Big Science: Fusion, Cancer, and AIs

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As 2022 comes to a close once again the utility of scientific research becomes evident, through incremental progress and the occasional breakthrough. One such big breakthrough in recent days was successful fusion ignition at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; more power was produced than what was put in. True, it was a very minor proof, and there was significant energy put into the lasers to begin with, but it should not be understated - fusion energy would provide abundant, cheap, and safe energy - if the hard limiting issues of temperature, pressure, and duration can be resolved. This success is much more significant than, say, the successful "artificial sun" from China's Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak in 2018, or the generator from the first stellarator at Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in 2015.

This year has also witnessed a succession of interesting discoveries and inventions in cancer research. The application of dostarlimab, used to treat endometrial cancer, resulted in all 12 people being treated at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) with rectal cancer tumors being cured. Although this is a small trial, it is something that has never happened in the history of cancer. Also, the University of Texas Dallas synthesized a novel compound called ERX-41 that has shown promise in eliminating a broad spectrum of hard-to-treat cancer cells, including triple-negative breast cancer. Just a few days ago, a Moderna mRNA melanoma vaccine with personalised treatment reduces recurrence or death by 44% compared to
immunotherapy drug alone - the cookers won't like that one.

To finish the trilogy, one cannot help but notice the explosion of interest in AI over the past few weeks in social media. In part, this has been due to the excitement and concerns around AI-generated art. For many consumers, it has been a toy for many artists they have become nervous, and my favourite gaming company, Chaosium, has released a statement banning AI-generated art in their books. I am not convinced by their reasoning, but I certainly understand the motivation. As an alternative, I am interested in comparison that various programming forums are largely enthusiastic with tools like OpenAI in producing fairly reasonable code, and an explanation, all faster than StackOverflow, for example. I wonder whether the "procedural music" being produced by 65dos (No Man's Sky, Wreckage Systems) counts? Either way, it makes for an interesting space to watch, and I will stick to the argument that inevitably anything that can be automated will be automated. This does mean a challenge to the value of labour and the ownership of capital, and it will mean a challenge to for human beings in their own inventiveness, creativity, etc.

Comments

[ariaflame]

I always wonder where they get 'cheap' from? Considering the considerable costs of obtaining the fuel, processing the fuel, getting the fuel to do the ignition thing, plant to convert the heat to anything useful, and the decommissioning of the slightly radioactive surroundings at the end of its life.

[ex_flameandsong751]

AI definitely is a challenge. For disabled people like me, AI can be useful as a method of artistic expression, but there are still some shady things being done with AI that we need to watch out for. i do think that non-AI art/writing/music will always be around - AI has some major limitations currently, but even as it improves, there is something satisfying about the artistic process that AI can't really replicate. [I will never use AI to write fiction, for example, since I enjoy torturing myself. :P]

I was in favor of UBI even before AI got big, but I think UBI is even more necessary now that the world seems headed towards more automation.

The innovations in cancer treatment are exciting. I lost a friend this past year to cancer, and I'm at that age where I have to start worrying about it myself.