CGP Grey, in perhaps his most ambitious video to date, has tackled the subject of automation — in short, robots coming for all the jobs. Whether you work in transportation, white collar trades, or even the arts, there's probably a programmer working on putting you in the poor house as soon as possible. Or worse, a programmer teaching a robot to teach itself so it can put anyone out of work.
A little unsettling, huh? The best piece I've ever seen trying to game out the long-term effects of automation is "Four Futures," by Peter Frase in Jacobin magazine. By imagining two axes of possible development — scarcity versus abundance, and hierarchy versus egalitarianism — he outlines four possible futures of the human race. They range from a work-free utopia (as outlined by Iain M. Banks in his Culture series), to a terrifying war of extermination by the rich against the masses of useless poor.
Frase's piece is an excellent complement to the above video, which is rather vague about the political implications of the subject. Definitely give it a read.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
