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Comment by boringg | Hacker News Reader

I find it funny that you speak about nuclear energy yet you validate it based on a quote from an exceptional game designer. This isn’t a knock on Carmack but more like you should probably hunt for someone in discipline, there are many.

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He made a rocket company. I would think as a generalist he knows a thing or two about energy production at least for thrust and propulsion if not more.

I don't think he would even call himself a game designer. He's a programmer and engine builder and rocket scientist and overall deep general nerd.

generalists are underrated nowadays it seems, compared to most of scientific history where they very clearly exist and can make contributions across a ton of “disciplines”

Generalists and specialists veering out of their lane come across the same until there is an incorrect statement about a field you know.

Informed generalists might also be a useful perspective to a field, or bring in relevant knowledge not well known within the field.

There are any number of cases of “specialists” having arrived at some incorrect consensus due to social factors/groupthink and a failure of the process.

I feel like this is a variance of "The worst person you know just made a great point". Who cares where it came from if it's true?

are there some experts on the subject whose writing you would recommend, by any chance? :)

Carmack is not a game designer (never was in fact). Carmack is a God. Also, jist because what you think he is doesn't mean that he is not right.

Let's not normalize placing people who do cool things on unnecessarily large pedestals. Idolization like that never has a good outcome.

I'm sorry people didn't understand the tone of voice of your post. I did though.

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