He'll pay for that

Fred Kavli hopes that his funding of astrophysics, brain research, and nanoscience will pave the way to future, as the modern world exists because of science. The Kavli Foundation began by contributing $7.5 million to a center for theoretical physics at the University of Santa Barbara in 2001 and then to an institute for particle astrophysics and cosmology at Stanford University. Kavli's approach also diverges from the increasingly utilitarian focus of both academic and government-funded research. His strategy seems a natural extension of his enterpreneurial style, which was both visionary and practical. To let scientists loose on their dream ideas, Kavil says that he negotiates their institutions' support and then creates research centers.