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The Nobel prize is aimed at the general public. It has a kind of late 19th century progressive humanistic ethos. It's science outreach. This way, at least once
by bonoboTP 2y ago
The Nobel prize is aimed at the general public. It has a kind of late 19th century progressive humanistic ethos. It's science outreach. This way, at least once a year, the everyday layperson hears about scientific discoveries.
The Nobel isn't a vehicle to recognize hundreds of thousands of deeply technical scientific researchers. How could it be? They have to pick a symbolic figurehead to represent a breakthrough.
They could also simply give it to "DeepMind" similar to how they give the peace prize to orgs sometimes, or how the Time Person of the Year is sometimes something abstract as well (like the cutesy "You" of 2006). But it would be silly. Just deal with it, we can't "recognize" hundreds of thousands, and we want to see a personal face, not a logo of a company getting the award. That's how we are, better learn to deal with it.
- dsign 2y ago> The Nobel prize is aimed at the general public... Which is okay. The Nobel prize is okay. > This way, at least once a year, the everyday layperson hears about scientific discoveries. Spot on. The problem we have is that the everyday layperson hears very little about scientific discoveries. The scientists themselves, one in a million of them, can get a Nobel prize. The rest, if they are lucky, get a somewhat okay salary. Sometimes better than that of a software engineer. Almost always worse working hours. But I suppose it's all for the best. Imagine a world where a good scientist, one that knows everything about biology and protein folding, gets to avoid cancer and even aging, while the everyday layperson can only go to the doctor...
- madmask 2y agoThat would be a good incentive to become a good scientist
- mrguyorama 2y agoAt least one American Nobel laureate has had to sell his nobel prize medal to pay for medical costs in their old age. Just insane.
- adw 2y ago> Sometimes better than that of a software engineer There is a reason so many of us work as software engineers now; I earn about 5x more than I would as a university lecturer/assistant professor.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]