Physics research at Bell is finished

See this: "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. Alcatel-Lucent, the parent company of Bell Labs, is pulling out of basic science, material physics and semiconductor research and will instead be focusing on more immediately marketable areas such as networking, high-speed electronics, wireless, nanotechnology and software."

Sounds like the usual short-sightedness of focusing on today's apparent requirement rather than tomorrow's potential. Fundamental research, like broad-based education, seems to be falling out of favour in lots of places. How far does this go before it's irreversible?

See Wired.