Cover of Pasteur's Quadrant, by D. E. Stokes, and figure from the bookI often say that the distinction between basic and applied research is a cold war concept, with reference to the first public moment in which this division was formalized, the “Science, The Endless Frontier” report by Vannevar Bush to president Truman, inspiring the creation of the NSF in the USA. I am most attached to the concept of Pasteur’s quadrant, a type of research that aims to the understanding of the deep natu...