31. Artificial Intelligence
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"I'm all for technology being used in a good sense. I often say to people, AI is like a knife, a very sharp knife. You can use it to operate with, or you can use it to kill people." -- Professor John Lennox 

Artificial Intelligence is the buzz phrase of the 21st century. 

For some, it’s a welcome step into a future that promises all manner of good. For others, AI is damaging at best and, at worst, a step towards our own destruction.

This episode, with the help of the great John Lennox, we ask the question: is Artificial Intelligence an under-estimated threat… or the saviour we’ve been waiting for?

This episode is brought to you by series sponsor Zondervan Academic, publishers of Telling a better story: how to talk about God in a skeptical age) by Josh Chatraw.

LINKS 

• Meet Professor John Lennox)

• Get Professor Lennox’s book 2084: Artificial intelligence and the future of humanity)

• Read more about how China is using surveillance technology to keep tabs on its citizens in this article from The Atlantic: 'The Panopticon Is Already Here)'

• Check out George Orwell’s masterpiece *1984 *)

• Learn more about the Singularity with this article from Futurism: 'Singularity: Explain it to me like I’m 5 years old' )

• Why Elon Musk fears artificial intelligence), *Vox *

• Lennox called Google’s Chief Futurist, Ray Kurzweil, “one of the great gurus in this field”. Read more about him here.)

• Find out more about Yuval Noah Harari), author of Sapiens and *Homo Deus *

• Watch the Astronomer Royal, Lord Martin Rees), talk about the potential dangers of science and technology over the next 50 years

• Read more) about science fiction author Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics and why they’re a little out of date

• Say hi to episode guests Dr Grenville Kent) and Dr Vicky Lorrimar)

• Read a recent *ABC *opinion piece by Dr Lorrimar, What hope? Dreams of immortality in the time of a pandemic)

• More on Beowulf), the longest epic poem in Old English.

• Here's some ancient ‘technology’ to find out more on (as mentioned in this episode's Five Minute Jesus)

• Trojan Horse)

• The Roman battering ram)

• Stuff designed by Roman architect and engineer Vitruviu)s

• Read the whole story of the Tower of Babel) from the Book of Genesis

• More on deus ex machina) (not the Australian motorcycles)

• Read the Asilomar Ethical Principles)

• Watch Rosalind Picard’s TedTalk) about the smartwatch she has developed  that can detect seizures. 

• Then, watch her story of how she became a Christian)

**All the movies referenced in this episode: **

• 2001: A Space Odyssey)
• Star Wars) ... all of them.
• Terminator (the original!))
• Bladerunner )(1982)
• Interstellar )
• Wall-E)
• Her)
• Avengers: Age of Ultron)

Want to send John Dickson a question? He loves them. Just click here to provide a query for our next Q and A show!)

Undeceptions is part of the Eternity Podcast Network), an audio collection showcasing the seriously good news of faith today.