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Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

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Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#231

Post by mcv »

BerislavLopac wrote: post #6

I would say, in no particular order: * the fact that many of the dinosaurs had feathers * myriad of exoplanets * water on Mars (and many other new data on the planet) * Higg's boson (confirmed to 99.999% certainty) * Neanderthal genes present in modern humans * new ancient Mayan cities That's it from me for starters, hopefully others will join in.

> * myriad of exoplanets

More importantly: the fact that other solar systems look nothing like our own. They tend to have large (often super-Jovian) planets close to their sun, and often multiple planets closer to their sun than Mercury. There are very, very few solar systems we know of that resemble our own.

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#232

Post by lamby »

natrius wrote: post #108

Blockchains. Distributed consensus is incredibly powerful. It will allow us to rebuild our society around individuals instead of corporations and governments that formed because economic transaction costs were so high that economies of scale (and sometimes the use of force) were required to coordinate our society. All economic activity will be blockchain-mediated. It will make us wealthier and freer.

> Blockchains

Just out of curiosity and not to diminish their current practical implications, are blockchains really a new invention?

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#233

Post by unprepare »

dragonwriter wrote: post #166
mark-r wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The magnitude of the changes that are possible now are so far beyond what was available with selective breeding, it's nonsensical to consider them in the same league. I wish people would stop trotting out that argument.

> The magnitude of the changes that are possible now are so far beyond what was available with selective breeding, it's nonsensical to consider them in the same league. The pace , more than magnitude , of changes achievable is greater now (either with GMOs or mutation breeding) than with older forms of selective breeding (mutation breeding is, after all, a form of selective breeding.)

What about things like adding bioluminescence to organisms that never had such a gene, nor would have naturally come across it?

Seems a step or two removed from selective breeding to me, though I'm not arguing for or against GMOs, just saying that it seems to me there is a definite distinction between the processes and what they are capable of doing.

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#234

Post by beat »

dimino wrote: post #223
beat wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think GMOs are bad. I do think they don't solve actual problems the world faces, and introduce new problems (including but not limited to Monsanto's intellectual property abuses). What I want to see is more focus on eating local, more decentralization of the food supply, and for people to care more about what they eat - as an aesthetic and moral experience. It's about health, and quality of life, and freedom,…

"Actual problems" is a weasel phrase, I don't really know what to do with it. How are you defining "actual problems"? And can we please separate Monsanto from GMOs? They're two entirely separate things. It reminds me a bit of creationists who claim they don't accept evolution, when in reality what they don't accept is abiogenesis. Natural selection, genetic drift, gene flow, are not really on their minds. It may be e…

Actual problems... hunger and malnutrition. Obesity and diabetes. Food deserts. Increasing concentration of the food supply in the hands of powerful megacorporations. Loss of biodiversity. Farmers trapped in cycles of crippling debt. Dislocated workers. Desertification. Governments largely under control of financial interests.

That's a start.

(ps: Bananas are not GMO. Seedless bananas and other fruits are the result of selective breeding, not laboratory alteration. Also, look up the history of the once-dominant Gros Michael banana for what happens when you rely on uniform planting of genetic clones.)

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#235

Post by imglorp »

gbog wrote: post #196
imglorp wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is first on my list. Understanding our place in the universe will tell us where we came from and where we're going. There's also clearly some fundamental physics left to master which might have unforseen practical applications.

I thought it was already clear that we come from some cells, a storm and some luck, and that we're going nowhere. We're on our own, and I bet no science or discoveries will change this.

That's fine (although panspermia might have played a role bringing our cells from elsewhere).

But where did the universe come from? What happened before it? How far does it extend beyond our view? Are there other universes? Where are the other species? Are we stuck on this rock or is there really a way to go see it all? Etc etc.

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#236

Post by JoeAltmaier »

refurb wrote: post #142
JoeAltmaier wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The FDA will have little to do with a pill sold on the internet. Folks will do anything to look good. This is going to happen, ready or not.

Modifying your genes via a pill sold on the internet? They might give it a try, but they'll get shut down real quick without FDA approval.

Hm. Silk Road took a while. And if they work, the guys that are supposed to shut it down will be taking the pills.

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#237

Post by dimino »

beat wrote: post #234
dimino wrote: post #223

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Actual problems" is a weasel phrase, I don't really know what to do with it. How are you defining "actual problems"? And can we please separate Monsanto from GMOs? They're two entirely separate things. It reminds me a bit of creationists who claim they don't accept evolution, when in reality what they don't accept is abiogenesis. Natural selection, genetic drift, gene flow, are not really on their minds. It may be e…

Actual problems... hunger and malnutrition. Obesity and diabetes. Food deserts. Increasing concentration of the food supply in the hands of powerful megacorporations. Loss of biodiversity. Farmers trapped in cycles of crippling debt. Dislocated workers. Desertification. Governments largely under control of financial interests. That's a start. (ps: Bananas are not GMO. Seedless bananas and other fruits are the result…

Selective breeding is GMO, and why does GMO have to solve any of those problems?

That's like saying we shouldn't have professional sports because they don't solve obesity.

What I'm generally getting at is the hate for GMO is unfounded. It's like hating a screwgun or hammer when your contractor messes up building your kitchen.

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#238

Post by bgilroy26 »

cconcepts wrote: post #76
bgilroy26 wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't. It is easier to control variables in a few laboratories than to control them in the entire world

Good point, on the surface the big world problems seem more straight forward because they're technically less complex. But they are much more than technical problems. Social, geopolitical etc...

You're right, though. Sourcing clean water & good food for everyone would be more important achievements. Investing in people brings cascading rewards as the people helped are better able to do themselves good and do good for others.

Re: Ask HN: What are the greatest discoveries in the last few years?

#240

Post by cconcepts »

bgilroy26 wrote: post #238
cconcepts wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good point, on the surface the big world problems seem more straight forward because they're technically less complex. But they are much more than technical problems. Social, geopolitical etc...

You're right, though. Sourcing clean water & good food for everyone would be more important achievements. Investing in people brings cascading rewards as the people helped are better able to do themselves good and do good for others.

I think the difficulty of such problems is what frustrates me about them. If asked me to build a whole new computer operating system there are 100s of books I could turn to to get me started. When it comes to these big social issues, I don't even know where to begin.
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