Astyanax I believe the first “A” in NASA has probably done more for overall human advancement than even the rest of the letters. It’s allowed us to traverse our planet more quickly, efficiently, and most of all more safely which then allowed the world economy to skyrocket and expand beyond terrestrial transportation.
This is very true, which is why cuts to the science side are foolish and narrow-minded.
One of the worst things about the AT&T/Bell System breakup was the decimation of the original Bell Labs, which had given us the transistor, the early Telstar satellite, the discovery of cosmic rays (in 1964 by Bell Labs radio astronomers Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson, for which they earned the Nobel Prize in Physics), and much more.
But after the breakup, Bell Labs was split into many pieces, and never would be the same.
One survivor, now called Nokia Bell Labs, was tossed around between homes like a foster child.
Anyway point is (which I know you know) that basic science research is important and pays off in the long term whether in physics, biology, medicine, math, engineering, and so forth.
This likewise is why the cuts in NIH funding are foolish…
