Nature of Research

Discussions debate what constitutes 'real research,' distinguishing exploratory academic work from productized implementations, and defend research's inherent uncertainty where not all efforts yield immediate practical results.

➡️ Stable 0.6x Science
4,037
Comments
20
Years Active
5
Top Authors
#9423
Topic ID

Activity Over Time

2007
10
2008
28
2009
48
2010
89
2011
90
2012
125
2013
140
2014
141
2015
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2016
215
2017
193
2018
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2019
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2020
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2021
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2022
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2023
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2024
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2026
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Keywords

TOS filesure.in phys.org HHMI GPT ycombinator.com PLC research doing research academic preliminary point think territory topic researchers paragraph results

Sample Comments

zeroxfe Aug 18, 2017 View on HN

That's how research works.

stonogo Dec 14, 2022 View on HN

Yes, that's how research works. What's your point?

fooker Dec 20, 2025 View on HN

Why do you think there's a re in research?

ptah Sep 5, 2019 View on HN

Hopefully it is proper research and not just trying to find clever ways to make money from it

yunwal Dec 12, 2025 View on HN

If all research bore fruit it wouldn't be research.

loeg May 29, 2024 View on HN

It's academic research -- very much not productized yet.

ps256 Nov 20, 2023 View on HN

"Don't get distracted by the research which actually produces useful things"

praetorian84 Oct 22, 2014 View on HN

Research about research. Always seems like the time would have been better spent on actual research.

graemep Aug 14, 2025 View on HN

Research is not carried out by the inexperienced!

justeleblanc Apr 24, 2023 View on HN

It's called research. Someone has to do the R&D afterward to implement it concretely.