Academy Of Ideas

From Big Data to the driverless car, we seem to live in an age of dizzying technological progress, which many hail as a ‘new industrial revolution’. Robotic intelligence is becoming so advanced that many warn machines could take white-collar jobs within a generation, while computers are moving ever closer to passing the Turing Test. Meanwhile, smart technology is increasingly marketed as desirable for reducing the capacity for human error: Google’s developers note that most accidents had by their driverless car are caused by other drivers. Global companies such as IBM are involved in designing purpose-built smart cities, such as South Korea’s Songdo, which can manage the climate and water supply or respond to citizens’ movements in real time. While much of this seems cause for celebration – liberating us from banal tasks and informing our ability to make choices – others sound a note of caution. Wall Street’s ‘flash crash’ in 2010 was allegedly caused by ‘spoofing’ technology tricking automate

Charlie Hebdo one year on, Corbyn's reshuffle, debating Brexit and more In this edition of the Podcast of Ideas, Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David Bowden discuss the state of free speech one year on from the Charlie Hebdo attacks, Labour’s seemingly interminable shadow cabinet reshuffle, David Cameron’s decision to allow his ministers to campaign for Brexit and the way the debate is shaping up, the latest absurd campaign in the war on sugar and Simon Danczuk’s texting shenanigans.

After the Conservative Party’s victory in the general election, it now looks likely that David Cameron will follow through on his promise to hold an in/out referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union by the end of 2017. Although Cameron himself would prefer the UK to remain a member, there is now a serious possibility of ‘Brexit’, particularly given the rise of UKIP and a general disillusionment with the EU among many voters across the political spectrum. Euroscepticism has re-emerged on the left, too, with the likes of Jeremy Corbyn and Owen Jones calling for the UK to leave the EU. Business leaders have frequently warned of economic catastrophe if the UK leaves the EU. One much-quoted estimate is that between three and four million jobs depend on trade with the EU, though the claim that these jobs would all be in jeopardy if the UK left is controversial. The UK would likely continue to have free trade with the remaining members of the EU. But the economic issues run much wider th

Dr Michael Fitzpatrick discusses public health's war on our bad habits. In the run up to Christmas, the season of excess and indulgence, Rob Lyons and David Bowden are joined by writer and retired GP Michael Fitzpatrick to discuss the ever increasing curbs on our ability to eat, drink, smoke and be merry.

Listen to the team discuss the Paris attacks, bombing Syria and the climate change talks In this week’s Podcast of Ideas Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David Bowden discuss the aftermath of the Paris attacks, intervention in Syria, Jeremy Corbyn’s embattled position as Labour leader and this week’s UN climate change conference .

When Jeremy Corbyn went from being the token lefty candidate for Labour leader to the favourite to lead the party this summer, it became clear that the old assumptions no longer apply. But while the ‘Corbyn Wave’ appeared to be something new, there was an unmistakable paradox in the fact that the man of the moment had been hiding in plain sight at Westminster since 1983. So is he a blast from the past or a harbinger of things to come? Some suggest his rise represents a momentous shift to the left. With its new £3 registered supporter option, Labour’s ‘membership’ swell to 610,753, with many of the new influx aged under 30. This seemed to echo the rise of the SNP in Scotland as another example of the left-wing populism flaring up across Europe in the wake of SYRIZA in Greece and Podemos in Spain. At the same time, though, more long-established outsider parties like Britain’s UKIP and France’s Front National have enjoyed considerable electoral success, topping the European Parliament polls. With t

Listen to the special Battle of Ideas satellite put on in Stockholm in the wake of the Paris attacks At last weekend’s series of Battle of Idea Satellite debates in Stockholm an impromptu session was held in response to last Fridays terror attacks in Paris. Speakers Isobel Hadley-Kamptz author and journalist Kashif Mahmood Virk imam, Stockholm Ahmmadiyya congregation Brendan O’Neill editor, spiked Chair Rob Lyons science and technology director, Institute of Ideas

Listen to this session from the International Battles strand of the recent Battle of Ideas festival In the past few years, the Middle East has undergone serious convulsions, from the collapse of Iraq to the Arab Spring, the Syrian war and the Saudi-led bombardment of Yemen. The spread of Islamic State has wiped out one hundred-year-old borders in a matter of months, with large areas of Iraq and Syria now part of those countries only in name. America’s interest and power in the region seems to waning while regional powers such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Iran are becoming more assertive. A bewildering number of alliances and counter-alliances seem to be in play in which religious affiliations, local political grievances and powerful external players meet in a maelstrom. The Gulf states intervene against and for Sunni jihadists depending upon which state one looks at; America supports Iranian-backed militias in Iraq while backing Saudi-led airstrikes against Shia groups in Yemen; in Syria, Am

In recent years, the popularity of e-cigarettes has exploded. They have been celebrated by many as being the greatest aid to smoking cessation ever invented, with even the anti-smoking group ASH giving them grudging approval. E-cigarettes do not contain the tar and toxins that make cigarettes harmful, but as this is a relatively new technology, some argue we cannot be sure of their long-term effects on people’s health. And even if they do turn out to be harmless, detractors worry they will ‘renormalise’ smoking and act as a gateway to smoking for young people. On these grounds organisations like the British Medical Association say they should be subject to the same stringent regulation, advertising bans and high taxes as tobacco. Internationally, a WHO report has called for them to be banned in public globally and the sale of e-cigarettes and the nicotine liquid they use is already banned in most Scandinavian countries. Several US cities, including New York and Chicago, have banned their

Debate at the Battle of Ideas 2015 (http://www.battleofideas.org.uk) With the rise of fantasy and sci-fi, geek culture is now mainstream. Yet trailing its success has come vicious infighting amongst fans. 'Gamergate' moved quickly from a dispute between game developers and journalists to a row over gamers' attitudes towards women. Dr Matt Taylor's choice of a bawdy shirt overshadowed his work in landing the Philae lander on a comet. The rise of social media has led to 'calling people out', harnessing the power of public shaming. 'Social Justice Warriors' have provoked sub-cultures such as 'Sad Puppies', who reject perceived politically correct orthodoxies. How are the frontlines of the culture wars changing? SPEAKERS Allum Bokhari (columnist, Breitbart) Serena Kutchinsky (digital editor, Prospect) Dr Maren Thom (researcher, film, Queen Mary University of London) Jason Walsh (journalist; foreign correspondent, CS Monitor) Milo Yiannopoulos (technology editor, Breitbart)

Trigger warning: 'If you're easily offended you really shouldn't come.' - Claire Fox With just a few days to go before the Institute’s annual Battle of Ideas at the Barbican in London, Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David Bowden get together to talk about what makes the festival unique and why it’s an unapologetically unsafe space where ideas are fought over and contested, as well as discussing some of the sessions they’re looking forward to most. To find out more about this weekend’s festival and buy tickets visit the Battle of Ideas website.

Listen to the introductory remarks from last week's Battle of Ideas satellite in Amsterdam We are living longer, healthier and richer lifes than ever before. These trends have already spread to billions of people in poorer countries. But are the costs of all this progress beginning to outweigh the benefits? Greens worry that the Earth cannot sustain our desire for more, more, more. Do their worries halt progress? Some believe that environmental concerns have gone too far, putting a brake on growth, especially in poor countries. Are the world’s poor only allowed to experience ‘sustainable’ development? Lately, a new brand of greens is emerging. These so-called ‘eco-modernists’ believe the planet can be ecologically vibrant even with many billions more people living a good life - if only we would use our scientific knowledge to steward the world’s resources. But can science also tell us what kind of balance is desirable between allowing humanity to flourish while preserving the natural world

Listen to the introductory remarks from this week's Battle of Ideas satellite at the House of St. Barnabas in London The announcement that the UK population grew last year by half a million – roughly the population of Edinburgh – has provoked much discussion about whether the country will cope with an increasing demand on resources. With half that rise coming from migration rather than births, there have been inevitable calls to impose tougher limitations on who can move to this country, heightening debate around free movement in the context of Britain’s European Union membership and amid a migrant crisis at Calais. For London, the situation is even more pressing, with the population this year breaking its historical peak of 8.6million and expected to rise to 10 million by 2030. With UK national house-building at record low levels – less than 150,000 new homes per year and with soaring rents in the capital and beyond – many are questioning whether the UK can afford an ever-expanding populati

Podcast: Rob Lyons speaks to Dr Shirley Lawes about the state of French politics and society The world’s spotlight fell on France early this year with the attacks on the offices of Charlie Hebdo. The subsequent wave of solidarity, which rallied France around the slogan ‘Je suis Charlie’, was heralded by many as a bold reassertion of the nation’s commitment to the liberal values of the French Revolution. Indeed, Voltaire’s ‘Treatise on Tolerance’ climbed to the top of France’s bestseller list in the wake of the attacks. These sentiments seemed to be confirmed by President François Hollande’s address to the nation, where he defended France’s ‘attachment to freedom of speech’ and said that ‘in France all beliefs are respected’. Nevertheless, this apparent liberal zeal was undermined by a government crackdown the same week, which resulted in the arrest of dozens of people, including the controversial comedian Dieudonné, for inflammatory remarks about the attacks on social media. Does France r

Rob Lyons speaks to Sandy Starr about the history of eugenics and whether the term is useful today Using techniques like mitochondrial donation - ‘three-person IVF’ - we can alter genes to resolve congenital medical conditions. Other techniques that change our heritable characteristics will follow. But such developments often inspire resistance: the ability to manipulate our germlines is sometimes described as ‘eugenics’, invoking the horrors of Nazi racial policies, although the term was coined by Francis Galton in 1883. Are we going too far in altering our genes or should we embrace the ability to conquer illness? Should we worry about attempts to ‘improve’ human beings? In this week’s podcast Rob speaks to Sandy Starr from the Progress Educational Trust and convener of the Battle over Life and Death strand at this year’s Battle of Ideas about the dark history of eugenics and the use and abuse of the term today ahead of a session he’s chairing called Eugenics: myth and reality. T

Listen to the opening remarks from the Battle of Ideas launch event at the Barbican in London London has, by most accounts, emerged as one of the premier cities of the twenty-first century: firmly established as a global hub for finance, technology and culture. Yet there have been growing anxieties about the effect rising inequality levels are having on the city and its inhabitants. Soaring private rental prices and strain on social housing have fuelled fears about gentrification driving out long-term residents as unfashionable neighbourhoods become regenerated. Such fears have also begun to spread among the relatively affluent, with even the New York Times‘s departing London correspondent bemoaning the distorting effects of foreign investment into the capital’s ‘crazyexpensive’ property market. Stories abound of young creatives being priced out to the extent that they find commuting from Spain or Berlin a more affordable option. More generally, there is a growing conviction that London’s develop

Rob Lyons speaks to philosopher Piers Benn about the nature of happiness and why it has become a Government policy objective in recent years.

In this week's Podcast of Ideas Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David Bowden discuss the week's news, including the migrant crisis and the drone assassinations of two British Jihadis in the Islamic State.

In this week’s Podcast of Ideas, Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David Bowden discuss the murder of two journalists on live television by a disgruntled former colleague in the United States, and the latest tragic events in the ongoing European migration crisis. Rob talks to Martyn Perks about the growing fears about the role of artificial intelligence and robots in society in everything from manufacturing to warfare, and why a machine could never become truly human, ahead of his session at the upcoming Battle of Ideas session titled Man vs machine: who controls the robots?. And after the release of this year’s GCSE results, Philip Walters comes in to discuss the state of education in the UK and whether exams for 16-year-olds are necessary any more.