Category Archives: Transhuman News

Does your cat think about the meaning of life? Do chimpanzees believe in a creator? While many animals on our planet clearly have some form of intelligence, just how unique are we as human beings?

Let's take a quick dive into one of the least understood aspects of the animal kingdom - what goes on in their minds...

For anyone who has a pet cat or a dog, or other pet, it is natural for them to wonder what, if anything, their furry little friends think about.Clearly, animals have brains and some are remarkably similar to our own, but do they have the same "software" to comprehend the world as we do?

We know many animals like elephants or chimpanzees are probably not dumb, but many scientists who specialize in this area warn us not to humanize animals too much.

Clive Wynne, a British-Australian ethnologist specializing in the behavior of dogs and their wild relatives, is one of them. In his book "Do Animals Think?", Wynne explains that while itmay be romantic to ascribe human qualities to other animals, it is not very realistic.

Animals, he explains, do not have a "theory-of-mind" as we do. This means they arenot conscious of what others are thinking nor do they have the capacity for higher-level reasoning. The classic analogy for this is your innate ability to understand that another human is happy, in distress, or their favorite food is spaghetti bolognese, to name but a few things.

But, are animals able to perform this apparently simple ability? It turns out, apparently not - at least not the level we can do so easily.

So, when your pet dog nudges your leg it is probably doing it to get something, like its dinner, rather than attempting to give you moral support for whatever it is that is bothering you at the time. Though, some researchers do believe that social animals, like dogs, may have some limited capacity for empathy. But more on that later.

However, that is not to say that animals are not capable of some remarkable things. As Wynne explains in his book, honeybees, for example, are able to perform functions akin to "remembering" where they found some food. Some other studies have even shown that honeybees are able to recognize and remember different human faces.

Honeybees are, of course, also able to share information with their hive mates using a special dance.

Bats are able to locate their prey at night using sonar, catch them, and eat them - all while airborne. Such abilities require some very specific mental functions that would be beyond most of us.

But these activities aren't really forms of abstract thinking as we would understand it. So, what exactly is thinking?

This is a notoriously tricky area to define, but the very act of asking such a question is, in fact, an example of it. However, that's not really a satisfactory answer.

"Thinking is the ultimate cognitive activity, consciously using our brains to make sense of the world around us and decide how to respond to it. Unconsciously our brains are still 'thinking' and this is a part of the cognitive process, but is not what we normally call 'thinking'," suggests the websiteChanging Minds.

In this sense, you can think of "thinking" as the series of conscious cognitive processes that happen in your head with or without sensory stimulation. Such processes will usually involve processes like rationaljudgement, reasoning, concept formation, problem-solving, and deliberation. But other mental processes, like considering anidea, memory, or imagination, are also often included.

Studies of human brains have been able to map out the cellular and synaptic activities in the brain and pick out certain pathways. While deceptively simple physiologically, the complex outcomes that can be achieved can be quite remarkable.

This relatively simple process enables us to experience "thoughts" and "reasoning" as we seek to connect what we sense with our inner world of understanding, and hence do and say things that will change the outer world.

"Our ability to think develops naturally in early life. When we interact with others, it becomes directed, for example when we learn values from our parents and knowledge from our teachers. We learn that it is good to think in certain ways and bad to think in other ways. Indeed, to be accepted into a social group, we are expected to think and act in ways that are harmonious with the group culture," according toChanging Minds.

So, do animals experience similar processes?

While they may not ponder the meaning of life as we do, there is a large body of evidence that animals, to a greater or lesser degree, can actually think. We can all get a sense of this by observing animals like cats or dogs, and even birds.

They show clear signs of fear, joy, and play, for example. These kinds of "feelings" are, to many scientists, a clear sign that they have some similar mental processes to us. Many other animals are even able to solve problems and remember the solution, including abstract puzzles like mazes.

"It is incredible to me there is still a debate over whether animals are conscious and even a debate over whether human beings can know animals are conscious. If you watch mammals or even birds, you will see how they respond to the world. They play. They act frightened when theres danger. They relax when things are good. It seems illogical for us to think that animals might not be having a conscious mental experience of play, sleep, fear or love." explainsCarl Safina in an interview with National geographic.

So, in light of this, is it amore accurate question is to ask whether animals are able to experience mental processes beyond simply reacting to stimuli or basic survival?

Let's see if we can glean an insight into what might be going on in their minds.

In the vast majority of cases, just like us, animals probably think about the basic necessities of life. Where is their next meal coming from? Is that other animal a threat? I am thirsty, etc.

As we touched upon earlier, years of dedicated observations of animals have shown that they experience many traits similar to ourown species like empathy, depression, joy, curiosity, etc, and that these appear to be fairly common in various animal species.

Some species have even shown an ability to experiment to solve problems. So much so, in fact, that some species of great apes, like the chimpanzee, may have even entered their very own "Stone Age"- though this is hotly debated.

This kind of activity, while underpinned by a basic need to survive, requires some level of cognition and the ability to make rational judgements.

Other great apes have even been able to learn and communicate using human sign language.However, it should be noted that many experts now believe that the subject of one such study, Nim Chimpsky (a play on Noam Chomsky's name), was probably only imitating his teacher. Nim never managed to spontaneously create sentences of its own, nor was he able to "communicate" beyond the first and second person.

In other words, demanding things from "you" to "me", like food.

To some, like Chomsky himself, this should not be very surprising as, according to Chomsky, language as we know it is a uniquely human affair. Language, remember, is a set of rules used to convey information from one individual to another. It is, to put it another way, codified, and requires to recipient to know the rules in order to comprehend the message.

It is not clear, to say the least, that other intelligent animals have this type of "language". While most animal species do communicate to a greater or lesser degree, it is not language as we understand it.

But is language that important? If our species is anything to go by, then it is probably a prerequisite to being able to not only think, but share information with other individuals within your group.

Without this basic and powerful ability, individuals are not able to properly share their feelings, thoughts, and ideas. It may even be the case that language emerged specificallyfor this purpose.

If animals are not able to perform this on even a basic level, it is, according to some experts, a clear sign that they have not evolved the mental processes for thought as we know it. Otherwise, they'd also have evolved the mechanisms to share it with others - as with we have.

However, there is also a growing body of evidence to show that animals may very well think without the need for language - at least on a more "brute force" level.

For example, when you are sick and lying in bed, your dog may bring you a toy, or stay with you to keep you company. They appear to understand, on some level, that something is wrong with you and even seem to sympathize with your plight. While this is not the same as empathy (which requires a theory of mind), it does show a level of external awareness.

And this is seen in other species of animals beyond our "best friends".

Take the octopus, for example. Another of the animal kingdom's great problem-solvers, octopi also show at least a glimpse that they may experience fear, love, and trust too.

In the Netflix documentary "My Octopus Teacher", a human diver was able to build something of a friendship with a small female octopus. Quite how emotionally attached the animal came to the human can never be known, but it is evident that some form of "thinking" was being displayed by it.

Amazingly, connections akin to what we would think of as empathy are seen between other species too. Elephants, for example, have been documented helping beleaguered human beings, for example.

In one particular case, a partially sighted woman got lost. She was apparently found by a herd of elephants who decided to protect and guard her until more humans would arrive. They even managed to build a sort of cage of branches to protect her from hyenas.

Humpback whales have also been documented protecting seals from killer whales. This all seems very extraordinary for us, but animals have probably been doing this sort of thing for millions of years.

It is also a behavior very recognizable to us human beings. Many of us are almost unconsciously driven to help out animals in need - if we don't intend on eating them of course.

You probably have a view of this, but most people believe that animals experience something similar to what we call emotions. But, what are they really?

Sadly, this is not a very easy thing to define. Broadly defined as, "a complex state of feeling that results in physical and psychological changes that influence thought and behavior", this cold definition of emotion doesn't really answer the question satisfactorily. Emotions are clearly a real thing, but the lack of consensus on how to define them makes it very difficult for us to attempt to observe them among our cohabitants on Earth - animals.

Cats are easily scared, dogs show clear signs of separation anxiety, and caged wild animals often show signs of boredom, for example. We intuitively understand these things, but it is much harder to quantify them using scientific analysis.

Physical reactions like changes in muscle tone, posture, gait, facial expression, eye size and gaze, vocalization, changes in odor, and group behavioral changes can be observed and measured, but it is less easy to correlate such things to what is actually going on inside their brains.

Until, and unless, we are actually able to communicate effectively with animals, this vital connection will likely be beyond our capabilities for some time to come.

So, how close are we to being able to "get inside" the heads of animals?

As we've previously touched upon, while we can make some qualitative and quantitative observations of animals and their behavior, it is very difficult to know for sure what an animal is actually "feeling" in its brain. In fact, it might be the case that most animals don't actually "feel" emotions at all.

Feelings like pain, hunger, thirst, fear, envy, are quite common in the animal kingdom, but these are more basic reactions to a situation rather than emotions per se. However, there does appear to be a correlation in the animal world between the presence of other, less instinctual mental processes, andcomplex social networks.

Elephants, dogs, and primates, for example, show some close similarities with human beings in their mental functions. This shouldn't come as much of a surprise, as these are all social animals, like humans.

Empathy, or something very close to it, seems to be quite common in animals that live in social groups of one kind or another. This makes sense, as it would be evolutionarily beneficial to actually "care" for other members of your own species, especially close relatives.

This is probably a very important factor in the evolution of our own species too, laying the foundations for what would day become the earliest civilizations.

If other animals have the capacity for empathy, or their version of it, then does this mean they are able to experience other emotions, perhaps even perform some higher brain functions that we might recognize as thinking? Some believe so. However, as is often warned in many fields of science, we have to be very careful not to "anthropomorphize" another species and its behaviors.

Our species is, to put it bluntly, very special indeed. No other species on the planet is able to perform the level of thinking that we can and create both functional (i.e. useful tools) and artistic objects (i.e. non-vital or luxury objects) on the scale and size we have throughout our history.

In fact, the latter, the apparent "need" to create art is a uniquely human affair that has not genuinely been observed in any other living creature on Earth. We may never really know why art arose as a phenomenon, but it is clear that it requires some form of "theory of mind" as a prerequisite - i.e. art is made to be seen and admired by others.

While some form of creativity has been observed in other animals, like elephants, it is hotly debated if this is "real" or a "trained" behavior.

Additionally, while other animals can change their environment to some extent, either directly or indirectly, this pales in comparison to what our species can do consciously. But we have a rather unfair advantage over other animals in this respect - our extraordinarily large brains compared to our body size.

Human beings have anencephalization quotient (EQ) in the order of 7.5. Encephalization is therelative brain size of an animal, measured as the ratio between actual brain size and predicted brain mass for an animal of a given size. For example, larger animals can be expected to have larger brains. Values greater than 1.0 indicate a larger brain than expected for that body size.

To put that figure into perspective, chimps have an EQ of around 2.5, cats have an EQ of 1.0, and bottlenose dolphins have an EQ of 5.3. All well and good, but human brains are also quite literally, wired differently.

Something called the FOXP2 gene is present in most species. This geneprovidesinstructions for making a protein thatcontrols the activity of other genes. This protein, in effect, acts as a dimmer switch which helps determine to what extent other genes are expressed. Mutations in this gene have also been linked to the development of the brain's language and speech networks.

This has been verified in the lab by artificially altering the gene to find out what happens. In mice, for example, genetic manipulation of the gene shows a marked reduction in the vocalization of mice pups.

About 200,000 years ago, a mutation in this gene appears to have occurred in our species, becoming commonplace in our population within only 1,000 generations. It was clearly a beneficial mutation.

"The consensus among scientists is thattheFOXP2gene has been the target of heavy selectionduring recent human evolution because it changed the way our brain was wired for communication," explains Denise D. Cummins, a cognitive scientist, in a Scientific American article. And this really is critical.

Our brains have also become highly specialized, with certain regions dedicated to processes like language to a much greater degree than in other animals, like chimps. However, this may have come at a very significant cost - our almost uniquely high susceptibility to mental disorders like schizophrenia.

We have taken a very different evolutionary pathway to pretty much all other animals on the planet. For this reason, our ability to communicate using things like languages is far beyond the capacity of any other animal. For this reason, many experts in the field are very confident we can never actually "talk" to other animals in any meaningful way.

So, it appears that begin able to actually "ask" an animal how it feels is looking pretty unlikely. Of course, this doesn't mean animals don't have emotions and feelings.

We are the product of the same evolutionary processes as every other creature on this planet. If we have emotions, and they clearly develop naturally, then it follows that other animals should have at least some feelings too, right?

But how would we ever be able to find out? Since talking to them is out, what else can we do?

Scientists have been attempting to learn how to communicate with animals for a very long time, with varying success. Our closest relatives, the great apes, have even shown some ability to pick up communication methods like sign language and provide some very basic level of interaction with human beings.

Pet owners will also be more than familiar with the ability to have some very basic interaction with their dog or cat, for example. In many instances, dogs, for example, can be trained to respond to some verbal commands.

However, it is important to note that this is more a case of your pet connecting a series of sounds, or a particular tone, with a good or bad outcome - like getting a treat or being punished in some way. It also works the other way around.

You innately understand the difference between a growling angry dog and a happy one, for example.

However, as we've previously discussed, codified language might be a uniquely human "software function" and trying to teach other animals how we communicate could be a forlorn hope. A better approach would be for us to learn how to speak "their" tongue.

Is this possible?

Sort of.

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, for example, have been able to develop a "computerized doggy vest" that, so they claim, allows humans to "talk" to dogs. Technically called "animal-computer interaction", this device has been developed to help assistance dogs ask for help if they, or their owner, get into trouble.

However, such a device is more of a trick that a dog can be taught to activate when needed. A far more sophisticated approach is currently in development by researchers atNorthern Arizona University.

The team, led byDr. Con Slobodchikoff, is working on a sophisticated algorithm that can "translate" animal sounds, body language, and expressions into human language when, for example, the animal is in pain or hungry, etc.

While very much in its infancy, such technology would prove revolutionary for human-animal interactions, but would still fall very short of being able to engage in a conversation. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is another promising field, but this also relies on making analogies with human brains or associating observed behaviors with what can be seen in the scans.

Both of which involve the "use" of the very unique wiring seen in the human brain. This may be something of a "Catch 22," ultimately limiting research in this field.

So, while thinking and feeling are very common human traits, it is not clear if any other animal experiences the world as we do. While we do have a massive advantage, our huge brains, this may only enable us to think about the world as human beings do, not as animals do. In other words, our mental "hardware" and "software" might be incompatible with the way other animals think and see the world.

For this reason, it may be the case that we can never truly understand or communicate effectively with other animals on Earth, at least with our current understanding of what consciousness is.

But, if history is anything to go by, it may only be a matter of time before some major breakthrough in human-animal communication is made. We shall have to wait and see.

Original post:
Will humans ever be able to talk to animals? - Interesting Engineering

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Vaginal mesh surgery has been in practice for a long time, but it is no stranger to debate in the urology community.

In speaking about this topic, Jerry G. Blaivas, MD, FACS, debunks some of the common stigmas associated with mesh slings. He stresses the importance of both the pros and cons of this procedure as well as communicating those factors to patients who are thinking about getting this surgery to treat their incontinence. Blaivas is a professor of urology in the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, New York.

Well, I think there are 2 kinds of stigmas. There's the stigma that any patient feels about incontinence, and then there's also the stigma of the operation itself. Historically, patients have always felt stigmatized about incontinence. Women with fistulas, for example, have terrible incontinence and, until effective treatments were developed, they were social outcasts for their entire lives. So, the patients are embarrassed and [a]shamed. They think that people can smell the urine, they sometimes shun social contacts, they are sometimes are isolated and depressed, but to a large extent, that's changed over the last 4 decades. So now, I think most people with incontinence understand that there are lots of other people with incontinence [and] there are lots of treatments for it. There are pads and appliances, and doctors are much more open about it and willing to talk about it, and there are better treatments. So, I think the stigma is still there, but it's much improved over the last 40 years or so.

I'd like to pay tribute to the 2 women who made this happen. One of them is Katherine Jeter [EdD, ET], and the other is Cheryl Gartley. Katherine is a retired enterostomal therapist, and [for] Cheryl, I'm not exactly sure what her background was to get interested in [this topic], but they both, coincidentally, formed [not-for-profit] patient advocacy groups [in 1982]. Katherine founded the National Association for Continence, and Cheryl founded the Simon Foundation for Continence. They raised public awareness tremendously and I think [they emphasized] the whole concept of youre not alone. They educated patients, doctors, and industry. They really got the grassroots involved to destigmatize incontinence as much as possible.

Then, there is the stigma associated with the operation itself the serious and sometimes lifestyle altering complications arising from mesh surgery, which, in my judgment, occurs in at least 5 - 10% of women and may be much higher than that. These complications have fueled over 100,00 lawsuits against mesh manufacturers in the USA.

From the patients perspective, the stigma still exists, although its much less than previously. Im sure there are still women and men who are too embarrassed to speak about incontinence and dont seek treatment. But the positive aspects of coming out, and seeking care far outweigh the stigma. I think the overwhelming majority of people who are bothered by incontinence seek treatment and I think there are now many more doctors who are experts at evaluating patients and providing the care. On the other hand, there are many women who seek care, but are scared off from surgery because of the stigmas associated with mesh complications

The urologist's role is, first and foremost, to provide the patient with a realistic assessment of the risks, benefits and alternative treatments based on the particulars of the individual patient. In my experience, all too often, when it comes to sling surgery, surgeons quote or paraphrase the refrain that slings are safe and effective, a refrain that is embedded in the official guidelines and statements from most of the urologic and gynecologic societies. Well, I think that slings are effective, [but] not as safe as they say. Its the urologist's obligation to make that clear and to offer the patient the tools (informed consent) that enables them to choose the treatment that is most appropriate for their particular condition.

If patients understand the risks and benefits and choose the most appropriate treatment and if the urologist provides them with realistic expectations, the stigmas of incontinence treatment should fall to an absolute minimum.

Those original stigmas about the surgery were well founded.Going back to the late 1950s and early 1960s, surgeons began to use mesh slings for patients with refractory incontinence, mostly those who had failed multiple operations. These slings were composed of non-absorbable, braided polyester or polypropylene Type III meshes which, even in the hands of highly skilled surgeons caused devastating, refractory complications resulting in bladder cripples, and not surprisingly, sling surgeries fell out of favor, hence the stigmata.

Then in the 1980s and 1990s autologous fascial pubovaginal slings were developed. In the mid-nineties, with the introduction of Type 1 polypropylene meshes, which proved to safer than the older versions, synthetics slings were revived and reinvented. Currently, the new generation of polypropylene slings with their disposable kits have become, by far, the most common operations performed in the USA for stress incontinence. Over time, autologous and mesh slings have proven to be of equal efficacy, but the autologous slings are much safer with respect to serious complications. There are still terrible, complications, from these mesh surgeries, but the likelihood of them occurring is much less now than they were back then.

So, autologous slings and synthetic slings are about equally effective. they both have the same success rate, [but] there are 2 huge differences between them. The synthetics slings are much easier to do. They're faster, the recovery is quicker, there are less wound complications [and] there's not a steep learning curve. That accounts for the huge popularity amongst patients and physicians alike. On the other hand, synthetic mesh slings still have a unique, troublesome complication profile that has proven impossible to shake. The most common of these adverse events are chronic pain, mesh erosion, refractory voiding dysfunction and overactive bladder. These complications are exceedingly difficult to treat, are often refractory in nature and may irrevocably alter the patients life, a consequence depicted in sobering detail in a study by Hansen et al entitled Changed Women.

Of course, autologous slings are subject to other complications, common to all operations for stress incontinence including urethral obstruction and overactive bladder and, in fact, the overall complication rate amongst the 2 cancer slings are comparable except for the fact that erosions, chronic pain and dyspareunia are practically nonexistent after autologous slings.

I mentioned, above, that at least 5 to 10% of patients undergoing mesh slings develop life style altering complications. In my judgment, the vast majority of both doctors and patients dont fully understand the impact of these numbers. Five percent is one in 20 patients whose lives may be irrevocably worsened by a 20-minute outpatient procedure. Thats not rare, thats not safe and, to me, thats sobering.

There is also a tremendous positive side to the vaginal mesh story. I started with the complications, simply because, in my judgment, they are so terribly under appreciated by doctors and patients alike. The positive side is not only that the vaginal mesh is a fast, quick procedure that works well in a lot of patients, but more to the point, it's opened up incontinence care to many more patients. Back in the 1980s when this stuff was all starting, a tiny fraction of people who suffered from incontinence went on to surgery, compared to now, where there are so many more capable surgeons. So, we offer this to many more patients whose lives are improved. But, of course, that opens up the possibility of some awful complications to many others. Thats a dilemma.

My own personal opinion is that the autologous slings, are just as effective as synthetic mesh slings and much safer. But there's an 'if,' and that 'if' is if the surgeon is adequately trained and comfortable doing an autologous sling. I'm sorry to say that the current generation is not comfortable with autologous slings; few training programs even teach them. Thats another dilemma.

I don't really foresee anything in the near future. Prevention would be nice, but I don't think there are very many things an individual person can do to prevent incontinence. Pelvic floor muscle training, exercising and, weight reduction are good things to do and they promote overall health but it is unclear to me whether they can prevent incontinence. Good prenatal and obstetric care certainly is important and can offer some protection. And then, I think there's the possibility of genetic engineering in the future to help prevent this stuff, but thats a theoretic prospect that will have to wait in a long line behind more compelling problems like curing cancer, diabetes, and hypertension.

Better synthetic slings? I'm not terribly hopeful, but its worth a try. The main problem with synthetic slings, in my estimation, is that they incite chronic inflammation in just about everybody. So, its an immunological problem. If the body can keep it at bay, then maybe sling complications will be less, but maybe not. Another possibility is better urethral bulking procedures, and that's something that may be in the future. Whether or not stem cell therapy, which some people have tried, emerges is something that's also a possibility. But, dont forget that stress incontinence is just one of a host of problems that ensue because of the frailty of pelvic floor support, vaginal atrophy and the ravages of gravity and aging.

So, I'll leave it to people smarter than me to predict and forage the future. The one thing that I think is too bad, at least for the immediate future, is that there aren't enough surgeons skilled in natural tissue repairs, because I think the autologous sling, in the hands of a skilled surgeon. is a very effective operation with few significant long-term complications>

Firstly, sling surgery, whether its using natural tissue or synthetics, is effective in the majority of patients. However, effective is not synonymous with cure; most patients are significantly improved and pleased with the results, but rigorous studies have shown that about one third to one half of patients still have some degree of incontinence.

Secondly, there is a paucity of long-term studies; the majority of patients are going to be so improved that they're pleased that they had the surgery. How long it lasts [is something] we don't know. I'm comfortable that for most people it lasts 5 to 10 years, but after that the follow up really falls off. In my own anecdotal experience, after successful surgery most people are either content with, or resigned to, whatever incontinence recurs and most dont see retreatment. But remember, anecdotes are not science.

See the article here:
Expert addresses the stigmas associated with vaginal mesh surgery - Urology Times

Highlighting key developments in future sectors to help decision-makers in both public and private sectors

Published: Fri 11 Feb 2022, 10:24 AM

The Dubai Future Foundation (DFF) launched the 'Future Opportunities Report: The Global 50', which aims to highlight the most promising opportunities in various vital and future sectors during the next 50 years.

Through highlighting key developments and trends in future sectors, the report aims to help decision makers in both public and private sectors, thought leaders, innovators, researchers, entrepreneurs and the people in the UAE and around the world in developing strategies and plans that serve humanity and build a better future.

The report outlines 50 global opportunities classified within five main pillars including nature and sustainability, enabling societies, health, human relation with technology, and future innovations.

It will determine the impact of ever-evolving trends on the future of humanity, and propose future visualizations to address the most important global challenges and identify positive transformations in different fields.

Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Managing Director of Dubai Future Foundation said, "The next 50 years will witness more changes in human scientific, economic and social achievement than ever before. These transformations will be transcontinental in nature and will affect people and societies everywhere, impacting all aspects of our lives, from our work to our relationships. Intentional thinking will help us adapt and prepare for these changes. The future is not ours to await; it's ours to create. Likewise, those who understand and plan for future transformations are best placed to design and control the path ahead of us all."

He added, "History teaches us that humanity's unbridled imagination has no limits, and that our innovation and creativity can help us achieve unexpected leaps in our development. Alongside governments and businesses, scientists and creative leaders will have a participatory and integrative role in turning future opportunities into reality."

Five main pillars

The nature and sustainability pillar include seven opportunities that focus on employing the development of technology and biomaterials to reduce the volume of plastic waste, storing harmful gases in depleted onshore and offshore oil and gas fields, modifying types of materials, trees and plants to contribute to achieving zero carbon emissions, and greening deserts. Aiming to increase habitable areas, protecting the oceans and their ecosystems and fisheries, and relying on renewable and sustainable energy sources that are safe, cheap and low in emissions.

Enabling societies

The second pillar include 11 global opportunities that consists of the government role in developing legislations, achieving individual needs, ensure the safety and privacy of personal data, launch a global charter for genetic engineering and genomics applications, set a framework defining the rights of robots in complementarity with human rights, provide electric power to all societies and reduce its costs, and assist countries in facing the effects of the climate change. In addition to employing modern technology in the development of the educational system, enhancing levels of happiness and enable talents to innovate.

Health opportunities

This third pillar consists of seven main global opportunities represented in employing technologies to identify mental and psychological health problems, use non-surgical monitoring techniques to produce medicines on demand, personalize treatments, and enhance data exchange mechanisms to increase the efficiency of health care and research efficiency rare diseases and epidemics globally.

Human relation with technology

This pillar includes 13 main opportunities, focusing on providing access to the virtual world without the need for devices, moving to the concept of comprehensive and rapid manufacturing, accelerate international shipping, and employ smart machines and technologies to enhance governance and decision-making mechanisms. Human relation with technology will also focus on the integration of software solutions to increase the efficiency of work from anywhere in the world, and cloning memory and knowledge from the human brain and storing it to serve individuals and society.

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Future innovations

This pillar includes many global opportunities associated with innovation in the use of new technologies, reliance on biological materials instead of products and chemicals, providing sustainable water resources, and developing global standards for the full cost and real value of all economic activities and their social and environmental impacts. In addition to the adoption of the concept of carbon credits, the transition of commercial and social activities to virtual reality, and the availability of data for all to benefit from in developing vital sectors.

The report identifies 10 major trends, including the development in sciences of biological and synthetic materials, the decrease in the cost of data and the focus on the quality of analyzing it, the increase in the security vulnerabilities in systems and infrastructure, the development of technologies for generation and storage of electric energy, the increase in investment in ecosystems management, the need to develop legislation and mechanisms for international disputes, the growth of virtual and digital world applications, the spread of autonomous robots, the need to redefine humanitarian goals in light of the spread of artificial intelligence and advanced technology, and the development of innovative health and agricultural technologies.

The full report is available at https://www.dubaifuture.ae/the-global-50/

reporters@khaleejtimes.com

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Dubai: Sustainability, health, innovation to be key job trends in 50 years, says report - Khaleej Times