TE
TechEcho
Home24h TopNewestBestAskShowJobs
GitHubTwitter
Home

TechEcho

A tech news platform built with Next.js, providing global tech news and discussions.

GitHubTwitter

Home

HomeNewestBestAskShowJobs

Resources

HackerNews APIOriginal HackerNewsNext.js

© 2025 TechEcho. All rights reserved.

What might degrowth computing look like?

2 pointsby entaloneralieabout 3 years ago

1 comment

informatimagoabout 3 years ago
I note that new computing devices consume less energy for more computing power.<p>So all things being equal, it&#x27;s best to replace old hardware with new hardware, since that reduces energy consumption.<p>Or it&#x27;s best to replace old hardware with new hardware, since that will give you more computing for the same energy.<p>The ecological thing to do is therefore to get new computing hardware!!!<p>Until, of course, no progress can be made on computing hardware efficiency or energy use, but we are certainly far from the limit.<p>On a more theorical point of view, the best computing device is no computing device. Ie. the biological solution. Instead of _building_ computers, let&#x27;s _grow_ computers, or already, just better use the computer we have in our brains! Biological computers are already way more efficient than artificial computers, and they&#x27;re bio-degradable. Of course, the problem is that you need 20 or 50 years to build and program them, you&#x27;ll have to give something for this degrowth fad.<p>Eventually, we&#x27;ll just build everything in space, and drop the required product down to Earth (but probably not, Earth will be a degrowthed natural reserve, and the technological civilization will live and prosper in space).