Leaders | Scientific methods

To supercharge science, first experiment with how it is funded

Too much of researchers’ time is spent filling in forms

Two individuals touching a dollar sign constructed from interconnected molecules — Image: Ryan Gillett

Nov 16th 2023

The transformation unleashed by increased funding for science during the 20th century is nothing short of remarkable. In the early 1900s research was a cottage industry mostly funded by private firms and philanthropy. Thomas Edison electrified the world from his industrial lab at Menlo Park, and the Carnegie Corporation was the principal backer of Edwin Hubble. Advances in science during the second world war—from the development of radar to the atom bomb—led governments and companies to scale things up. By the mid-1960s America’s federal government was spending 0.6% of gdp on research funding and the share of overall investment in research and development rose to nearly 3%. Inventions including the internet, GPS and space telescopes followed.

This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “Time to experiment ”