Yes I think one main principle of technology is to be more energy efficient.

Scientifc method as word is already kind of limited for the object it tries to describe. Probably we need new words. Neural network is already blackbox so it's causality is not comprehended by human mind in case network is very complex. Network with few parameters can be causally comprehended with mind. So even if it is black box we can control and guide it.

I think AGI might be big black box with steering wheel and pedals. You see some stuff pass by from windows.