It's a problem with how society allocates it resources to make technological progress. Payroll goes to pay people to do something non-optimal. As for equipment

It's a problem with how society allocates it resources to make technological progress. Payroll goes to pay people to do something non-optimal. As for equipment, well it's great for me because I can pick up used lab equipment cheaply on eBay. But when a startup buys, say low-yield back-thinned CCD cameras and then never uses them human effort is wasted. As an aside, the startups themselves rarely purchase used equipment (how do you present it in your budget, how do you explain the increased risk that comes with buying a used piece of equipment to your investors?). So, the economy keeps functioning... but the economy is just money moving around, not necessarily people doing actually useful things. Edit: Not sure I really understand the downvote. It would be great if you'd comment directly. Particularly given I was attempting to clarify my previous comment as requested.