The principle of the sabbath. Being precedes doing. But draw a line. The technological mentality cannot be supreme, put a boundary on it. Share resources and live our lives with an eye toward equality for all nations and people.
People always rationalize their research with a statement of the usefulness of the, e.g., material.
But pointing out the application is usually fairly short-sighted. I have a choice of research because I am a teacher. I have a duty inspire and inform my students. Great men have the ideas, lesser men make them explode, and the least of men get the trigger. If I have an idea, I still have a choice about developing it.