Sceleb | Noel Sharkey

Noel Sharkey is an Irish computer scientist and a specialist in the ethics of robots, particularly the use of robots in military or political applications. Sharkey was a Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics and a Professor of Public Engagement at the University of Sheffield. He later served as a chair in the Department of Computer Science before his retirement. He also holds a doctorates in psychology and science and is a credentialed electrical engineer and IT professional. Hw ia also a fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, the British Computer Society, and the Royal Institute of Navigation.

Sharkey is the founder and editor-in-chief of Connection Science and an editor for Artificial Intelligence Review and Robotics and Autonomous Systems. Sharkey also chairs The International Committee for Robot Arms Control. Sharkey participates frequently in radio, TV, and newspaper articles regarding issues concerned with ethical application of robotics and AI in areas such as the military, child care, elder care, policing, surveillance, medicine/surgery, education and criminal/terrorist activity.

>> Contributions at The Guardian
>> ICRAC Twitter: @stoptherobotwar
>> Wikipedia

Articles on Noel Sharkey

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• Kornwitz, J. 2013. The Case against killer robots. News @ Northwestern

Culture Icon, Esteemed Expert, and Sceleb | Akira Miyawaki

Akira Miyawaki is a Japanese botanist and environmentalist. Miyawaki received his Diploma in biology at Hiroshima University in 1952. He was then a researcher in Germany prior to completing his Doctor of Science in Hiroshima University in 1961. He became a researcher at Yokohama National University in 1961 and then an Associate Professor in 1962. In 1973, he founded the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology at Yokohama National University. In 1993 he became a Professor Emeritus at Yokohama and took on the role of Director fo the Japanese Center for International Studies in Ecology.

Miyawaki's research has focused on plant ecology and he is known globally as an expert in native forest restoration. According to a January 2014 Wired UK article, Miyawaki has planted more than 40 million trees in 15 countries and is now working to demonstrate the value of trees as a buffer to tsunamis and climate change.

In 2006, Miyawaki received the Blue Planet Prize created by the Asahi Glass Foundation in 1992 in association with the Rio Summit.

Mihawaki was added to the Future-ish PISA List in 2014.

Design Idol, Esteemed Expert | Yvon Chouinard

Yvon Chouinard is an American businessman, rock climber, surfer, kayaker, falconer, fly fisherman, and environmentalist. As founder of the outdoor clothing company, Patagonia, Chouinard is highly respected for his contributions to both climbing and sustainability in the outdoor apparel industry. He has been featured in radio, television, and many magazines ranging from outdoor magazines to Fortune. He has been a Sierra Club member since his youth and it was his love for falconry that led him to rock climbing. Chouinard often made his own climbing tools to save money and this practice set him on his path of designing climbing and outdoor equipment. Although he earned a MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, Chouinard has become known for promoting "management by absence" with his book, Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman, and is a strong supporter of the slow company movement. Chouinard's ongoing interest in sustainable business has revolutionized theh outdoor industry multiple times, from 'clean climbing' in the 1970s to organic cotton initiatives in the 1990s.

Future-ish added Chouinard to our PISA List in 2011.

Sceleb, Esteemed Expert | David Suzuki

(Image: Chris Young/The Canadian Press)
Dr. David Suzuki is a Japanese Canadian zoologist, geneticist, author, television and radio host, and environmentalist. Suzuki's Japanese name is Takayoshi Suzuki.

At the age of six, Suzuki, along with his mother and two sisters, were interned in British Columbia during the World War II after Suzuki's father had been sent to a labor camp. After the war, the Suzukis were forced to move to Ontario. Suzuki credits his father and his time spent at the camps in Canadian forests for cultivating his passion for nature.

Suzuki completed his BA at Amherst College in 1958 and in 1961 received his Ph.D in zoology from the University of Chicago. Suzuki was then professor in the University of British Columbia Genetics Department until he retired in 2001. Throughout his career, Suzuki has received 23 honorary doctorate degrees. Although Suzuki has participated in many radio and television projects, he is perhaps best recognized as host of The Nature of Things, a CBC science series that has been syndicated in over forty countries.

Suzuki is the recipient of the Order of Canada, the Order of British Columbia (1995), UNESCO’s Kalinga Prize for Science, the Canadian Geographic Citation of Lifetime Achievement, and the Right Livelihood Award among many others. Suzuki is an outspoken environmentalist and in 1990 co-founded the David Suzuki Foundation with Tara Cullis "to protect the diversity of nature and our quality of life, now and for the future". Suzuki's work with his Foundation offers him the opportunity to speak on a diversity of topics ranging from clean energy and sustainable development to climate change and fisheries.

Future-ish added Dr. Suzuki to our PISA List in 2010.

Future-ish Remembers | Culture Icon - Maria Tallchief

Maria Tallchief (1925-2013) is known around the world as the first Prima Ballerina in America. Born on the Osage Indian Reservation in Oklahoma in 1925, Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief, was the daughter of an Osage Father, Alexander Joseph Tall Chief, and Scottish/Irish Mother, Ruth Mary Porter Tall Chief. Tallchief was the Grandaughter of Eliza Big Heart. In 1953, Tallchief was given the name of Wa-Xthe-Thomba, meaning "Woman of Two Worlds." She was married to choreographer George Balanchine from 1946 to 1952 and later married Chicago Developer Henry Paschen in 1956. She started piano and ballet at age three and by age 12 she was studying ballet under the great Madame Nijinska. Tallchief performed with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo From 1942 to 1947 and the New York City Ballet from 1947 to 1965. Tallchief's 1949 performance of Balanchine's "The Firebird" in 1949 made her world famous and she was the first Sugarplum Fairy in Balanchine's Nutcracker. Tallchief retired in 1965 and started the Chicago City Ballet in 1981 with her sister Marjorie, also an acclaimed ballerina. At present Tallchief is artistic adviser to the Chicago Festival Ballet. Among many other awards and honors, Tallchief received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1996.

Future-ish Remembers | Culture Icon, Esteemed Expert - Maya Angelou

In addition to being one of the most beloved poets of our day, Maya Angelou was also an accomplished educator, actress, and outspoken civil rights activist. In 1959 - at the request of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.- Ms. Angelou became the northern coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. She was the associate editor of "The Arab Observer" in Cairo, Egypt from 1961-1961 and feature editor of the "African Review" in Accra, Ghana 1964-1966. In 1973 she received a Tony nomination for "Look Away". In 1974 Ms. Angelou was appointed by Gerald Ford to the Bicentennial Commission and by Jimmy Carter to the Commission for International Woman of the Year. She received an Emmy nomination for "Roots" in 1977. at Bill Clinton's Presidential Inauguration in 1993 she recited "On the Pulse of Morning" and received Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for "On the Pulse of Morning" that same year. In 2005 she was honored by Oprah Winfrey at "Legends Ball" along with 25 other African-American women.

Future-ish added Maya Angelou to our PISA List in 2007.

Design Idol, Esteemed Expert - Katherine Hamnett

Katherine Hamnett is a British Fashion designer known for both her fashion and her social activism. One of her most famous designs is the large-bold font protest t-shirts with slogans such as "STOP WAR", "USE CONDOMS", "SAVE THE RAINFOREST", and "PEACE". Hamnett is also a major advocate of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and has worked to create change in the fashion industry, as well as others. Issues raised by Katherine range from the need for switch to organic cotton in 1989 to the scarcity of black models on the world's runways in 2008.

Future-ish added Katherine Hamnett to our PISA List in 2008.

Esteemed Expert, Sceleb - Michio Kaku

Dr. Michio Kaku is a charismatic theoretical physicist recognized for his role in developing string field theory and continued work towards Einsteins 'theory of everything'. He has been a professor of Theoretical Physics at the City College for over 25 years. Dr. Kaku has written many high-level physics textbooks, as well as several popular science books. He continues to host many radio and television shows on science and most recently hosted Discovery Channel's 2057 series. In addition to following in Einstein's footsteps in unified field theory, Kaku takes after Einstein in his role as a public intellectual, discussing general topics of science, as well as war, peace and the environment in his weekly sindicated radio show Explorations (Einstein frequently spoke and wrote on topics such as art, science, religion, and politics).

Future-ish added Michio Kaku to our PISA List in 2008.

Esteemed Expert, Sceleb | Jane Goodall

Dr. Jane Goodall is an ethologist, primatologist, environmentalist, and humanitarian known around the world for her lifelong studies of chimpanzees. As one of the first female field biologists she is often credited for laying the path for other young women in many science fields. Among many ground-breaking contributions to her field, it was her observations of tool-making and cooperative hunting in chimps that revolutionized our understanding of other advanced primates and ourselves. Often criticized for anthropomorphizing her subjects, Dr. Goodall has held her ground and suggested that it is because of her empathy that she has been able to learn so much from chimps and other advanced primate species. In recent years, Dr. Goodall has become an outspoken activist for animal welfare, conservation biology, sustainable agriculture, and peace. In 2002 she was named a Messenger of Peace by UN Secretary Kofi Annan.

Future-ish added Dr. Goodall to our PISA List in 2007.

Esteemed Expert, Sceleb - Noam Chomsky

Dr. Noam Chomsky is Professor Emeritus of Linguistics at MIT. Dr. Chomsky's theory of generative grammar in Linguistics and contributions to the cognitive revolution of the 1950s in Psychology are considered among the most important developments in their respective fields. Dr. Chomsky's generative model and the Chomsky hierarchy continues to influence many other fields, from computer science to immunology. Due to his stern criticism of US foreign policy and politics since the 1960s, Dr. Chomsky's ongoing political activism has garnered him the title of one of America's most active and controversial liberal public intellectuals. Dr. Chomsky has authored numerous books and articles on both academic and political topics. In addition, he has appeared on many television series and travels extensively giving lectures and commentary on many topics.

Future-ish added Dr. Chomsky to our PISA List in 2007.