People could figure out how to buy and make other things if the government got out of the way. It's just become the norm, people would adapt.
History shows otherwise. The great leaps forward have always been stimulated by government. Louis XIV centralizing France through the building of highways, the Renaissance in Europe, the Royal Navy, the American West....if there is no government, people will form one or one will be placed over them. Government will always be there. The question is how much should government intervene? The United States funds a huge amount of basic and applied research:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_policy_of_the_United_States