# Festival of Dangerous Ideas – Fight the fear

**Source**: https://grandchallenges.unsw.edu.au/article/festival-dangerous-ideas-fight-fear
**Parent**: https://grandchallenges.unsw.edu.au/themes/about-grand-challenges

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05.06.2019

# Festival of Dangerous Ideas – Fight the fear

What we don’t understand often looks dangerous, and the barriers of our own anxieties are hard to get over. The incomprehensible power of new and complex technologies see us pull back in fear. What seem like the freakish sexual and social mores of others generate moral panic. Both of these reactions stop us from thinking – so maybe if we want to be able to deal with change, we need to dive into what seems dangerous, from algorithms and quantum computing to sexy selfies.

[Scientia Professor Martina Stenzel](http://www.chemistry.unsw.edu.au/staff/martina-stenzel "Scientia Professor Martina Stenzel"), [Dr Haris Aziz](https://research.unsw.edu.au/people/dr-haris-aziz "Dr Haris Aziz"), [Dr Lee Ann Rollins](https://research.unsw.edu.au/people/dr-lee-ann-rollins) and [Dr Khandis Blake](https://research.unsw.edu.au/people/dr-khandis-rose-blake "Dr Khandis Blake"), present a series of short talks hosted by Scientia Professor Rob Brooks.

This conversation was recorded live on stage at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas. A festival co-presented by the Ethics Centre and the UNSW Sydney Centre for Ideas.

Photo credit: Jodie Barker

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