Thanks for writing this! This is a very interesting idea.
Do you have thoughts on “learning” goals for the next year? E.g. is it possible that you could find a certain valuable food source with significantly more or less effort expected? Or could you learn of a non-EA funding source (e.g. government grants) that would make you significantly more impactful? I’m mostly interested in your $10,000 order of magnitude, if that’s relevant.
Also: do you think that your research could negatively impact animal welfare in the event that a global catastrophe does not occur? E.g. could you recommend a change to fishing practices which are implemented prior to a catastrophe which increases the number of farmed fish or changes their quality of life?
Thanks! Yes, it is possible we will find new food sources. Some that I have not yet been able to analyze include bacteria that eat plastic, bacteria that run on electricity, and direct chemical synthesis of food. We are actively pursuing non-EA grants and foundations.
Generally we would not be recommending changing the way things are done today very much, because that can get into the billions of dollars of cost. So I doubt we would negatively impact animal welfare if the catastrophe did not occur.
Thanks for writing this! This is a very interesting idea.
Do you have thoughts on “learning” goals for the next year? E.g. is it possible that you could find a certain valuable food source with significantly more or less effort expected? Or could you learn of a non-EA funding source (e.g. government grants) that would make you significantly more impactful? I’m mostly interested in your $10,000 order of magnitude, if that’s relevant.
Also: do you think that your research could negatively impact animal welfare in the event that a global catastrophe does not occur? E.g. could you recommend a change to fishing practices which are implemented prior to a catastrophe which increases the number of farmed fish or changes their quality of life?
Thanks! Yes, it is possible we will find new food sources. Some that I have not yet been able to analyze include bacteria that eat plastic, bacteria that run on electricity, and direct chemical synthesis of food. We are actively pursuing non-EA grants and foundations. Generally we would not be recommending changing the way things are done today very much, because that can get into the billions of dollars of cost. So I doubt we would negatively impact animal welfare if the catastrophe did not occur.