Science, Technology and Society
In this episode, Rebecca Megson-Smith talks to Eben Kirksey, author of 'The Mutant Project', about the work of Dr. Jiankui He, who created the first genetically modified babies, and the moral dilemmas this work has since raised.…Read more
Jeff Evans looks at the data sources available to policy makers during the pandemic and charts the implications of the rise of the field of data science over statistics.…Read more
Toni Prug, Paško Bilić and Mislav Žitko explain why it doesn’t make sense to challenge tech companies’ monopoly in the name of perfect competition.…Read more
Julia Zauner discusses the inappropriate focus of educational campaigns combatting sexting, which hold survivors accountable for their own victimisation while excusing perpetrators for their actions.…Read more
Phil Allmendinger reflects on the digital revolution’s effect on cities, warning us to look up from our smartphones and reengage with the ‘forgotten city’ – the parts that digital doesn’t touch.…Read more
Tim Dixon and Mark Tewdwr-Jones explain how crucial it is for cities to reimagine how people will want to live, work and play in urban environments in 2040 and beyond.…Read more
The editors of The Imposter as Social Theory - Steve Woolgar, Else Vogel, David Moats and Claes-Fredrik Helgesson - introduce the contemporary concept of impostering. They bring in examples from politics and film culture to give us a taste of the tangles that surround the imposter figure and the destabilisation of social order they generate. …Read more
John Bynner and Walter Heinz, authors of 'Youth Prospects in the Digital Society', outline some of the challenges and uneven prospects young people face in a digital society. …Read more
Rob Kitchin, author of ‘Data Lives: How Data are Made and Shape our World’, warns us not to accept data at face value. He explains why he is telling data stories to remind us that the production of data is a creative endeavour.…Read more
Scott Timcke, author of 'Algorithms and the End of Politics', considers how digital tech companies not only shape everyday perception, but control the economy, legitimise state force and upend democratic practice. …Read more