21 Lessons for the 21st Century

  Indian Pala Empire 139

  individuality: AI and 22, 23, 27; myth of 218–20

  Indonesia 10, 14, 26, 102–3, 105

  Industrial Revolution 16, 19, 33, 34, 74, 186, 266

  inequality see equality

  information technology/infotech xii, 1, 6, 7, 16, 17, 21, 33, 48, 66, 80–1, 83, 120–1, 176

  inorganic life, creation of xii, 78, 122, 246

  Inoue, Nissho 305

  Inside Out (movie) 249–51, 267

  Instagram 301

  Institution of Mechanical Engineers 118

  intelligence, consciousness and ix, 68–70, 122, 245–6 see also artificial intelligence (AI)

  International Olympic Committee (IOC) 104

  Internet 6, 15, 40, 65, 71, 73, 88, 122, 232, 246, 263

  intuition 20–1, 47

  Iran 90, 94, 106, 107–8, 120, 130–1, 134, 135, 137, 138, 139, 173, 181, 200, 289

  Iran-Iraq War (1980) 173

  Iraq 5, 13, 94, 106, 159, 165, 172, 173, 174, 175, 177, 178, 210, 219, 288, 295, 296

  Islam xi, 13, 15, 17–18, 87, 93–4, 96, 97–8, 101, 106, 107, 126, 127, 133, 137, 161, 168, 169, 177, 181, 183, 184, 186, 191, 196, 199, 248, 289, 295, 296

  Islamic fundamentalism 87, 93–4, 97–8, 101, 106, 107, 161, 177, 188, 191, 199, 248, 295, 296

  Islamic State 93, 94, 97–8, 101, 106, 107, 177, 188, 191, 199, 248, 295, 296

  Isonzo, tenth Battle of the (1917) 160

  Israel 15, 42–3, 64–5, 88, 97, 101, 103, 106, 107, 108, 111, 122, 130, 131, 134, 135, 137, 138, 141–2, 160, 163, 173–4, 182, 183–4, 186, 189, 190, 191, 221, 224, 233, 242, 272, 274–5, 277, 290, 294

  Israel Defence Forces (IDF) 173

  Italy 38, 103, 172, 173, 179, 251, 292, 294, 295

  Ivory Coast 103, 188

  Japan 13, 54, 107, 119, 120, 135–7, 139, 148, 161, 162, 171, 173, 179–80, 182, 184, 186, 232, 235, 251, 285, 305–6

  Jerusalem 15, 57, 165, 183, 239, 274, 279, 298

  Jesus 108, 128, 131, 133, 187, 190, 212–13, 237, 283, 284, 289, 291–2, 306

  Jewish Enlightenment 194

  Jewish Great Revolt (66–70 ad) 239

  Jews/Judaism 8, 15, 42–3, 57, 58, 96–7, 131, 132, 134, 137, 138, 142, 182–7, 188, 189–96, 208, 233, 235–6, 239, 272, 273–4, 279, 284, 289–90

  jobs: AI and xiii, 8, 18, 19–43, 59–60, 63, 109, 259–68; education and 259–68; immigration and 139, 141, 149, 152

  Johnson, Boris 46

  Johnson, Lyndon B. 113, 114

  Joinville, Jean de 296

  Juche 137

  Judah 189

  judiciary 4, 44

  justice xiii, 188–9, 222, 223–30, 270, 277, 288; complex nature of modern world and 223– 8; effort to know and 224; morality of intentions and 225–6; roots of sense of 223

  kamikaze 136

  Kanad, Acharya 181

  Kant, Immanuel 58–9, 60

  Karbala, Iraq 288, 289

  Kasparov, Garry 29, 31

  KGB 48, 299

  Khan, Genghis 175, 179

  Khomeini, Ayatollah 130, 131, 288

  Kidogo (chimpanzee) 187–8

  Kim Il-sung 137

  Kim Jong-Il 180

  Kim Jong-Un 64

  Kinsey scale 50

  Kiribati, Republic of 119, 120

  Kita, Ikki 305

  knowledge illusion, the 218–19

  Korea 104, 135, 137, 171, 180, 275, 285

  Labour Party 45

  Laozi 190, 267

  Leave campaign 46

  Lebanon 173

  Leviticus 189

  LGBT 135, 200

  liberalism/liberal democracy xii, xiv, xv, 3–4, 33, 46, 55, 141, 154–5, 210, 217, 237, 301; AI and 6–9, 17–8, 43, 44–72, 217, 220, 230; alternatives to 5, 11–15, 17; birth of 33; choice and 45–6, 297–300; crisis/loss of faith in x, xi, xiv–xv, 1, 3–18, 44, 45, 46, 55, 141; crises faced by, periodic 9–18; education and 261;elections/referendums and 45–6, 210–11; equality and 74, 76, 80; immigration and 4, 138, 141, 142–3, 144; individual, faith in 44–9, 55, 217, 220, 230, 297–302; liberty and 44–72; meaning of life stories and 297–302; nationalism and 11, 14–15, 112; reinvention of 16–17; secular ethics and 210

  Liberation Theology 133

  liberty xii, xiii, 3, 4, 10–11, 17, 44–72, 83, 108, 204, 211, 299; AI future development and 68–72; authority shift from humans to AI 43, 44–72, 78, 268; decision-making and 47–61; digital dictatorships and 61–8; free will/feelings, liberal belief in 44–6

  Libya 5, 172, 173

  life expectancy 41, 107, 109, 260, 264, 265

  Life of Brian (film) 186, 220

  Lincoln Cathedral 236

  Lincoln, Abraham 12

  Lion King, The (movie) 270–1, 273, 275–6, 297, 299

  Lockerbie bombing, Pan Am flight 103 (1988) 160

  Lody (chimpanzee) 187–8

  logic bombs 77, 178

  Louis IX, King of France 296

  Louis XIV, King of France 66, 96

  Louis XVI, King of France 207

  Lucas, George 298

  Luhansk People’s Republic 232

  machine learning 8, 19, 25, 30, 31, 33, 64, 65, 67, 245, 267, 268

  Mahabharata 181

  Mahasatipatthana Sutta 303

  Mahavira 190

  Maimonides 193

  Maji Maji Rebellion (1905–7) 239

  Mali 229

  Manchester Arena bombing (May, 2017) 160

  Manchukuo 232

  Manchuria 180

  Mansoura, Battle of (1250) 296

  Markizova, Gelya 237

  martyrs 287–9, 295–6

  Marx, Karl 94, 130, 131, 133, 209, 210, 213, 246, 248, 262; The Communist Manifesto 262, 273

  Marxism 15, 137, 209–10, 213

  Marxism-Leninism 12, 137

  Mashhad, Iran 289

  Mass, Christian ceremony of 283

  Matrix, The (movie) 245, 246–8, 249, 255

  Maxim gun 178

  May, Theresa 114

  Maya 186, 193

  McIlvenna, Ted 200

  meaning xiii–xiv, 269–308; Buddhism and 302–6; stories and 269–83, 291–8, 301–2, 306–8; individual/liberalism and 297–302; rituals and 283–91; romance and 280–1; successful stories 276–7

  meat, clean 118–19

  media: government control of 12–13; post-truth and 238; terrorism and 166, 167

  Meir, Golda 233

  Merkel, Angela 95, 96, 97

  Mesha Stele 191

  Mesopotamia 189

  Methodism 200

  #MeToo movement xi, 164

  Mexican border wall 8

  Mexican-American war (1846–48) 172

  Mexico 8, 106, 151, 172, 260, 261, 266

  Mickiewicz, Adam 307

  Middle East 13, 15, 78, 106, 139, 142, 143, 161, 173, 175, 177, 188, 193, 199, 296

  Mill, John Stuart 58, 60

  Milwaukee County Zoo 187

  mind, meditation and 310–18

  Mishra, Pankaj 94

  Mitsui 305

  Moab 191

  Modi, Narendra 114, 179

  morality see justice

  Moses, prophet 186–7, 188–9, 274

  movies, AI and 51–2, 69, 245–51, 255, 267, 268

  Mubarak, Hosni 63

  Muhammad, Prophet 15, 94, 181, 182, 187, 288

  Mumbai x, 17

  Murph (chimpanzee) 188

  music, AI and 25–8

  Muslims 13, 55, 62, 63, 93–4, 96, 98, 100, 104, 107, 130–3, 134, 143, 145, 148, 150, 152, 153, 165, 172, 181, 184, 185, 190, 191, 193, 200, 203–4, 208, 230, 233, 235, 271–2, 284, 288, 292, 295, 296, 306

  Mussolini, Benito 295

  My Lai massacre (1968) 62, 63

  Myanmar 306

  Nakhangova, Mamlakat 237–8

  nanotechnology 76

  national liberation movements 10

  nationalism xi, 14, 83, 109, 110–26, 132, 160, 176–7, 179, 181, 230, 241, 309;

  AI and
120–6; benefits of 111–12; ecological crisis and xi, 115–20, 121, 122–3, 124; Europe and 124–5; fascism and 292–5; ideology, lack of unifying 176–7; liberalism, as alternative to 11–15, 17, 112; nostalgia and 14–15; nuclear weapons and 112–15, 121–2, 123, 124; origins of 110–12; post-truth and 231–3; religion and 137–8, 305, 307; rituals/sacrifice and 286–8, 292–5; story and meaning of 272, 273–5, 276, 277–8, 280, 286–7, 292–5, 306–8; suffering and 306–8; technology and 120–2, 123–4

  National Rifle Association (NRA) 291–2

  Native American Indians 79, 147, 185, 186, 191

  NATO 175, 177, 231

  natural selection 58, 93, 94, 122

  Nazi Germany 10, 66, 96, 134, 136, 212, 213, 226, 237, 251, 279, 295

  Nepal 103

  Netanyahu, Benjamin 173, 179, 221

  Netflix 52, 55

  Netherlands 10, 14, 38, 186

  neuroscience 20

  New York Times 243

  New Zealand 76, 105

  Ngwale, Kinjikitile 239

  Nigeria 90, 101, 103, 127, 159, 165

  Nile: Basin 113; River 111; Valley 172, 296

  9/11 159, 160, 161, 162–3, 166, 168, 195

  Nobel Prize 193, 194, 195

  North Korea 4, 64, 106, 107–8, 137, 138, 169, 171, 178

  Northern Ireland: Troubles 132

  nuclear weapons/war 14, 34, 107–8, 112–15, 116, 119, 121, 122, 123, 124, 137, 138, 154, 165, 167–70, 178, 179, 181

  Nuda, Yuzu 54

  nurses 24, 107

  Obama, Barack 4, 12, 15–16, 98, 151, 168

  oligarchy 12–13, 15, 76, 176

  Olympics: (1016) (Medieval) 103–5; (1980) 103; (1984) 103; (2016) 101–2; (2020) 105; Christian emperors suppress 192

  opportunity costs 168

  Orthodox Christianity 13, 15, 137, 138, 183, 237, 282, 308

  Orwell, George 63, 64; Nineteen Eighty-Four 52, 252

  Oscar (chimpanzee) 188

  Ottoman Empire 153

  Pakistan 102, 153, 159, 200, 286

  Palestinians 64–5, 101, 103, 160, 233, 274, 275, 282

  Paris terror attacks (November, 2015) 160, 295–6

  Parks, Rosa 207, 299

  Passover 284

  Pasteur, Louis 299

  pattern recognition 20

  Pearl Harbor attack (1941) 135, 161, 162

  Pegu, King of 305

  Pentagon 162

  People’s Liberation Army (PLA) 178

  Peter the Great 175

  Phelps, Michael 102

  Philippines 127, 161

  phosphorus 116

  Picasso, Pablo 299

  Pixar 249–50

  Plato 181, 182

  Pokémon Go 92

  Poland 15, 103, 137, 142, 169, 177, 186, 231, 279–80, 307–8

  polar regions, ice melt in 117

  post-truth xiii, 230, 231–45; action in face of 242–4; branding/advertising and 238;

  history of 231–3; Homo Sapiens as post-truth species 233–6; knowledge and belief, line between 240–2; nation states and 236–8; scientific literature and 243–4; truth and power, relationship between 241–2; uniting people and 239–40

  Pravda 237, 243

  Princeton Theological Seminary 57

  Protestants 108, 132, 213

  Putin, Vladimir 12, 13, 15, 80, 114, 175, 176, 177, 231, 232, 233, 238

  Qatar 142

  Qin Dynasty 171

  Quran 127, 130, 131, 132, 181, 198, 233, 235, 272, 298

  racism 60, 137, 141, 142, 146, 147, 150–2, 154, 182, 185, 190, 226

  Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli 286

  rationality 45, 47, 180, 217–18, 219, 220, 282

  Reagan, Ronald 44

  refugees x, 117, 123, 140, 141, 142, 144, 147, 148, 155, 205

  regulation: AI and 6, 22, 34–5, 61, 77–81, 123; environmental 118, 130, 133, 219, 225

  religion xi–xii, xiii, 14, 17, 46, 57, 83, 106, 108, 126, 127–38, 160, 248, 255, 260;

  authority and 46–7; community and 89, 91; distortions of ancient traditions and 96–8; economics and 33, 106; future of humanity and 127–8; God/gods and see God and gods; humility and 181–96; identity and 128, 133–7; immigration and 141–3, 144, 153; meaning of life stories and see meaning; meditation and 315–16; monotheism, birth of 190–3; nationalism and 15, 17, 137–8, 309; policy problems (economics) and 128, 130–3; post-truth and 233–7, 239, 241; science and 127–30, 193–5; secularism and see secularism; technical problems (agriculture) and 127–30; unemployment and 42–3 see also under individual religion name

  renewable energy 118, 120, 127, 128–30

  robots 249, 250; inequality and 76–7; jobs/work and 19, 22, 24, 29–30, 34, 36, 37, 39, 42; as soldiers 61–8, 76–7, 168; war between humans and 70, 246

  Rokia 229

  Roman Empire 177, 184, 191, 192, 235, 239, 282

  Romania 103, 169

  Russia 5, 9, 12–13, 15, 64, 76, 100, 101, 105, 113, 114, 119–20, 122, 134, 135, 137, 137, 138, 139, 168–9, 171, 174–7, 179, 182, 231–2, 236, 237, 238, 242, 248, 251, 260, 277, 294, 307, 308 see also Soviet Union

  Sabbath, Jewish 188, 189, 290

  sacrifice 60–1, 91, 112, 120, 136, 141, 182, 190, 274, 275, 279, 283–91, 302–3, 305, 307, 308

  Sanders, Bernie 292

  Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (Harari) 183

  Saudi Arabia 102, 120, 131, 134, 135, 137, 139, 148

  science fiction 51, 61, 68–9, 70, 244, 245–55; Brave New World 251–5; free will, Inside Out and concept of 249–51; intelligence with consciousness, confusion of 68–9, 246; mind’s inability to free itself from manipulation 245–55; ‘self’, definition of and 255; technology used to manipulate/control human beings, outlines dangers of 246–9; The Matrix 245, 246–8, 249, 255; The Truman Show 246–7, 248, 255, 268

  scientific literature 243–4

  Scientific Revolution 193, 195

  Scotland: independence referendum (2014) 124–5

  Second World War (1939–45) 3, 10, 11, 100, 123, 124, 179–80, 184, 293

  secularism 42, 127, 130, 143, 183, 194, 195, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203–14, 229–30, 290;

  compassion and 205–6; courage and 207–8; definition of 203; equality and 206–7; freedom and 207; secular ideal/ethics of 204–9; Stalin and 209–10, 212

  Serbia 175, 275, 276, 282

  sexuality: AI and 50; law and 61; liberalism and 299; religion and 200, 300; secularism and 205–6

  Shakespeare, William 25, 55–6, 252; Hamlet 297

  Shechtman, Dan 194

  Shiite Muslims 131, 134, 137, 138, 288–9

  Shinto 135–7, 186

  Shulhan Arukh (code of Jewish law) 195

  Shwedagon Pagoda, Burma 305

  Siam 304–5

  Sikhs 186, 284

  Silicon Valley 39, 76, 85, 178, 217, 299

  skin colour 151, 152

  slavery 96, 148, 151, 177, 226

  Sloman, Steven 218

  smart bomb 136

  social media 50

  solar energy 119, 120

  soldiers, AI and 61–8, 76–7, 168

  Somme, Battle of the (1 July, 1916) 160

  Song Empire, Chinese 104, 259

  South Africa 13, 76

  South East Asia 100

  South Korea 13, 120

  Soviet Union 5, 8, 9, 10, 15, 48, 65, 103, 114, 169, 172, 174–5, 176, 209–10, 237–8, 248, 279, 280, 299 see also Russia

  Spain 48, 124, 125, 236, 260, 289

  Spanish Inquisition 48, 96, 199, 212, 213, 289, 299

  speciation (divergence of mankind into biological castes or different species) 76

  Spinoza 193

  Srebrenica massacre (1995) 62–3

  St Paul the Apostle 190

  Stalin, Joseph 66, 67, 96, 175, 176, 209–10, 211, 212, 237, 238, 243

  Stockfish 8 31

  Stone Age 73, 86, 182, 187, 217, 218, 233

  stress 32, 57, 264

  strongmen 5, 165

  Suez Ca
nal 172

  suffering: AI and xii, 49; Buddhism and 303–4; fake news and 242; meditation and 309, 313; nation states and 307–8; reality and 242, 286–7, 306–8; sacrifice and 287, 289; secular ethics and 201, 205–9

  Sumerian city states 188

  Sunni Muslims 104, 131, 134

  superhumans 41, 75, 211–12, 246

  surveillance systems 63–5

  Sweden 101, 105, 112, 141

  Syria 13, 29, 93, 94, 106, 114, 139, 141, 147, 148, 159, 171, 173, 175, 176, 223, 228, 261, 295, 296

  Taiwan 100, 102, 104, 135

  Taliban 30, 101, 153

  Talmud 42, 43, 97, 132, 183, 186, 189, 193, 235

  Tasmanians, aboriginal 227

  tax 6, 37, 40, 90–1, 105, 118, 130, 205, 286, 291

  Tea Party 219, 291

  technology 87; animal welfare and 118–19; ecological collapse and 118–19, 122–3; education and 266–8; equality and 72–81; human bodies and 88–9; liberal democracy and 6–9, 16, 17–18; liberty and 44–72; nationalism and 120–4; science fiction and 245–55; threat from future xii–xiii, xiv, 1–81, 123, 176, 178–9, 245–55, 259–68; war and 99–100, 123, 176, 178–9; work and 19–43 see also artificial intelligence (AI) and under individual are of technology

  Tel el-Kebir, Battle of (1882) 172

  television, AI and 51–2

  Temple of Yahweh, Jerusalem 15

  Ten Commandments 186, 187, 199, 291

  Tencent (technology company) 40, 41, 77

  terrorism: AI and 65, 69; etymology 159; fear of xi, xiii, 93, 155, 159–70, 217, 237, 249; media and 166, 167, 170; nuclear weapons 167–70; numbers killed by 23, 159; state reaction to 163–7; strategy of 159–63; suicide/martyrdom 295–6

  Tesla 59, 60–1

  Thatcher, Margaret 44–5

  Theodosian Decrees (391) 192

  Theodosius, Roman Emperor 192

  Third World War see war

  3-D printers 39

  Tibet 232

  Tiranga (tricolor) (Indian national flag) 285–6

  Tojo, General 180

  Torah 190, 194

  trolley problems 57, 60

  Truman Show, The (movie) 246–7, 248, 255, 268

  Trump, Donald xi, 5, 8, 9, 11, 14–15, 40, 114, 150–1, 232, 233, 312

  truth 12, 54, 215–55; Google and 54; ignorance and 217–22; justice and 223–30;

  meditation and see meditation; nationalism and 277–8, 293; post-truth and xiii, 231–45; reality and 306–8; science fiction and 245–55; secular commitment to 204–14; suffering and 308

  Tsuyoshi, Inukai 305

  Tunisia xi

  Turkey 5, 15, 127, 141, 169, 181, 260

  Twitter 91, 235, 238

  Ukraine 33, 101, 114, 169, 174, 176, 177, 219, 231–2, 238, 242