Kean Distinguished Lecturer Michio Kaku, Ph.D., Shares Vision of the Future

Renowned theoretical physicist Michio Kaku, Ph.D., launched Kean University’s annual Research Days with a Distinguished Lecture, urging a capacity crowd of students, faculty and the public to “get used to” the many technological changes that are on the horizon.

“Today we’re going to talk about the future,” Kaku, the science correspondent for CBS This Morning and author of five New York Times bestsellers, said in his address at Kean’s STEM auditorium on Monday, April 24.

He shared his vision – supersonic air travel, quantum computers making Silicon Valley the new “rust belt,” and myriad jobs yet to be created – as part of the President’s Distinguished Lecture Series.

“The future is coming if we want it or not. You have to adjust to it and anticipate it,” Kaku said. “Don’t fear the technology, learn it. And one day you’ll probably get a job doing it.”

Kaku gave his lecture and met with Kean student researchers to kick off Research Days, the annual celebration of research and discovery held at Kean, New Jersey’s urban research university.

Featuring three days of presentations, panel discussions and events, Research Days runs until Wednesday, April 26 at Kean’s main campus. Kean Ocean Research Day is Tuesday, April 25, and Wenzhou-Kean University in China holds its Research Days April 26-27.

Prior to his lecture, Kaku watched three student research presentations, asking questions and offering feedback.

Presenting were students Bianca Ortega, a senior computational science major from Roselle Park, who researched AI use in medical diagnosis; computer science majors Tristram Dayacan, a junior from Elizabeth and Eric Alves-Ponte, a senior from Nutley, whose project envisioned a computer-aided parking lot detection system; and Eric Landaverde, a senior computer science major from Elizabeth, who used big data to analyze public sentiment around mask use during the pandemic.

“I was very impressed,” Kaku said. “I see a lot of creativity, initiative and enthusiasm. I think these people are going to go on and maybe change the future.”

The students who presented to Kaku described it as both “nerve-wracking” and exciting. 

“The nerves are a good thing because it means this is a really huge thing to do,” Ortega said. “He’s a great physicist, and my work deals with applying physics and biology for a computer. It’s a great honor to be able to show my work to him.”

Landaverde felt the same mix of sentiments.

‘I've presented at over 20 conferences and I think this is one of the most exciting and honorable presentations I’ve done,” he said. “I'm glad I had the opportunity to do it and to meet him.”

Both Kaku’s lecture and the student session were moderated by David Joiner, Ph.D., acting associate dean of the School of Integrative Science and Technology at Kean.

“Dr. Kaku has inspired generations of scientists, students and curious minds,” Joiner said, urging the audience to “be reminded of the limitless potential of human curiosity and innovation.”

Kaku described a world of possibilities as we enter the “Fourth Age of Science.” The Fourth Age refers to physics at the molecular level, following the eras of steam power; electric power; and the rise of the transistor.

“AI (artificial intelligence) will dominate our lives,” Kaku said, noting that quantum computing will have the power to solve all of humanity’s problems.

Future medical advances, he said, will include earlier detection of cancer; cures for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s; a “human body shop” method to create new organs; and even “digital immortality.”

“The future will be sort of like Star Trek,” he said.

Following his remarks, Kaku took questions and greeted many in the crowd.

“It was eye-opening,” said Silvia Jacobson-Burgos of Elizabeth, a Kean senior psychology major who works as a paraprofessional at Dr. Albert Einstein Academy School in Elizabeth. She had the chance to meet Kaku.

She noted his predictions of AI-enabled contact lenses, and the future “where we can think of an object and have it printed on a 3-D printer.”

Wayne Dawes, a senior communication major who is writing a class paper on Kaku, said “it's really interesting to see where the next generation of humans will take this world.” 

Kean’s President’s Distinguished Lecture Series brings thought leaders and newsmakers to the University. Previous Distinguished Lecturers have included presidential historian and author Jon Meacham, civil rights leader Martin Luther King III, and CNN anchors Abby Phillip and Dana Bash.