From: bretcahill@aol.com   
      
   It's easy for a lazy thinker -- that's everyone in some respect -- to get   
   distracted from the possible by studying thermodynamics which focuses on the   
   impossible.  Obviously the "cardinality" of the set of impossible things is >>   
   than the set of the    
   possible so you save an infinite amount of time just by being aware of the   
   impossible.  You definitely need the basics to improve your odds.   
      
   Saying "technology is directional" that is, society and public policy can   
   direct research and development and get beneficial results like HVDC falls   
   directly out of the statement "there's low hanging fruit everywhere, we only   
   need to look for it."   
      
   IOW, the reason technology is so directional isn't because engineers and   
   scientists can do anything or are omniscient but for almost the exact opposite   
   reason.  It's because, as Einstein pointed out, there is so much unknown that   
   can be very easily    
   understood and put into practice if we only got the right insight.   
      
   For an instant example, maybe 2 kilobites of tips could reduce the economic   
   and public health effects of CV-19 by 90%.  That's trillions of dollars a   
   couple million lives.   
      
   To be sure, at present population growth rates, there will be only 15 watts of   
   solar power / human in 500 years.  This isn't enough energy to keep the brain   
   alive.   
      
   The Mars thingy probably won't happen anytime soon but there may be other   
   opportunities.  Breakthroughs are guaranteed.  We just need the right ones.   
      
      
   Bret Cahill   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)