We move forward into the 21st century armed with extraordinary technological advances. The decoding of the human genome promises cures for cancer, AIDS and a host of other illnesses. Computer technology has changed everything from the cars we drive to the way we listen to music. The Internet has given us unprecedented access to information from anywhere in the world. Yet have these things made our lives that much better, happier or secure?

The world is far from what we wish it to be. War and conflict dominate the headlines and airwaves. Terrorism poses a potential threat to every individual and nation. How much job security does one really have living in a wobbly economy? Is it truly possible to enjoy a happy, stable relationship, or are broken homes and single-parent families now a normal part of the social landscape?

And what of the future we have created for our children? In most countries, education has failed to a marked extent and millions across the world are functionally illiterate. Amphetamine-like substances — drugs — are dispensed to schoolchildren as the solution to “learning disorders” while beyond school walls, illegal drugs fuel the social scene.

This is the fundamental problem — the advance of science has not been matched by the same progress in the humanities.

Is that just the way things are, or can something be done about it?