they do fairly well...especially when you consider the pensions/perks...and the fact that they hardly even work...especially firemen

These "researches" are free. They are part of researchers' training. To be more specific it is part of training on how to do research. Proper methodology, writing style, data handling, proper referencing etc. You usually do this in your third undergrad year or first year of Ph.D. It used to be the way that students were given set of random data and did paper on it but now they have to pick something on their own and because there is usually no funding and not much time... you get your dog's thing. It is only about the form before students start handling real data that matter and are very expensive. You should see mine :D

Grant systems are very cruel and people are very competitive. I can't imagine that someone could defend that kind of project and be picked instead of person who need cluster time or some engineering group that need funding for their 3D printer project... ...

By the way. I know person who did this kind of "research" on ants and figured out that if you get ant drunk they will always fall on their left side never on right one...

I contest that the seeking of knowledge is in and of itself an extremely respectable and worthwhile pursuit.

I'll concede that it may not be the most respectable in all cases, but calling it useless- even in the case of this dog study- is way off. Even completely disparate fields of study can lend valuable insights into others. Valuable discoveries that are completely tangential to the actual research subject can also be made in the course of performing the study.

I'll concede that I'd be hard pressed to come up with a specific use for the study in question, but if nothing else it's another example of animals being sensitive to magnetic fields. As far as I understand it, observations prior to this were limited to animals using it for navigation, such as migratory birds. Documenting further cases of such sensitivity may not be directly useful but it's certainly a piece of the puzzle that is useful for predicting environmental concerns. Among other things, it is believed that the earth is in the process of switching its poles- in that light, understanding potential behavioral changes in response to this is useful, particularly with a species so close to man. What if, when the magnetic fields were disturbed, it was discovered to trigger significantly increased aggression in dogs? That would be very useful to know- and would have been discovered in the case of this study, even if that wasn't what the 'goal' of the study was. Remember how Penicillin was discovered/developed? It was essentially an accidental discovery made that was a tangient to the actual study.

Knowledge is useful, and every bit we gain builds on what we already have and serves as a building block for additional learning. Consider knowledge to be like one of those 3-D puzzles; the pieces not only build off of one another, but reveal more information as they are aligned. It's extremely easy, in hindsight, to label something as useless- but this overlooks that there was potential for discoveries simply in performing an experiment, and also overlooks future research that can build upon it; a very dangerous 'observation' to make in my estimation.

I still can't say that there is anything specifically useful linked to this study, but we haven't had opportunity to build on or expand upon it yet. Consider the space program, which is a bit of a more 'mature' field than this- People, even now, have been known to call the space program useless without ever even considering the technological advancements made to support having the program in the first place.

I imagine the world would be in a pretty sad state if research was only allowed on topics that you personally approve of.

So you respect those that over-charge you and talk about you behind your back instead.

I have no respect for police and fire. The police are often more crooked then those they are supposed to be putting behind bars. I had a full-time firefighter that worked for me part-time and he set a building on fire, respect that.

Still overrated as fuck.

but its not really known as a "respectable" career...as in people look up to them or idolize...even appreciate their services....if you get my drift.

but the lawyer also helps the innocxent ... and that is the reason why lawyers are respected.