Is science actually advancing?

[Cornfed]

My theory is that the only genuine advances currently being made are in computer processing power, advances leveraged off that, some trial and error advances and the accumulation of knowledge through repetition in certain areas. Other than that, nothing seems to be progressing. No major breakthroughs have occurred since the 60s that I am aware of. Physics has disappeared up its own asshole with mathematical witchdoctery, biology has stagnated and is culturally so dysfunction as to allow outright hoaxes such as the HIV/AIDS scam, medical "science" is nothing but a marketing exercise for drug companies, the system of reviewed journaling and centralized control of research has turned science into a kind of religious cult etc. To compound the disaster, science, like much of Western society, seems to have moved to a harem system where you have men in key decision making roles appointed on the basis of nepotism while the rank and file are mostly women. This may work tolerably well for some industries, but it is the very antithesis of what is needed for creative research. Also, the industry seems to have shrunk since the 80s, with very few jobs or career paths available in science.

I wonder why the PTB have allowed such a critical component of society to go down the tubes like this. Perhaps they intend for everything to collapse so science doesn't matter to them at the moment. Perhaps they have secret research facilities to serve their needs and overt science is just a PR exercise to divert the masses' attention.

[Ginger]

[abcdavid01]

Yeah, you're not alone on this. Peter Theil says as much:

http://techcrunch.com/2012/07/17/peter- ... c-schmidt/

He started the Founders Fund to counteract it:

http://www.foundersfund.com

What I find baffling is how shockingly unrealistic liberals are about it all. They always talk about wanting solar panels and hybrid fuel tech, but where do we get the raw materials to build these things? Mining! I'm sure you can imagine how impossible it is to open a new mine now with all the environmentalist legislation. They want to have their cake and eat it like they're living in fantasy land. On that note, why is mining still so unsafe? We ought to be doing mining with robots now for Christsake. I'd be tempted to enter the field myself, experimental robotics with concentration in mining, if it weren't for the damn government halting progress.

[Teal Lantern]

Yeah, you're not alone on this. Peter Theil says as much:

http://techcrunch.com/2012/07/17/peter- ... c-schmidt/

He started the Founders Fund to counteract it:

http://www.foundersfund.com

What I find baffling is how shockingly unrealistic liberals are about it all. They always talk about wanting solar panels and hybrid fuel tech, but where do we get the raw materials to build these things? Mining! I'm sure you can imagine how impossible it is to open a new mine now with all the environmentalist legislation. They want to have their cake and eat it like they're living in fantasy land. On that note, why is mining still so unsafe? We ought to be doing mining with robots now for Christsake. I'd be tempted to enter the field myself, experimental robotics with concentration in mining, if it weren't for the damn government halting progress.

If mining is your thing and you are strict on sticking to North America, then look to Canada.

[fschmidt]

Basic science has absolutely ground to a halt. The reason is simply cultural decay, that intellect is no longer respected and is instead ridiculed. My parents are Hungarian Jews. Hungarian Jews had a huge impact on science and math because they had an intellectual culture. My parents were shocked that I did not go into science or math. They can't understand my perspective having grown up in America, a society that I despise and don't want to contribute to in any way, and a society that has no respect for intellectual achievement.

[sushiman]

I dunno, I work in tech. The firm works with inventors from all over the world. The Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, Americans. Yes everyone is still innovating, and still coming up with new ideas. There are always going to be smart people. Is there more/less innovation than in some past moment? Can't say.

That said I don't really believe in the concept of "progress". LOL. Yeah I work with all these tech people, but I don't see how any human invention has changed the rules of life. After all the USA's "progress" their science-experiment food has made people unhealthier than ever, the medical system is supposedly so advanced and yet health care is a disaster. iPods and products to "increase happiness" and yet Americans are less happy than some poor person living in a hut in the Philippines.

I think humans are going thru a few hundred year period where they worship science, and haven't figured out yet, that it doesn't mean anything!

Life is not really that different from when we lived in caves, our nature does not change.

[sushiman]

Another relevant question is - are there any major technological projects going ahead now that are likely to pay dividends in the future? Typically it takes about 50 years from some major piece of technology being conceived to it having a major impact on the world, and the first 40 or so years of its development is mainly government funded.

Good question and the answer is YES! We are working on all sorts of stuff, and a lot of it is huge (controlling weather, new types of nuclear generators, etc). Due to NDA it's not like I can talk details on HA, but yes people are doing all sorts of stuff, and some of it is not known to the public, of course. Funding is a bitch because nobody wants to put up $100M USD for something that won't be ready until 2030. But smart people find a way to make things happen.

But again, I don't necessarily believe science is the answer to anything.

[sushiman]

I dunno, I work in tech. The firm works with inventors from all over the world. The Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, Americans. Yes everyone is still innovating, and still coming up with new ideas.

What would be some examples of new ideas currently being developed that would be expected to have an impact on the world equivalent to aircraft, computers and other tech developed last century?

Controlling weather for one. New energy sources which are still highly experimental but could result in something big many years from now. Thought controlled devices.

The problem the people I work with always have with this question is: we simply don't know what is going to be a hit. Of course when you invest in technology you want to invest in what is going to be huge. But even the smartest minds don't know the future. We invest in something we think is going to be huge, and it turns out to be a dud. We invest in something we think is going to be silly (like wifi) and years later the patents are worth billions. Just don't know. Really hard to say what the big breakthru is going to be in 2030, but I do think people are working on promising stuff now. Only time will tell.

Oh, the Japanese are obsessed with robots. [facepalm] As silly as it sounds to me, they could end up an iRobot house cleaning sex maid, who knows. LOL

[sushiman]

One final thought before I head out to enjoy my Saturday.

Actually when I think about it more I don't necessarily disagree with the idea that science is grinding to a halt. The firm I work for is an anomaly; a bunch of genius inventors, who don't care about money anymore, who are working on long-term risky ventures because others are not doing so. We seek out like minded people around the world. Most people are just inventing with a 3yr horizon, pointless stuff like a fresher toothpaste for their unnecessary product. There are lots of great minds in the USA wasting their time working on Facebook! [facepalm]

So it's hard to say, overall it could be that while most people are working on irrelevant things, a few are still truly pioneering. Guess time will tell if the few are enough to keep things "moving forward", or if it all grinds to a halt, or worse falls back into a second dark ages.

[MrPeabody]

When nanotechnology takes off, it’s going to be huge. I just hope it doesn’t happen for a while because you can say goodbye to privacy. In computers, Artificial Intelligence and parallel processing turned out to be more complex than anyone imagined and didn’t deliver the expected results. I doubt there will be any halt to progress because the military is always working on something. The military had the basic theories used in cellphones worked out in the 60s. The Arpanet, which evolved into the Internet, was created to enable the survival of command and control communications during a war (i.e., when the enemy destroys a node of the network, you just reroute the information over the other nodes). In addition, the infrastructure of the Internet is accelerating the spread of ideas which moves everything forward.

[Moretorque]

The powers that be have slowed everything down on purpose, I believe their main goal is to depopulate the planet then roll some of the new stuff out.

[Devil Dog]

...shockingly unrealistic...living in fantasy land...I'd be tempted to enter the field myself, experimental robotics with concentration in mining, if it weren't for the damn government halting progress.

What is shockingly unrealistic and living in fantasy land is that you could get into a field like that with no training or expertise in the areas of robotics or mining. You live in the fantasy land of your mind.

You would do it if not for the damn gubmint, though.

[abcdavid01]

Dude, you're a f***ing moron. It can take decades to open a new mine. It's sad that a middle aged guys has nothing better to do than make petty insults at young people.

[Devil Dog]

Dude, you're a f***ing moron. It can take decades to open a new mine. It's sad that a middle aged guys has nothing better to do than make petty insults at young people.

What does the length of time it takes to open a new mine have to do with anything? You could design robots to work in mines which are operational now. If you knew about mining and robotics.

It would be more interesting to hear about what you are actually doing. "Thinking" about doing things is not the same thing as doing things.

[abcdavid01]

Devil Dog, I'm not even going to justify that lunacy with an answer. Half of your posts are just insults at me. You're not even contributing to the forum in any way. I don't know what your problem is, but clearly you're lacking something inside and insulting me gives you temporary reconciliation. I don't even think you have a problem with me. You have a problem with yourself.