Primary Science Education Conference

Our scientific understanding is changing rapidly and the technologies that it is based on seem to be coming thick and fast. And yet what might seem fantastical to us, young children simply take in their stride. After all, they know no different. So what does the future hold for the next generation? What will the world look like two decades from now? What new technologies will transform our lives and tackle the world's biggest challenges, from climate change to health?
In this talk, Jim Al-Khalili will reveal some of the most exciting areas of current research, from gene editing to AI, and try to predict how our world will change. Indeed, this will require a rethink of the sort of science that is taught at schools. In a few decades, older children will no longer be learning the traditional subjects: physics, chemistry and biology, but will very likely be studying interdisciplinary topics such as nanotechnology, genetics and robotics. The talk will also focus to a large extent on the biggest transformation of all – potentially bigger even than the internet – namely, AI. To emphasise his point, he will show clips from his recent BBC4 documentary the Joy of AI, but also issue words of caution about whether society is adequately prepared for such profound changes brought about by these new technologies.