The Influence of Bell Labs

Post by phtrivier » Sat, Nov 30, 2024, 9:27 AM UTC

zusammen wrote: post #25

phtrivier wrote: post #9

Okay, I'm really in a sad mood, so: tell me there will be places like that, again, somewhere, ever ? We need this. Like, really, we need someone to have created the xerox part of the 21st century, somewhere about 20 years ago. I honestly though Google would be that - but apparently it's easier to fund R&D on "selling copying machines" than "selling ads". Maybe "selling ads" earn _too much_ money ? I don't know. I kno…

The secret hero of that time was the US government. I’m not talking about the MIC, which is still quite robust and more bad than good. I am speaking more broadly. If you had a practical PhD and were willing to show up at a place at 9:00, you could get a solid upper middle class job with the Feds where you couldn’t get fired unless you broke the law. The government also has always kept academia afloat. It is a privile…

Post by chasd00 » Sat, Nov 30, 2024, 10:11 AM UTC

phtrivier wrote: post #17

aatd86 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't you get telepathy from training AI on functional MRI data? And then finding a way to pinpoint and activate brain regions remotely? I mean brain-machine interfaces have been improving for quite a while. Telepathy might even already exist.

Indeed. Come to think of it, telepathy would bring chaos to society, ruin everyone's life, and open considerable advertising space - it's way more likely to be invented soon than a vaccine for the common cold.

Post by phtrivier » Sat, Nov 30, 2024, 10:20 AM UTC

lotsofpulp wrote: post #67

aguaviva wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don’t hear about the Oppenheimers and von Neumanns of today’s world Sadder still is the underlying situaiton behind this: the fact that there's nothing of even remotely comparable significance happening in the public sphere for such minds to devote themselves to, as those man did. Even though the current civilization risk if anything significantly greater than in their time.

I feel like having access to instant high definition video communication and to the world’s repository of text, audio, and video information at a moment’s notice from a device in your pocket is of comparable, if not more, significance. These innovations in LEDs, battery technology, low power high performance microchips with features measured in number of atoms is extraordinary, and seemingly taken for granted. Then w…

Post by iamacyborg » Sat, Nov 30, 2024, 10:58 AM UTC

rat9988 wrote: post #80

linguae wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's an example of Zuck's curiosity. When I refer to curiosity-driven research, I mean curiosity driven by the researchers, where the researchers themselves drive the research agenda, not management. To be fair, though; Facebook, I mean, Meta is a publicly-traded company and if the shareholders get tired of not seeing any ROI from Meta's VR initiatives, then this could compel Zuck to stop. Even Zuck isn't free from b…

I mean at some point. You either have to find someone rich who has the same curiosity as you and wants to fund it, or fund it yourself.

Post by fuzztester » Sat, Nov 30, 2024, 11:43 AM UTC

linguae wrote: post #34

RcouF1uZ4gsC wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The truth is that kind of research can only happen with a very rich monopoly. Bell labs came about when AT&T was the monopoly telephone provider in the US. PARC happened when Xerox had a very lucrative monopoly on copy machines.

I have come to realize that over the years, though I still believe that wealthier companies like Apple, NVIDIA, Facebook, and the like could fund curiosity-driven research, even if it’s not at the scale of Bell Labs or Xerox PARC. On a smaller scale, there is The Institute for Advanced Study where curiosity-driven research is encouraged, and there is the MacArthur Fellowship where fellows are granted $150,000 annual…