RIYADH, 6 November 2007 — Dr. Michio Kaku, world-renowned theoretical physicist and futurist, brought his vision of the world in the near future to an exclusive gathering of SABB clients in Riyadh and Jeddah.
Kaku, whose visit to Saudi Arabia coincided with the launch of a three-part series on BBC TV documenting his Visions of the Future, spoke about the results of his interviews with around 150 of the world’s top scientists, including Nobel laureates and directors of the major science laboratories, to give the most authentic, authoritative glimpse into the world of 2020. These are the scientists who are actually inventing the future in their labs.
In his address to SABB clients, Kaku painted a compelling picture of the future of computers, telecommunications, biotechnology, nanotechnology, and energy, and how this will affect business and our lives. With graphic illustrations, he demonstrated that in 2020, we will have the ability to grow and replace entire organs of the body as they wear out, revolutionizing medicine; have a personal CD with all our genes on it; monitor our health through our intelligent clothes and computers that we swallow; have the ability to manipulate the genes which control our aging process; and have cars which drive themselves.
He also addressed issues such as the potential of artificial intelligence replacing humans, the work and living space of the future, how jobs will evolve and the outlook for energy.
Earlier, Kaku joined senior management of SABB at a lunch to mark his visit to Saudi Arabia.
Kaku is a professor of Theoretical Physics at the City University of New York and author of the best-selling books, “Parallel Worlds” and “Hyperspace”.
In academic circles, he is well known for continuing to develop Einstein’s goal of a “theory of everything”, uniting the four fundamental forces of nature into one theory. He hosted the BBC series on “Time” and contributes frequently worldwide to TV science documentaries, radio programs and to both academic and consumer publications.