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Boosted by brib@bribstodon.xyz ("brib :neofox_floof: :Nonbinary:"):
stellarskylark@solarpunk.moe ("φ-52 "Skylark"") wrote:
I think the important thing to remember about science and engineering research is that even if we perfectly understood the rules of reality (we don't, and probably never can) we still wouldn't know all the implications of those rules. The laws of physics seem to allow for practically infinite combinations of stuff. We simply do not know what is possible.
So even if you don't value knowledge for the sake of knowledge, you still shouldn't laugh if someone wants money to study, like, parrot intestines, or slime molds, or rocks, or stare at an empty patch of sky with a radio telescope, or just seeing what happens if you mix a bunch of random chemicals. The universe's possibility space is so wide that it is impossible to know ahead of time what will turn out to be "useful".
So if a passionate and knowledgeable nerd wants to explore something silly, the right decision is to give them money and a pat on the back.