dollars. Federal funding for basic research 

 reached a maximum in 1968 and declined a total 

 of 13 percent by 1974. In spite of the slowed 

 growth in current dollars, the Federal Govern- 

 ment provided 70 percent of all funds expended 

 by the academic sector for basic research in 

 1974 — down, however, from the high of 77 

 percent which prevailed between 1964-67. 



Funds provided by "All other sources"' ■■ for 

 basic research in figure 3-7 increased in both 

 current and constant dollars until 1972 — thus 

 replacing stime of the reduced Federal support — 

 before declining 1 1 percent in constant dollars by 

 1974. These sources of support accounted for 27 

 percent of the total support for basic research in 

 these institutions in 1974. 



was in these fields. About one-fourth of the total 

 expenditures was divided almost equally 

 between engineering and the physical sciences 

 (principally physics and chemistry), while the 

 social sciences received 8 percent and en- 

 vironmental sciences 7 percent of the total 

 (Appendix table 3-8). 



In current dollars, basic research expenditures 

 increased between 1973 and 1974 in all areas 

 except engineering. In constant dollars, 

 however, a reduction in basic research spending 

 was recorded in all fields other than the 

 environmental sciences and clinical medicine, 

 with the largest declines occurring in engineer- 

 ing and the biological sciences. 



Basic research in fields of science 



Estimates of total academic expenditures for 

 basic research in selected fields of science are 

 presented in figure 3-8. i^ These estimates are 

 based upon a survey conducted by the National 

 Science Foundation in which universities and 

 colleges report their total research and develop- 

 ment expenditures for each of several fields of 

 science, as well as the percentages of the total 

 R&D expenditures (over all fields combined) 

 which are given to basic research, applied 

 research, and development. This information is 

 correlated with other factors — such as the 

 source of the research support and the type of 

 academic institution which performed the 

 research — in deriving the estimates of expen- 

 ditures for basic research in the individual 

 scientific fields. Because these data are es- 

 timates, and may differ from actual expen- 

 ditures, they should be regarded only as ap- 

 proximations.'" 



The six broad areas of scientific research 

 indicated in figure 3-8 received almost 90 

 percent of all expenditures for basic research in 

 universities and colleges in 1974.15 Expenditures 

 for fundamental research in these institutions 

 are concentrated in the life science fields of 

 clinical medicine and the biological sciences; 51 

 percent of all basic research expenditures in 1974 



" This includes universities and colleges, State and local 

 governments, and other nonprofit institutions. 



15 See Appendix table 3-8a for a listing of the scientific 

 disciplines encompassed by these broad fields and Appendix 

 table 3-8 for more detailed data for certain disciplines. 



>" The feasibility of obtaining data directly on basic 

 research expenditures in individual fields of science is being 

 investigated and may be attempted in future NSF surveys. 



Federal Government support of basic research 



Current dollar expenditures from Federal 

 Government sources for basic research in 

 universities and colleges increased throughout 

 most of the 1964-74 period for each of the six 

 broad fields of science and engineering, except 

 for a 14 percent decline in engineering expen- 

 ditures from 1973 to 1974 (figure 3-9). i^ 

 Increases in the level of support after 1968, 

 however, were less than increases in inflation in 

 all fields other than the environmental and 

 biological sciences. As a result, the magnitude of 

 the federally funded research effort — as 

 measured by constant dollar expenditures — was 

 lower in 1974 than in some previous year in each 

 of the six fields. The fields with the largest 

 reductions were engineering, the physical 

 sciences, and clinical medicine, which recorded 

 declines of 26, 30, and 10 percent, respectively, 

 between 1968 and 1974 (see Appendix table 3-9). 



The Federal Government, as noted earlier, 

 provided 70 percent of all funds expended by 

 universities and colleges for basic research in 

 1974. The dependence on this source of support, 

 while varying from field to field, declined over 

 the last decade in all fields other than the 

 biological sciences, as shown below: 



!■ These data are estimates based on the same NSFsurvey 

 as the total expenditures for basic research in academic 

 institutions presented in figure 3-8. 



61 



