profound and necessary truth

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

It is a profound and necessary truth that deep things in science are not found because they are useful; they are found because it was possible to find them.

  1. What is “profound and necessary truth”? Is there any other way to express it?

He could be held very nominally responsible for the consequences of the task.

  1. Does the above sentence mean “He is hardly responsible for the consequences of the task.”?
2

  1. irrefutable; absolute

  2. It means he is very slightly responsible for the consequences.