One of the perhaps unexpected results of the coronavirus pandemic is how it has thrown up some fascinating debates about technology. Many countries, including the UK, have been grappling with if and how they could use Bluetooth apps to try and trace the spread of the virus. Around the world other nations have used the ubiquity of smartphones to quarantine and control potentially infected people, while poorer states have seen their efforts hindered by a critical lack of healthcare tech. In this episode of Matters of Life and Death, we delve into some of these discussions and try and look forward to see what impact the pandemic may have on our increasingly digital lives in the future.
In each episode of Matters of Life and Death, brought to you by Premier Unbelievable?, John Wyatt and his son Tim discuss issues in healthcare, ethics, technology, science, faith and more. John is a doctor, professor of ethics, and writer and speaker on many of these topics, while Tim is a religion and social affairs journalist. We talk about how Christians can better engage with a particular question of life, death or something else in between.
In the second part of our conversation on technology during the coronavirus pandemic, we look into our crystal balls and try to imagine what the world of tech will look like in the future, thanks to Covid-19. Are the major American tech companies are emerging from the crisis stronger than ever? Will coronavirus accelerate the rise of artificial intelligence and robotics in healthcare? And has the modernist pro-science movement struck a lasting blow in the battle of ideas against the anti-expert populists?
You can listen to the first episode on coronavirus and technology here: https://shows.acast.com/matters-of-life-and-death/episodes/coronavirus-technology-part-1
See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
You can listen to the second part of our conversation about technology and the pandemic above.
You can find all my other resources on Covid-19 and its associated issues by clicking here.