An analog person in a digital age - Dr. Yossi Vardi

Speeches delivered by Dr. Yossi Vardi, at the bachelor's degree in engineering ceremony at the Tel Aviv Academic College of Engineering.

Dr. Yossi Vardi

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"These were the best of times, these were the worst of times." This is how Charles Dickens opened his book "A Tale of Two Cities". The graduates of the higher education institutes, the young scientists, engineers and technologists of the beginning of the 21st century, embark on a wonderful journey, with an excellent travel card, one of the best in the world. The scientists today are the harbingers of progress. They have taken the historical place of the traditional closed oligarchies and elites. The entry card of the technologist allows mobility, both between countries and within the company. They are the ones who will shape the face of the next century. According to current life expectancy statistics, the vast majority of those who set out today will see most of the century.

What will be the nature of the journey? Paraphrasing Dickens' words, one can say that it will be the most terrible-glory of centuries, it will be the most terrible-horror of centuries. I will try to examine what might determine the difference between the two options
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In 1794 the greatest scientist of his time after Newton, Lavoisier, stood trial. The judges of the young French Republic that arose after the revolution, sentenced him to beheading. Lavoisier's sin was not related to his scientific work, but to the fact that he also served as a tax collector. When the sentence was pronounced, he was given the right to one last request. And this was Lavoisier's last request: "I am busy with a series of scientific experiments, please postpone the execution of the sentence for two weeks, to allow me to finish the research before my death." The judge's answer was that "the republic does not need scientists". After Lavoisier's head was shaved, the great mathematician told Grange that Lavoisier's beheading was done in the blink of an eye, but it would take a century to grow another head like that.
Intermediate: The Global Village
The Canadian philosopher and communications researcher Marshall McLaughlin coined the concept of the "global village" in the early 70s, when he examined the future impact of the new electronic means of communication. He predicted that the cross-border transparency created by the media will turn the world into one village where everyone knows everything about everyone. Less than 20 years after that prophecy we witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet bloc. There is no doubt that the modern media, which made the West transparent to the eyes of Eastern Europe, played a key role in the process.

Eastern Europe underwent a rapid process of democratization as a result of which, in an early moment of Western complacency, Fukuyama wrote his book "The End of History", in which he claimed that civilization, which since the beginning of its development had been on a constant journey of searching for and improving ways to organize and manage an ideal human society, had reached the shore of safety which is the model of a liberal democratic state. He claimed that this successful model is the final landmark of civilization in the quest that characterized it until then. The conclusion: this will be the chosen method of the regime, and history, that is, the story of the long quest, has come to an end. Indeed, for a while it seemed that the global village had indeed risen and history had indeed come to an end. is that so?

Let us try to see the positive scenario of the next century. What works in our favor? The world's population in the coming century will make up about 70% of the total number of people who have ever lived on our earth. In the past, only a small part of the population was educated. Today we are witnessing a rapid process of expanding the circle of those who have access to education. Education penetrates and reaches huge populations in East Asia. Women, who throughout history have been an oppressed sector when it comes to education, except for a few cases, are also joining the circle. In light of all this, it is possible to understand what enormous potential the brain power of the entire population of this century has. Go ahead and calculate how many new Einsteins and Mozarts are likely to emerge from this large population.
Intermediate: Accelerated rate in 50 years
The pace of technological development and scientific inventions has accelerated greatly. One only needs to examine the pace of changes that have taken place in the last 50 years to tap into the pace of changes ahead of us. Well, 50 years ago, man had not yet reached the moon. Plastic materials, television, and transistors were just the beginning. Jet planes, genetic engineering, the personal computer and the Internet did not yet exist. In other words, we have gone through a tremendous leap in this relatively short period. The introduction of the Internet and the fact that all types of information became available much faster also accelerated these processes.
In many areas the world is improving. Issues such as genetic engineering, nanotechnology, the development of computing and artificial intelligence will move humanity forward. Air pollution in the cities, despite the torture and claims, is becoming a less serious problem not only in Los Angeles but even in Haifa.
Intermediate: The negative side of technological development
We are witnessing more and more cases of accepting international responsibility for cross-border problems. Following the effective awakening of such responsibility, and vigorous activity, the hole in the ozone begins to shrink. With the effective use of the Internet, the world has finally begun to address the deadly threat of millions of abandoned mines. The standard of living in the world is rising. The predictions are that at the end of the century the poor countries will reach the level of the rich countries today, and the rich will get even richer. Life expectancy is increasing all the time. Entire populations will have access to the best Western technology. Globalization is developing and helps the efficient movement of goods, money and information and the creation of jobs. Countless voluntary associations of people who "care" about various issues, operate on a scale that has no equal in the past.

However, as in the Eastern model of yin and yang, the good qualities also have a negative side that we will have to deal with. On the side of the blessing of the empowerment of technological development, there is also the empowerment of the dangers inherent in it: computer systems are vulnerable to hackers and violate privacy. Of course, the nuclear danger. Genetic engineering, which holds the promise of a healthier future, also causes the dangers of genetically engineered bacteria and viruses that may cause many risks, whether they are developed intentionally or as a result of a malfunction. Genetically modified food may alleviate the plight of hunger, but it also raises multiple concerns. In addition, genetic engineering raises difficult moral questions when it comes to human cloning. The political changes that led to the democratization of Eastern Europe, on the other hand, increased the danger that nuclear weapons would end up in the wrong hands.

The family unit, which was the best model throughout civilization, and considered the pillar of society, and the main support device for the adult population was broken. Extending life expectancy - which is of course good in itself - causes a burden on society and pension funds that are not prepared for it.
Intermediate: International movement of migration
As part of globalization, the rich countries transfer less desirable jobs to poor countries, and since some of these jobs can only be done in the rich countries themselves, a worldwide movement of legal and illegal immigration is created. Illegal immigration has become an industry on the scale of the drug industry - which itself is growing - and in many cases it takes the form of modern slavery. Globalization poses new challenges in regards to issues such as international taxation, the stability of financial systems, trade agreements, copyrights and patents, electronic commerce laws, monopolies issues and ensuring competitiveness,

The utilization of human potential depends on the accessibility of education for the growing population. but
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The advancement of technology requires learning skills that are beyond the reach of large classes and entire countries. The digital divide exacerbates this.

At any given moment there are dozens of interstate conflicts, some of them violent. Today there is hunger and malnutrition in the world. One and a half billion people earn one dollar a day. Every four seconds a person dies of malnutrition. It is now known that children who suffer from insufficient nutrition in their first three years are permanently damaged in their intellectual capacity. Africa is plagued by AIDS and tuberculosis. And there is a danger of new diseases. But the accessibility of medicines in the poor world is problematic.

The urbanization process worsens the environmental problems and the crime problems. The desert grows, varieties of plants and animals are destroyed. The sea is becoming the cesspool of the world and the fish are becoming extinct. The process of global warming due to the greenhouse effect continues. The water problem for the growing population is getting worse.

Is all this relevant to us? The very presentation of the question is problematic, but the practical answer is that we have already seen that what people or countries do not accept in pleasant ways, they tend to take by force. As science and technology gain greater power, the growing tension between the positive and negative trends intensifies. One thing is clear: progress is only a tool and is not necessarily a synonym for happiness, or for choosing to do what is good and right.

Was McLaughlin right and the problems we are witnessing today are just incalculable bumps in the road to the formation of the "global village"? And perhaps it is more correct to talk about a global "boat", a boat in which we all sit, and if only one person drills a hole in it, or presses a button, or presses "ENTER" - we will all drown. A boat that the wonders of modern communication allow each of its "passengers" to see clearly what the neighbor is doing, but this ability only creates and increases the frustration of those who understand what they don't have - who see with their own eyes, and feel deprived and threatened and therefore subject to tension and hostility? Perhaps this is a village where access to technology makes the rich richer, and the poor poorer, and the science that creates wonderful things - divides them in a way that creates tension, and puts them, among other things, in the wrong hands that will cause damage. And when the greatest achievements of science and technology in the fields of electronics, biology, security and communication are also within the reach of terrorism, the very existence of civilization is in danger. It is very possible that the events of September 2001 were only the first warning sign.
The long journey of civilization
Was Fukuyama right? Or are we still participating in the long journey of civilization that continues to find its way? Various groups challenge the classical framework of the liberal democratic state. With the powerful help of the new global communication technology, and with the wonderful ability of the Internet to unite parties with a common agenda even if they do not know each other and are thousands of miles away from each other, we are today witnessing the formation of various groups, both intra-state and between - Statehood, which tries to break or change this framework, and gain influence, some by persuasion and some by force. And in the process we are witnessing it and the hardships of a new norm in the organizational structure of civilization: from a one-dimensional structure in which the state is the classic framework to a multi-dimensional structure that recognizes and is exposed to the rising power of these groups whether with or without consent.

Intra-state minority groups, ethnic, religious, national and other, are no longer ready to accept the norm that the majority determines and imposes, and demand more influence and representation

Interstate groups try to influence for better or for worse, some benevolently and some forcefully, and to represent interests that go beyond the interests of the state. In this category we find a mixture of different bodies located along the whole spectrum between good and bad. Starting with multinational companies, through voluntary international aid organizations, through those dealing with anti-globalization and ending with terrorist organizations. Even among the ranks of groups that seek good, sometimes militant elements infiltrate the content and cause them to be radicalized. These and similar struggles and tensions will continue deep into the current century. Everyone is stirring the cauldron, and everyone will try to shape in one way or another the image of civilization in the 21st century, whose shape is still unclear. (Fukuima himself recognized this fact following the events of September 2001 and agreed that history had indeed not come to an end)
Intermediate: Science is just a tool
These and similar dilemmas have occupied the scientists, the statesmen and the whole of humanity since time immemorial, but they will take on a different effect in the next 50 years. Science is just a tool, indeed a wonderful tool, but everything depends on the intentions of the one holding the tool. Since time immemorial, the deal between the elites and the whole community has been that the elites gained their status and power in return for their willingness to take responsibility and care for society as a whole. The technologist, as a son of the new elite, can no longer see himself as someone who deals exclusively with science but is not responsible for the results. Science and the scientist should be responsible and relevant. Technological thinkers like Bill Joy - the chief scientist of "San Microsystems" and Martin Rees - the Royal Astronomer of Great Britain doubt for these reasons whether civilization will survive the current century, and call on the technological public opinion to show more responsibility in nuclear, nanotechnological and genetic issues!

We have seen that the world is subject to a rapid and great rate of change. Almost everything has changed, almost everything! But surprisingly - one thing has remained unchanged for thousands of years! The basic value system of good and bad, right and wrong, do and don't, responsibility and irresponsibility is as relevant today as it was then. It's amazing that a group of people who lived literally on this land already two and three thousand years ago, people who by any modern standard would be considered primitive by us, managed to formulate it in a way that remained correct, fresh and relevant as if it had only been formulated today. Striving for peace, doing justice, social responsibility, helping the weak, the orphan, the widow, the homeless among us, consideration for the living and preservation of the environment, of which the prophet Isaiah and his friends gave a wonderful expression, are principles in their light human society has flourished and developed for thousands of years, and they are the ones responsible for the development and prosperity of civilization enlightened And those who uphold these principles - they and only they are entitled to the title "human being".

There is a debate between religious and moral people, philosophers, people of evolutionary theories and others why these principles stood the test of time. Using modern mathematical tools from the field of game theory deciphered the puzzle - they show that this strategy, intuitively perceived by us as a moral strategy, is also the most profitable strategy in the long run and guarantees the greatest degree of survival! Those who did not keep these principles simply became extinct and disappeared.
Indeed, the republic - contrary to the words of Lavoisier's judges - needs scientists, and on the other hand, the scientists also need the republic. However, in order to ensure that the best will be extracted from science and technology, both of them need to fulfill the cultural and social requirements of the mandatory title - "human being" - a title that can only be purchased at one university - the university of life, and for which the test to receive takes place every day anew.

The Israeli skeptic
Science and society

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