When I use a word . . . Academic curiosity

Of the many attributes that one expects of academics in the practice of whatever subject they choose to study, curiosity is among the most important. In recent years in the UK, research that is considered to be driven purely by curiosity, without any obvious practical applications, has been devalued, largely as a result of the ways in which government funding of universities is determined, resting largely on the perceived impact of their research outputs. But both anecdotal cases and formal research show that research that is driven by curiosity can be important in determining practical applications, and that the extent to which it will do so, and the time over which practicality will emerge, cannot be predicted.