Re:Where did viruses come from?
by gwern on Sunday August 14, 2011 @03:32PM
(#2884266)
You don't find that conclusion informative and interesting? I did, much like I find Godel's incompleteness theorems or the Halting theorem very informative and interesting.
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Gödel theorem / Halting problem: "We are sure that something is impossible." -> Interesting
Virus Origin: "We still don't know. We will keep researching." -> Not very interesting
Not every instance of "I dunno" is equal in impact or insight to Gödel's theorems. In fact, almost none of them are. This is because the interesting part of Gödel's work was not the "dunno" aspect, but the positive knowledge of what is and is not possible in mathematics.
The halting problem, likewise, exposes exposes a fundamental limitation in computing. It is not simply "I dunno," but "This cannot be known."
If the article proved the origin of viruses to be unknowable, that would be quite interesting and surprising. But asking a difficult question and then answering it with "I dunno" is a much simpler and less interesting accomplishment. I could do this with any number of things.
Re:Where did viruses come from?
by asdkl234890 on Sunday August 14, 2011 @05:26PM
(#2884494)
This is NO Godel's incompleteness theorem! This is shallow nothingness, do not compare it to some of the deepest math ever.