DNA-based technologies are increasingly used for real world, high impact purposes—from tracking biodiversity, to designing crops for climate change, to treating debilitating diseases. How do we democratize the availability while mitigating the risk?

Surprising new uses for DNA tech and the deep questions they raise for our human future

Spark on CBC Radio One Nora Young helps you navigate your digital life by connecting you to fresh ideas in surprising ways.

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AI, social media, and virtual work pretty much dominate the cultural conversation around technology and our lives. Is it 2007 or 2024? Join host Nora Young as she revisits and reflects on the first time we covered those topics starting 17 years ago!

The First Time We Covered ...

There's been an explosion of mental health content on social media, both by licensed professionals and influencers. Is that a welcome step in destigmatizing mental illness, or is it fostering a culture of misinformed self-diagnosis?

Being Human Now 9 - Wellness

Digital tech allows us to track the stats of our daily activity and optimize our lives in the name of self-improvement. But it's also changed how we evaluate success and what success even means. In a world where quantification is king, what becomes of success that can't be reduced to data?

Success, optimization, and the relentless drive toward productivity

The technologies we use have long changed how we communicate. But on today's social media platforms, where content moderation is automated, people have taken to speaking in code to elude algorithmic censors. And it's changing the way we speak.

Speaking in code online is reshaping the way we speak

We've long talked about the data-driven turn in AI and how a Deep Learning approach has given us everything from image recognition, to ChatGPT. But what about the ongoing ethical questions about the kinds of data machines are learning on? And beyond that, what if we're starting to…run out of data?  

Surprising new uses for DNA tech and the deep questions they raise for our human future

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