I found this essay inspiring and important. The pace of progress in science and technology has slowed, for reasons we partly understand. We also know some factors that appear to accelerate them. Learning more, and applying it, is urgent.https://twitter.com/patrickc/status/1156261933202325504 …
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I am an interested layperson, not an academic, but I’ve read many hundreds of papers in the history & sociology of science, technology, & development economics. It’s fascinating stuff with real insights. It doesn’t seem to have the answers
@patrickc &@tylercowen seek.Show this thread -
As
@iwelsh points out in a reply
, these fields frequently work to support political agendas, rather than to figure things out. “History of technology” is often just “Technology: horrifying threat or global menace?”https://twitter.com/iwelsh/status/1156979029511159811 …Show this thread -
Realizing, in the mid-20th century, that the Myth of Progress was an eternalistic quasi-religion, and asking pointed questions about “cui bono” and “why should we believe this,” was hugely valuable and necessary. It’s now a lazy trope, suitable for mindless mechanical MPUs.
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When people with billions of dollars say “we want more research on problem X,” researchers with something to say about X might think “hooray, new funding source!” rather than “oh hell, they’re probably going to expose the vapidity of our discipline, better shout at them”
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I’m rather skeptical of a new field of Progress Studies, because every “X Studies” field turns into another rote paper generator. Rebooting research on how to do science and technology better, ignoring discipline boundaries—that seems urgent & with huge leverage for benefit.
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I don’t know the primary literature well, although I’ve read some of it. Generally I like it, but my impression is that later developments pretty much overtook the whole thing. IOW I don’t know of something they did that wasn’t done more thoroughly later. Did I miss something?
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Had a similar reaction when I saw how shallow the criticism was:https://twitter.com/analyticascent/status/1157740169295872000 …
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