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Whats the point ?


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I know a.i wont replace doctors probably for another 30-60 years, but I think it'll just get harder and harder,more and more competitive to get into medschool and become a doctor. Not to mention,the decent chance that the world will probably start destroying itself with global warming and a population of 9 billion by 2030 which will only increase poverty and suffering as food and water decreases and a.i replaces jobs.Not to mention how america seems to be heading towards a civil war with such a growing divide between the people. Also not to forget the likelhood of another global recession with a economic slowdown where our economies are more interconnected now more than ever due to technology,so a global recession would be much worse than the 1930's. Lest I forget the tens of thousands of nuclear and hydrogen bombs in the world,which with half of them detonated together can destroy our atmosphere and life as we know it. Never before in history have so many catastrophic factors have come so close together.

My concern is with a seemingly unstable future,what if all this hardwork  and dedication doesn't pay off?What if we're replaced,or we become obsolete?    

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23 minutes ago, the application paradox said:

I know a.i wont replace doctors probably for another 30-60 years, but I think it'll just get harder and harder,more and more competitive to get into medschool and become a doctor. Not to mention,the decent chance that the world will probably start destroying itself with global warming and a population of 9 billion by 2030 which will only increase poverty and suffering as food and water decreases and a.i replaces jobs.Not to mention how america seems to be heading towards a civil war with such a growing divide between the people. Also not to forget the likelhood of another global recession with a economic slowdown where our economies are more interconnected now more than ever due to technology,so a global recession would be much worse than the 1930's. Lest I forget the tens of thousands of nuclear and hydrogen bombs in the world,which with half of them detonated together can destroy our atmosphere and life as we know it. Never before in history have so many catastrophic factors have come so close together.

My concern is with a seemingly unstable future,what if all this hardwork  and dedication doesn't pay off?What if we're replaced,or we become obsolete?    

You're catastrophizing. Mostly it sounds like you shouldn't apply to medicine if you can't handle uncertainty, risk, and hard work.

For everyone else out there, AI isn't going to replace any doctors. The tech field tends to over promise and under deliver when it comes to the field of medicine. EMRs are mostly terrible. Breast cancer detection algorithms in mammography have a negative impact on patient care. IBM Watson has been a complete failure.

If physicians in any field could be replaced, most of society would already look drastically different. Don't buy into the hype.

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9 hours ago, the application paradox said:

I know a.i wont replace doctors probably for another 30-60 years, but I think it'll just get harder and harder,more and more competitive to get into medschool and become a doctor. Not to mention,the decent chance that the world will probably start destroying itself with global warming and a population of 9 billion by 2030 which will only increase poverty and suffering as food and water decreases and a.i replaces jobs.Not to mention how america seems to be heading towards a civil war with such a growing divide between the people. Also not to forget the likelhood of another global recession with a economic slowdown where our economies are more interconnected now more than ever due to technology,so a global recession would be much worse than the 1930's. Lest I forget the tens of thousands of nuclear and hydrogen bombs in the world,which with half of them detonated together can destroy our atmosphere and life as we know it. Never before in history have so many catastrophic factors have come so close together.

My concern is with a seemingly unstable future,what if all this hardwork  and dedication doesn't pay off?What if we're replaced,or we become obsolete?    

AI will complement the work of physicians. It is unlikely you will see full outright replacements. Lawyers on the other hand....

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If you're worried about the fate of Earth in the future, which is legit, try to think about how important it will be to have caring physicians around to advocate for climate change mitigating policies and to care for those whose health has been harmed by climate change. If that doesn't sound like what you want your role in the world to be that's fine. But don't give into a bleak nihilism when there is always good that can be done to help alleviate suffering.

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Also, AI gets insanely hyped up but it kind of sucks. For instance, I plant trees for a living and people have been talking for years and years about how AI and tech is going to replace the job, but at the end of the day a human brain and a shovel are so much more efficient and precise with microsite selection than any machine will be, likely for many years to come. The other thing you can't forget about medicine is the non-tech dimension--the doctor holding your hand, telling you that everything is going to be OK, that counts for an astronomical amount in terms of care. 

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On 4/13/2019 at 10:30 AM, the application paradox said:

I know a.i wont replace doctors probably for another 30-60 years, but I think it'll just get harder and harder,more and more competitive to get into medschool and become a doctor. Not to mention,the decent chance that the world will probably start destroying itself with global warming and a population of 9 billion by 2030 which will only increase poverty and suffering as food and water decreases and a.i replaces jobs.Not to mention how america seems to be heading towards a civil war with such a growing divide between the people. Also not to forget the likelhood of another global recession with a economic slowdown where our economies are more interconnected now more than ever due to technology,so a global recession would be much worse than the 1930's. Lest I forget the tens of thousands of nuclear and hydrogen bombs in the world,which with half of them detonated together can destroy our atmosphere and life as we know it. Never before in history have so many catastrophic factors have come so close together.

My concern is with a seemingly unstable future,what if all this hardwork  and dedication doesn't pay off?What if we're replaced,or we become obsolete?    

this is why people sit on a couch and smoke a doobie

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The world gets better every decade. Our own troubles cement, but if you objectively look at the data, the world has improved immensely and continues to do so. Life expectancy, years of disability, malnutrition, poverty, homelessness etc.... Hard to find anything but hasn't continue to improve over time. If these conditions make you think that there is no future, how much more strongly should you have thought that 50, or 100, or 1, 000 years ago?

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1 hour ago, PhD2MD said:

The world gets better every decade. Our own troubles cement, but if you objectively look at the data, the world has improved immensely and continues to do so. Life expectancy, years of disability, malnutrition, poverty, homelessness etc.... Hard to find anything but hasn't continue to improve over time. If these conditions make you think that there is no future, how much more strongly should you have thought that 50, or 100, or 1, 000 years ago?

You clearly haven't been paying attention to the climate science?

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1 hour ago, Persephone said:

You clearly haven't been paying attention to the climate science?

Yes, I pay attention to climate science. Asides from my undergrad, I spent 2 solid years with some of the world's leading environmental scientists/climatologists at U of T. I'm very aware, thank you very much. I can't tell if you meant to be obnoxious or if you just couldn't help your self. I wrote a long response, but then realized it's not worth it.

OP: The world, and life in it, continue to get better every decade. Now is the best time in history to be alive! So much has been done for so many problems world wide. I'm not saying that we shouldn't stay motivated to keep going, I'm just saying you've got every reason to be positive and hopeful. There have always been problems but when you place a historical lens on things, you realize how positively things have been trending! In a sense, you're right...tons of bombs suck....but having a life expectancy of 30-40 years also sucked....and that wasn't even that long ago :)!

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33 minutes ago, PhD2MD said:

There have always been problems but when you place a historical lens on things, you realize how positively things have been trending! 

I agree with everything that's already been said, the average person alive today in an industrialized country lives a higher quality of life than even the most powerful medieval or ancient king or emperor.  But I think it's important to remember that things don't always trend upward. For example the Ostrogoths would have looked at the Roman architecture under the lands they conquered and seen essentially alien technology, or the nomadic tribes that came after the assyrians seeing giant empty cities with massive walls that looked like they came from a different world. 

 

All is to say that the continued march towards progress is a recent phenomenon, and we shouldn't take it for granted. But I don't think it's helpful to be all doom and gloom either, as I think it's more likely that we continue to progress as opposed to fall backwards. 

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