FTI: Power, Responsibility & Survival: Why Social Science Matters More Than Ever

We’ve spent centuries accelerating progress through hard science—but have we kept pace in understanding how to use that power responsibly?

This session explores a critical imbalance: while technology has driven massive gains in productivity and capability, advancements in the social sciences—how we govern, allocate power, and define responsibility—have lagged behind. The result is a world where increasingly powerful tools are placed in human hands without equally strong systems to ensure they’re used wisely.

We’ll dive into:

• Why technological progress without social progress creates systemic risk
• How society currently grants and restricts power (degrees, laws, incarceration—and their limits)
• The concept of aligning power with responsibility to minimize harm and maximize collective well-being
• Whether and how we should vet leaders (e.g., for altruism and fairness) before giving them authority
• What a modern “social science breakthrough” could look like—and how it could shape the future of civilization

This is a discussion about survival, ethics, and design at the highest level:
If humanity continues to increase its power, how do we ensure that power is used to expand freedom and well-being—not destroy it?

Expect a thoughtful, challenging conversation aimed at building frameworks that scale with the world we’re creating.

A little about our host:
Garrett is a programmer turned award-winning software inventor turned entrepreneur ([PlateRate.com](http://platerate.com/) is his company). His hobby is writing and discussing practical philosophy, and he does life coaching on request to help people live happy, moral lives. He is also the executive director of The Free Thinker Institute ([FreeThinkerInstitute.org](http://freethinkerinstitute.org/)), which aims to create a community that helps members increase happiness and decrease harm for themselves and those they can influence.

Format:
Lecture and discussion

Note:
Social time for our community 15 minutes before the presentation.
To get familiar with our past events, feel free to check out our YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmixGB9GdrptyEWovEj80zg
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