Recent indicators all point to a substantial decline in public money support for science research. This is counter to all prevalent data on how much basic research has been the basis for most of the modern technological advancements in the late twentieth century. Take the case of the iPhone which would never have been possible had it not been for defense and civilian funding of most basic components in the iPhone. There has been a very skewed attempt by private entrepreneurs to claim that they take all the risks while public funders do not. Quite the contrary, privates have never tolerated much risks in basic research. The public funds have fostered all of that risk taking mentality. In spite of this, public funds for basic research are declining. No one would have seen the modern developments blossom if it were left to just the profiteers to fund basic research. It never has happened in all of human history. I challenge folks to think carefully about our modern day politicians pronouncements that only applied and not basic research has to be fostered within limited budgets.

During the early part of the 20th century a number of well-known industry stalwarts had huge investments in “basic” research within their corporate research portfolio. Examples are Xerox, AT&T, DuPont, Eastman Kodak etc. This led to handsome rewards towards their “applied” research as well, and many Nobel laureates and novel ideas originated there. However, the current trend is a total disinvestment in “basic” research at the expense of “applied” research within the industry. Not only has this made the United Staes less competitive, but also during these lean economic times the reliance on the Universities to carry out this burden has provided unique challenges to the academic community. Short-sighted, bottom-line mentality will make the US industries less innovative and increasingly cede their advantages to foreign competitors. I would like to make the point that this is a disturbing trend and more reflective conversations among the industry, government and academic communities are necessary to reverse this trend.