>Equally possible, right? Not equally, since more PhDs end up in industry than academia. Also, those in academia routinely consult and solve these problems fo

>Equally possible, right? Not equally, since more PhDs end up in industry than academia. Also, those in academia routinely consult and solve these problems for industry, they make startups, they solve problems that further advance industry. Many bounce between careers on both sides. It's silly to think those in academia don't work on and solve real world problems and only spend time fighting politics. Those research grants are for producing research, and those corporate grants are for producing items useful to those companies.