Dangers of a Digitized World: Combating Technology Run Amok

Technology has made our lives incomparably better, but it is also one of the greatest threats facing humankind. All of the marvelous gadgets we’ve invented are not only thoroughly reinventing us, but they are also doing it in ways in which we have no idea of their full impact. In short, we are undergoing a transformation that affects every aspect of our beingâ€"our brains, bodies, institutions and the entire world. 

Ian Mitroff, currently developing ideas for an upcoming book, will discuss these topics and more. According to Mitroff, we cannot continue to dump the latest technologies on the world without doing a better job of forecasting their negative and positive aspects; we need to do everything we can to mitigate potential negative impacts in order to avoid an immense backlash against technology.

Speaker: Ian I. Mitroff, Professor Emeritus, University of Southern California; Senior Research Associate, Center for Catastrophic Risk Management, University of California, Berkeley
In conversation with Gerald Harris, Member-Led Forum Leader, Science & Technology Forum, the Commmonwealth Club