It's the case most often now, but has not been historically. Consider that Fermat was a lawyer by occupation, and more recently, Fourier did a lot of things ot

It's the case most often now, but has not been historically. Consider that Fermat was a lawyer by occupation, and more recently, Fourier did a lot of things other than math. An academic job is not all research: the amount of time and effort spent on teaching and duties is huge. So why can't people employed in the industry continue contributing to science? The problem is mostly social, I think, and it's twofold: 1)It should become the norm to not work 5 days a week in technical fields (with a pay cut, if needs be). Not "work from home"; the mental space is scarce, and switching is hard. 2)There should be no friction in being involved with academia if you are not a part of it. People not officially affiliated with an academic institution do face friction. Ronin Institute[1] is a virtual organization that aims to address (2). As for (1), people should be prepared to enter industry from the very start, so that if they do, they would be able to confidently demand the conditions that would allow them to continue with research. [1]http://ronininstitute.org/ http://ronininstitute.org/