4 ms·

add this to the possibly permanent degradation of cognitive function, and we may be witnessing an unprecedented species wide debilitation. I wonder how much thi

add this to the possibly permanent degradation of cognitive function, and we may be witnessing an unprecedented species wide debilitation. I wonder how much this might actually slow us down, imagine an Einstein who never got beyond the clerks job because brain fog stopped his discoveries

Fronzie 4y ago
Leaded gasoline has been a former experiment in population-wide reduction of intelligence and increase of aggressiveness. Supposedly that affected that 80's, but I am not aware of systematic studies on that.
- jacquesm 4y ago
  Lots of links starting from here: https://theconversation.com/a-century-of-tragedy-how-the-car-and-gas-industry-knew-about-the-health-risks-of-leaded-fuel-but-sold-it-for-100-years-anyway-173395 https://theconversation.com/a-century-of-tragedy-how-the-car...
  - asah 4y ago
    thx! TIL leaded gasoline was phased out in the 1970s primarily because it clogged catalytic converters needed to end smog, not because of health reasons! (smog used to be terrible - I lived through the latter half of that period, am I can't even relate to how awful it used to be... friends and I remember walking in midtown Manhattan, blowing our noses and it being black... I can't even imagine pre-1980 let alone pre-1970... https://timeline.com/la-smog-pollution-4ca4bc0cc95d https://timeline.com/la-smog-pollution-4ca4bc0cc95d )
    - DoingIsLearning 4y ago
      > leaded gasoline was phased out in the 1970s ... In automobiles. Lead is very much in use for aircraft fuel, just google AVGAS.
      - andrepd 4y ago
        It's absolutely bonkers to me that recreational fliers can still rain toxic lead on people below.
- avgcorrection 4y ago
  And yet the US didn’t seem to crash and burn? HN is preoccupied with intelligence to the point of hysteria.
  - skinnymuch 4y ago
    I enjoyed seeing your other comment[s] in this mess of a thread. Good luck!
vnorilo 4y ago
that a present-day Von Neumann is probably somewhere working on ad/fintech is in many ways even more depressing.
- jleyank 4y ago
  Yup. Todays best and brightest for the most part are working hard to sell ads and track users of smartphones.
- hunglee2 4y ago
  certainly, market system misallocates a ton of resources. We need to recalibrate high value + high status

Fronzie 4y ago

Leaded gasoline has been a former experiment in population-wide reduction of intelligence and increase of aggressiveness. Supposedly that affected that 80's, but I am not aware of systematic studies on that.

jacquesm 4y ago
Lots of links starting from here: https://theconversation.com/a-century-of-tragedy-how-the-car-and-gas-industry-knew-about-the-health-risks-of-leaded-fuel-but-sold-it-for-100-years-anyway-173395 https://theconversation.com/a-century-of-tragedy-how-the-car...
- asah 4y ago
  thx! TIL leaded gasoline was phased out in the 1970s primarily because it clogged catalytic converters needed to end smog, not because of health reasons! (smog used to be terrible - I lived through the latter half of that period, am I can't even relate to how awful it used to be... friends and I remember walking in midtown Manhattan, blowing our noses and it being black... I can't even imagine pre-1980 let alone pre-1970... https://timeline.com/la-smog-pollution-4ca4bc0cc95d https://timeline.com/la-smog-pollution-4ca4bc0cc95d )
  - DoingIsLearning 4y ago
    > leaded gasoline was phased out in the 1970s ... In automobiles. Lead is very much in use for aircraft fuel, just google AVGAS.
    - andrepd 4y ago
      It's absolutely bonkers to me that recreational fliers can still rain toxic lead on people below.
avgcorrection 4y ago
And yet the US didn’t seem to crash and burn? HN is preoccupied with intelligence to the point of hysteria.
- skinnymuch 4y ago
  I enjoyed seeing your other comment[s] in this mess of a thread. Good luck!

vnorilo 4y ago

that a present-day Von Neumann is probably somewhere working on ad/fintech is in many ways even more depressing.

jleyank 4y ago
Yup. Todays best and brightest for the most part are working hard to sell ads and track users of smartphones.
hunglee2 4y ago
certainly, market system misallocates a ton of resources. We need to recalibrate high value + high status