[NitpickLawyer]

Progress doesn't happen out of thin air. Someone has to go in and do the work, and find out the limits or feasibility of such and such tech. More interest in this is good in the long run, even if the first few iterations don't prove revolutionary.

[econ]

You can have as many iterations as it takes, you need only one to work. Thousands or millions is fine. If you keep track of what was tried and how hard everything is a gain.