[itake]

Technology advances have happened many many times in history. But there is always more work to be done.

I was reading Man’s Search For meaning, written shortly after ww2. The author notes that Americans have too much free time. Clearly that is not the case 80 years later.

[TimPC]

That was true for horses until the combustion engine came along and it certainly won't be true for humans forever. If we automate all useful work that can be done by someone at 100 IQ or lower than half of the population will be unemployed.

[itake]

No. I think that means people with low IQs will be able to do high IQ work.

[TimPC]

You’re not going to take someone who takes twelve hours to learn how to fold a letter for an envelope and teach them a demanding cognitive job like programming.

[the_only_law]

So then damn near everyone can do the job? What’s that gonna be worth then?

[woeirua]

In 5 years or less we might see a massive reduction in demand for human taxi drivers. What are taxi drivers going to do? These are typically not people who are well educated and capable of making a rapid shift into another field. And what do we tell them when they choose another field to work in, only to see that field be automated away too? At some point, won't we run out of carrots to dangle in front of the displaced?

[JohnFen]

> Technology advances have happened many many times in history. But there is always more work to be done.

Long term, yes. But it's also happened many times in history that sudden economic disruption has had a very serious cost. That things might be better in a couple of decades is of no help to people who can't eat or keep a roof over their heads today because of these changes.