tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post2432406506387779093..comments2024-03-19T07:10:27.303-07:00Comments on Quark Soup by David Appell: Private Funding of $cienceDavid Appellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-24690165280852594742014-03-16T01:31:05.107-07:002014-03-16T01:31:05.107-07:00David: Do you really believe that funding for bas...David: Do you really believe that funding for basic science research has dropped 25% ($10B) since 2009 simply because this "fact" was published in the NYT? Isn't it worth checking such sensational information before repeating it? It turns out that the Obama stimulus plan included an extra $10B for the administration's favorite science programs that has all been spent Most of the whining about closed labs and job losses arises from the end of this one-time stimulus spending. Such temporary funding is a lousy way to build science programs AND an inefficient way to stimulate the economy. <br /><br />According to the AAAS, the extra $10B was spent in 2010, not 2009, so the NYT article may be factually wrong - in addition to reporting misleading cherry-picked information. Except for 2010, funding for basic research has remained constant in real terms at $30B-$33B (2013 dollars) since 2003. <br /><br />www.aaas.org/sites/default/files/migrate/uploads/BasicRes.jpg<br />www.aaas.org/page/guide-rd-funding-data-–-historical-data<br /><br />Total spending on R&D is about $140B PER YEAR, or about the TOTAL fortunes of the four richest men in the group who are allegedly "privatizing" American science. Of course, this is nothing new; rich Americans have always supported science. The first 100-inch telescope (Mt WIlson) was funded by Carnegie, the first 200-inch telescope (Palomar) by Rockefeller, and the first 10-meter telescopes (Mauna Kea) by Keck two decades ago. Now we are supposed to be concerned because Gordon Moore is funding the first 30-meter telescope??? Frank1123581321https://www.blogger.com/profile/10763365898155961918noreply@blogger.com