[atomicfiredoll]

This reminds me of a metaphor: "If you want to know the maximum load of a bridge, you don't drive progressively larger trucks over it until it collapses then rebuild the bridge."

I think you're right that thousands of years of experience play a part. But, overall, that metaphor has had me thinking a bit about how much less predictive building software can be compared to engineering and wondering why that's the case.

Assuming building software and traditional engineering are about as complex and assuming that engineering it is easier to predict (construction deadlines slip too,) I'm curious to see if we can overcome fundamental issues like the halting problem to become as predictive.

[mattm]

> If you want to know the maximum load of a bridge, you don't drive progressively larger trucks over it until it collapses then rebuild the bridge

For most of human history, we basically did this. Bridges have only become very reliable in the past 100 years or so. Before that, bridges collapsed very regularly and people were very wary about going over a newly built bridge.

[ilaksh]

But now they use simulations which drive virtual vehicles over the bridge.