Finite

iMorpheon July 17, 2015

In a world with limited resources, can we find ways to salvage what’s disappearing? Can we innovate our way out of a finite landscape? This hour, TED speakers explore ideas about living with less.

ROBERT REICH:

THE POLITICAL ROOTS OF WIDENING INEQUALITY

Ultimately, the trend toward widening inequality in America, as elsewhere, can be reversed only if the VAST MAJORITY, WHOSE INCOMES HAVE STAGNATED AND WHOSE WEALTH HAS FAILED TO INCREASE, JOIN TOGETHER to DEMAND FUNDAMENTAL CHANGE.

The MOST IMPORTANT POLITICAL COMPETITION Over the Next Decades WILL NOT BE BETWEEN the RIGHT and LEFT, Or Between REPUBLICANS and DEMOCRATS . .

"IT WILL BE BETWEEN A MAJORITY OF AMERICANS WHO HAVE BEEN LOSING GROUND, AND AN ECONOMIC ELITE THAT REFUSES TO RECOGNIZE OR RESPOND TO IT'S GROWING DISTRESS."

IT’S HAPPENING NOW

“The necessity to harness the potential of quickly advancing new technologies creates a near-constant mandate for innovation in order to stay relevant. Survival is not guaranteed in a world when all is up for reinvention.

There’s no question we’re in a new technological age but how many of us actually understand the vast potential that lies within this new normal?

The biggest impacts of technology on our daily lives is still ahead of us, but already we’re beginning to imagine and navigate how global economies, enterprise businesses and even the human race will adapt to ensure we all thrive.

From a UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME, to understanding the fundamentals of WORKPLACE AUTOMATION and our increasing ability to define the physical future,

THERE’S NO QUESTION THAT DISRUPTION IS HERE.”

– The GIGAOM Change Team

The Next Economy By Andy Stern and Lee Kravitz

Advances in technology are creating the next economy and enabling us to make things/do things/connect with others in smarter, cheaper, faster, more effective ways.

But the price of this progress has been a decoupling of the engine of prosperity from jobs that have been the means by which people have ascended to (and stayed in) the middle class.

Andy Stern, the former president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) spent four years traveling the country and asking economists, futurists, labor leaders, CEOs, investment bankers, entrepreneurs, and political leaders to help picture the U.S. economy 25 to 30 years from now.

He vividly reports on people who are analyzing and creating this new economy.

Through these stories, we come to a stark and deeper understanding of THE TOLL TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS WILL CONTINUE TO TAKE ON JOBS AND INCOME AND ITS INEVITABLE EFFECT ON TENS OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE.

But There is HOPE for our ECONOMY and FUTURE. The Foundation of ECONOMIC PROSPERITY for ALL AMERICANS, Stern believes, is a UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME.

Stern has been a game changer throughout his career, and his next goal is to create a movement that will force the political establishment to take action against something that many on both the right and the left believe is inevitable.

STERN’S PLAN IS BOLD, IDEALISTIC, and CHALLENGING- and IT’S TIME ..

WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM:

CAPITALISM NEEDS URGENT REFORM

REFORMING the very nature of CAPITALISM will be needed to COMBAT THE GROWING APPEAL of POPULIST POLITICAL MOVEMENTS around the WORLD.

Capitalism as we know it needs to be reformed. The GROWING DISCONTENT at the ideology that has created so much wealth and progress on the one hand, and yet so much INEQUALITY and INSTABILITY on the other hand, is causing INCREASINGLY frequent SOCIAL DISRUPTIONS ACROSS the WORLD.

“IT IS NO COINCIDENCE THAT CHALLENGES TO SOCIAL COHESION AND POLICYMAKERS' LEGITIMACY ARE COINCIDING WITH A HIGHLY DISRUPTIVE PHASE OF TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE."

STOP TECHNOLOGY THREAT

Hawking said that technology must be controlled in order to safeguard the future of humanity and believes that a ‘world government’ could be the only way to combat the threat, though warned that that could lead to a global ‘tyranny’.

‘Since civilisation began, aggression has been useful inasmuch as it has definite survival advantages, It is hard-wired into our genes by Darwinian evolution.'

‘Now, however, technology has advanced at such a pace that this aggression may destroy us all by nuclear or biological war. We need to control this inherited instinct by our logic and reason.’

But he added that he believed the ‘THE HUMAN RACE WILL RISE TO MEET THESE CHALLENGES’. He said that the human race must ‘retrain’ for a new world where robots have replaced many everyday jobs.

‘Together, they are a reminder that we are at the most dangerous moment in the development of humanity. We now have the technology to destroy the planet on which we live, but have not yet developed the ability to escape it.’

When asked how the world will end, Hawking said that increasingly, most of the threats humanity faces come from progress in technology.

‘WE ARE NOT GOING TO STOP MAKING PROGRESS, OR REVERSE IT, SO WE MUST RECOGNISE THE DANGERS AND CONTROL THEM.'

Tweaking isotopes sheds light on promising approach to engineer semiconductors
Scientists have demonstrated that small changes in the isotopic content of thin semiconductor materials can influence their optical and electronic properties, possibly opening the way to new and advanced designs with the semiconductors.
Stretchable e-skin could give robots human-level touch sensitivity
A stretchy electronic skin could equip robots and other devices with the same softness and touch sensitivity as human skin, opening up new possibilities to perform tasks that require a great deal of precision and control of force.
Towards transparent and antimicrobial surfaces for touch displays
Researchers report the development of a durable and transparent antimicrobial surface containing copper nanoparticles. The nanostructured surface was obtained by dewetting ultrathin metal copper films on a glass substrate.
New Nevada experiments will improve monitoring of nuclear explosions
On an October morning in 2023, a chemical explosion detonated in a tunnel under the Nevada desert was the launch of the next set of experiments by the National Nuclear Security Administration, with the goal to improve detection of low-yield nuclear explosions around the world.
New eco-friendly lubricant additives protect turbine equipment, waterways
Scientists have developed lubricant additives that protect both water turbine equipment and the surrounding environment.
Physicists arrange atoms in extremely close proximity
Physicists developed a technique to arrange atoms in much closer proximity than previously possible, down to 50 nanometers. The group plans to use the method to manipulate atoms into configurations that could generate the first purely magnetic quantum gate -- a key building block for a new type of quantum computer.
Cost-effective, high-capacity, and cyclable lithium-ion battery cathodes
Charge-recharge cycling of lithium-superrich iron oxide, a cost-effective and high-capacity cathode for new-generation lithium-ion batteries, can be greatly improved by doping with readily available mineral elements.
Path to easier recycling of solar modules
The use of femtosecond lasers to form glass-to-glass welds for solar modules would make the panels easier to recycle, according to a proof-of-concept study.
Robots invited to help make wind turbine blades
Researchers have successfully leveraged robotic assistance in the manufacture of wind turbine blades, allowing for the elimination of difficult working conditions for humans and the potential to improve the consistency of the product.
Sugar-based catalyst upcycles carbon dioxide
New catalyst is made from an inexpensive, abundant metal and table sugar. Catalyst converts carbon dioxide (CO2) into carbon monoxide, a building block for producing a variety of useful chemicals including syngas. With recent advances in carbon capture technologies, post-combustion carbon capture is becoming a plausible option to help tackle the global climate change crisis. […]
Random robots are more reliable
New algorithm encourages robots to move more randomly to collect more diverse data for learning. In tests, robots started with no knowledge and then learned and correctly performed tasks within a single attempt. New model could improve safety and practicality of self-driving cars, delivery drones and more.
Significant new discovery in teleportation research -- Noise can improve the quality of quantum teleportation
Researchers succeeded in conducting an almost perfect quantum teleportation despite the presence of noise that usually disrupts the transfer of quantum state.
New approach in the synthesis of complex natural substances
Many natural substances possess interesting characteristics, and can form the basis of new active compounds in medicine. Terpenes, for example, are a group of substances, some of which are already used in therapies against cancer, malaria or epilepsy. They are found as fragrances in cosmetics or as flavorings in food, and form the basis of […]
New sensor detects errors in MRI scans
A new prototype sensor is capable of detecting errors in MRI scans using laser light and gas. The new sensor can thereby do what is impossible for current electrical sensors -- and hopefully pave the way for MRI scans that are better, cheaper and faster.
Toxic chemicals can be detected with new AI method
Researchers have developed an AI method that improves the identification of toxic chemicals -- based solely on knowledge of the molecular structure. The method can contribute to better control and understanding of the ever-growing number of chemicals used in society, and can also help reduce the amount of animal tests.

Trident IoT brings new Z-Wave chips to the smart home market - FierceElectronics May 3, 2024
Trident IoT brings new Z-Wave chips to the smart home market FierceElectronics
ICYMI: Your 'IoT TGIF' News Review for the Start of May - IoT Evolution World May 3, 2024
ICYMI: Your 'IoT TGIF' News Review for the Start of May IoT Evolution World
IoT Technology Market worth $1,377.8 billion by 2029 - Exclusive Report by MarketsandMarkets™ - PR Newswire UK May 3, 2024
IoT Technology Market worth $1,377.8 billion by 2029 - Exclusive Report by MarketsandMarkets™ PR Newswire UK
IoT in Warehouse Management Market to Hit USD 28.97 billion by 2030 due to Increasing Demand for Integration of AI ... - openPR May 3, 2024
IoT in Warehouse Management Market to Hit USD 28.97 billion by 2030 due to Increasing Demand for Integration of AI ... openPR
Skylo certifies NB-IoT chipset from Sony Semiconductor for dual-mode satellite IoT - RCR Wireless News May 3, 2024
Skylo certifies NB-IoT chipset from Sony Semiconductor for dual-mode satellite IoT RCR Wireless News