The lamassu statues of Mesopotamia have an acute commonality with artificial intelligence. They both marked “a quantum leap” of our collective capability and paved the way for a novel perspective, Ahmed Fakak Al-Badrani, Iraq’s Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities, said at the Unesco World Conference on Culture and Arts Education in Abu Dhabi.
The statues, which adorned the palaces of Assyrian kings more than 3,000 years ago, feature winged bull bodies with crowned human heads. The figures presented a stride of the human imagination, Al-Badrani said.
Artists fused the body parts of disparate animals to create something that stands with impressive metaphorical stature. Wings that were representative of the sublime were attached to the body of a bull, a symbol of strength. The human head, meanwhile, was emblematic of wisdom. Their smiling expressions signified warmth and hospitality.
This artistic assemblage was an innovation at its time, “a cognitive revolution”, Al-Badrani said. Artificial intelligence is much the same. However, that revolution may be regressive if we don’t proceed with caution, he said.
“The greater the development of artificial intelligence, the more natural intelligence goes back because natural intelligence will be increasingly dependent on artificial intelligence,” he said. “Indeed, artificial intelligence has provided opportunities, in particular in arts, architecture and other forms of art, but there are good sides and bad sides.”
So how do we implement artificial intelligence responsibly? What measures can we take to ensure digital developments are beneficial and can hone global efforts in arts and culture education?
Al-Badrani joined delegates and ministers from India, Sierra Leone and Bangladesh in a panel discussion on Wednesday to highlight key factors in implementing technological advancements in arts and culture education.
Stefania Giannini, Unesco's assistant director-general for education, who was moderating the panel, identified three pillars. They are making culture and arts education equitable, which necessitates wider internet access; ensuring government support and healthy policies; and striving to keep up with the rate of technological transformation, taking measures to make that speed “an asset for change".
Working on expanding internet access has been beneficial in bolstering the education sector in several developing countries. Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury, Minister of Education of Bangladesh, said the country has boosted its basic literacy rate by more than 25 per cent since 2009. Technology was a driving force in that growth.
“Our education sector suffered from a huge lack of infrastructure,” he said. “We didn't have enough teachers. We didn't have enough investment. And within 15 years, we have managed to achieve huge growth in our education sector, we have achieved a basic literacy level of 75 per cent.”
Over the past decade, the country has taken measures to implement information and communication technologies into its education infrastructure, Chowdhury noted.
“We are giving free computers and ICT equipment to students,” he said. “Our education budget is now the size of the country's budget in 2006. Free books are given across the country. Infrastructures are being built.
"This has had a positive impact on our ICT-driven growth and also export of ICT-driven services out of Bangladesh.”
However, there are still challenges ahead. Chowdhury said it was necessary to implement policies that advocated data sovereignty for countries, with big tech companies working alongside governments.
“One challenge that we are finding in this virtual world is that in order to make targeted policy interventions, governments need to understand the situation of the students,” he said.
“Governments require data. Now, data is the first fuel of artificial intelligence. Culture has an impact on human actions, then human actions lead to data generation and then the data is processed and used for artificial intelligence."
He added: “The challenge that we have in our part of the world, and especially from a policy point of view, is that we are not privy to the data that is generated by our students. There has to be a global consensus on data sovereignty in that policymakers need to have access to data of their own citizens.”
Chowdhury said that tech companies don’t often work with governments and local regulators, and that they are more interested in using the data for their algorithms and commercial objectives.
“But if, as governments, we could have captured the data that is generated by our people, we could have made specific policy interventions,” he said. “I think Unesco and the member states should look into where governments can work with the private sector, the technology sector and localise the data generated by its own citizens.”
This collaboration will help countries identify individual student needs and see whether they can achieve the outcomes they set out to, he said.
There are plans, Chowdhury said, to employ artificial intelligence to analyse learning gaps and learning outcomes across the country "so that we can we can make specific policy interventions". However, for that, again a dependable pool of data is needed, he said.
If conscientious action is not taken, artificial intelligence and other digital transformations will only exacerbate ongoing social challenges, Chowdhury said, including gender stereotyping.
“We are trying to work with the private sector, but the international tech giants, of course, don't always work with governments to localise the data, to have the data processing centres within their countries,” he said.
“We are also exposed to certain cultural aspects, which we do not feel are positive for us. For example, in terms of theology, in terms of certain western values versus eastern values, western mindset versus our country's mindsets. Tech giants are often only importing their version of culture, theology and even pre-existing stereotyping.
“We feel that human beings will not be left out of the artificial intelligence revolution in education, and in arts and culture education, but that driving force has to be properly guided.”
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 0
Wolves 2 (Traore 80', 90 4')
BRIEF SCORES:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDesign%2C%20multimedia%20and%20creative%20work%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELogo%20design%2C%20website%20design%2C%20visualisations%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBusiness%20and%20professional%20management%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELegal%20or%20management%20consulting%2C%20architecture%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBusiness%20and%20professional%20support%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EResearch%20support%2C%20proofreading%2C%20bookkeeping%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESales%20and%20marketing%20support%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESearch%20engine%20optimisation%2C%20social%20media%20marketing%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EData%20entry%2C%20administrative%2C%20and%20clerical%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EData%20entry%20tasks%2C%20virtual%20assistants%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIT%2C%20software%20development%20and%20tech%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EData%20analyst%2C%20back-end%20or%20front-end%20developers%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EWriting%20and%20translation%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EContent%20writing%2C%20ghost%20writing%2C%20translation%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EOnline%20microtasks%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EImage%20tagging%2C%20surveys%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ESource%3A%20World%20Bank%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Top Hundred overseas picks
London Spirit: Kieron Pollard, Riley Meredith
Welsh Fire: Adam Zampa, David Miller, Naseem Shah
Manchester Originals: Andre Russell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Sean Abbott
Northern Superchargers: Dwayne Bravo, Wahab Riaz
Oval Invincibles: Sunil Narine, Rilee Rossouw
Trent Rockets: Colin Munro
Birmingham Phoenix: Matthew Wade, Kane Richardson
Southern Brave: Quinton de Kock
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The Sky Is Pink
Director: Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Three stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E6-cylinder%2C%204.8-litre%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E5-speed%20automatic%20and%20manual%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E280%20brake%20horsepower%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E451Nm%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efrom%20Dh153%2C00%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How will Gen Alpha invest?
Mark Chahwan, co-founder and chief executive of robo-advisory firm Sarwa, forecasts that Generation Alpha (born between 2010 and 2024) will start investing in their teenage years and therefore benefit from compound interest.
“Technology and education should be the main drivers to make this happen, whether it’s investing in a few clicks or their schools/parents stepping up their personal finance education skills,” he adds.
Mr Chahwan says younger generations have a higher capacity to take on risk, but for some their appetite can be more cautious because they are investing for the first time. “Schools still do not teach personal finance and stock market investing, so a lot of the learning journey can feel daunting and intimidating,” he says.
He advises millennials to not always start with an aggressive portfolio even if they can afford to take risks. “We always advise to work your way up to your risk capacity, that way you experience volatility and get used to it. Given the higher risk capacity for the younger generations, stocks are a favourite,” says Mr Chahwan.
Highlighting the role technology has played in encouraging millennials and Gen Z to invest, he says: “They were often excluded, but with lower account minimums ... a customer with $1,000 [Dh3,672] in their account has their money working for them just as hard as the portfolio of a high get-worth individual.”
Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
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HEADLINE HERE
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
How it works
Each player begins with one of the great empires of history, from Julius Caesar's Rome to Ramses of Egypt, spread over Europe and the Middle East.
Round by round, the player expands their empire. The more land they have, the more money they can take from their coffers for each go.
As unruled land and soldiers are acquired, players must feed them. When a player comes up against land held by another army, they can choose to battle for supremacy.
A dice-based battle system is used and players can get the edge on their enemy with by deploying a renowned hero on the battlefield.
Players that lose battles and land will find their coffers dwindle and troops go hungry. The end goal? Global domination of course.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
