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How is science funded in the U.S.?
According to the
AAAS,
approximately two-thirds of America's
total research and development is done by industry. Universities and
other academic institutions perform another 14%, and the rest is made up of
federal labs, nonprofit institutions, and federally funded R&D centers (ie, contractors). See here for the report.
As far as federally funded research is concerned, 36% of
it is done by industry labs under contract, universities and other academic
institutions comprise 25%, internal government labs get 24%, and the rest is
made up of federally funded R&D centers (ie,
contractors) and other groups. Look at the AAAS webpage for a nice pie
chart.
One final note: the federal budget does not have one
single "science" category. Instead, science is funded by many
different government agencies, for a myriad of reasons. For example,
the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health
and the Department of Defense
(among others) fund scientists to do both basic and more targeted/clinical
research. One of the themes emerging from this webpage is that these
different government agencies compete for dollars in the federal
budget. Each year, some win and some lose, and this has consequences
for the sort of science practiced in the U.S.
AAAS Analysis of the current budget.
This is THE site for analysis on the current U.S. Federal science budget.
Some United States Government Funding Agencies
Department of Energy
National Science Foundation
National
Institute of Health
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
United
States Environmental Protection Agency
Additional Funding Resources
Community of Science A searchable collection of funding
information with more than 23,000 records, representing over 400,000 funding
opportunities, worth over $33 billion.
CRISP
The searchable database of federally funded biomedical research grants. Most
of the listed grants were awarded by the NIH.
The "Neuroscience for Kids" explanation of scientific
grant funding. While this page is targeted towards
children, it's an accurate and humorous portrayal of the U.S. funding system,
especially for biomedical scientists.
GrantsNet. Science Magazine's
grant funding source. This page is intended for working scientists.
Opinion Pieces
Commentary by Sean M. O’Connor, an
assistant professor at the University of Washington School of Law and
associate director of the Center for Advanced Studies and Research on
Intellectual Property. O’Connor
comments on the passage of Prop. 71 in California,
allowing $3M for stem cell research.
This page maintained by
John Meitzen,
FOSEP member and
Graduate Student in the Neurobiology and Behavior Program at the
University of
Washington,
Seattle,
WA
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U.S.
AAAS Center for Science, Technology and Congress – A
very useful starting point for investigating current science policy issues.
AAAS
R&D Budget and
Policy Program – THE
website for keeping track of current U.S. Federal science funding.
The "Neuroscience
for Kids" explanation of scientific grant funding – This
page is targeted towards children, it's an accurate and humorous portrayal of
the U.S. funding system, especially for biomedical scientists.
European
The British Royal
Society's "Science Base and Governance" page – For
those interested in British Science Funding Policy.
The
Deutsch
Forschumgsgemeinschaft – The
German Research Foundation website, including information on German science
funding.
The European Science
Foundation – Lots of
information of European science funding issues.
Canadian
The National Research Council of Canada –
Canada's premier R&D organization.
The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council – The
other big Canadian science federal agency.
"science.ca" –
Not exclusively science
funding website. However, it contains lots of great information about Canadian
science.
In keeping with FOSEP’s
non-advocacy status, FOSEP does not endorse any particular position or
organization. This page is intended to be a “clearinghouse
of information”
Last updated
08/17/06
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