{"id":14312,"date":"2018-11-15T02:26:37","date_gmt":"2018-11-15T02:26:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=14312"},"modified":"2018-11-16T02:31:23","modified_gmt":"2018-11-16T02:31:23","slug":"sci-fi-movies-are-the-secret-weapon-that-could-help-silicon-valley-grow-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/sci-fi-movies-are-the-secret-weapon-that-could-help-silicon-valley-grow-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Sci-fi movies are the secret weapon that could help Silicon Valley grow up"},"content":{"rendered":"

Andrew Maynard<\/a>, Arizona State University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

If there\u2019s one line that stands the test of time in Steven Spielberg\u2019s 1993 classic \u201cJurassic Park<\/a>,\u201d it\u2019s probably Jeff Goldblum\u2019s exclamation, \u201cYour scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn\u2019t stop to think if they should.\u201d <\/p>\n

Goldblum\u2019s character, Dr. Ian Malcolm, was warning against the hubris of naively tinkering with dinosaur DNA in an effort to bring these extinct creatures back to life. Twenty-five years on, his words are taking on new relevance as a growing number of scientists and companies are grappling with how to tread the line between \u201ccould\u201d and \u201cshould\u201d<\/a> in areas ranging from gene editing<\/a> and real-world \u201cde-extinction\u201d<\/a> to human augmentation<\/a>, artificial intelligence<\/a> and many others. <\/p>\n

Despite growing concerns that powerful emerging technologies could lead to unexpected and wide-ranging consequences, innovators are struggling with how to develop beneficial new products while being socially responsible. Part of the answer could lie in watching more science fiction movies<\/a> like \u201cJurassic Park.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a>
\n Just because you can\u2026.<\/span>
\n Universal Pictures<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hollywood lessons in societal risks<\/h2>\n

I\u2019ve long been interested in how innovators and others can better understand the increasingly complex landscape around the social risks and benefits associated with emerging technologies<\/a>. Growing concerns over the impacts of tech on jobs, privacy, security and even the ability of people to live their lives without undue interference highlight the need for new thinking around how to innovate responsibly. <\/p>\n

New ideas require creativity and imagination, and a willingness to see the world differently. And this is where science fiction movies can help.<\/p>\n

Sci-fi flicks are, of course, notoriously unreliable when it comes to accurately depicting science and technology. But because their plots are often driven by the intertwined relationships between people and technology, they can be remarkably insightful in revealing social factors that affect successful and responsible innovation. <\/p>\n

This is clearly seen in \u201cJurassic Park.\u201d The movie provides a surprisingly good starting point for thinking about the pros and cons of modern-day genetic engineering and the growing interest in bringing extinct species back from the dead<\/a>. But it also opens up conversations around the nature of complex systems that involve both people and technology, and the potential dangers of \u201cpermissionless\u201d innovation that\u2019s driven by power, wealth and a lack of accountability.<\/p>\n

Similar insights emerge from a number of other movies, including Spielberg\u2019s 2002 film \u201cMinority Report<\/a>\u201d \u2013 which presaged a growing capacity for AI-enabled crime prediction<\/a> and the ethical conundrums it\u2019s raising \u2013 as well as the 2014 film \u201cEx Machina<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a>
\n Movie geniuses always have blind spots that viewers can hopefully learn from.<\/span>
\n Universal Pictures International<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As with \u201cJurassic Park,\u201d \u201cEx Machina\u201d centers around a wealthy and unaccountable entrepreneur who is supremely confident in his own abilities. In this case, the technology in question is artificial intelligence. <\/p>\n

The movie tells a tale of an egotistical genius who creates a remarkable intelligent machine \u2013 but he lacks the awareness to recognize his limitations and the risks of what he\u2019s doing. It also provides a chilling insight into potential dangers of creating machines that know us better than we know ourselves, while not being bound by human norms or values.<\/p>\n

The result is a sobering reminder of how, without humility and a good dose of humanity, our innovations can come back to bite us.<\/p>\n

The technologies in \u201cJurassic Park,\u201d \u201cMinority Report\u201d and \u201cEx Machina\u201d lie beyond what is currently possible. Yet these films are often close enough to emerging trends that they help reveal the dangers of irresponsible, or simply naive, innovation. This is where these and other science fiction movies can help innovators better understand the social challenges they face and how to navigate them. <\/p>\n

Real-world problems worked out on-screen<\/h2>\n

In a recent op-ed in The New York Times, journalist Kara Swisher asked, \u201cWho will teach Silicon Valley to be ethical<\/a>?\u201d Prompted by a growing litany of socially questionable decisions amongst tech companies, Swisher suggests that many of them need to grow up and get serious about ethics. But ethics alone are rarely enough. It\u2019s easy for good intentions to get swamped by fiscal pressures and mired in social realities.<\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a>
\n Elon Musk has shown that brilliant tech innovators can take ethical missteps along the way.<\/span>
\n AP Photo\/Chris Carlson<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Technology companies increasingly need to find some way to break from business as usual if they are to become more responsible. High-profile cases involving companies like Facebook<\/a> and Uber<\/a> as well as Tesla\u2019s Elon Musk<\/a> have highlighted the social as well as the business dangers of operating without fully understanding the consequences of people-oriented actions. <\/p>\n

Many more companies are struggling to create socially beneficial technologies and discovering that, without the necessary insights and tools, they risk blundering about in the dark.<\/p>\n

For instance, earlier this year, researchers from Google and DeepMind published details of an artificial intelligence-enabled system<\/a> that can lip-read far better than people. According to the paper\u2019s authors, the technology has enormous potential to improve the lives of people who have trouble speaking aloud. Yet it doesn\u2019t take much to imagine how this same technology could threaten the privacy and security of millions \u2013 especially when coupled with long-range surveillance cameras.<\/p>\n

Developing technologies like this in socially responsible ways requires more than good intentions or simply establishing an ethics board. People need a sophisticated understanding of the often complex dynamic between technology and society. And while, as Mozilla\u2019s Mitchell Baker suggests<\/a>, scientists and technologists engaging with the humanities can be helpful, it\u2019s not enough.<\/p>\n

Movies are an easy way into a serious discipline<\/h2>\n

The \u201cnew formulation\u201d of complementary skills Baker says innovators desperately need already exists in a thriving interdisciplinary community focused on socially responsible innovation<\/a>. My home institution, the School for the Future of Innovation in Society<\/a> at Arizona State University, is just one part of this. <\/p>\n

Experts within this global community are actively exploring ways to translate good ideas into responsible practices. And this includes the need for creative insights into the social landscape around technology innovation<\/a>, and the imagination to develop novel ways to navigate it.<\/p>\n

Here is where science fiction movies become a powerful tool for guiding innovators, technology leaders and the companies where they work. Their fictional scenarios can reveal potential pitfalls and opportunities that can help steer real-world decisions toward socially beneficial and responsible outcomes, while avoiding unnecessary risks.<\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a>
\n People love to come together as a movie audience.<\/span>
\n The National Archives UK<\/a>, CC BY<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And science fiction movies bring people together. By their very nature, these films are social and educational levelers. Look at who\u2019s watching and discussing the latest sci-fi blockbuster, and you\u2019ll often find a diverse cross-section of society. The genre can help build bridges between people who know how science and technology work, and those who know what\u2019s needed to ensure they work for the good of society.<\/p>\n

This is the underlying theme in my new book \u201cFilms from the Future: The Technology and Morality of Sci-Fi Movies<\/a>.\u201d It\u2019s written for anyone who\u2019s curious about emerging trends in technology innovation and how they might potentially affect society. But it\u2019s also written for innovators who want to do the right thing and just don\u2019t know where to start.<\/p>\n

Of course science fiction films alone aren\u2019t enough to ensure socially responsible innovation. But they can help reveal some profound societal challenges facing technology innovators and possible ways to navigate them. And what better way to learn how to innovate responsibly than to invite some friends round, open the popcorn and put on a movie?<\/p>\n

It certainly beats being blindsided by risks that, with hindsight, could have been avoided.\"The<\/p>\n

Andrew Maynard<\/a>, Director, Risk Innovation Lab, Arizona State University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

This article is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Andrew Maynard, Arizona State University If there\u2019s one line that stands the test of time in Steven Spielberg\u2019s 1993 classic \u201cJurassic Park,\u201d it\u2019s probably Jeff Goldblum\u2019s exclamation, \u201cYour scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn\u2019t stop to think if they should.\u201d Goldblum\u2019s character, Dr. Ian Malcolm, was warning against the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":14310,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3410],"tags":[196,2876,1668,2132,4247,2225,5451,5450,404,5452,255],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14312"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14312"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14312\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14313,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14312\/revisions\/14313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14310"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}