We live in a time of rapid change; change that is driven by developments in science and technology and challenged by our capacity to adapt in the present and prepare for the future.
Commissioned by Australia’s Chief Scientist, on behalf of the National Science and Technology Council, Horizon Scanning reports present independent and timely analyses to guide decision makers through the decade ahead.
Horizon Scanning reports by the Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) draw on the deep disciplinary expertise from within Australia’s Learned Academies to analyse the future, navigate change and highlight opportunities for the nation.
As interdisciplinary studies, ACOLA’s reports include economic, social, cultural and environmental perspectives to provide well-considered findings that inform complete policy responses to significant scientific and technological change.
As the internet of things (IoT) is further developed, not only will enterprise and industry be transformed, but so too will be the way we interact with each other and the world around us.
Synthetic biology involves the design and construction of new biological parts, devices, and systems, as well as the re-design of existing, natural biological systems for useful purposes. With early applications spanning across health care, climate change mitigation, biocontrol, agriculture and manufacturing the opportunities are significant. However, accompanying the high expectations of these technologies, there is considerable uncertainty and active debate on related social, cultural, ethical, health, economic, regulatory and legal issues.
Recent technological advances have enabled assembly of a wide range of data about an individual’s genetic and biochemical makeup, as formed by their genes, environment and lifestyle. While medicine has always had personal and predictive aspects, precision medicine allows health and disease to be viewed at an increasingly fine-grained resolution, attuned to the complexities of both the biology of each individual, and the variation among the population.
Delivered as a partnership between Australia’s Chief Scientist and ACOLA, the Energy Storage project studies the transformative role that energy storage may play in Australia’s energy systems; future economic opportunities and challenges; and current state of and future trends in energy storage technologies and their underpinning sciences.
As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more advanced its applications will become increasingly complex and will find their place in homes, work places and cities. AI offers broad-reaching opportunities, but uptake also carries serious implications for human capital, social inclusion, privacy and cultural values to name a few. These must be considered to pre-empt responsible deployment.
The adoption of emerging agricultural technology could help to respond to future trends and catalyse the transformational change needed in the agricultural sector, in terms of profitability, sustainability and productivity.
Overview | Media Release
Full Report (pdf) | Extract (pdf) | Summary Paper (pdf)
Horizon Scanning projects involve Fellows of Australia’s four Learned Academies – Australian Academy of the Humanities, Australian Academy of Science, Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering – the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences and the New Zealand Royal Society Te Apārangi.
For further information on the Horizon Scanning Series, please visit chiefscientist.gov.au