WHEN THE U.S. WAS in a race with the Soviet Union some 50 years ago to put a man on the moon, spending by the federal government on what many call “basic” research and development (R&D) was at an all-time high. Basic R&D has no clear end-goal, but is the kind of research from which world-changing discoveries are made. It provides the building blocks for industry to conduct applied research to innovate and develop new, more sophisticated products and services. Without basic R&D, lifesaving cancer treatments may have never materialized. The U.S. would never have become the leader in silicon transistor manufacturing— think no Silicon Valley. And, the Internet may not exist.
