The End of Invention

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The rate at which scientists and inventors discover new things is slowing. How to fix it?

Compared to 100 years ago, new inventions and scientific discoveries seem less exciting. Certainly the rate of invention and discovery is slowing. Can we fix it?

Someone born in the late 19th century would have lived through the most rapid period of technological progress in human history. By comparison, people born since the Second World War have seen stagnation and sclerosis. At least, that’s what some people claim - that we are living through “the great stagnation”. 

The productivity of scientists and inventors is slowing - and economist Sam Bowman is worried. There are fewer new drugs coming to market, and it takes more and more people to make smaller computer chips. It takes longer for PhD students to finish their studies, and research grants go to ever older scientists. 

The balance of research funding has shifted from government to companies, and companies look for profitable inventions rather than necessarily revolutionary ones. It looks as though big new ideas are getting harder to find. Can we fix the system, or are we doomed to permanent slowdown? 

Presenter: Sam Bowman
Producer: Jolyon Jenkins
Executive Producer: Katherine Godfrey
Sound Design & Engineering: Rob Speight
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