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Eric Weinstein
@EricRWeinstein
, 4 tweets, 1 min read Read on Twitter
One of my less popular theories is that the Nobel Prize serves to rewrite the history of science to make it palatable to institutions.

Einstein gets it for the wrong thing.
Dirac & Schodinger split one.
Glashow/Weinberg/Salaam share.
Mdme Wu passed over
Vera Rubin -> nothing
Dyson Gets nothing.
Stuckelberg Gets nothing.
Sudarshan gets nothing
Feynman/Schwinger/Tomonaga diluted
No rules broken for Witten

Etc

So the Nobel prize just completely rewrites physics history for outsiders. Similarly in Peace, Physiology and Medicine, and economics (cough).
In reality:
Dirac was Einstein’s true peer.
Gel-man is a genius but one who attracts credit from others.
Yang deserves more than one.
Mdme Wu and Dyson are inexplicable omissions.
Sudarshan should have more than one and not zero.
Etc..

The prize dilutes or buries our best.
In this theory we beat up our absolute top people to make it easier for the next group to live with the difference in impact & contribution. We have many constraints we can point to for how it is awarded. But it ends up telling a less interesting less terrifying story for us all.
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Eric Weinstein
@EricRWeinstein
I have been relatively quiet for a reason. Amidst a large number of discussions misframing the IDW recently, I thought I was losing my mind. Even people close to me have become completely confused. Why??

This article gets it right to first approximation:

thefederalist.com/2019/04/23/sto…
Right now cancerous ideas are ubiquitous as institutional models are collapsing simultaneously from Journalism to Universities to Political parties. These bizarre ideas are flowing like water (Open and Zero immigration are both cancerous as an example).

So, we are fighting that.
I am the first to admit that I cannot always keep my footing out here. If you can, your a better human than I am. Really. I know I’m not up to the task as I am being pulled apart by all those I respect who need Left/Right institutional or media anchors which seem to be going mad.
Read 8 tweets
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Eric Weinstein
@EricRWeinstein
Communal sense making crisis:

“Rules out..”
“No Evidence of..”
“Rules out for now..”
“Multiple Church Fires..”

“Rules out” does not mean “No evidence of” and there’s simply no such thing as “Rules out for now”. Similarly reporting on multiple fires isn’t helping. #GetItRight
I don’t know how to say this politely. This is Norte Dame. Journalists need to tell us what happened & not jump the gun. Take your time and pass us information, but only the information.

We have time. Just don’t incite our passions or lie to us to cover anything up. Just facts.
*Notre.
Read 3 tweets
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Eric Weinstein
@EricRWeinstein
The Twin Nuclei Problem: once a species unlocks the twin nuclei of Cell & Atom, it starts an era where it has no long term future, confined to the local habitable rocks of our solar system (apologies @elonmusk).

Wisdom cannot be the answer. The true source code is the only hope.
The Twin Nuclei Era began in the space of four months in 1952-3 with the first test of the Teller-Ulam fusion device in early November of 1952 followed by the discovery of 3D structure of DNA in late February of 1953.

It is amazing to me that no government is working on escape.
Ultimately our home is in the stars or not at all. There is simply now too much power to wield for those with no real dreams beyond wielding power.
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