Luiss Open: The Role of Humans in the Digital Age – A Philosophical Guide to Human Preservation
Throughout human history, major scientific discoveries and technological advances have often been accompanied by a sense of inevitability, a belief that nothing will ever be the same, and a certain apprehension about the impending change. It’s no coincidence that the term “revolution” is often used to describe these events: think of the Scientific Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, and, more recently, the Digital Revolution.
The unease associated with such upheavals is sublimated into art and myth. This is the case, for example, with the unfortunate Prometheus, who was condemned to a horrific punishment by Zeus for revealing the gift of fire to mankind. He was chained to a rock, and every day an eagle would devour his liver, which miraculously grew back each time, allowing the torture to begin anew.
While the ancient world seems to have harbored a certain aversion to innovation, if not outright hostility, the history of ideas teaches us that progress—not only in terms of expanding knowledge, but also in social and ethical terms, concerning the organization of society and patterns of moral behavior—has been widely recognized and celebrated over the centuries. This recognition reached a programmatic dimension during the Enlightenment, as expressed by Immanuel Kant in his well-known answer to the question, “What is the Enlightenment?” (1784): “It is the coming of age of humanity, for which humanity alone is to blame […]. Sapere aude! Have the courage to use your own intelligence! This is the motto of the Enlightenment.”
The diversity of views on progress has persisted to this day, with the great changes of the digital age sometimes hailed as extraordinary achievements and sometimes denounced as the end of human dominance over the world and the beginning of that of machines. This book by Nicholas Agar serves as a guide to navigate the debate on the subject, to understand what the so-called “Digital Revolution” entails, how it fits into the long-term perspective of human history, and to learn more about artificial intelligence and the value of data. Many observers consider data to be the greatest resource of the immediate future, capable of altering global power balances and dramatically reshaping the distribution of wealth. However, what we have in our hands is not a simple manual but a “philosophical” guide, aimed at problematizing rather than offering simple solutions. It does so by exercising critical reasoning that questions established certainties and biases, and provides an analytical assessment of the social transformations underway. This book doesn't simplify; rather, it complicates matters to guide the reader through a thoughtful reflection on highly relevant issues of our time. According to Agar (a professor of ethics at Victoria University of Wellington), this task defines the work of philosophers, whom he describes as “academic generalists”—people with the “intellectual skills needed to integrate […] different types of information into a coherent approach to social transformations.” The demand for professionals who can combine solid specialist training with the ability to work across disciplines, engaging with experts from various fields and integrating their expertise, is growing not only in philosophy but also in management, economics, law, and politics.