"After six Nobel Prizes, the invention of the transistor, laser and countless contributions to computer science and technology, it is the end of the road for Bell Labs' fundamental physics research lab."
"After six Nobel Prizes, the invention of the transistor, laser and countless contributions to computer science and technology, it is the end of the road for Bell Labs' fundamental physics research lab."
5 comments:
In a lot of was this is a sad reality of the business behind technology and technology research. It is the big bosses and boards who decide what may be profitable or which departments to cut. Though fundamental Physics research, has been a tremendous contributor to electrical and computer engineering as we know them today, the decision to close them down is nothing more than a business decision. Though there is a lot of sentiment associated with the history of bell labs fundamental physics department this just means that this is another chapter ended where non commercial research is simply going to get stronger as these fields become relient on acedemic and Government research.
It's too bad that this is not an uncommon occurrence. It's always the people with the money that have the ultimate say in the way things happen. Who knows what possible inventions will be limited because the big bosses don't see their immediate profit possibilities.
In the end it's fate was sealed during the deregulation. These days the trend seems to be that we are switching away from the behemoth researching firms to smaller more specialized companies.
On one end I agree with dave on the sad but true reality of big bosses missing the key potential of general research, but at the same time its more cost effective when your not a big monopoly any to switch to a more specialized role.
There is only so far research can go before you get to a stopping point. Even though there may be more research to be done, once you reach a comfortable place there there is no reason to use extra money on research that may never be used. There are also other firms that can do research for Bell labs. Technology can only go so far and there are new and upcoming companies that are ready to take on the challenge of creating and researching these new endeavors.
It seems to me that we are killing Peter to save Paul some money. At the same time, Peter really helped Paul make money in the long run.
Why would a company want to stop general research that will advance other departments and just focus on a very small area. Maybe there is something they are not saying and that backs up their decision. But at this point, it seams they are only slowing down our society's advancement.
Its also a shame to see such an accomplished and world renowned company "closing its doors." However, all things must come to an end. And who knows, this may open the door for a smaller company to make it big.
And as everything today, it comes down to money...
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