Viktor Frankl found that the need for self-actualization or meaning was strong in internment which in-turn links to d world war where the basic needs often weren't fulfilled and decided about who made it out alive.
When it comes to the claim that the hierarchy doesn't exist, Wikipedia links to the Atlantic which inturn links to Louis Tay et al which says:
In addition, the associations of SWB [subjective well being] with the fulfillment of specific needs were largely independent of whether other needs were fulfilled.
I cited the pyramid of needs, because the research behind that basically points to us needing different things in an age-correlated way
The research behind it says that the pyramid is not how humans work. Maslow created it in a non-data driven way and researchers that did try to support the thesis with data failed.
It can be sometimes used as a decent fake framework but if you treat it as a theory that's research based you are basing your argument on quicksand.
My complaint is that you don't look at whether countries that are differently effected by the factors you list actually do differently on research output. If you don't do that I think it's hard know whether on of the factors you list is indeed causal for the result.
If you believe that overall research slow down is happening to factors that apply in the US but don't apply in Germany, then the logical conclusion would be that Germany should have a higher research output.
To the extend that you are interested in knowing whether your thesis is true, it would make sense to check. Rationality is not just about making plausible claims but also investigating whether they might be true.
I don't think that it's just social justice across identity groups being at the right place at the right time. As a meme it has the advantage that it allows people who are already powerful enough to effect social structures to argue why they should have more power. That's a lot harder for social justice across social classes.
Deep Work by Cal Newport lays out a framework about how to develop intellectual stamina. On of the aspects is to actually focus for longer periods of time on doing deep intellectual work in an enviroment without distractions and then also allow for some freetime where you don't have constraints about how to spend it.
Cal Newport is impressive in that he managed to do the work required to become an associate professor in computer science while at the same time having a blog and writing six nonfiction books outside of the computer science domain.
As far as c) goes, if your intention is to live right next the university you would have to move. Practically, where I live most people don't move next to university. That in turn means that you also don't gain the social benefits of having your fellow students live next to you.
It seems that your comment tries to take it apart by looking at whether you like the way the system is designed and not by looking at effects of it. That means instead of trying to see whether what you are seeing is true, you expand on your ideas of how things should be.
Most of the features you list of the university experience are not universals of university experience. In Berlin where I live plenty of people don't change their living situation when they enter university and there's also no student debt attached to it.
If you think those factors matter a lot, what outcomes do you expect to be better in a country like Germany?
It feels to be written from a libertarian point of view.
You might argue that the FDA causes a lot more then 45,000 yearly deaths by not allowing valuable medicines to be brought to market. It's debatable whether or not a more government interference or less government interference would be helpful. The same goes for government interventions in the economy. On the other hand there's no other party that might defend the country from attack then the government.
Before the tea party when this was written libertarian slogans were less of an applause light.
So I would interpret the post as saying, immediately afterwards the politicians responding by saying libertarian things but then they overreacted instead of engaging policies that would pass libertarian standards.
(that said I don't agree with the point)
Death rates are not the only thing we should be worried about. SARS lead to long-term problems for survivors:
It's important to know to what extend similar problems might appear with this coronavirus.