Originally Posted by punkworld

You're clueless, at least when it comes to scientific research.

Apart from the fact that you are simply wrong (many research departments of universities with public funding produce extremely valuable results), you seem to be completely unaware of the difference in research carried out by private companies and research carried out by institutions with public funding, such as (many) universities. In short: companies generally only spend money on research which has a fair chance of having a direct application. Researchers in public institutions, on the other hand, also do fundamental research, that is, research aimed simply at gaining basic knowledge, with no immediately visible application. Obviously, applications or derivatives of this research often only emerge later on, as science progresses.