GeekSpeak – What are the Best and the Worst inventions/discoveries ever made? Join the DIscussion August 6th at 12pm SLT

 If you were to draw up a list of all the important milestones in the history of our species, what would be at the top of that list?  Would you put fire at the top?  Or writing, painkillers, the invention of shoes?And what would be on the worst inventions list?  The nuclear bomb, sugar refining, Twitter?Join us in GeekSpeak at noon SLT on Saturday and let’s talk about the really big milestones and gravestones.  There...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Will we all be Perfect in the future? Join the discussion Saturday, April 9th at 12pm SLT

With DNA editing we can improve the way our bodies function.  With robotic enhancements, we will be able to do things no human can do.  Where will all these new powers take us?Is it possible to be perfect?  Or will there always be trade-offs?  Should some enhancements be against the law?  Who will decide for the children? Will humanity split into different species?  The rich will be...

Read More

GeekSpeak - Living in a Space Station! Join the discussion on December 11th at 12pm slt

 What is it really like to live in the International Space Station?  Do you envy the people who go there? You have to stay for about 6 months, living with people you don’t really know and maybe don’t like.  And there is no escape! Sometimes you have to shelter from space debris or solar storms and you are separated from sudden death by a very thin wall.  Living without gravity can be dangerous and hygiene...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Art and Astronomy- Join the discussion Saturday, October 9th at 12pm SLT

 There are many strange places in space, and we are beginning to send artists into it.  Last month 4 artists went into space, in the coming year, there will be 2 movies shot in space and 8 artists making a moon flyby. What new forms of art will we see in space?  And how will the weirdness in space affect art?  Will we see moving sculptures set in zero gravity?  Or stars rearranged to make the Mona...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Telepresence- Join the discussion October 2nd at 12pm SLT

One day soon you may be able to rent a drone for a while and see the world as the drone sees it.  You could fly through the Grand Canyon or visit the North pole.  You could wear glasses that enable you to see things hundreds of miles away.  The person you are talking to could appear in front of you.  You could watch brain surgery as though you were present at the operation.  You could experience flying...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Will we all be Cyborgs? Join the discussion on Saturday, September 25th at 12pm SLT

Is it inevitable that people will want to upgrade themselves as technology progresses and possibilities open?  If you lose an arm you will want a mechanical arm. A tech arm could be a lot better in terms of speed, agility, strength. Or will you want to regrow body parts?  New teeth grown for old, or a new human arm grown for an arm lost?Which would you choose?  Robot parts or regrown human parts?  Which...

Read More

GeekSpeak subject for Saturday 12th September at noon SLT

GeekSpeak – How I stopped worrying and started to love finance! Everything you always wanted to know about finance but were afraid to ask.  Ask all your finance questions now.  Let’s explore the financial system.  What are shares?  How should we invest? Even if you have close to zero in your account right now, let’s see where to go.  Erik Goff has been there and got the T-shirt and knows the way out.  Why...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Is the future vegetarian? Join the discussion Saturday May 23rd at 12pm SLT

In time will we all become vegetarian?  Or vegan?  What are the advantages of being a vegetarian?  It might be the best way to fight global warming.  Less animal protein is good for our health.  We could put an end to the cruelty involved in farming animals.  On the other hand, being vegan might be unhealthy.  And most people really enjoy eating meat. 90% of Indians are vegetarian.  Could...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Is it time to revise the Drake Equation? Join the discussion February 8th at 12pm SLT

It has been many years since Drake produced his equation about how many intelligent, technological aliens there could be in the universe.  In 1961 we had not discovered a single exoplanet.  And we now have a much broader definition of life. On the other hand, we now know of many more ways in which a civilisation can destroy itself.  So is it time to review the Drake Equation?  Or the Fermi paradox? (Why don’t...

Read More

GeekSpeak – How will autonomous driving change our cities? Join the discussion Oct. 19th at 12pm SLT

In a few years from now self-driving electric cars will be a reality.  What will our cities be like?  Will there be more cars or fewer?  Will the possession of a car become a small business since cars can be robotaxis when they are not being used by the owner?  Will cities become much pleasanter places to live?  Fewer cars, and maybe most of those driving in underground tunnels, less pollution, quiet...

Read More

GeekSpeak – Should we merge Science and Sports? Join the discussion on Saturday September 14th at 12PM SLT

Sports tend to become more and more extreme and a lot of science is involved so that people can achieve new records.  Is it time to merge sports and science?  Science will make new sports possible and the team of scientists will also get prizes.  How about skydiving from 20 km up or deep diving, 10 km down?  Would people be interested in such a merger?  Do you think, as science progresses...

Read More

GeekSpeak – what is the future of Africa? Join the discussion Saturday, August 24th at noon SLT

Africa is the second largest continent, with 54 countries and a very young and rapidly expanding population.  At present it is suffering from wars, diseases, and droughts. But there is a lot of promise for the future. Let’s talk about how the next superpower will develop.  How soon will we see a major boost in the wealth of the African population?  What is needed to get it going? What problems must be overcome?Will Africa...

Read More

GeekSpeak – how close are we to a nuclear war? Join the discussion on Saturday July 27th at 12pm SLT

Nowadays most of us are less worried about nuclear weapons than we were in the last century.  But is that reasonable?  The danger is still there.  Any conventional war could become a nuclear war.  As nuclear weapons spread, more and more countries could start a nuclear war.  Would it be possible for terrorists to start one, either by making nuclear weapons or by hacking into command codes?  Could a nuclear war...

Read More

GeekSpeak – what if we were the only life in the universe? Join the discusion July 13th at 12pm SLT

Let’s suppose we could somehow scientifically prove that there are no aliens in the rest of the universe?  Would we lose interest in space exploration?  Or would you try harder to explore the universe in order to establish new human colonies?Would it be our duty to take life out into the galaxy?  Or would we see it as our duty to keep life on Earth forever?What religious implications would such a discovery have?  Would we...

Read More

GeekSpeak – will humans have extra senses in the future? Join the discussion Saturday 6th July at 12pm SLT

Are we approaching a transhumanist future where we will have new senses?  Given DNA modification and technology, will we sense radiation, UV light, magnetic fields, the gravity of the moon?  Will our ordinary senses be enhanced so that we can navigate by means of sonar, slow down time so we can hear the songs of birds, smell as well as dogs?A connection with AI will give us extra information.  At what point does the extra information...

Read More

GeekSpeak – is our species facing extinction in this century? Join the discussion Saturday June 22nd at 12pm SLT

Recently a report came out that stated that we will be extinct in 2050.  Could that really happen?  What threatens us?  The death of insects, climate change, nuclear war, new diseases?  What other threats can you think of? Do you worry about extinction?  Or do you think we can correct every problem, bring back the insects, put the carbon back in the ground? There are 7 billion of us.  Are we really in...

Read More

GeekSpeak – will the world ever be one country? Join the discussion Saturday June 15th 12pm SLT

Do you look forward to a time when the world will be just one state, with one government?  Or do you think there will always be borders between countries, however much the world may change in other ways?Would a world government be a good thing?  It might mean the end of war.  But it could also mean a world with an evil government that could not be escaped.  Maybe we need different countries just so that we have some choice...

Read More

GeekSpeak – the rise and rise of bitcoin. Join the Discussion Saturday 6/1 at 12pm SLT

Bitcoin is nearing 10k US dollars this week, so it is a good moment for all of us to get up to speed with what is happening in the cryptocurrency scene.Why is bitcoin so important for the whole of humanity?  How much further will it rise before it completely takes over?  What will the world look like under a single monetary standard?  Will all countries be equal, or will some still manage to suppress others?How will the culture...

Read More

GeekSpeak – the death of insects

Insects – we dislike most of them or regard them as a nuisance.  But we need them, all of them.  We need them as pollinators and as food for birds, bats, frogs, fish, small mammals.  We need some of them just because they are beautiful.  But they are declining at an alarming speed, at least in the western world, because of the widespread use of pesticides, huge areas of mono-culture and the destruction of insect habitats, such...

Read More

GeekSpeak – how will we change when we go into space?

What will humans become once we venture out of the earth’s protective environment?Will humans be carefully chosen for all colonizing missions?  Only very small people, because it saves on food and space?  Only those with little aggression, for obvious reasons?Will humans be engineered for space colonization?  Will their DNA be changed to protect them from radiation sickness?  Will they be given chloroplasts so they can make...

Read More