astronomy and environmental sciences are not 

 included because of the lack of acceptably relia- 

 ble data.)'^ Although the overall trend is a reduc- 

 tion in the level of research support per scientist 

 and engineer, the funds for some fields declined 

 much more than others. Research funds per 

 physicist, for example, declined by 35 percent 

 between 1966-72, while funds per social scien- 

 tist changed little even though the number of 

 such scientists increased rapidly. 



The number of scientists and engineers en- 

 gaged in research and development (on a full- 

 time-equivalent basis) declined slightly between 

 lOO'^ and 1971. This may represent a reduction 

 in the average time devoted to R&D by the staff 

 as a whole and/or a reduction in the number of 

 staff engaged in any R&D at all. The available 

 data are not sufficient to resolve this ambiguity. 

 Moreover, it is generally difficult to accurately 

 separate the time devoted to research from other 

 academic activities. 



The proportion of the Ph.D. science staff in 

 these institutions receiving Federal support and 

 engaged in basic research is shown in figure 28 

 for several scientific fields." The figure indicates 

 that the proportion of Ph.D. academic staff who 

 were wholly or in part supported by the Federal 

 Government and devoted some portion of their 

 time to basic research^ was 57 percent in 1970, 

 down from 69 percent in 1964 and 1966. The 

 largest decreases were in mathematics, chemis- 

 try, psychology, and physics. 



Research support for young investigators" is 

 of particular interest as an indicator, since the 

 progress and quality of future research and 

 innovation depend increasingly on individuals 

 from this group. Federal support for young 



■^ It should be noted that the considerable variation in the 

 level of funding among fields reflects, among other factors, 

 differences in the cost of research associated with each field; 

 some fields, for example, require extensive equipment for re- 

 search while others require little. 



" Included are Ph.D.'s employed by academic institutions 

 who indicated that basic research was their first or second 

 work activity. In IPyO, these persons accounted for about 75 

 percent of all academic Ph.D.'s. 



" These data are based on responses to the National 

 Register of Scientific and Technical Personnel for the years 

 1964, 1066, 1908, and 1970. It is estimated that the responses 

 account for approximately 80 percent of the Ph.D. scientists 

 employed by universities and colleges. 



' Defined as those employed by colleges and universities 

 who have held the Ph.D. less than seven years and who re- 

 ported their primary or secondary work activity as basic 

 research. 



Figure 28 



Proportion of Ph.D. Academic Staff in Science 

 Receiving Federal Support and Engaged in 

 Basic Research, by Field, 1964-70 



25 - 



1964 '66 



SOURCE: National Science Foundatton 



investigators engaged in basic research de- 

 creased in recent years, falling from 64 percent 

 in 1964 to 50 percent in 1970 (figure 29). While 

 the proportion of senior investigators receiving 

 such support also declined, the reduction was 

 not so large as for the young investigators. 

 Moreover, proportionally fewer young re- 

 searchers obtained Federal support in certain 

 fields (as indicated in figure 30), especially in 

 mathematics, social sciences, and psychology, 

 where the ratio of young to senior basic re- 



41 



507-194 O - 73 ■ 



