On the recordJune 5, 2002
I would just like to offer some general comments about the nature of basic research and the importance of funding basic research because that often raises questions in the mind of the public and, consequently, questions in the minds of the Congress. Basic research is that research which is done to understand the basic underpinnings of science, the basic underpinnings of the nature of our universe and how it operates. It is very broadly based. It is not specifically directed toward any particular problem in society and sometimes not even toward a problem in the sciences. It is an effort to really learn more about the universe and how it and all its composite parts work. That makes it very difficult to defend in the political process, but let me simply point out to my colleagues some of the results of basic research that we take for granted today.
Source
govinfo.gov
