Is Science Slowing Down?

post by jenn (pixx) · 2024-05-28T03:29:03.914Z · ? · GW · 0 comments

Contents

  Event
  Readings
    Supplemental
None
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Meet inside The Shops at Waterloo Town Square - we will congregate in the seating area next to the Valu-Mart with the trees sticking out in the middle of the benches at 7pm for 15 minutes, and then head over to a regular's nearby amenity room.

Event

This week, we'll be looking at some literature exploring the titular question. Some potential discussion questions include:

• How different do you anticipate 2034 being from today? Would you expect the gap be bigger or smaller than the gap between 2014 and 2024?
• Do you believe there are any fields or areas of study where progress is accelerating rather than slowing down? What sets these fields apart?
• In your personal experience, which areas of science and technology have had the most significant impact on your daily life over the past decade? How do you expect these areas to evolve in the coming years?
• If you could prioritize and accelerate progress in one scientific or technological field, which would it be and why?
• Imagine you could travel 50 years into the future and witness the state of science and technology. What breakthroughs or advancements would you hope to see, and what concerns or disappointments would you worry about discovering?

Readings

Is Science Slowing Down? [LW · GW] - Scott Alexander, 2018

Why is Science Slowing Down? - Kelsey Piper, 2023

Supplemental

Scientific Stagnation - Gwern, 2012

Inside Operation Warp Speed: A New Model for Industrial Policy - David Adler, 2021 
Just the section starting "Repairing the American Innovation System"

On the distribution of time-to-proof of mathematical conjectures - Ryohei Hisano and Didier Sornette, 2012

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