11–20 of 97 posts
"Interesting possibilities arise when you combine old technology with new knowledge and new materials, or when you apply old concepts and traditional knowledge to modern technology."
Quotes from https://www.lowtechmagazine.com
>Moderna, a product of the American venture capital system Moderna got a government grant to do the mRNA work didn't they? Seems a product of public investment. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/years-of-research-laid-g... https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/11/24/fac... https://investors.modernatx.com/news-releases/news-release-d...
This is Andreessen trolling to get traffic on their new publication website... Obviously technology is not saving the world. Sure we made a vaccine for a disease that was bad. But technology is mostly responsible for propagating it in the first place. And climate change, you know. EDIT: also on HN front page, fully autonomous killer drones are being mass-produced.
Exactly, humanity will not be able to "technology" itself out of the climate crisis. There's no better carbon removal technology than our most efficient trees.
There are plenty of ways in which we can technology our way out, even if we accept your premises (which, to be clear, I don’t but I’m willing to play ball).
Indeed, our only option – save for some type of genocidal movement – is to technology ourselves out of the climate crisis.
1. Engineer trees that store more carbon in denser and long lasting root systems
2. Create drone systems to plant and maintain tons more trees
3. Improve energy capture technology to reduce our net new greenhouse gases
4. Create more efficient motors for the same reason as above
5. Create new recycling technologies so we can reuse more of the stuff we already have without mining more
6. Speaking of raw material acquisition, we can mine asteroids instead of our own planet
7. Transition more activities online to reduce the need for physical travel for more things
8. Hell, move more business to the internet to reduce the environmental footprint of office space
Literally this list can go on and on. Technology is the only thing that fundamentally improves the trajectory of human society.
Now the population is 100 times larger than it was a few centuries ago, and more and more people are living in a post-scarcity society.
And yes, thanks to all the pioneers, entrepeneurs and geniuses that took an idea or insight into a mass market product. They are who truly deserve the credit.
This is Andreessen trolling to get traffic on their new publication website... Obviously technology is not saving the world. Sure we made a vaccine for a disease that was bad. But technology is mostly responsible for propagating it in the first place. And climate change, you know. EDIT: also on HN front page, fully autonomous killer drones are being mass-produced.
Exactly, humanity will not be able to "technology" itself out of the climate crisis. There's no better carbon removal technology than our most efficient trees.
This doesn't seem consistent with what is happening in A16Z's own backyard. Either Marc knows something we don't or this is unwarranted hyperbole.
This is Andreessen trolling to get traffic on their new publication website... Obviously technology is not saving the world. Sure we made a vaccine for a disease that was bad. But technology is mostly responsible for propagating it in the first place. And climate change, you know. EDIT: also on HN front page, fully autonomous killer drones are being mass-produced.
“I think we owe a great debt of gratitude to science,” Stewart said. “Science has, in many ways, helped ease the suffering of this pandemic, which was more than likely caused by science.” (1)
I disagree with regard to climate change though because that externality has so far been a net positive for humanity and we can solve the downside. Yes, technology enabled us to dig up and burn buried carbon at scale sufficient to alter the climate, but that's what lifted billions out of poverty and eliminated starvation in much of the world. We'll solve the negative externality with renewable energy, clean nuclear energy, carbon capture, improved manufacturing efficiency and materials, etc.
1) https://news.yahoo.com/jon-stewart-endorses-lab-leak-1305162...
I have read a lot of his posts since 2008 and before. They are intelligent and insightful, but in hindsight lot of them were not best advice for founders/readers but best for the VC.