A thread through the archive
Essays tagged “scientific discovery”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Scott proposes a 'low-hanging fruit' model to explain trends in scientific discovery, using a foraging analogy to illustrate why early scientists make more discoveries and at a younger age.
Scott Alexander corrects and expands on the story of Omegaven, a life-saving infant nutritional fluid, using it to illustrate systemic issues with medical regulation and drug approval.
Scott Alexander suggests humans have 'negative creativity' due to cognitive 'ruts', and explores ways to escape these ruts, arguing that AI might have an advantage in creative thinking.