(LIGO collaboration postdoc) There have been plenty of technologies pioneered by the collaboration in the development of the detectors - control of optical cav

(LIGO collaboration postdoc) There have been plenty of technologies pioneered by the collaboration in the development of the detectors - control of optical cavities via radio frequency signals being one big one, and low thermal noise monolithic silica fibre suspensions being another. The discovery of gravitational waves, however, simply improves our understanding of the universe and has no known practical applications. It's great to live in a time when countries are willing to fund such bold leaps into the unknown, without obvious monetary pay-offs.