During the industrial revolution, scientific research was funded by wealthy patrons. That is changing because our tax structure makes it increasingly difficult to make money as our income increases. If government weren't taking 40% of our wealth, most of space research would be funded by private investors.
I doubt it. Too long of a wait for the payoff. Too much risk of getting nothing in return. Better to invest in entertainment companies and casinos. Heck, I could greenmail a company into a quick-flip $20 mil or so in a month's time, and you think I'm going to spend a dime on something that might take 20 years to pay off? Forget that! Better to buy up companies, fire their workers, and sell off the assets to foreign bidders. That's the business model in vogue today in this country. Get with the program, dude...