Basic science is of great significance to human society, but basic science is also the most easily ignored by people, because human beings have a fundamental disadvantage of eager for quick success and short-sightedness.
Basic scientific research does not consider practical purposes. It produces general knowledge and understanding of nature and its laws. This general knowledge provides answers to a large number of important practical questions, but it cannot give a completely specific answer to any one question. It is the role of applied research researchers to provide such satisfactory answers.
Just like ancient astrology, people used telescopes to observe the movement of celestial bodies, thereby inferring that the earth is round, inferring the heliocentric theory, and deducing the calendar. Such research is considered a type of basic science, but it cannot be said that it is difficult to directly turn it into money.
Through the study of the basic science of astrology, the Chinese and Arabs took the lead in mastering the applied technology of star-finding, allowing ships to travel across the ocean without relying on visual inspection of the coastline. This application of technology can be turned into money.
Why were Arab merchants so wealthy in the Middle Ages? In fact, a big factor was that they were the first to master the art of star-drawing and could efficiently conduct commercial trade across the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.
At that time, European navigation technology was still limited to small broken ships sailing along the coastline. If a sailor could not see the mainland coastline for three days, he would be scared to death.
Are Newton's "Laws of Nature" important? Everyone knows that it is important, but being important does not mean that you can make money. Money is actually obtained from applied scientific research, but applied scientific research must be based on the matrix of basic science.
Is Einstein's Theory of Relativity important? However, the theory of relativity is also a result of basic scientific research, while the atomic bomb and the hydrogen bomb are applied scientific research derived from the matrix of relativity.
This is like a towering tree. People need the fruits on the tree to satisfy their hunger, the branches of the tree as fuel, and the thick trunks to build houses and make furniture. However, only very few people are willing to study the roots. In most cases, Tree roots are useless in human eyes.
This is a kind of bad human nature, eager for quick success and short-sighted. Especially in a society like China that has suppressed craftsmen for thousands of years, the problem is even more obvious.
Xiao Letian knows very well that if the Basic Science Foundation uses national financial expenditures, then the opposition he will face may be even greater than the Patent Office just now.
Even Xiao Letian's Four Heavenly Kings and other officials find it difficult to understand this kind of investment. In the eyes of the Chinese people, direct investment in applied scientific research is still acceptable. After all, if it succeeds, actual benefits can be seen.
But for this kind of illusory basic scientific research, especially mathematics, physics, logic, etc., people's first feeling is that it is useless and they are just spending money in vain.
Faced with such a cultural background, Xiao Letian was too lazy to explain. He could only use his own money to establish an independent foundation. If I lose my family business, you can't take care of it, right?
Five million dragon-patterned silver coins were put in, and Xiao Letian clearly heard a sigh of regret! But out of awe of Xiao Letian, people didn't dare to say anything.
But the miracles created by the Shaw Basic Science Foundation in the next ten years were so great that no one present today could have imagined it!
More than five million dragon-patterned silver coins are not directly invested in scientific research, but converted into various shares and real estate for wealth appreciation.
Xiao Letian used his "authority" to obtain a lot of special treatment for the foundation. Almost all profitable industries that clearly had no shortage of shares were forcibly mixed in because of Xiao Letian's tyranny.
Many of the original shares of super large enterprises such as the China-American-British United Telegraph Company, Shaw Real Estate Group, Lotte Bank, Tanggu Industrial Group, Ryukyu Ocean Trading Company, etc., which were famous in later generations, were snatched away by this foundation.
Not only that, Xiao Letian also licked his face and asked all the wealthy people he knew for sponsorship. Ten thousand or twenty thousand was never too little, and one hundred thousand or millions was never too much. The Basic Science Foundation has never suffered from insufficient funds in the hundreds of years since. trouble.
Some historians looked through historical materials, and they were surprised to find from many declassified files that in the first three years of the establishment of the Basic Science Foundation, Xiao Letian ordered all funds to be invested in basic research on electromagnetism, basic research on the petroleum industry, These three categories are basic research on smelting.
Coincidentally, these three categories are the core changes of the second industrial revolution, especially electromagnetism and the petroleum industry, which will be the mainstream development direction of mankind in the next few hundred years.
Later generations of historians were horrified when they thought about it. Apart from admitting that Xiao Letian was a great prophet, they could not explain this amazing coincidence at all.
The Military Council, the Commercial Council, and the Scientific Council were officially announced. Before people could fully digest this large amount of information, Sima Yun later introduced the concept of the Citizens' Council.
"In addition to soldiers, businessmen, scientists and craftsmen, there are also larger and larger groups of citizens, including farmers, fishermen, construction workers, ocean-going sailors, etc..."
"These five elements and eight works, 360 people, are unified under the management of the citizens' assembly! Everyone is a hero in life, even if he is the most ordinary worker who sells his strength, he still has the opportunity to enter Among the six nobles and eighteen ranks!"
"Farmers accidentally discovered a high-yielding crop, navigators found a brand new island for the kingdom's territory, civilian heroes emerged from unexpected disasters...these ordinary people who occasionally shine in the ordinary, Hua The clan leader will never forget them!"
“The important task of the Citizens’ Assembly is to select the outstanding contributions of these people and summarize them and report them to the Nobles’ Assembly so that they can be given the rewards they deserve!”
The crowd began to whisper to each other again. Many veterans were sensitive to the fact that the Prime Minister had merged farmers and other people into one group. Could it be said that the Prime Minister was giving up the thousands-year tradition of building a country based on agriculture?
"Prime Minister! Do you want to give up the thousands of years of classification tradition of scholars, farmers, industry and commerce? We can easily understand the military council and the business council, but the scientific council obviously only involves those elite craftsmen. Are you treating ordinary craftsmen and farmers? If they are grouped into one category, will there really be no trouble? There will be no stability without farmers!"
"And the most important thing, what about the scholars? Who will manage the scholars who are the leaders of the four peoples? Don't these people have any merit? Are their achievements in governing the country not recognized?"
The question was very pointed. Xiao Letian nodded, drank some water to moisten his dry throat and said softly, "No, I have not forgotten them. The fact that you raised this question shows that you have not understood the essence of the Hua Clan Order at all..."
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