Diminishing returns: Grandparents solved 80% of life's problems
binarybits · x · 2026-08-20
The author responds to a discussion on progress, arguing that in many areas of life, grandparents and great-grandparents achieved 80% of the solution (e.g., basic infrastructure), leaving only 20% for improvement. Using air travel as an example, they note that while flight speed increased, congestion, security, and logistics limit total time reduction.
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