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5
The Sports Desk / Re: Track and Field
Last post by Lods -
In the short term though....
Will Trump produce a team of American "Ubermensch" for the 2028 Olympic games?
It's doubtful.
He has few other things on his plate.
And the USA will 'win' the LA games without enhancements

But the future of track and field and the limits will be interesting
6
The Sports Desk / Re: Track and Field
Last post by LP -
Quote from: Lods – on
Cheats will cheat whatever the nationality.
One of the things that made it tough to cheat was the ability to detect it, tests could be developed to detect anomalies, sporting passports, etc., etc..

It's not going to stay like that, the genome is huge and Darwinian, you won't be able to discern a natural shift from an engineered change, and adding to that they can now identify the advantageous changes like the universe has delivered them a user manual. It's a nexus between two technologies, CRISPR and AI.
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: General Discussions
Last post by LP -
Discussing peptides with @Lods‍ in the track and field thread reminded me of a discussion I recently had with a researcher.

Do you know the fledgling ability to vaccinate against certain strains of dementia existed almost two decades ago, about 30% of cases being potentially resolved? I had to ask why it's never been developed, the answer is the recurring stain on society, capitalism.

For the vaccine to work it has to be administered early, with Alzheimer's that means long long before symptoms appear. But children are not affected, and it seems the big profit follows fear, most won't be diagnosed with the early stages until 40 or 50 and by then it's too late for the vaccine. No disease, no fear, no profit, a vaccine kills the market for the capitalist. The real profit lies with the promise of a cure for people already having the income to spend and who have developed symptoms. So instead the capitalists develop pills that delay or stall the disease development, at thousand$ per dose, that you have to buy again next month, or next year, over and over again until your bank account runs dry!

Damning, isn't it?
8
The Sports Desk / Re: Track and Field
Last post by Lods -
I just think the structure of  American track and field means there is no overseeing government controlled body that would facilitate such a program.
While we are a bit dubious of the nature of some Americans there are more than enough with the integrity to push back against such a program and whistle-blower it out of the water.

Cheats will cheat whatever the nationality.
9
The Sports Desk / Re: Track and Field
Last post by LP -
I wish I had your confidence, but I fear Trump is likely to make someone like JKF Jr the Tsar with Hegseth his deputy, these are people who think winning cost always defeats how you win as long as you win.

Peptides a plenty!

btw., There is no high ground, only a level playing field surrounding a pit of peril.

The reason China jailed that CRISPR babies scientist was for the release of secrets, not for being immoral. (Of course the immoral stance is also a perspective, because gene modified babies resistant to AIDS might actually be the moral decision) A decade from now things are going to be very different in sport, because all the big player countries aren't that different in reality. In the USA it's just the privatised version of China's state run enterprise.

It's being accelerated right now, driven by the AI LLMs, they are providing solutions to problems that would normally take decades to resolve. Just 7 years ago we got Ozempic after a full 20 years of R&D, next year you'll be taking a tablet for the same, a development that historically would have taken decades is now a couple of years. Technically, if safety protocols are abandoned, a couple of months. Do you think the sort of people inclined to do this are going to be slowed by safety?
10
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: The EV thread
Last post by LP -
Quote from: DJC – on
BYD got caught flogging 2025 EV and hybrid vehicles as 2026 MY and they have now raised their compensation offer from $1100 to $3500.  Given that EVs can lose 15% to 25% of their value in the first year, I'd be holding out for more.
Yes, for EV cars I think the new Mazda 6e might be the pick of the bunch.

No Tesla Tax, no stupid performance over range, an established brand, building on inhouse technology not just assembling, and they are not going to evaporate overnight like the clones.

The only thing I wish they had was a traditional sedan over the hatchback design, I've never been a big fan of hatchbacks.