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I don't even think we understand software, much less biology :-) We can only hope to understand the pieces that are most relevant to the business domain we're t

I don't even think we understand software, much less biology :-) We can only hope to understand the pieces that are most relevant to the business domain we're trying to solve (like curing a disease or expanding an online business). The complexity of both types of systems is just increasing exponentially over time, so there's little hope (or even need) to understand the whole thing. The challenge is, of course, to understand what's relevant in the first place. And just like in software, we can only hope to come with the right levels of abstraction and disregard the irrelevant parts at each level of understanding.

ramraj07 4y ago
There’s a difference between YOU understanding everything vs. ANYONE understanding everything though.
- dinvlad 4y ago
  For sure - and I don't think we necessarily have the ANYONE part either :-) The reason for that is folks who build systems often leave, and the details of why or even how they did something leave with them. At some point, there's no one in the company who understands certain things. And the analogy with biology actually goes even further - just like in software, we "know" the code (DNA), but how does that translate to the behavior of the complex system (and business requirements in software), is lost to time and the sheer complexity of these systems.
  - ramraj07 4y ago
    So someone builds something and they leave, and you can’t figure out their code? Or more importantly, you’re suggesting it’s impossible to figure out that code by anyone? Seems a stretch don’t you think?
    - RugnirViking 4y ago
      he's not saying it's impossible to figure out some piece of code, but "all" code. There is just too much of it! Going into even something as relatively simple as an operating system, let alone a whole ecosystem with drivers, internet protocols & more would take many lifetimes. The "anyone" part comes because there are countless parts of those infinately complex systems that have no documentation and no maintainers. They can individually be reverse engineered if it is needed in an individual case, but nobody is going to do that for most of them.

ramraj07 4y ago

There’s a difference between YOU understanding everything vs. ANYONE understanding everything though.

dinvlad 4y ago
For sure - and I don't think we necessarily have the ANYONE part either :-) The reason for that is folks who build systems often leave, and the details of why or even how they did something leave with them. At some point, there's no one in the company who understands certain things. And the analogy with biology actually goes even further - just like in software, we "know" the code (DNA), but how does that translate to the behavior of the complex system (and business requirements in software), is lost to time and the sheer complexity of these systems.
- ramraj07 4y ago
  So someone builds something and they leave, and you can’t figure out their code? Or more importantly, you’re suggesting it’s impossible to figure out that code by anyone? Seems a stretch don’t you think?
  - RugnirViking 4y ago
    he's not saying it's impossible to figure out some piece of code, but "all" code. There is just too much of it! Going into even something as relatively simple as an operating system, let alone a whole ecosystem with drivers, internet protocols & more would take many lifetimes. The "anyone" part comes because there are countless parts of those infinately complex systems that have no documentation and no maintainers. They can individually be reverse engineered if it is needed in an individual case, but nobody is going to do that for most of them.