Just a reminder that Nobel-prize winning PCR (1983), used in basically any genetic tech today, was only possible because of an extremophile bacterium discovered in 1964 in Yellowstone funded by a small ~$80k NSF grant with no obvious application at the time. The value of basic #science cannot be predicted and often is realized decades after it's done.

How a discovery in Yellowstone National Park led to the development of PCR - Richmond Scientific
https://www.richmondscientific.com/how-a-discovery-in-yellowstone-national-park-led-to-the-renowned-technique-of-dna-amplification-pcr