Communications of the ACM
Institutions of Higher Education Perform About Half of Basic Research in U.s.
Credit: Techdigest.tv
Institutions of higher education, the major source of the United States' scientists and engineers, perform about one-half of the nation's basic research. Therefore, the level, distribution, and characteristics of federal academic support are of much interest to officials at federal, state, and local levels in non-governmental sectors.
The latest information on federal support for basic research was published this week in a National Science Foundation (NSF) report. "Federal Science and Engineering Support to Universities, Colleges, and Nonprofit Institutions: Fiscal Year 2008" provides the full set of detailed tables associated with "Federal Obligations for Science and Engineering to Universities and Colleges Show Little Growth," a report published earlier this year.
The National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended, requires that the NSF "initiate and maintain a program for the determination of the total amount of money for scientific and engineering research, including money allocated for the construction of the facilities wherein such research is conducted, received by each educational institution and appropriate nonprofit organization in the United States, by grant, contract, or other arrangement from agencies of the federal government, and to report annually thereon to the President and the Congress."
To fulfill this requirement, the NSF uses the data collection system originally designed by the Committee on Academic Science and Engineering of the Federal Council for Science and Technology. NSF annually collects statistical data from the 19 federal agencies that account for virtually all support for science and engineering (S&E) research and development at educational institutions. Data are also collected on these agencies' obligations to non-profit institutions.
Since its inception, this survey system has been the sole source of data on federal funding to individual institutions for S&E activities and therefore attracts a wide audience. These data provide information that enables users to examine patterns of support for individual institutions over time and to compare such patterns with those of other institutions.
Additional reports and other materials are available at the NSF's National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics.
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