When new fields are being researched there’s a ton of low hanging fundamental work that can be done. Over the years all of the low hanging fundamental work is d

When new fields are being researched there’s a ton of low hanging fundamental work that can be done. Over the years all of the low hanging fundamental work is done and research gets more specialized and the amount required to learn increases dramatically. I don’t think there’s any reason to think people like Gauss and von Neumann are much smarter than a modern day equivalent, say Terrence Tao. But Tao’s work, despite being across many fields, is very specialized and not as well publicized.