Academy of Ideas

#BattleFest2019: Health and genomics - what’s the score with polygenic scores?

Recording of a debate at the Battle of Ideas festival on Sunday 3 November 2019.
Debate is growing about the use of a genetic/genomic approach called ‘polygenic scores’ to understand health and assess health risks. These scores are different from traditional genetic tests and can be used in relation to a vastly greater number of diseases and conditions. Advocates claim this new approach could revolutionise healthcare and – in the UK context – help redefine the NHS. Critics retort that polygenic scores are of limited use, and are perilously easy to misconstrue. Do polygenic scores offer vital information for patients and clinicians or could they lead to unnecessary anxiety and pointless medical intervention?
DR TOBY ANDREWlecturer in human genetics, principal investigator in genetics, and programme organiser MSc in Human Molecular Genetics, Imperial College London
SIR PETER DONNELLYCEO and founder, Genomics plc; professor of statistical science, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford
NICKY DRURYprincipal genetic counsellor, Nottingham Regional Clinical Genetics Service; former member, United Kingdom Human Genetics Commission
CHAIR: SANDY STARRdeputy director, Progress Educational Trust

#BattleFest2019: How can we create a new industrial revolution?

Recording of the debate at the Battle of Ideas festival on Sunday 3 November 2019, in partnership with City of London Corporation.
Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum, is one of the thinkers associated with the concept of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, ‘blurring the lines between the physical, digital and biological spheres’. Do we need a new industrial revolution – and what are the barriers to creating one? Many commentators have noted a longstanding lack of investment and sluggish growth in productivity. Will new technologies really transform our society or is the hype around them a distraction from more fundamental issues? Given the moribund state of developed economies in recent decades, are we still capable of becoming a risk-taking, innovative society? Is talk of a new industrial revolution an unnecessary throwback to an older age of manufacturing?
LORD ANDREW ADONISLabour peer; founding chairman, National Infrastructure Commission;author, Saving Britain: how we must change to prosper in Europe
GERARD GRECHchief executive, Tech Nation; board member, Barbican
KEVIN MCCULLAGHfounder, Plan; innovation strategist and writer
HILARY SALTactuary; founder, First Actuarial
CHAIR: ROB KILLICKCEO, Clerkswell; author, The UK After The Recession

#BattleFest2019: Do we need a Green New Deal?

Recording of a debate at the Battle of Ideas festival on Sunday 3 November 2019, in partnership with City of London Corporation.
On both sides of the Atlantic, the idea of a Green New Deal has become a major policy focus. In the US, the idea has been put forward by left-leaning elements of the Democratic Party, while a cross-party group of MPs has called for a UK version. Proponents suggest that if the kind of money spent on wars, or on bailing out the financial system, were diverted to greening the economy, it would mitigate climate change while raising living standards and providing jobs. For critics, a Green New Deal would be a waste of resources.With the private sector reluctant to invest in such a long-term and high-risk enterprise, is it up to governments to step in and do what is necessary?
DANIEL BEN-AMIjournalist; author, Ferraris for All: in defence of economic progress
ANGELA FRANCISchief adviser of economics and economic development, WWF; former chief economist, Green Alliance
SIR ROGER GIFFORDsenior banker, SEB; vice-chairman, Association of Foreign Banks; chairman, Green Finance Institute; former Lord Mayor of London
PROFESSOR VICKY PRYCEchief economic adviser and board member, Centre for Economics and Business Research; author, Women vs Capitalism
CHAIR: PHIL MULLANeconomist and business manager; author, Creative Destruction: how to start an economic renaissance

#BattleFest2019: From zero hours to apprenticeships - young people at work

Listen to this debate from the Battle of Ideas festival 2019. Special thanks to the Federation of Awarding Bodies who partnered with the Academy of Ideas to produce this session.
The UK has relatively low rates of youth unemployment. But as critics point out, this statistic hides a multitude of issues. Starting salaries for graduates are amongst the lowest in the EU. Despite many initiatives to promote apprenticeships, many young people end up in low-paid, ‘gig economy’ or zero-hour jobs with few career prospects. For many years, the response has been the same: more ‘transferable’ or employment-related skills in education and encouraging young people to take up apprenticeships. But are employers and the government doing enough to train employees for the jobs of the future? Are apprenticeships the solution or an unimaginative return to old ideas?
Speakers include:
TOM BEWICKchief executive, Federation of Awarding Bodies; founder, Transatlantic Apprenticeship Exchange Forum
HARRIET BISHOPastrophysics student, University of Glasgow
DR RUTH MIESCHBUEHLERsenior lecturer in education studies, Institute of Education, University of Derby; author, The Minoritisation of Higher Education Students
ROB NITSCHchief operating officer, Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education; former professional engineer, British Army; fellow, CIPD and IMechE
CHAIR: CLAIRE FOXdirector, Academy of Ideas; Brexit Party MEP; author, I STILL Find That Offensive!

#BattleFest2019: What’s the point of going to university?

Listen to this debate from the Battle of Ideas festival 2019:
More people now attend university in the UK than ever, but there is much less clarity about what university is for. For many, it is simply a step on the career ladder between school and work. For others, higher learning is about pursuing knowledge for its own sake. Do universities even do a good job at preparing people for jobs, or should we make more use of on-the-job training for that purpose? Do vocational qualifications merit the same prestige as academic degrees? Does everyone deserve the opportunity to spend three years at university – or is it an evasion of the ‘real world’?
Speakers include:
KIRSTIE DONNELLY MBEgroup managing director, City & Guilds Group; commissioner, Labour Party Lifelong Learning Commission
DENNIS HAYESprofessor of education, University of Derby; founder and director, Academics For Academic Freedom (AFAF); co-author, The Dangerous Rise of Therapeutic Education
JHANELLE WHITEstudent, King’s College London; founder and chair, Political Sweep
PROFESSOR ALISON WOLFauthor, The XX Factor: how the rise of working women has created a far less equal world; cross-bench peer
CHAIR: DAVID BOWDEN associate fellow, Academy of Ideas

#BattleFest2019: How can we create a construction revolution?

A recording of a debate at the Battle of Ideas festival 2019.
From the housing crisis to infrastructure projects, construction is more important than ever. Everyone seems to agree that innovation is crucial to the resurgence of the construction sector. And yet, for all the fine words and government initiatives, the construction industry continues to languish in the doldrums with very little innovation. While the UK has been slow to adopt the latest technologies, other countries have embraced new methods, such as modular construction. So why aren’t robots manufacturing housing in giant factories to be transported to site? Why is there so little investment in 3D printed construction? Where are the new materials and processes, and what needs to be done in order to create them?
DR THEO DOUNASsenior lecturer, Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and the Built Environment, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen
LISA FINLAYgroup leader and partner, Heatherwick Studio; founder, 7N architecture practice
SIMON RAWLINSONhead of strategic research and insight, Arcadis; member, Construction Leadership Council; member, UK Government BIMTask Group
NEIL THOMPSONdirector, digital construction, SNC Lavalin Atkins; associate professor, University College London
CHAIR: AUSTIN WILLIAMSsenior lecturer, Dept of Architecture, Kingston University, London; honorary research fellow, XJTLU, Suzhou, China; author, China’s Urban Revolution

#BattleFest2019: Artificial intelligence in schools - where’s the humanity?

Listen to this debate from the Battle of Ideas festival 2019.
Could artificial intelligence (AI) transform education? Schools are already tentatively exploring ‘adaptive learning’ applications, which identify gaps in a student’s knowledge and build personalised quizzes. Sir Anthony Seldon, author of The Fourth Education Revolution, argues that by taking care of the mechanical aspects of education, AI can free up teachers to focus on creativity and problem-solving. What might this mean in practice and what do teachers make of the idea that our schools are churning out ‘robot-like’ workers? What, if anything, is uniquely human about being a teacher and how important are the relationships between teacher, pupil and subject?
Speakers include:
CARLA AERTSdirector, Tmrw Institute; former director of futures, Institute of Education, UCL; global digital director, Cambridge University Press Education
DONALD CLARKEdTech entrepreneur; CEO, WildFire; board member, Cogbooks and LearningPool
JEN PERSSONdirector, defenddigitalme; campaigner for safe, fair and transparent use of children's data in the classroom
GARETH STURDYfunctional skills teacher, LHAA; education and science writer; former project coordinator, Physics Factory
CHAIR: HARLEY RICHARDSONorganising committee, AoI Education Forum

#BattleFest2019: Does the world need a government?

Listen to the debate from the Battle of Ideas Festival 2019.
From climate change to tax evasion, humanity’s biggest challenges are increasingly global. Many of those frustrated by our lack of progress on these issues argue for some form of world government. If the United Nations, or some similar body, had real power over national governments, global agreements could be made and enforced. But others argue that it would be difficult, if not impossible, for seven billion people to hold a world government to account. Indeed, many find the idea of a world government sinister. Nevertheless, can we really solve our global problems without global political institutions?
Speakers include:
ANDREAS BUMMEL
executive director, Democracy without Borders; co-author, A World Parliament: governance and democracy in the 21ST century
IAN CRAWFORD
professor of planetary science and astrobiology, Birkbeck College, University of London
MARY KALDOR
emeritus professor of global governance, LSE; director, Conflict and Civil Society Research Unit, LSE; author, Global Security Cultures, Global Civil Society
DR TARA MCCORMACK
lecturer, international politics, University of Leicester
CHAIR: ROB LYONSscience and technology director, Academy of Ideas; convenor, AoI Economy Forum
Produced by Ian Crawford and Rob Lyons