Comment by discreteevent
5 hours ago
> But the reduction began when you yourself started putting more importance on your enjoyment of the process over the value being provided to your customers.
Why would you make this comment? Is it envy? They were able to do things only some people can do. They enjoyed what they did and it provided value. Now the fun has been taken out of it and you seem to be saying that they deserve to have no fun? What should they have done? Prove theorems while whipping themselves in case they might have fun? Maybe it's a puritan thing? Customer value is the only value.
No. The "only value" is the one that people decide to give you, based on their choice. This can be coordinated via taxation and redistribution, but it's still paid from someone to you. Someone has to decide that you doing this thing is something that they like so much that they pay you a token, which you can use to redeem useful work from other citizens, such as repairing you car, or remodeling your bathroom.
Many many people enjoy various things in life, such as eating nice meals (quite spiritual to do it in good mood in friends' circle), go camping, or play music. But they don't get paid to do this.
It's very simple to understand. It doesn't depend on deserve. It depends on a concrete person or group of persons having to specifically decide that you get things in return to your time (such as your washing machine repaired, or getting petrol at the gas station) for your efforts at something that they appreciate. It's not God who gives you these things. It's not the universe and it's not Mother Nature. It's concrete people. You have to think about how what you do is actually appreciated by concrete people. You have to do something that people appreciate, whether you agree with their assessment of appreciation or not, it will be that way. You can't simply expect people to give you gas at the gas station simply because you yourself appreciate your own way of spending your time.
Not everything in life is a transactional zero-sum game. We as society can afford people to work on beauty, without anything else in return. I'd even argue that this should be one of mankind's ultimate goals.
Because all of my life I’ve been surrounded by professors in math, literature, arts who pride themselves on a certain intellectual purity that makes them a cut above, while living on the wages my taxes pay. Suddenly the golem of basic market dynamics comes for them and these extremely smart people are struck by the unfairness and bruteness of it all. Whole careers having fun publishing useless nothings, funded by people sowing soccer balls and scrubbing toilets. I have nothing against having fun while doing your job, I have it often. But I have a job to serve society, not myself.
The fun hasn't been taken out of it. The economic value has. And good riddance. This clearing of the air has been needed for a long time. Now join everyone else who has to actually choose to either do something for fun, or for income, but not both.
The issue seems to be with the expectation that personal enrichment and subjective aesthetic appreciation should be socially instead privately funded
The AI will not stop them, or anyone else, from doing what they enjoy. It will stop them from getting paid for it. And nobody has the right to get paid for having fun. To get paid you need to deliver customer value.
"Or threaten to hurt them, or their family, or their friends. Then just take the money. What about that option? Didn't think of that, did ya son."
"Don, I..."
"Listen. I think this racket just ain't for you. But you're a good kid - too good, maybe - and I promised your father I'd find you something. I'll ask Giovanni. Maybe he can find something for you in bookkeeping."
[dead]
Don't complain that you lose funding if you sacrifice utility for a cirlejerk around craftsmanship.
I'm sure there's a programming equivalent. I believe theyre saying don't lose sight of the trees.
Many of my friends are mathematicians, they are saying pretty much the same thing the article is saying. Unfortunately, even the "I have wondered if it is the express goal of these companies to make me kill myself" line I haven't heard for the first time today.
I assure you they're not in it for the money, I make more than they do and hardcore math research is definitely harder than whatever the fuck it is that I do.
I don't think that trying to be a little bit more understanding towards people who are obviously struggling would cost us that much.
If they want to jump off a bridge or seppuku because discoveries with the potential of improving lives in some way are accelerating... well let me say no more.