Hi Everyone,

Several months ago we were discussing the value of science literacy: Why is it important for people to understand the key ideas and methods of science?

In that context, I'd like to raise the following question: Does a scientific "discovery" have significance, independently of how the new law or principle or observation is incorporated into peoples' lives? Is there something important that happens as soon as one person figures out how some part of nature works, or does a significant fraction of society need to know and understand it and incorporate it into their lives and behavior, before it really matters?

I guess this is really an old question, of whether understanding nature has value purely for its own sake, or if it has to have an impact on human society in order to get its value.

Todd