On the other hand, if we can't get private citizens to donate to science research, then they are not likely to vote for it either--polls don't register much of a concern from the average citizen*. I don't think most of us want to be under a dictator or go back to having a king.

That means the only practical option is to act of our own volition and support science through vocal advocacy and private money. In this way, we can each donate to the research we care about the most with maximum academic freedom.

* https://news.gallup.com/poll/1675/most-important-problem.asp...

A lot of the discussion talks about how China can just develop it's own. But there's more to it. Development isn't free. China has to expend lots of resources, resources that can't be used somewhere else. Maintaining a chip making sector comes with challenges and it's not clear whether China can maintain it competitively through the long haul without paying an outsized price.

Some people think that the US could have cut off China if and when they used the technology to wage war, thereby being "more strategic" about it. But that to can be a dangerous game, and that strategy might not accomplish what it's intended to accomplish.

My ability to get this right is often a matter of how well I know the domain. If I don't know the domain as well I think I do, I fall into a lot of rework. If I know the domain more than I imagine then I waste my time with a baby step process when I could have run. All of this is a big judgement call, and I have "regrets" in both directions.

When I was younger I used POVray for a few small projects, but once I had access to graphical interfaces the difference in output quantity and quality was huge. I still keep tools like POVray installed, but all I ever do with them is tinker once in a while.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhORUN6oCUc

* You are effectively memorizing. Memorizing something takes a long time compared to other learning techniques like learning concepts and looking up details as needed. I find it works best if I'm selective about what to memorize since memorizing everything limits the breadth of what I can learn in general.

* Mnemonic devices, even ones that seem silly, are incredibly valuable for things that are hard to remember. It may take time to find or think up a mnemonic, but it's worth the up-front effort.

* If you naturally have unavoidable life interruptions every week/month that require you to skip learning days, you may be happier with more forgiving algorithms. Algorithms like the supermemo algorithm used by Anki try to push you right up to the edge of you ability to remember it. I still maintain old flashcards in those systems, but I'm much happier since I started tracking my learning in a custom spreadsheet where I control the algorithm.

It feels like we need some distinction that's a little more qualitative than quantitative.