As a hobbyist layman whom dibbles and dabbles in a bit of everything, I perhaps could take umbrage at such harshness as saying innovation would die. Yes, I could. I do not though as oddly I can see how you might come to your point of view.
Thinking about the retort to the notion that laymen will kill innovation. I think the layman would rather be on the the front line of innovation. I am being inclusive though of the larger scope of technology in general. One example I have seen is the Liter of Light group who use plastic liter bottles to create lights for the poor in the Philippines & elsewhere. They also do incorporate the use of small solar panels into the making of these lights.
Another example is in Scotland striving to provide themselves with renewable sources of energy. There is also innovation in renewable energy with wind powered turbines that pick up and use even the slightest breeze and wobble, turning a crank to generate electricity. There's also thoughts of possibly adding in a means to use water condensation from these, creating electricity for a pump to a cistern of fresh drinking water.
Granted those examples are using technology in general and not exclusively computer programming or computer sciences. They do though represent the lay person thinking in different ways to solve problems with highly practical means. Give the lay person further access to more efficient technology, computers for example more can surely be done.
They could use say auto-cad to derive a good method of building rammed earth houses using 3d printing capabilities as well. They already have automated house builders in China doing similar using concrete and or bricks/blocks. They give the 3d printer the design and away it goes, building a house in six hours compared to six months. Again this ultimately is a likely result of a lay person asking "what if", "can it be done"?
Seeing this I also retort to the argument of military action being the only inspiration for innovation. It is not. There is indeed and in fact true altruism still alive and ever hopeful that we can use any and all tools at our disposal in helping to solve some of our greatest problems. You're also in a public forum discussing such a use of technology over the traditional selling of death for profit. People created an alternate way to use nicotine, one that is proven safer thus far. Yes, granted we've had a few stumbling blocks. Nothing though is perfect and even science, technology cannot eliminate the propensity for stupidity.
In short I am suggesting not counting out the lay person. Often, you'll find it is them dealing with a problem, like a systems administrator who writes up a shell script and cron job to run weekly backups, the lay person has to figure out how to keep an electric circuit open to run life saving equipment for a relative, a farmer needing a way to allow access to his farm to the poor of the community but no one else ... that brings innovations to light.
Edited: Cleaned up spacing and a few sloppily typed words. phrases.
