If you could advance a scientific field by 10 years...?

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

If you could, in one night, advance a scientific field by 10 years globally, what would it be?

That is the question I would like to postulate. I would also like a reason for your answer and perhaps a little debate as to why one field over another. It can be any scientific area and as specific or as broad as you wish, just not "All of science" or something ridiculous.

To throw out my two cents on this early: Robotics would be my choice. With more advance robotics we would be that much closer to reaching a civilization were each and every person was self actualized and these robots could be turned to any number of applications to advance other fields quickly.

[SylverStar]

I wish that there was better technology to study the brain. So I guess advancements in computational neuroscience and technology is what I would like to see move quicker.

I've always liked neuroscience because it feels like there is still a lot to discover about the brain and I think it's exciting. So I'm a bit biased in my choice.

I think neuroscience has and can also advanced technology any many ways itself. Including robotics. We have robotic arms and kitty ears that read our emotions. Maybe soon we can have people walking again who are paralyzed and improving the quality of life for people. The more we understand about the brain and how it works will also give us the ability to make better AI too.

I also think it will be beneficial to society and medicine. Understanding what makes us react a certain way can give us insight and better ability to adapt our environments to work the best and most effeciently for us.

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

SylverStar

I wish that there was better technology to study the brain. So I guess advancements in computational neuroscience and technology is what I would like to see move quicker.

I've always liked neuroscience because it feels like there is still a lot to discover about the brain and I think it's exciting. So I'm a bit biased in my choice.

I think neuroscience has and can also advanced technology any many ways itself. Including robotics. We have robotic arms and kitty ears that read our emotions. Maybe soon we can have people walking again who are paralyzed and improving the quality of life for people. The more we understand about the brain and how it works will also give us the ability to make better AI too.

I also think it will be beneficial to society and medicine. Understanding what makes us react a certain way can give us insight and better ability to adapt our environments to work the best and most effeciently for us.

Not only did you understand my intent, but you followed it through expertly, thank you. As for neuroscience it was actually not something I considered when this question first popped into my head and I can see the potential ramifications of understanding the human brain better. Not only could we do the things you mentioned with robotics but we could also potentially create an artificial brain, which in itself would lead to unparalleled computational power for computers if we choose to use it in that manner, which in turn would advance every field exponentially.

Still I find the idea of nano-machines designed to seek and destroy cancer cells in patients way to cool to change my answer but thank you.

[Phenylketonuriak]

Sequencing technologies. If there is any advance that will have a tremendous impact in the short span of the next 10 years that's sequencing. We have the resources, the infrastructure, and knowledge to analyze the data - at this point the limiting factor is the price of sequencing.

We are at ~5k USD for a whole human genome, as soon as the 1K threshold is reached, a lot of people will chose to have their genomes sequenced. A couple more years, newborns' sequences will be recorded (not before a lot of social resistance).

Furthermore, full genome sequences of organisms from all around the world will become more and more common! Thinking about so much data makes me excited. We'll be closer to making a Pokedex using DNA barcoding.

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

Phenylketonuriak

Sequencing technologies. If there is any advance that will have a tremendous impact in the short span of the next 10 years that's sequencing. We have the resources, the infrastructure, and knowledge to analyze the data - at this point the limiting factor is the price of sequencing.

We are at ~5k USD for a whole human genome, as soon as the 1K threshold is reached, a lot of people will chose to have their genomes sequenced. A couple more years, newborns' sequences will be recorded (not before a lot of social resistance).

Furthermore, full genome sequences of organisms from all around the world will become more and more common! Thinking about so much data makes me excited. We'll be closer to making a Pokedex using DNA barcoding.

Heh instead of signatures or finger prints it would be DNA.

[Because you]

Medicine and a lot of people would not die

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

Because you

Medicine and a lot of people would not die

Any specific medical field or disease? Medicine is a pretty broad subject.

[Because you]

purest_heart

Because you

Medicine and a lot of people would not die

Any specific medical field or disease? Medicine is a pretty broad subject.

Just call medicine didn't say that you had to be specific

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

Because you

purest_heart

Because you

Medicine and a lot of people would not die

Any specific medical field or disease? Medicine is a pretty broad subject.

Just call medicine didn't say that you had to be specific

No I did not and your answer is perfectly valid. Was just kind of curious to see if it was for the common "Well I don't like people dieing." reason or something more personal. I would love to see medicine, as a scientific field just jump 10 years. The idea that we could cure things like cancer and other currently terminal illnesses is heart warming. Though in all honesty I think a little more research should be put into STDs. Sure most of them won't kill you like HIV or Hep(short hand) might but I'm surprised how little attention those diseases get right now. I mean millions of people suffer in poverty in Africa AND they have to deal with these diseases that have no real affordable cure even in the USA. Instead our answer is "Have a condom"... disappointing.

[Because you]

purest_heart

Because you

purest_heart

Because you

Medicine and a lot of people would not die

Any specific medical field or disease? Medicine is a pretty broad subject.

Just call medicine didn't say that you had to be specific

No I did not and your answer is perfectly valid. Was just kind of curious to see if it was for the common "Well I don't like people dieing." reason or something more personal. I would love to see medicine, as a scientific field just jump 10 years. The idea that we could cure things like cancer and other currently terminal illnesses is heart warming. Though in all honesty I think a little more research should be put into STDs. Sure most of them won't kill you like HIV or Hep(short hand) might but I'm surprised how little attention those diseases get right now. I mean millions of people suffer in poverty in Africa AND they have to deal with these diseases that have no real affordable cure even in the USA. Instead our answer is "Have a condom"... disappointing.

Hello having a year…

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

Because you

Hello having a year…

I do not understand your turn of phrase.

[Because you]

purest_heart

Because you

Hello having a year…

I do not understand your turn of phrase.

Sorry my watercress is quite bad

[Slutty_Eddie]

purest_heart

If you could, in one night, advance a scientific field by 10 years globally, what would it be?

Nuclear Fusion.(Sun style, not bomb style)

We passed a milestone in nuclear fusion this year, and actual sustained fusion reaction that produced more energy than was put in was produced by NIF. If we can scale this up, nuclear plants like Fukushima would be eliminated for a safer kind of energy.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24429621

[Gabriel Lord of Flame]

Slutty_Eddie

purest_heart

If you could, in one night, advance a scientific field by 10 years globally, what would it be?

Nuclear Fusion.(Sun style, not bomb style)

We passed a milestone in nuclear fusion this year, and actual sustained fusion reaction that produced more energy than was put in was produced by NIF. If we can scale this up, nuclear plants like Fukushima would be eliminated for a safer kind of energy.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24429621

This article makes me so happy.

[wolfAnnur]

Economics. There's so many people living in absolute squalor, and so many who have everything they want. It seems that there would be a solution to this kind of thing if we tried hard enough. Of course, I don't know enough econ to know for sure, or indeed to know what I'm talking about at all.

But my point is, there's so many people suffering from problems we've already solved. We just need to figure out how to get them the solution.