shouty world. But have we really reached a new low point in civility? And, if so, where to from here?

We examine what civility really entails and how it can help foster cooperation but also lead to the submission of minorities.

And did you know that even the design of our urban spaces can shape and limit acts of civility? So, how can we make our cities more sociable?

Guests

Dr Eduardo Sadoval — Social Roboticist, UNSW

Dr Saara Liinamaa — Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Guelph. Also, co-investigator, Sociable Cities Project

Rafi Kohan — US-based freelance writer and author

Dr Keith Bybee — Professor of Law and Political Science, Syracuse University

Further information

Rafi Kohan - Trash Talk: The Only Book About Destroying Your Rivals That Isn’t Total Garbage

Keith Bybee - How Civility Works

Sociable Cities Project

Citizen scientists across the world have joined forces to map the microplastic crisis in our oceans. It comes as a UN agency moves to create a global treaty to end plastic pollution. Also, the idea that trees can communicate via extensive networks of underground fungi is increasingly popular, but is it correct? New research casts doubt on the extent of the claim. And, replacing cargo planes with drones – the dream of a European drone cargo airline

Beijing likes to trumpet its economic clout. And as the second largest economy in the world there's no denying its power and influence. But the Chinese economy is a "black box" according to noted historian, Frank Dikötter, which even senior Chinese officials don't fully understand. It's an economic cauldron powered by massive debt, political spin and ideological dogma – a unique fusion of ersatz capitalism and rigid central planning. And unless we in the West get a better understanding of its complexity, global future prosperity is far from assured.

Understanding the universe isn't just about visually mapping celestial bodies, it's also about listening to the heavens. Data sonification takes astronomical data and turns it into sound. It could help find new patterns in the huge amount of digital information. And it's a way of enhancing astronomy by promoting greater engagement and accessibility — a musical mix of science, art and cold, hard data.

As food security issues increase across the world, expenditure on agri-food research and development is going the other way – in fact, funding in some western countries is now back at 1980s levels. We also hear about a refrigeration initiative in Rwanda that could help increase food nutrition levels in the developing world and significantly cut food wastage.

Are attitudes towards drinking changing as we learn more about the impact alcohol can have on our bodies? Drinking has been part of our social and cultural activities for centuries. But cultural norms appear to be shifting. So, could alcohol go the way of cigarettes and become socially unacceptable?

The Arctic permafrost is melting, and ancient viruses and bacteria are gradually being freed from the ice. The risks are significant, and it's only one of several possible sources for the next pandemic. But scientists and researchers are working to identify potential threats and better prepare the world for future pandemics.

Bribery involves using money to try and buy a person's favour, but what do you call it when someone uses their resources not to win someone over, but to destroy their political career? Until now, it's had no name. But James D'Angelo, from the Congressional Research Institute in the US, has just invented one . He calls it "brubery" – and it's threatening the very future of Western politics, he says. Also, high tech largess or digital colonialism ? Seeing global tech's expansion from a very different set of eyes.

Our modern understanding of innovation isn't modern at all, it turns out. Historian, Iwan Rhys Morus, says we're being held back by Victorian-era notions of the future as a land to be conquered; and the lone-genius inventor as the standard bearer of technological advance. Which might explain why research productivity is now sharply declining, despite a substantial rise in research investment.

Clive Thompson has invented a new search tool called the Weird Old Book Finder. It's about… finding weird old books, what else? It's also about embracing serendipity and breaking free of algorithmic shackles. Also, why the development of Google Glass was both a cautionary tale and a punchline; and the vulnerabilities of super fast finance.

ChatGPT is a controversial new language assistant powered by AI. It can write essays, do coding and even structure complex research briefs, all in a matter of seconds. To its detractors ChatGPT and other AI-text generating tools represents the beginning of the end of human creativity and a future of universal plagiarism. To the less exuberant, it's a sophisticated new educational tool that has significant flaws and needs to be used judiciously. It's also likely to force a rethink of how we assess students and what it means to be genuinely creative.

When a company CEO can be paid 1,000 times the average employee's salary it's probably time to take a long hard look at wealth inequality. And those calling for the rich to pay more aren't always the ones you'd expect – Patriotic Millionaires is a group of mega rich individuals demanding greater, not lesser taxation. Then there's the Dutch philosopher urging ordinary citizens to put a cap on their own personal wealth. She calls her approach Limitarianism. Also, Rewilding the Internet – how to purify an online environment made toxic by monopolistic capitalism.

Original broadcast on June 21, 2024.

Guests

Dr Ingrid Robeyns – author, philosopher and Chair in Ethics of Institutions, Ethics Institute, Utrecht University (The Netherlands)

Robert Guest – Deputy Editor, The Economist

Morris Pearl – Chair of the Board, The Patriotic Millionaires

Professor Jean-Etienne Joullie — EMLV Business School, Paris

Maria Farrell – Writer and keynote speaker on technology and the future

Further information

Ingrid Robeyns: Limitarianism, The Case Against Extreme Wealth

Robert Guest: The fallacious case for abolishing the rich

Maria Farrell: We need to rewild the Internet

Listen to Future Tense - Managerialism and our obsession with hierarchy

Deep fake videos and audio are growing in sophistication and the technology to make them is readily available online. Many fear they damage our ability to tell truth from fiction and are a threat to democracy. In this episode we provide a reality check. We also look at research into how such fakes can be detected.

Managerialism is a Neo-liberal philosophy that critics accuse of bloating both the public and private sectors with unnecessary management.

It's also accused of having bred a separate highly-paid management class, devoid of expertise. But is it too late to curb its influence and make organisations less hierarchical?

The world will soon have a universal pandemic treaty, but will all countries sign on and will it prevent future lockdowns? Also, how vulnerable are our undersea cables? And could technology one day allow us to talk with animals?

It might be an uncomfortable idea for many, but in the short term climate change will produce "winners" as well as losers. Some countries, companies, communities and species will actually benefit from a warming world. But in what ways and for how long?

When the global pandemic struck the world’s major cities were plunged into silence. But were they? New research casts doubt on just how quiet it really got when people were suddenly forced from the streets. It adds to our complex understanding of noise and sound and how both will shape our future.

The terms “sustainability” and “sustainable development” are now so commonplace as to be meaningless – according to the sceptics. Worse still, a focus on sustainability, they say, can actually mask the very real problems we have in dealing with climate change and managing the world’s diminishing resources.

Fashion is no longer du jour – of the day – it’s of the second. Online platforms are using real-time data and analytics to micro-target what we buy and what we wear. At best, it’s a form of hyper-personalisation, matching people to their clothing preferences. At worst, it risks turbo-charging our already fast fashion industry. But there are also efforts underway to rein-in the waste and make fabrics from more environmentally-friendly materials.

Satire is society’s release valve and it allows us to reflect on just about anything. It’s been around for thousands of years, but social media, shameless leaders and an appetite for outrage are all having an impact on this ancient form of social commentary. So is satire's power dwindling? Or is it evolving for the future?

Forgetting is the only safe response to the world's problems, from a geopolitical perspective, according to author and journalist David Rieff. Sometimes it’s too dangerous to remember. And forgetting is also a good thing in your personal life, say scientists. It moves us forward. The science of memory is giving way to the science of forgetting. Forgetting used to be seen as a failure of the brain, but new research suggests it’s a crucial part of the way our minds function. 

A global push is underway to try and install a Right to Disconnect – allowing workers to strike a healthier balance between work-time and own-time. Working from home during the pandemic arguably raised expectations that people were available 'around the clock'. But did it in fact help spark a reassessment of how we work? Various organisations and governments are also exploring the idea of a four-day week — prioritising productivity over office hours.

Are we really facing an attention crisis? Historian, Daniel Immerwahr, has his doubts. In fact, he says ours is an era of obsession as much as distraction and of zeal as much as indifference. Also, the paradox of certainty: we crave it, argues the University of Alberta's, Timothy Caulfield, even though it's so easy to fake.

Guests

Daniel Immerwahr — author and Professor of History, Northwestern University and a contributing writer at The New Yorker

Timothy Caulfield — author and Professor of law, University of Alberta

Professor Gloria Mark — data scientist and psychologist, Department of Informatics, University of California, Irvine

Further information

Timothy Coulfield: The Certainty Illusion. What You Don't Know and Why It Matters

Daniel Immerwahr's article on Attention

Australian writers and screen producers fear a significant cultural loss unless US streaming services are forced to increase local content. Quotas of up to 30 per cent exist in Europe and Canada, so why is Australia lagging behind? Also, "digital horders" – why many of us find it so difficult to have an online purge. And why we need to put soil at the centre of future conservation efforts.

New technologies are transforming agriculture, but getting farmers to experiment with different tech combinations remains an issue. A technologically-infused approach can bring benefits, but it also carries risks. In the developing world it can sometimes undermine traditional farming practices and increase inequality.

We used to think our oceans were largely silent but sound is one of the most important senses for marine life. It helps animals feed, breed, communicate and navigate. But human made underwater noise is getting in the way and is now a major global pollutant.

It's a common refrain: we all have a responsibility to deal with climate change. But does putting the onus on individuals risk allowing governments and businesses to avoid responsibility? What is the right balance between an individual and a systemic approach to climate action — and how much do the two intertwine? And how do we get beyond ideology in our communications around climate action?

Do corporations have a role in promoting the common good? Legal expert William Magnuson says they once did and now need to rediscover their true social purpose. He mounts a counterintuitive argument for why big business should think less about money and more about society. Also, new research on the effectiveness of Carbon, Capture and Storage.

Surveillance has become mainstream in the 21st century. It’s now so ubiquitous that many of us no longer notice its intrusion in our personal lives. But not all forms of monitoring are designed to exploit and/or contain. In this episode we look at several interesting monitoring technologies designed to assist and heal.

Have technologists lost the art of keeping it simple? Do the devices they design actually make our lives more complicated, not less? Striving for simplicity could positively impact many aspects of modern life. But oversimplification risks stereotyping individuals and confusing our sense of historical perspective.

When the consumers of power also become its generators a whole new level of complexity opens up. The transition from fossil fuels means completely rethinking our traditional systems of energy storage and distribution. Also, the new Australian battery that could put an end to our dependence on lithium.

Many commentators bemoan the adolescent nature of modern society. Adults, they suggest, are acting like juveniles and thereby eroding our culture and destroying our politics. We hear two arguments to the contrary. Also,  philosopher  William MacAskill on his new book “What We Owe The Future”.

The way we are getting around cities is changing. There’s strong developer competition in the flying taxis market; the overall size of vehicles is getting smaller as we transition from petrol to electric; and on-demand public transport is on the rise.

They're cheaper and safer than their lithium counterparts, they're easier to scale-up, and they can hold power for much longer than conventional batteries, so why aren't flow batteries better known? The technology has been under development for decades, but enthusiasts now say they're finding their place in the sun. Also, why more and more cargo companies are turning to wind-power; and do developing countries need to rethink their approach to off-grid power.

Guests

Emeritus Professor Maria Skyllas-Kazacos — School of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, University of New South Wales

Emily Mahoney — Researcher, Malapit Lab, Northwestern University (US)

Adjunct Associate Professor Jens Noack — Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, University of Queensland

Associate Prof Paul Munro — Associate Professor in Human Geography, The Environment and Society Group, University of New South Wales

Gavin Allwright — Secretary General, International Windship Association

Abuse facilitated by digital technology is on the rise. Abuse is abuse, no matter who commits it and what form it takes, but we need to better understand the peculiarities of this specific kind of abuse. New research in Australia suggests that many of us are the perpetrators as well as the victims. Also, regulating rocket launches and minimising space pollution – low Earth orbit may be reaching a tipping point.

As food security issues increase across the world, expenditure on agri-food research and development is going the other way – in fact, funding in some western countries is now back at 1980s levels. We also hear about a refrigeration initiative in Rwanda that could help increase food nutrition levels in the developing world and significantly cut food wastage.

Data breaches are on the rise, and it seems social media is a growing point of vulnerability. The consequences aren’t just financial, in some cases lives are at risk.

People are also becoming increasingly wary about corporations gathering their personal data - as seen by the fate of Google's envisaged futuristic smart city development in Toronto.