Basic science

From RationalWiki

Basic science is non-directed scientific research, with no particular end in mind. While scientific researchers find that basic science is the best way to open new avenues of inquiry, many outside the scientific world (especially libertarians, but it is a strain of anti-intellectualism hardly limited to them) feel that it is a waste of money if it's not directed to creating a specific product or curing a certain disease. This is generally thought to be a drastically short-sighted attitude. Unfortunately, the people who give out grant money are not always inclined to agree.