"A Better Tomorrow: Science and Technology’s Essential Purpose" by Arati Prabhakar
Wednesday, December 4, 2024 at the Riggs Alumni Center
On Wednesday, December 4, 2024, I had the honor of listening to Arati Prabhakar. Located in Orem Hall at the Riggs Alumni Center, Prabhakar presented "A Better Tomorrow: Science and Technology’s Essential Purpose" as a part of President Darryll J. Pines’ Presidential Distinguished Forum.
The main focus of this presentation was to take a look at science and technology’s role in our changing world. Arati Prabhakar, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and President Biden’s science and technology advisor, provided important insight into three glimpses of possible futures. The first future Prabhakar analyzed was the future of health. One of the possible futures of health for humanity was very dark. This would be a time of poverty, high pollution, early deaths, extremely low vaccination rates, and more. The other possible future was much better. This future included clean air and water, emphasis on nature, no pandemics, no early deaths from cancer, and more. The second glimpse into the future Prabhakar discussed regarded the climate. One possible future was very dark and included high average global temperatures, extreme natural disasters, the break of biodiversity, feedback loops that spiral into an inhabitable planet, and more. Meanwhile, the other possible future would be a time of net zero emissions and a restored relationship with nature. The third glimpse into the future that was discussed was about Artificial Intelligence. One possible outcome of Artificial Intelligence is very grim. It would involve heavy discrimination and bias, strong misinformation that would distort reality, high cases of fraud, the destruction of privacy, and more. Meanwhile, the other future would entail a stable and managed platform that opens pathways to navigate unknowns. Arati Prabhakar’s presentation emphasized the importance of understanding science and technology so we can correctly apply it to our lives to achieve our biggest goals and aspirations. Prabhakar explained that in our changing world, we need to utilize our resources in the best way to solve problems.
Arati Prabhakar's presentation was extremely fascinating, and I am very grateful for the opportunity to have heard her speak. I believe that Prabhakar’s main points were extremely convincing. To begin, Prabhakar provided substantial evidence to support each of her points. Rather than just stating an idea and moving on, Prabhakar thoroughly explained her idea, how she came to that conclusion, and why she believed it to be correct. Prabhakar used real life scenarios as evidence to prove that her statements were correct. For example, when discussing the possible glimpses of the future of health, Prabhakar directly cited how she and President Biden have worked toward fighting cancer through the Cancer Moonshot program. This program was put into effect to end cancer as we know it and to push toward a brighter future outcome. This program has been able to provide the proper funding to achieve this goal and reach a brighter future. Another example of when Prabhakar supported her statements was when she discussed the glimpse into the future of climate. Prabhakar discussed different policies and movements President Biden has made to reach a bright future with our environment. She provided information on how these have actually helped our country move toward this goal. From my understanding of the political state of the world, all of Prabhakar’s points and ideas that were discussed were supported by my prior knowledge. I also do not know of any information that contradicts what Prabhakar had discussed. I did not observe any logical fallacies or failures of critical thinking during Arati Prabhakar's presentation. Instead, I believe that all of Prabhakar's main ideas were extremely thought out and well supported by a substantial level of evidence.
In conclusion, Arati Prabhakar's presentation "A Better Tomorrow: Science and Technology’s Essential Purpose" was wonderful. I learned so many new things and I find myself very fortunate to have been able to hear her speak.