ewok on Nostr: Looks like science is proceeding exactly as it should— I’m assuming the video ...
Looks like science is proceeding exactly as it should— I’m assuming the video author was able to publish something in a top tier journal that goes against the current funding cycle grain, which it looks like may be going down an unproductive path.
I’ve seen a recent flare up of the Palin-esque anti-science “kid you not, we’re wasting millions on fruit fly research” everywhere online when in fact that is how scientific discovery works. When you are at the edge of the known peering into the darkness you will go down paths that are dead ends, that’s fundamentally part of the deal. And sometimes those paths turn out to be useful 50 years later when we have a more complete understanding of that area. One of the most famous recent examples is the discovery of CRISPR which is revolutionizing gene therapies— it didn’t start with a focused effort to cure genetic disease, but basic studies about differences in transcription/genome structure in archea at different salinities.
And to be perfectly clear on her claims— there is no chance these people would be out of a job in science if these projects shut down. As a scientist myself I have pivoted almost every 3-4 years to new labs studying very different topics.
I’ve seen a recent flare up of the Palin-esque anti-science “kid you not, we’re wasting millions on fruit fly research” everywhere online when in fact that is how scientific discovery works. When you are at the edge of the known peering into the darkness you will go down paths that are dead ends, that’s fundamentally part of the deal. And sometimes those paths turn out to be useful 50 years later when we have a more complete understanding of that area. One of the most famous recent examples is the discovery of CRISPR which is revolutionizing gene therapies— it didn’t start with a focused effort to cure genetic disease, but basic studies about differences in transcription/genome structure in archea at different salinities.
And to be perfectly clear on her claims— there is no chance these people would be out of a job in science if these projects shut down. As a scientist myself I have pivoted almost every 3-4 years to new labs studying very different topics.