Filed under: Politics
You may have heard of the effort by the Republicans to let the public decide what is wasteful research spending and what is worthwhile. This would be a big mistake. If you are not familiar with the development of the LASER, which enables CDs, bar code readers, checkout systems, super accurate surveying, laser eye surgery, and too many other technologies now taken for granted, you should read the excellent article in Science News published on the 50th anniversary of the demonstration of lasing. Even the scientists who developed the first lasers were not thinking of practical uses. They were just interested in testing one of Einstein’s ideas. Had the public been asked whether to fund research into Einstein’s theories I’m sure we wouldn’t have the laser today.
I suggest you look for “wasteful” grants related to weapons development, combat, and other areas of “defense”, especially those granted to institutions in Virginia, and vote for them.
