As gratifying as applied research is, to set out to answer a specific research question, it's not always the best way to come up with new ideas, discover new things and develop understanding. For these things you need basic research or just a curiosity about the world and how it works.
As Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duketalk about on this edition of Two Guys on Your Head, developing and valuing understanding, as opposed to the bottom line, is an important part of uncovering what we don't even know we don't know.
