Yuval shares some traits of Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins in that they challenge the centrality of fictitious narratives in controlling mass behaviour.
"We cannot search for truth and for the way out of suffering without the freedom to think,investigate, and experimentSecular people cherish freedom,and refrain from investing supreme authority in any text,institution or leader as the ultimate judge of what's true and what's right.Humans should always retain the freedom to doubt,to check again,to hear a second opinion,to try a different path.Secular people admire Galileo who dared to question if the earth really sits motionless at the centre of the universe;they admire the masses of commoners who stormed the Bastille in 1789 and brought down the despotic regime of Loius XV1 and they admire Rosa paerks who had the courage to sit down on a seat reserved for white passengers only.
It takes courage to admit ignorance and venture into the unknown.Secular education teaches us that if we don't know something,we shouldn't be afraid of doubting our opinions and checking ourselves again.People throughout history worried that unless we put all our faith in some set of absolute answers,human society will crumble.In fact.modern history has shown that a society of courageous people willing to admit ignorance and raise difficult questions is usually not just more porsperous but also more peaceful than societies in which everyone must unquestioningly accept a single answer.Questions you cannot answer are usually far better for you than answers you cannot question."
So when everyone believes that AI and robotics lead to the betterment of society,what would be its dehumanizing effect when we create something that surpasses its creator?
As Harari postulated"Biotechnology and artificial intelligence now seek to change the very meaning of humanity.If we are committed to the right to life,does that imply we should use biotechnology to overcome death?If we are committed to the right to liberty,should we empower algorithms that decipher and fulfil our hidden desires?If all humans enjoy equal human rights,do superhumans enjoy super rights?
Thursday, March 7, 2019
Tuesday, March 5, 2019
Education as the change maker
When the four tiger economies of Taiwan,Singapore,Hong Kong and South Korea rose to catch up with the developed economies in term of GDP ,they were able to raise the living standard of the people through a strong work ethic,a competitive spirit and the stress on an education system that was rigorously based on meritocracy.
What all of them shared was a culture based on Confucian ethics of teamwork,strong work ethic and meritocracy.People got to the top not through connections or elite family background but in achieving good performance in a standardized exam.That explains the stressful environment of academic studies in these Asian families as it was the yardstick to measure success in career and ability to get into the civil service or highly paid jobs in the private sector.
For many are the unseen sacrifices of parents coaching children in their homework or long hours spent sacrificing personal pleasures to send children for music ,art,dance or tuition classes.Many migrant families that left their motherland to seek greener pastures in foreign countries were trying to escape war,food famines and natural disasters in their villages.Being illiterate or with very little educational opportunities,they remembered that perseverance and hard work ethic,pooling of financial resources from relative and community and mutual co dependence pulled themselves up the socio-economic ladder not through government handouts or special privileges but through sheer meritocracy and hard work.So when they made their fortune,they gave back to the community through setting up welfare institutes to aid the old,sick and poor.many tycoons pooled resources to set up hospitals,banks and even schools and university.Tan Kah Kee donated a lot to setting up Nanyang University and in his native XiaMen.
I think the same mentality exist in Japanese migrants who migrated to Hawaii and the Latin American countries due to hardship in their motherland.The same ethic of adaptability,resilience and hard work ethic is passed on through the generations.
Education became the tool for upward socio-economic mobility not possible in their own motherland due to overpopulation and famines.
What all of them shared was a culture based on Confucian ethics of teamwork,strong work ethic and meritocracy.People got to the top not through connections or elite family background but in achieving good performance in a standardized exam.That explains the stressful environment of academic studies in these Asian families as it was the yardstick to measure success in career and ability to get into the civil service or highly paid jobs in the private sector.
For many are the unseen sacrifices of parents coaching children in their homework or long hours spent sacrificing personal pleasures to send children for music ,art,dance or tuition classes.Many migrant families that left their motherland to seek greener pastures in foreign countries were trying to escape war,food famines and natural disasters in their villages.Being illiterate or with very little educational opportunities,they remembered that perseverance and hard work ethic,pooling of financial resources from relative and community and mutual co dependence pulled themselves up the socio-economic ladder not through government handouts or special privileges but through sheer meritocracy and hard work.So when they made their fortune,they gave back to the community through setting up welfare institutes to aid the old,sick and poor.many tycoons pooled resources to set up hospitals,banks and even schools and university.Tan Kah Kee donated a lot to setting up Nanyang University and in his native XiaMen.
I think the same mentality exist in Japanese migrants who migrated to Hawaii and the Latin American countries due to hardship in their motherland.The same ethic of adaptability,resilience and hard work ethic is passed on through the generations.
Education became the tool for upward socio-economic mobility not possible in their own motherland due to overpopulation and famines.
Sunday, March 3, 2019
movies that tell a good story
Special effects or whatnot 3D effects are just the trimmings as what is important in a movie is the story itself.
it should have the right tension between the characters,realistic dialogue and be entertaining-meaning it has to capture my attention.
Indian movies are entertaining and has universal appeal despite the foreign language and the context of foreign lifestyle.Watching both Pad man and Toilet overtwo weekends shows the skill of the filmmaker to take a topic of social ills of society and spin it into a humorous ,entertaining movie.the appeal of Bollywood movies has spread to four corners of the globe and are the most widely seen movies all over the world from China,Russia,the Middle East,SouthEast Asia ,Britain and Africa.Fans from diverse cultural and social worlds have a liking for popular Indian movies.
Bollywood movies are value for money as it allows plain folks 3 long hours of entertainment with everything all thrown in. There are no distinct genres but mixes several genres and themes simultaneously in an orgy of visual and sound.This makes Bollywood movies different as multi genre movies are termed "the masala film" like curry cooked with different spices or masala,the Indian movie serves a potporri of flavours.
A famous choreographer says"What is saving Indian cinema from being overwhelmed by Hollywood is our song and dance routines,because they just can't imitate that." ( That's why I enjoy my Sunday dance sessions at the park as our guru teaches us Bollywood moves like her Masala Bhangra last Sunday saw us wriggling hipsand sliding our necks to hot bhangra music).
Their movies are full of hope,showingthat good inevitably triumphs,people live modern westernised lives and still respect traditional Indian values,the hero always beat the villain and the dark side of life is banished forever.As Amitabh Bachchan sums it 'Hindi movies provide poetic justice in just three hours-a feat that none of us can achieve in a lifetime."
I like movies that deal with socio-cultural issues in society and that I get from independent movies not manufactured for mass consumption.They deal with family issues or society concerns in which the movies from China starting from Zhang YiMo ,Feng Xiao gang and that generation of directors did not follow the mould of Hong Kong movies that were entertaining but lack critique of socio-cultural norms.Now China movies have zoomed way ahead with use of animation and dipping into new genres like sci-fi.I wanna watch The Wandering Earth when it comes as it had raving reviews.Horror and romance movies are so common in Asian movies that they lack creativity.Good to watch how science fiction is interpreted through an Asian director and Chinese writer-they are getting bolder in film making.Interesting development.Technical skills can be learnt but not the creativity of the story telling-that is an inborn talent and with a pool of billions,there are bound to be a few who will rise to the top of the profession if they are nurtured with access to diverse reading,viewing and acting opportunities.
it should have the right tension between the characters,realistic dialogue and be entertaining-meaning it has to capture my attention.
Indian movies are entertaining and has universal appeal despite the foreign language and the context of foreign lifestyle.Watching both Pad man and Toilet overtwo weekends shows the skill of the filmmaker to take a topic of social ills of society and spin it into a humorous ,entertaining movie.the appeal of Bollywood movies has spread to four corners of the globe and are the most widely seen movies all over the world from China,Russia,the Middle East,SouthEast Asia ,Britain and Africa.Fans from diverse cultural and social worlds have a liking for popular Indian movies.
Bollywood movies are value for money as it allows plain folks 3 long hours of entertainment with everything all thrown in. There are no distinct genres but mixes several genres and themes simultaneously in an orgy of visual and sound.This makes Bollywood movies different as multi genre movies are termed "the masala film" like curry cooked with different spices or masala,the Indian movie serves a potporri of flavours.
A famous choreographer says"What is saving Indian cinema from being overwhelmed by Hollywood is our song and dance routines,because they just can't imitate that." ( That's why I enjoy my Sunday dance sessions at the park as our guru teaches us Bollywood moves like her Masala Bhangra last Sunday saw us wriggling hipsand sliding our necks to hot bhangra music).
Their movies are full of hope,showingthat good inevitably triumphs,people live modern westernised lives and still respect traditional Indian values,the hero always beat the villain and the dark side of life is banished forever.As Amitabh Bachchan sums it 'Hindi movies provide poetic justice in just three hours-a feat that none of us can achieve in a lifetime."
I like movies that deal with socio-cultural issues in society and that I get from independent movies not manufactured for mass consumption.They deal with family issues or society concerns in which the movies from China starting from Zhang YiMo ,Feng Xiao gang and that generation of directors did not follow the mould of Hong Kong movies that were entertaining but lack critique of socio-cultural norms.Now China movies have zoomed way ahead with use of animation and dipping into new genres like sci-fi.I wanna watch The Wandering Earth when it comes as it had raving reviews.Horror and romance movies are so common in Asian movies that they lack creativity.Good to watch how science fiction is interpreted through an Asian director and Chinese writer-they are getting bolder in film making.Interesting development.Technical skills can be learnt but not the creativity of the story telling-that is an inborn talent and with a pool of billions,there are bound to be a few who will rise to the top of the profession if they are nurtured with access to diverse reading,viewing and acting opportunities.
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