This book predicts the decline of today's
professions and describes the people and systems that will replace them.
In an Internet society, according to Richard
Susskind and Daniel Susskind, we will neither need nor want doctors, teachers,
accountants, architects, the clergy, consultants, lawyers, and many others to
work as they did in the 20th century. The Future of the Professions explains
how increasingly capable systems - from telepresence to artificial intelligence
- will bring fundamental change in the way that the practical expertise of
specialists is made available in society. The authors challenge the grand
bargain - the arrangement that grants various monopolies to today's
professionals. They argue that our current professions are antiquated, opaque,
and no longer affordable and that the expertise of the best is enjoyed by only
a few. In their place, they propose six new models for producing and
distributing expertise in society.
The book raises important practical and moral
questions. In an era when machines can outperform human beings at most tasks,
what are the prospects for employment, who should own and control online
expertise, and what tasks should be reserved exclusively for people? Based on
the authors' in-depth research of more than 10 professions, and illustrated by
numerous examples from each, this is the first book to assess and question the
relevance of the professions in the 21st century.
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