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  3. Why does the Foundation concentrate its support on basic rather than applied

Why does the Foundation concentrate its support on basic rather than applied

游客2025-04-26  22
问题     Why does the Foundation concentrate its support on basic rather than applied research? Basic research is the very heart of science, and its cumulative product is the capital of scientific progress, a capital that must be constantly increased as the demands upon it rise. The goal of basic research is understanding, for its own sake. Understanding of the structure of the atom or the nerve cell, the explosion of a spiral nebula or the distribution of cosmic dust, the causes of earthquakes and droughts, or of man as a behaving creature and of the social forces that are created whenever two or more human beings come into contact with one another--the scope is staggering, but the commitment to truth is the same. If the commitment were to a particular result, conflicting evidence might be overlooked or, with the best will in the world, simply not appreciated. Moreover, the practical applications of basic research frequently cannot be anticipated. When Roentgen, the physicist, discovered X-rays, he had no idea of their usefulness to medicine.
    Applied research, undertaken to solve specific practical problems, has an immediate attractiveness because the results can be seen and enjoyed. For practical reasons, the sums spent on applied research in any country always far exceed those for basic research, and the proportions are more unequal in the less developed countries. Leaving aside the funds devoted to research by industry--which is naturally far more concerned with applied aspects because these increase profits quickly--the funds the U.S. Government allots to basic research currently amount to about 7 percent of its overall research and development funds. Unless adequate safeguards are provided, applied research invariably tends to drive out basic. Then, as Dr. Waterman has pointed out, "Developments will inevitably be undertaken prematurely, career incentives will gravitate strongly toward applied science, and the opportunities for making major scientific discoveries will be lost. Unfortunately, pressures to emphasize new developments, without corresponding emphasis upon pure science tend to degrade the quality of the nation’s technology in the long run, rather than to improve it."  [br] Basic research is vital because ______.
选项 A、it leads to results that can be appreciated
B、it is driven out by applied research
C、it provides the basis for scientific progress
D、its results cannot be anticipated
答案 C
解析 基础研究至关重要，因为它为科学进步打下了基础。作者在第一段说，基础研究是科学的核心，基础研究的积累是科学进步的资本。随着对这种资本需求的增长，科学进步的资本也必须不断地增加。
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