Politicians frequently misguided about science

Utilitarian views always overlook that so many of the biggest and most important discoveries come from the pursuit of unobstructed knowledge. And the line from discovery to application to return on investment is not straightforward. If Albert Einstein was silent about the weightlessness felt by a person who was free falling in an elevator in the early 20th century, we would not have his theory of relativity and no GPS.

It is impossible to predict what a purely scientific investigation will lead to. That’s why the destruction that is being done in science in the United States is very short-sighted. However, it is much easier to foresee what damage will be caused by reduced funds. Losing programs for the treatment and prevention of tuberculosis, malaria and AIDS leads to preventable diseases and death. (For decades, the reductions at NASA include important climate studies on extreme heat and air pollution, see “Is Trump’s cuts to science an endless frontier?”).

After physicist JJ Thomson discovered the electron in 1897, he famously said it was useless. Then came the electric age, a century of unimaginable global advancements built on this humble particle. Is the coming innovative age being hindered now?