Not every advance made in science leads to an advance in technology Why are these advances still valuable?

All knowledge about the universe in which we live is connected. New understandings in one area can cast light on previously mysterious phenomena in other areas. No one can predict the kind or extent of the applications that any new knowledge will turn out to have. In some cases, those applications may not arise until centuries after the knowledge is obtained (this has often been true of mathematical advances in particular). The pursuit of knowledge for the sake of knowledge has turned out to be far more useful than anyone expected. Even aside from the usefulness of technology, there is also the usefulness of understanding the universe and therefore having some idea of how things work and what kind of policies the human race might want to use to create a better future.