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My father researched semiconductors at Cornell his entire career. One time he told me of a way he and his colleagues envisioned producing semiconductors that wo
by rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
My father researched semiconductors at Cornell his entire career. One time he told me of a way he and his colleagues envisioned producing semiconductors that would have radically shrunk the cost of solar panels. After months of research, they found that the physical realities simply did not permit the hypothesis to function.
Dead end.
In the eyes of Congress, this whole affair was a waste of money, but for every scientist with the same idea, it means one less path to waste time and money on.
- apo 11y agoIf the negative results weren't published, then it was a waste of money. Sadly, this happens all the time. Incentives in science publishing generally work against the publication of negative results. The publication-based economy lies at the heart of most of what's wrong with science today. It's not clear to what extent prize-based funding could change this culture. I'm not sure I agree with the size of the initial trial, but I do support experimenting with new models of government funding for science research.
- rm_-rf_slash 11y agoThe results were published. Dad was disappointed that it didn't work but he was content to know that he saved someone else from trying the same.
- dwc 11y agoMore than that, I'm guessing that it also shone some light on those physical realities and therefore advanced the field in general. Maybe not in a big way, but much of science, technology and manufacturing is build of many small advances.
- eli_gottlieb 11y ago>It's not clear to what extent prize-based funding could change this culture. It'll make it worse.