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Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

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Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#181

Post by ianstallings »

king_jester wrote: post #149
ianstallings wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have no problem with free market capitalism, if it's fair. But some think that companies like Genetech exploit the rules around patents and intellectual property at the expense of people's lives and receive preferential status. There's a difference between making your money back to cover the cost of research and development while making a profit, and plain old greed. A 20 year lifetime on a patent with a 3-7 year w…

> I have no problem with free market capitalism, if it's fair. Free market capitalism isn't fair. All the dynamics and mechanics of capitalism have nothing to do with fairness.

I should have qualified that statement more. What I meant was I am against rigging the system and cronyism. "Free market" was the wrong term. I prefer a market that is overlooked by society, with the authority given to government. It's a balance that is still unfair in a lot of aspects of course, because with a winner there is a loser. But the fairness comes in the fact that anyone can be a winner. We're still working on that obviously.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#182

Post by jl6 »

eropple wrote: post #103
jerf wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And the only other choice is that nobody gets it ever. There's no third choice. There's no magic wand solution where everyone just magically gets it. Don't cut off your nose to spite your face.

There are many issues for which I agree with you, that the trickle-down is a legitimately good process. But this, no. The concentration of power even more than currently is enough that I would rather forego it than encourage it just for that group of controlling interests. I would rather no one have it than institute a system of even more perpetual control. We have already signed most of our existence over to the ric…

Most people in history have lived under various degrees of oppression, and most have found it preferable to not living at all.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#184

Post by vectorjohn »

eropple wrote: post #105
lukev wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree, but existence is so much more important than availability at this point in history. Accelerate existence by whatever means necessary; availability will follow.

> I agree, but existence is so much more important than availability at this point in history. You assume that those in power will want to make more like them and I think that is mostly unlikely. Nothing attracts the powerful like an insurmountable advantage. Being able to outwait your potential competition at that scale is powerful and I have a hard time seeing powerful people wanting to make their potential competi…

These arguments make no sense. Poor / lower class people become wealthy all the time, disruption happens. The wealthy / immortal class will grow, maybe slowly maybe quickly. But it will grow. That means the poor / short lived class will shrink by necessity (or the red herring overpopulation argument). Over time, more and more of the population will become well off and/or immortal, and the great thing is they won't die.

If you think we'll get to a point where nobody can disrupt the anti-aging industry ever, and nobody will be able to make it cheaper, well, you're pretty pessimistic. Because the one constant we seem to see is (immortal) corporations being disrupted by little startups. Corporations right now live forever and yet they don't stay in power forever. The same will go with this.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#185

Post by blahbl4hblah »

Jesus. Every now and then Google trots out some hair brained bullshit that everyone just eats up with a spoon. They throw some money at some crazy idea that makes everyone giggle and goes back to tracking your web searches.

THEY SELL ADVERTISING. This is a type of advertising where they convince people they are some benevolent company that's really looking out for you.

Jesus.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#186

Post by ianstallings »

loceng wrote: post #87
ianstallings wrote: post #20

I for one welcome my immortal transhumanist cyborg overlords. But seriously, the fact that the first thing they do is start a corporation to control the science is not exactly comforting to me. Genentech is known for selling Avastin, their drug that fights cancer for $55k after they received harsh criticism for the proposed cost of $100k+/year. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bevacizumab#Costs I fear a future where "all…

Indeed, what's the cost going to be for once someone finds a "cure" for cancer? Society should offer a bounty for such a thing, and then scientists / researchers are incentivized more towards the problem, and will be rewarded - as well as their research supporters - if successful.

Yes I agree, and the patrons of those ventures, perhaps all of society, could reap rewards in ways that go beyond a stock portfolio. It's funny that in the press release they mention "moonshot", because that's what we need. All of society puts in and all of society benefits. With measures and controls it could work, just like the moonshot did.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#187

Post by vectorjohn »

netcan wrote: post #55
moistgorilla wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Being immortal and having a high quality of life for as long as we are alive are not mutually exclusive. In fact, don't we have longer lives and better quality of life than our ancestors already? This would just be taking it one step further. Also, having a population that never dies has many more benefits than consequences. The amount of knowledge and experience that will not be wasted because of death is extremely…

Regarding quality of our ancestors: Yes, but there are downsides too. We probably have longer periods of lower quality of life. We improved both quality and length. But we improved length more. I hope for more youth, not just more life.

People are and always will be free to die whenever they want. If you live a longer youth and then face a longer low quality life, either you want that longer low quality life more than you let on, or you cut it short.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#188

Post by kafkaesque »

cromwellian wrote: post #169
kafkaesque wrote: post #154

Have to put on my tin foil hat for this. NSA-related, too, so you're warned. This makes me wonder just how much Google works with the US government. I'm not saying the result of whatever Calico wants or will do (because it's all pretty vague right now) is a negative. But Calico seems to come at a time when Obama is pushing for universal health care, which will be a huge industry. Last I heard, it was estimated at $1.…

Healthcare is based on science, and science requires data processing to see the correlations. We'd probably be able to spot a lot more common causes of diseases if people weren't so guarded with their medical history. This doesn't really have anything to do with government, it has to do with solving problems. The US already has HIPAA, so I don't get the point. This just seems like a weak attempt to say something nega…

Medical history is a double-edged sword in the US. Why do you think people are so reluctant to share it when they are being judged, charged more, charged less, etc. depending on it?

If this weren't the case, some Americans wouldn't have a problem with 'divulging' their medical history.

Health care is based on science, you're right, but there are factors that influence what is researched and where funds go. Plus, putting it in practice or implementing it according to the right policy; this is another issue.[1]

Also, I think you're undermining the magnitude of lobbying.

But Google is a huge company, with a lot of power and capital. So, like I said in response to someone else, I am very interested in the details of Calico.

[1] http://billmoyers.com/2013/05/18/blinding-us-from-science/

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#189

Post by _ns5x »

FD3SA wrote: post #9

Absolutely brilliant. Finally, Aubrey De Grey's unapologetically straightforward logic [1] regarding aging has gained traction with the crowd who has the means to tackle this grand challenge. I am sincerely proud of Page and Brin for their vision and commitment. This is one of those rare times that powerful people make bold choices that catalyze a shift in the world's thought paradigm. Aging will now be seen for what…

Actually the root of all chronic illness is being born. You can't age without that happening first.

Re: Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being

#190

Post by clicks »

bsullivan01 wrote: post #121
300bps wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

catalyze a shift in the world's thought paradigm Absolutely. The goal should be to enact a vector of a new paradigm, as proactive team players synergize an out-of-the-box strategy of functionality and infotainment, re-engineering the learning curve framework of your dotted-line relationship.

Personally I hope that Google is humble enough to morph cross-platform mindshare in addition to growing killer channels and facilitating bleeding-edge infrastructures. This approach will surely recontextualize best-of-breed vortals, implement world-class research and innovate value-added technologies by embracing impactful infomediaries. Imagine how much longer we'd live if we leveraged sticky e-services, brand user-…

Your snark is unnecessary and very misplaced.

This will result in a significant thought paradigm shift in all things health-related, and it's a great thing that a company with as many resources and as high of a profile as Google is looking into this. Google is a company that is making self-driving cars, providing incredibly fast internet to consumers, providing Internet to suffering areas with a new idea (the Loon), exploring definitively new ideas for hardware (Google Glass) -- and now they're looking into aging.

I'd say Google guys are sufficiently more respectable than the political chameleon who's lobbying DC today [1], and just recently directed considerable resources on ads advocating a host of anti-environmental causes [2].

[1]: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/mark-zuckerberg-dc-969...

[2]: http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2013/04/26/1925921/mark...

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