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The future is bright
Mathematician and broadcaster Hannah Fry talks to Louise Burke about taking the fear out of the future
Maths professor Hannah Fry is very much the woman of the moment. The award-winning science presenter is a constant in a rapidly changing world that could have both precarious and optimistic outcomes. Fry is the go-to expert when it comes to reporting from the futuristic frontline on the facts and the data, then breaking them down into easy-to-understand stories.
You might recognise Fry and her flame-red hair from presenting the BBC’s Horizon – one episode in particular where she documented her personal journey through her diagnosis of cervical cancer at 36 and treatment – or perhaps her recently successful Bloomberg TV series, The Future. Or maybe you’re a regular listener to her podcast DeepMind? With her two books to boot, Fry is doing her best to keep us up-to-date on our future.
We speak not long after she’s touched down at Heathrow from a transatlantic flight. But Fry doesn’t let a bit of jet lag get in the way of a deep dive into the pros and cons of genetic engineering or rewilding the Fukushima Exclusion Zone in Japan. Her enthusiasm is instantly contagious. ‘There is no shortage of really great stuff happening in the world,’ she says. ‘We just need to make sure that the benefits of what we’re doing outweigh the harms, and I think those conversations need to be had before things are out there in the world.’
A maths professor by trade (Hannah is on staff at UCL and still teaches postgraduate students), she also advises the government on data. But she does have concerns. ‘We’re standing at a point in history that’s very similar to how things looked in January 2020,’ she says. ‘A few weeks after news broke about Covid in China, I was buying toilet paper and tins of tomatoes and telling my family to do the same. And yet, at the same time, everyone was still acting normally. We were standing at the bottom of an exponential curve, and we knew something was coming but people just didn’t really believe it, because it hadn’t hit yet. And I think the same could be said about the situation with artificial intelligence. The only difference is that it’s already hit us.
‘Things are going to be substantially different in the years ahead in a way that is quite hard to conceptualise right now. Who knows whether the change is going to be bad or good? There are incredible opportunities that lie ahead. I’m very optimistic about a lot of it. But I also think it [how we’re using AI] does need to be handled with collaboration across different countries rather than in isolated groups. The idea that mass-producing misinformation via a large language model is not a criminal offence seems insane to me.’
But a dystopian future is not what Fry fears. She wants the limitations in place so we can maximise the possibilities. ‘I see an enormous number of things to be excited about,’ she says. ‘The pandemic was proof that no matter how bad things get, things end up all right. Humanity is a bit phoenix-like in that regard. No matter how terrible things get, we manage to find a way around it.’
Aside from science being her passion, Fry has a more personal reason to remain positive about the future. She has two young daughters whom she co-parents with her ex-husband. Fry admits, ‘I increasingly worry about my children’s generation’s future. It may sound trite, but I think the only thing I can do is teach them how to be good and to be kind because I think those are the most important traits, and they’ll always prevail.’
In fact, when it comes to living in harmony with AI robots in the future, making sure we preserve those traits is key. Especially since we’ve now reached a time where we’re living the longest we’ve ever lived in history – prevention is paramount. While medical technological advancements are revolutionising the way we treat disease, a machine might be able to provide important answers or solutions, but it’s missing human empathy, engagement or touch.
‘Humanity should come first,’ Hannah says. ‘The problem is I think there are times when the pursuit of profit takes precedence over what is right for humanity, and I worry about the serious repercussions.’
As for what really excites her? ‘What I crave more than anything is green space. I would like to create a smart-house plant watering system, so I can just turn my entire home into a lush green wonderland.’ The robots certainly haven’t taken away Fry’s creative thinking. ‘Absolutely not,’ she says. ‘I believe it enhances it. It’s all about collaboration.’ And therein lies the answer to our future.
If Hannah Fry could change one thing about the future…
‘I would develop a system to take salt out of water. It sounds like the most boring chemistry ever, right? In many ways, it is. But if you can manage to do that cost-effectively in terms of energy, imagine how different the world could look. Not only would we have unlimited access to clean water, but droughts wouldn’t be an issue. The Sahara used to be a rainforest and it could be again if you have an unlimited supply of clean water. It sounds like a crazy pie-in-the-sky idea but you’d move away from the idea of supply and demand and scarcity being the main drivers of economics and move towards abundance.’
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