Juan Enriquez, Co-Founder, Excel Venture Management; Co-author, Evolving Ourselves: How Unnatural Selection and Nonrandom Mutation Are Changing Life on Earth, Twitter: @EvolvingJuan

Paul Saffo, Futurist; Consulting Associate Professor, Stanford University, Twitter: @psaffo - Moderator

Why are humans living longer, getting smarter and having fewer kids? Even more, why are rates of conditions like autism, asthma, obesity, and allergies exploding at an unprecedented pace? Though some of the harbingers of change are deeply unsettling, they also present us with a tremendous opportunity. Markedly improved living conditions and new advances in biotechnology are helping us to mitigate the cruel forces of natural selection, from saving prematurely born babies to providing gene therapies to patients suffering from sickle cell anemia and other conditions. As technology enables us to take control of our genes, we will be able to alter our own species and many others – a good thing, given how our continued survival depends on our ability to adapt in drastic ways. Join us as futurist Juan Enriquez conducts a sweeping tour of how humans are changing the course of evolution – sometimes intentionally, sometimes not.

This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on April 16, 2015