Neuroscience — Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?

You may be interested in reading such posts as:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...be-we-can-know-more.3131/page-123#post-340286

Or how prof. Zhang is creating biomaterials from human hair:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...be-we-can-know-more.3131/page-123#post-340290

Or see what prof. Hudspeth has been doing for the past 50 years:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...be-we-can-know-more.3131/page-123#post-340293

Or how Sven Vanneste, Jae-Jin Song and Dirk De Ridder use artificial intelligence to computationally set diagnosis and prove the existence of Thalamocortical Dysrhythmia (TCD):
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...r-tinnitus-thalamocortical-dysrhythmia.29250/

There is really too much to cover in this one post.

 

Please, don't be silly. The best is yet to come! Always will be. However, it is up to each of us as individuals and as people to shape the future we want to live in. Remember, the best way to predict the future is to invent it.

But I would not say that we have stagnated, or that the rate of new discoveries has decayed. It may seem so to us at times when we have a pressing need for a breakthrough, when we have a medical condition, or a structural engineering problem, or any other type of problem that we want science to solve for us.

We don't get the results as fast as we would like, we don't go from research to practical application as fast as we would like to. Although, that is also something that is changing as I type this. But the best kind of science is basic research, and it is well worth investing in.

We often do not realize the greatness of the science that we are currently shaping. It is usually the generations that come after us that see the fruit of our efforts.

"All the flowers of tomorrow are hidden in the seeds that are sown today."

It is obviously so, as you have noticed.

Merde! What have you been waiting for? Have you all been asleep? Do I have to do everything myself?

That's what monsieur Fourier might have said in response.

The question is, what would monsieur RingerBell have said if someone would have told him in year 2018 that in year 2218 his skepticism was unfounded?

But trust me, you will not need to wait another 200 years to see the fruits of the foundational research taking place in the world today.

Just as a quick example, CRISPR was first described in 1987, and in 2017, researchers successfully used CRISPR as a treatment in a mouse model of human genetic deafness. A span of 30 years. Compare that to 200 years. Going from research to application almost 7 times as fast. The time it takes to go from research to practical application will be different of course for different type of problems, from astronomy to zoology.

Let's not forget the economical incentive for discovering new things and making a practical, profitable application out of it. Just have a look at the numerous patent claims for CRISPR. People are driven not only by the sheer thirst for knowledge but also for money. In that respect, the time we live in and the time monsieur Fourier lived in are different.

There is nothing short of a revolution taking place today, with many fields converging and scientists working across multiple disciplines and exploring new possibilities. It is all greatly driven by information technology. It is not emphasized enough, because it is taken for granted. We have in fact entered a new age of computing, beyond the traditional IT.

Synthetic life!

Craig Venter unveils "synthetic life"

What will the future bring? Qui vivra verra! He who lives, shall see.

 

I agree, and I don't think there are enough experts in these areas. There are not enough experts in regular IT services, yet alone in things like bioinformatics.

Touché!