Doomsday and artificial intelligence You are going to listen to part of a radio discussion about the book Novacene: The Coming Age of Hyperintelligence by scientist James Lovelock. What do you think this title means? Listen to the discussion. 1 Which of these opinions does the book express? A Global warming is irreversible. B Artificial intelligence will one day take over the planet. C Humans will be kept as some kind of pet. D Artificial intelligence is incredibly dangerous. 2 Why do you think Moira laughs? Which sentences best match James Lovelock’s point of view? 1 It is inevitable that artificial intelligence will exceed human intelligence. 2 It’s absolutely crucial that we humans stop climate change. 3 Trying to stop the development of AI is pointless. 4 It would be quite feasible to reverse global warming with current technologies. 5 The fear we have of artificial intelligence taking over isn’t really justified. 6 The AI might think it worthwhile to keep us around as caretakers of the natural world. Match these meanings with the highlighted adjectives in 23a. A it has no purpose C there’s no good reason to do it E it’s certain to happen B it’s possible to do it D we really must do it F it’s a good idea How could you use these words in sentences 1–6 to express the same meanings? Example: There is nothing we can do to stop AI exceeding human intelligence. You will hear Pilar, Uri, Patrick and Jane reacting to James Lovelock’s ideas. Listen to each speaker in turn. 1 Does the person agree, partly agree or disagree with James Lovelock? 2 What is each speaker’s view? Listening 22 a i74vq7 33 b Language focus Saying if actions are justified 23 a b c achieve sense nothing point difference justification worth Language focus Reporting / reacting to a point of view 24 4db7by 34 Read the fact file again and match the statements with the following headings. A status quo B areas for improvement / outlook for the future C achievements Work in small groups. Refer to the fact file on the previous page and ■■ identify the greatest problem areas ■■ discuss the measures already introduced ■■ suggest steps you would take if you were a decision maker Present your results to the class. You have come across the website ‘Saving our planet’ and decide to write a blog post for it, describing the local transport situation in your area. In your blog post (around 250 words) you should: ■■ present the transport situation in your area ■■ analyse the problems ■■ suggest how the situation could be improved 1 Writing guide: Blog post, p. 197. 19 Speaking 20 Writing 21 Language skills Extras Explore 8 Saving the world 103 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODE3MDE=