[cing]

So what you're saying is: https://xkcd.com/1831/, except that CS/ML practitioners have a negative impact by trying to contribute without understanding the nuance. I think the next logical question is: how many years of education should you have in order to contribute? 10 years? We'll all be killed by a virus by then :)

[dekhn]

Hah, I forgot that one. Part of the negative impact is the time spent explaining stuff (like Brooks mythical man month). Another negative impact is that ML folks have gotten really good at hype- paper with slick web page, press release, etc, but the results don't stand up to the claims.

I generally recommend PhD-level study in biology (that's 7 years on top of undergrad) but I think a really smart person could learn most of what's required in 2-3 years if they are in a good lab.

No, we will not all be killed by a virus in the next 10 years; that's just media alarmism. Remember, even if coronavirus becomes a worldwide pandemic, some fraction of people will survive who will be genetically immune. We're much more at risk of wars, climate change, and driving cars.

[mynegation]

So, is there a (collection of) book that would save everyone’s time? Asking for a friend.

[cma]

How many authors on the deep mind paper had biology phds? Are they really just gaming things in an unfair way?