Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20190417 | Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions How the home will be disrupted and transformed by radical technological change. Our homes may experience more disruption than anywhere else because of the forces unleashed by technological change. The notions we have about home - a private, secure, stable place where you can shut out the world and just be yourself - are under threat from technology and economic change. From the internet of things and the Smart Home, to the complete rejection of any permanent fixed abode, FutureProofing hears how our ideas about home will be transformed in the 21st century. | |||
| Apocalypse | 20190424 | Will 21st century technology avert or accelerate the Apocalypse? Humanity has always featured stories and fears about the end of the world. But never before have we possessed such power to influence the dangers, manage the risks or cause such existential disaster. Presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson travel to NASA’s Los Angeles laboratory, and the site of the nuclear catastrophe at Chernobyl to understand the risks of disaster that face us in the next century. They discover how artificial intelligence might accelerate the demise of humankind, whilst also offering us a pathway to survival and redemption. And they learn how titanium wafers containing the entire library of human achievement and knowledge could safeguard our civilisation in the farthest corners of the universe. Will 21st century technology avert or accelerate the Apocalypse? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | ||
| Apocalypse | 20190424 | 20190427 (R4) | Will 21st century technology avert or accelerate the Apocalypse? Humanity has always featured stories and fears about the end of the world. But never before have we possessed such power to influence the dangers, manage the risks or cause such existential disaster. Presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson travel to NASA’s Los Angeles laboratory, and the site of the nuclear catastrophe at Chernobyl to understand the risks of disaster that face us in the next century. They discover how artificial intelligence might accelerate the demise of humankind, whilst also offering us a pathway to survival and redemption. And they learn how titanium wafers containing the entire library of human achievement and knowledge could safeguard our civilisation in the farthest corners of the universe. Will 21st century technology avert or accelerate the Apocalypse? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| Apocalypse | 20190424 | 20190427 (R4) | Will 21st century technology avert or accelerate the Apocalypse? Humanity has always featured stories and fears about the end of the world. But never before have we possessed such power to influence the dangers, manage the risks or cause such existential disaster. Presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson travel to NASA’s Los Angeles laboratory, and the site of the nuclear catastrophe at Chernobyl to understand the risks of disaster that face us in the next century. They discover how artificial intelligence might accelerate the demise of humankind, whilst also offering us a pathway to survival and redemption. And they learn how titanium wafers containing the entire library of human achievement and knowledge could safeguard our civilisation in the farthest corners of the universe. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions Will 21st-century technology avert or accelerate the apocalypse? | |
| Crime | 20160504 | |||
| Crime | 20160504 | Who will be on top in the world of future crime - the cops or the criminals? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | ||
| Crime | 20160504 | 20160507 (R4) | Who will be on top in the world of future crime - the cops or the criminals? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| Home | 20190417 | How the home will be disrupted and transformed by radical technological change. Our homes may experience more disruption than anywhere else because of the forces unleashed by technological change. The notions we have about home - a private, secure, stable place where you can shut out the world and just be yourself - are under threat from technology and economic change. From the internet of things and the Smart Home, to the complete rejection of any permanent fixed abode, FutureProofing hears how our ideas about home will be transformed in the 21st century. How the home will be disrupted and transformed by radical technological change. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | ||
| Home | 20190417 | 20190420 (R4) | How the home will be disrupted and transformed by radical technological change. Our homes may experience more disruption than anywhere else because of the forces unleashed by technological change. The notions we have about home - a private, secure, stable place where you can shut out the world and just be yourself - are under threat from technology and economic change. From the internet of things and the Smart Home, to the complete rejection of any permanent fixed abode, FutureProofing hears how our ideas about home will be transformed in the 21st century. How the home will be disrupted and transformed by radical technological change. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| Home | 20190417 | 20190420 (R4) | How the home will be disrupted and transformed by radical technological change. Our homes may experience more disruption than anywhere else because of the forces unleashed by technological change. The notions we have about home - a private, secure, stable place where you can shut out the world and just be yourself - are under threat from technology and economic change. From the internet of things and the Smart Home, to the complete rejection of any permanent fixed abode, FutureProofing hears how our ideas about home will be transformed in the 21st century. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| Opportunity | 20190410 | Presenters Leo Johnson and Timandra Harkness discover what impact technology will have on expanding - or contracting - opportunities for different sections of society in future. From a tough council estate in north London, to the labs at Harvard University developing tools to expand and augment human brain power, FutureProofing investigates how technology is set to alter the landscape of opportunity for millions in the 21st century. Algorithms could discriminate far more against different sections of the population, just as the network effects and low costs of entry might create huge new openings for people previously excluded from economic success. And the opportunities opened up by a revolutionary brain implant being developed in the USA could transform everyone's life chances in future. Producer: Jonathan Brunert How social trends and technology may radically alter the future landscape of opportunity Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | ||
| Opportunity | 20190410 | 20190413 (R4) | Presenters Leo Johnson and Timandra Harkness discover what impact technology will have on expanding - or contracting - opportunities for different sections of society in future. From a tough council estate in north London, to the labs at Harvard University developing tools to expand and augment human brain power, FutureProofing investigates how technology is set to alter the landscape of opportunity for millions in the 21st century. Algorithms could discriminate far more against different sections of the population, just as the network effects and low costs of entry might create huge new openings for people previously excluded from economic success. And the opportunities opened up by a revolutionary brain implant being developed in the USA could transform everyone's life chances in future. Producer: Jonathan Brunert How social trends and technology may radically alter the future landscape of opportunity Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| Reality | 20190403 | 20190406 (R4) | Reality itself is changing - how will we experience and understand reality in future? Presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson discover different ways to experience reality as technology develops and great progress is made in our understanding of how the brain works. Visiting the designers who are creating powerful and immersive virtual worlds and characters in California, FutureProofing learns how far our everyday experience will be mediated by the virtual in the next few decades. And how far extra layers of information will augment reality for us. Leading thinkers Jaron Lanier and Karl Friston reveal the potential of this new technology and how our brains will cope with a world that is increasingly unreal in future. Producer: Jonathan Brunert Reality itself is changing, so how will we experience and understand reality in future? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 12 | Ageing | 20160427 | 20160430 (R4) | How will our ideas about ageing change as life expectancy rises to 100 and beyond? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions How will our ideas about ageing change as life expectancy rises to 100 and beyond? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 14 | Energy | 20160511 | ||
| 14 | Energy | 20160511 | If new energy sources offer cheap, plentiful power to everyone, how will the planet cope? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 14 | Energy | 20160511 | 20160514 (R4) | If new energy sources offer cheap, plentiful power to everyone, how will the planet cope? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 15 | Memory | 20160518 | ||
| 15 | Memory | 20160518 | What happens to us when we can create and manipulate our memories artificially? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 15 | Memory | 20160518 | 20160521 (R4) | What happens to us when we can create and manipulate our memories artificially? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 16 | Language | 20160525 | ||
| 16 | Language | 20160525 | Will technology make language barriers obsolete? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 16 | Language | 20160525 | 20160528 (R4) | Will technology make language barriers obsolete? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 17 | The Future of War | 20160601 | ||
| 17 | The Future of War | 20160601 | Will robots be the future of war? And how would warfare change if they were? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 17 | The Future of War | 20160601 | 20160604 (R4) | Will robots be the future of war? And how would warfare change if they were? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 18 | Intimacy | 20161228 | Will intimacy survive the challenges it faces in the 21st century? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 18 | Intimacy | 20161228 | 20161231 (R4) | Will intimacy survive the challenges it faces in the 21st century? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 19 | Work | 20170104 | What really changes in our society when machines do most of the work? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 20 | Cities | 20170111 | How city living could be transformed by the digital revolution. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 20 | Cities | 20170111 | 20170114 (R4) | How city living could be transformed by the digital revolution. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 21 | Art | 20170118 | Will art survive the technological and social change of the 21st century? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 21 | Art | 20170118 | 20170121 (R4) | Will art survive the technological and social change of the 21st century? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 22 | Sport | 20170125 | Is there a future for sport in the digital age? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 22 | Sport | 20170125 | 20170128 (R4) | Is there a future for sport in the digital age? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 23 | The Future of the Future | 20170503 | How does the accelerating pace of technology change the way we think about the future? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 23 | The Future of the Future | 20170503 | 20170506 (R4) | How does the accelerating pace of technology change the way we think about the future? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 24 | Living in Space | 20170510 | What will it be like to colonise space? What are the implications for humanity if we do? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 24 | Living in Space | 20170510 | 20170513 (R4) | What will it be like to colonise space? What are the implications for humanity if we do? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 25 | Healthcare | 20170517 | How will technology transform healthcare in the 21st century? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 25 | Healthcare | 20170517 | 20170520 (R4) | How will technology transform healthcare in the 21st century? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 26 | Wealth | 20170524 | FutureProofing discovers what will be the secrets to achieving wealth in future. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 26 | Wealth | 20170524 | 20170527 (R4) | FutureProofing discovers what will be the secrets to achieving wealth in future. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 27 | Small | 20170531 | Discover how small things look set to shape the future in increasingly significant ways. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 27 | Small | 20170531 | 20170603 (R4) | Discover how small things look set to shape the future in increasingly significant ways. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 28 | Sin | 20170607 | Will sin disappear in future, as technology enables us to stop sinning before we act? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions | |
| 28 | Sin | 20170607 | 20170610 (R4) | Will sin disappear in future, as technology enables us to stop sinning before we act? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 29 | Faith | 20180502 | 20180505 (R4) | FutureProofing presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson put their faith - and lack of faith - to the test in a journey from the Middle East to Silicon Valley, to find out how technology is disrupting the beliefs and practices of traditional faiths. They also discover how data and tech might provide the foundations for what influential thinkers like Yuval Noah Harari have dubbed a 'New Religion' for the 21st century and beyond. FutureProofing: Faith includes encounters with leading thinkers such as Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks; a leading member of President Trump's Evangelical Advisory Panel Robert Jeffress; and the world's most prominent humanist Professor Stephen Pinker. They reveal how traditional faiths and secularists are facing the challenge from technology. As the potential of technology to both explain the universe and deliver incredible power develops. so many of the features and promises we have found in older religions are being provided for and challenged by tech. From mind-uploading which offers the prospect of immortality and resurrection to algorithms that could suggest exact optimum life choices for us according to our genes and social circumstances. FutureProofing's presenters learn how the functions of religion could be taken over by technology and the search for the meaning of life be challenged by the accelerating pace of science. Are data and technology about to supplant the traditional sources of faith and information about ultimate meaning in our world? And will this mean a very different kind of faith emerges in future? Producer: Jonathan Brunert. Does science now challenge religion to destruction, and what happens to faith in future? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions FutureProofing presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson put their faith - and lack of faith - to the test in a journey from the Middle East to Silicon Valley, to find out how technology is disrupting the beliefs and practices of traditional faiths. They also discover how data and tech might provide the foundations for what influential thinkers like Yuval Noah Harari have dubbed a 'New Religion' for the 21st century and beyond. Producer: Jonathan Brunert. Does science now challenge religion to destruction, and what happens to faith in future? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 30 | Animals | 20180509 | 20180512 (R4) | FutureProofing presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson find out what might happen when we properly understand animals and how much our relationship with them will change in future. They meet elephants in California, learn about "talking" dolphins in Florida, and discover the technological possibilities that could completely transform what we think of and how we act towards animals in future. From the possibilities of enhancing animals with technology, to ending all farming and finding a new way to grow animal protein that would do away with all slaughter, could the future herald greater equality between sentient creatures on our planet? Will humans and animals develop a partnership of equals? Producer: Jonathan Brunert. When we properly understand animals, how much will our relationship with them change? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions FutureProofing presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson find out what might happen when we properly understand animals and how much our relationship with them will change in future. Producer: Jonathan Brunert. When we properly understand animals, how much will our relationship with them change? Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 31 | Mental Health | 20180516 | 20180519 (R4) | How can we protect and improve our mental health in future? FutureProofing explores how we might achieve healthier minds, and whether far greater understanding of the way our brains work will be enough to treat mental illness and enhance mental health in the 21st century. In Silicon Valley, presenters Timandra Harkness and Leo Johnson discover the cutting edge technology that aims to revolutionize diagnosis and treatment. They learn about the prospect of mind control and pervasive tracking to monitor how well millions of people are functioning mentally in future. And they find out why our understanding of and attitudes towards mental health must change significantly, if we are to meet the challenge of what appears to be an explosion of mental ill health around the world. Producer: Jonathan Brunert. FutureProofing discovers how we can protect and improve our mental health in future. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions How can we protect and improve our mental health in future? FutureProofing explores how we might achieve healthier minds, and whether far greater understanding of the way our brains work will be enough to treat mental illness and enhance mental health in the 21st century. Producer: Jonathan Brunert. FutureProofing discovers how we can protect and improve our mental health in future. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |
| 32 | Fashion | 20180523 | 20180526 (R4) | How does the global fashion industry worth more than a trillion dollars a year meet the disruption and upheaval that technological and social change now pose? Fashion carries not only the livelihoods of millions of workers, but has become a major cultural force which shapes and supports individual and community identity. Presenters Leo Johnson and Timandra Harkness find out how this huge global business aims to meet the challenges posed by technological developments, environmental threats and social changes which could spell the end for fashion as we have known it. FutureProofing meets designers, technology wizards, and those who influence and shape tomorrow's trends from across the globe. Producer: Jonathan Brunert. How technology and social change could mean the end of fashion in future. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions How does the global fashion industry worth more than a trillion dollars a year meet the disruption and upheaval that technological and social change now pose? Fashion carries not only the livelihoods of millions of workers, but has become a major cultural force which shapes and supports individual and community identity. Presenters Leo Johnson and Timandra Harkness find out how this huge global business aims to meet the challenges posed by technological developments, environmental threats and social changes which could spell the end for fashion as we have known it. FutureProofing meets designers, technology wizards, and those who influence and shape tomorrow's trends from across the globe. Producer: Jonathan Brunert. How technology and social change could mean the end of fashion in future. Series examining the big ideas that are set to transform the way society functions |