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“ would a bunch of people from the 1800s really be of much use to society today” Maybe not everyone but go back another hundred years. Would Newton be of negat

“ would a bunch of people from the 1800s really be of much use to society today” Maybe not everyone but go back another hundred years. Would Newton be of negative value today? I seriously doubt it. I adore James Joyce, who was around in the 1800s. But let’s not consider people like that for a second but consider the random guy on the bus last year. A no name non-contributing zero. I want him to travel the stars. I don’t need a random guy on the bus to produce or display worth in order to not only live but live well- live better than any kings have ever had. I would like that for you. You don’t need to show your papers to stick around another year as far as I’m concerned. I would love for you to experience unending pure hedonistic pleasure for centuries free of charge. You don’t need to say anything if you don’t want to or can’t. I don’t think anyone should have to work for it if they don’t want to.

akiselev 6y ago
I strongly recommend reading The Structure of Scientific Revolutions by Thomas Kuhn for an excellent treatise on why the answer to "Would Newton be of negative value today?" is almost certainly yes (in the context of scientific progress). It's a dense book but it's a seminal work on the philosophy of science and Kuhn goes to great lengths to dig into how scientific revolutions developed and entered the mainstream. Long story short, Max Planck was on the money when he said that "“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.”
- Lewton 6y ago
  Part of the reason why old fuddy duddies are obstructionist to science is the fact that brain plasticity drops off sharply somewhere in your mid twenties. There's zero reason to believe that we won't also find a solution to this issue if we manage to fix aging
  - akiselev 6y ago
    There is zero evidence that keeping neural plasticity at adolescent or young adult levels will help, especially considering it's mostly an issue of power dynamics (preserving social status), not the merits of the science. Based on our studies of childhood trauma, increased neural plasticity is likely to hurt as much as help.
  - nickt 6y ago
    ^science^politics probably
- kinghtown 6y ago
  Ah, but we are also judging Newton’s future and value where he would still act as a person with a short lifespan. Living for hundreds of years would have a profound effect on the psyche. I’m prone to think he would be a little bit cooler than we are giving him credit for regardless. I’m not demanding calculus part two or off with his head. Also, would Newton really be a tyrant? A lot of this has a particularly precrime vibe to it. But I’ll accept your point about Newton. He was a bit of a dick. Joyce on the other hand: a saint.

akiselev 6y ago

I strongly recommend reading The Structure of Scientific Revolutions by Thomas Kuhn for an excellent treatise on why the answer to "Would Newton be of negative value today?" is almost certainly yes (in the context of scientific progress). It's a dense book but it's a seminal work on the philosophy of science and Kuhn goes to great lengths to dig into how scientific revolutions developed and entered the mainstream. Long story short, Max Planck was on the money when he said that "“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.”

Lewton 6y ago
Part of the reason why old fuddy duddies are obstructionist to science is the fact that brain plasticity drops off sharply somewhere in your mid twenties. There's zero reason to believe that we won't also find a solution to this issue if we manage to fix aging
- akiselev 6y ago
  There is zero evidence that keeping neural plasticity at adolescent or young adult levels will help, especially considering it's mostly an issue of power dynamics (preserving social status), not the merits of the science. Based on our studies of childhood trauma, increased neural plasticity is likely to hurt as much as help.
- nickt 6y ago
  ^science^politics probably
kinghtown 6y ago
Ah, but we are also judging Newton’s future and value where he would still act as a person with a short lifespan. Living for hundreds of years would have a profound effect on the psyche. I’m prone to think he would be a little bit cooler than we are giving him credit for regardless. I’m not demanding calculus part two or off with his head. Also, would Newton really be a tyrant? A lot of this has a particularly precrime vibe to it. But I’ll accept your point about Newton. He was a bit of a dick. Joyce on the other hand: a saint.