You're right that many things about this experiment remain to be seen. You make some very good, optimistic arguments and I hope we get to that future. I fear we

You're right that many things about this experiment remain to be seen. You make some very good, optimistic arguments and I hope we get to that future. I fear we won't I absolutely agree that education is not a zero sum game. I actually find it sad that most education has become about job training or making money. Whatever happened to curiosity and knowledge for its own sake? But let me not get into that debate. Degrees and credentialing might be zero-sum, however. < actual instruction is a pretty small part of what full professors are expected to do. Similarly, the majority of what students pay in tuition goes towards anything other than the salaries and funding of professors. Also, there is a big difference between top-10 schools which run based on a lot of grant money and smaller teaching institutions. Look, I think I'm on the losing side of the wider argument. I am all for free access to knowledge. I'm just pointing out that we are likely shooting ourselves in the foot in the long-term. < One might hope that making education available and practical to many more people at much lower costs might actually help advance the field, both within and without the ivory tower. This is the best sentence in your response (upvoted you btw). I really hope so.