Avinash Meetoo

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Art

Emerging Technologies for a Sustainable Future during the National Science Week 2024

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On Thursday 28 March 2024, I was invited to make a presentation on “Emerging Technologies for a Sustainable Future” with the important subtitle of “And how important young people are for Mauritius”. This was during the National Science Week 2024 organised by the Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre at the Côte d’Or National Complex.

During my talk, I explained to a large group of young students of Grades 10-13 (Form IV to VI) what Vision 2030 is for Mauritius, how technology and innovation are important enablers to achieve this vision, how the country is facing major challenges (as is the rest of the world) and how, if we want to achieve a sustainable future, we need to have a critical mass of young professionals in green technologies and also in emerging technologies. I told the students that they are the “peopleware” of Mauritius and they are more important than hardware and/or software.

At the end, I also told them that while Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths are essential subjects, it is also important for them to develop their soft skills. Finally, I also told them to develop an artistic side in order to see further ahead…

A big thank you to the Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre for organising such an interesting event with a special mention for Dr Ellora Dhunnoo, Dr Aman Maulloo, Dr Bhamini Kamudu and Ms Natasha Nastali.

The Rise of the Dopamine Culture

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Here is a very interesting article on the rise of the dopamine culture in the world.

The author argues that everything is being replaced by mindless and endless scrolling and the effects might prove to be very detrimental for kids and also for adults, at home, at school and at work.

He also argues that people should start raising their voices against the likes of TikTok, Facebook and Instagram (Meta), etc. (and also YouTube (Google)) before it is too late.

My opinion

I’ve always been an adept of long form writing (e.g. this blog and my family blog but also my journal and my Obsidian second brain). I also love having long conversations and debates (ask my friends and family members!).

Therefore, you can easily guess that I am pissed these days by the lack of long interactions. Most just say hello and go back to their phones. Few wants to speak. Few have original thoughts that they want to share with others.

I know teachers are finding it incredibly hard to work with kids today because of their lack of attention span. I also know that businesses are having major issues dealing with their new recruits for similar reasons.

I think that the author is right to say that the only solution is to do a detox from time to time. People need to stop using TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc. to watch endless clips, say, during a whole week and this will give their brains time to reset a bit. He writes:

“Unplug yourself from time to time, and start noticing the trees or your goofy pets. They actually look better in real life than in the headset.”

I agree.

What do you think?

Should teachers and students celebrate or be cautious of ChatGPT?

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I made a presentation on the implications of embracing ChatGPT in our daily life at e-MIG 2023 Conference organised by the Open University of Mauritius.

I spoke about Artificial Intelligence from the 50’s to our era, of the difference between narrow and general AI, on the AI strategy for Mauritius, on how to construct a neural network and how ChatGPT works. I spent some time exploring how AI can help students (and their teachers). Finally, I told the audience that we need well-rounded people, not only comfortable with science but also having soft-skills and an artistic sensibility.

For me, ChatGPT is just a tool. While it might seem to do things which a human being cannot do, this is not strictly true. But it is clear that tools such as ChatGPT are capable of (1) learning from a large corpus of knowledge and (2) answering questions very quickly. With such tools and with the right corpus of knowledge (hint: think everything about all the facts which are taught in primary, secondary and tertiary level), it is possible to envision a formidable digital assistant for students and teachers alike. Teachers will not have to explain the same things over and over again to students and will be able to concentrate on imparting experience and (useful) anecdotes. I would have loved that at the time I was a student…

I then participated in a panel chaired by Dr Perienen Appavoo (from the Open University) and the other panelists were Dr Upasana Singh (from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban) and Vrigesh Futta (from the Mauritius Emerging Technologies Council). The audience asked wonderful questions which we tried to answer in the best way possible. Of course, some were concerned about the use of ChatGPT by some students to cheat but the consensus was that it is more useful to focus on the half-full glass instead of the half-empty glass. Can ChatGPT actually allow teacher to create a new cohort of empowered students, better equipped to tackle the complexity of our world?

Time will tell.

Personally, I greatly enjoyed my time at e-MIG 2023 Conference. Thank you everyone.