By the year 2100, an estimated 10 billion people will be living in cities. In an urban future where more than twice as many of us commute, go shopping, take kids to school, visit parents in the suburbs and have goods shipped to the doorstep, city planners might be driven to their limits. After all, all these activities will put increasing strain on our urban mobility systems. That’s why our episode 8 embraces the idea of moving in different ways and explores forward-looking city designs that encourage individual mobility – while still making the most of our public spaces.
Looking at the future of our cityscapes, Ricardia draws inspiration from city planner Doug Voigt, who turns abstract ideas into plausible and workable realities that improve life in both today’s and tomorrow’s cities. She also talks to a professor and city innovator who advocates for urban labs in which we can prototype new technologies and ways of living. Overall, she learns that if we want to shape future urban mobility the right way, then automated electric cars could make all the difference.
The rise of tools powered by state-of-the-art artificial intelligence allows us to create texts, images, videos or ideas with just a few clicks, and the technology is making giant leaps forward every day. In our seventh episode, we explore how this rapid evolution might change our society – and whether creativity will remain something uniquely human or not.
To get to the heart of these questions, Ricardia dives into the world of AI art and its implications for creative workflows with a digital artist who goes by the name BLAC.ai. She invites an actual AI model to reflect on itself and tell us more about the nature of both human and artificial intelligence. She also explores what it takes to turn today’s mostly single purpose AI tools into tomorrow’s all-knowing all-rounders.
Enjoying that vibrant feeling of a live concert… everywhere you go, even in your car? In our sixth episode, we tune in to the future of music – and to the sound innovations both we as listeners and the artists we love can look forward to.
Ricardia meets a pianist who takes his classical pieces to new dimensions with a magical glove. With a neuroscientist, she ventures into the depths of the brain to find out about its vital role in creating lasting music moments. She asks a sound engineer what the future holds for immersive soundscapes inside our cars, and she learns from Grammy Award winner Derek Ali what makes the car our absolute happy place to enjoy our music.
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Ricardia Bramley is an Irish-Trinidadian voice artist, podcast producer and host, as well as a writer. She was born in London, raised there, as well as in Germany and the US. Several years ago, she moved from New York City to Berlin where she currently lives.
In her previous life, she starred in countless German and international movies, soap operas and commercial productions. In her own words, she is a permanent visitor, always moving between cultures and continents.
Her rich life experience is palpable in every episode of "Future Dimensions" – just like Ricardia's charm, humour and critically optimistic view of the future.