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Old 10-24-2007, 08:19 PM   #79
woot
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Archaea View Post
Where have I advocated for the war? Your shot is misfired.

We've spent now more on AIDS than cancer, so there's politics for you.
I agree with you about AIDS vs cancer. That's pure politics. As for the war, my point was that the amount of money it would take to create a robust government-funded research push would be miniscule compared to what we're already throwing away willy-nilly on worthless causes.

Another reason to throw more money into science is the lack of jobs available for science PhDs. We can lament losing the science battle and losing our best and brightest to other fields all we want, but the fact is that it's extremely hard to get into a good program, and it's extremely hard finding a job after graduation. It's still better here than just about anywhere else in the world, but this would be yet another great use of government funds that are currently being thrown on the bonfire.

Speaking of cancer, we're actually on the precipice of understanding the process of aging well enough to be able to begin drug development that could postpone it. This would single-handedly do more for the fight against cancer, heart disease, alzheimer's, and all the other age-related diseases than anything we've ever done. It's very exciting stuff.
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