Lecture by John Lennox, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and Emeritus Fellow in Mathematics and the Philosophy of Science at Green Templeton College, Oxford.
We humans are insatiably curious, and have always been asking questions, such as the hard questions about origin and destiny. With the rise of artificial intelligence, these questions have become even more daunting.
On the one hand, we live in a time of rapid scientific progress that holds enormous promise for many of the problems we face as humankind. So much so, in fact, that many see no need or use for other ways of solving the mysteries of our universe. They assume that science can explain everything.
On the other hand, popular answers to questions about artificial general intelligence differ wildly: from utopian vistas of superhumans working alongside superintelligent Al to Orwellian outcomes where humans are controlled or outcompeted by superintelligent machines or superior versions of themselves.
Lennox argues that the ethical considerations that we bring to bear on these questions is worldview dependent and has serious implications for our thinking about the future of humanity.
John Lennox, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and Emeritus Fellow in Mathematics and Philosophy of Science at Green Templeton College has written many books on religion, ethics, and the relationship between science and God and has had public debates with atheists including Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens. Lennox will be interviewed by Sverre Holm, Professor of Physics, and the topic is taken from Lennox’ two books “2084: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity” (2020) and “Can science explain everything?” (2019).
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