Science policy
Encyclopedia
Science policy is an area of public policy
concerned with the policies that affect the conduct of the science and research enterprise, including the funding of science
, often in pursuance of other national policy goals such as technological innovation to promote commercial product development, weapons development, health care and environmental monitoring. Science policy also refers to the act of applying scientific knowledge and consensus to the development of public policies.
Science policy thus deals with the entire domain of issues that involve the natural science
s. In accordance with public policy being concerned about the well-being of its citizens, science policy's goal is to consider how science and technology can best serve the public.
policy
has influenced the funding of public works
and science for thousands of years, dating at least from the time of the Mohists, who inspired the study of logic during the period of the Hundred Schools of Thought
, and the study of defensive fortifications during the Warring States Period
in China. General levies of labor and grain were collected to fund great public works in China, including the accumulation of grain for distribution in times of famine, for the building of levees to control flooding by the great rivers of China, for the building of canals and locks to connect rivers of China, some of which flowed in opposite directions to each other, and for the building of bridges across these rivers. These projects required a civil service
, the scholars
, some of whom demonstrated great mastery of hydraulics
.
In Italy, Galileo noted that individual taxation of minute amounts could fund large sums to the State, which could then fund his research on the trajectory of cannonballs, noting that "each individual soldier was being paid from coin collected by a general tax of pennies and farthings, while even a million of gold would not suffice to pay the entire army."
In Great Britain
, Lord Chancellor
Sir Francis Bacon had a formative effect on science policy with his identification of "experiments of .. light, more penetrating into nature [than what others know]", which today we call the crucial experiment. Governmental approval of the Royal Society recognized a scientific community
which exists to this day. British prizes for research spurred the development of an accurate, portable chronometer
, which directly enabled reliable navigation and sailing on the high seas, and also funded Babbage's computer.
The professionalization of science, begun in the nineteenth century, was partly enabled by the creation of scientific organizations such as the National Academy of Sciences
, the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute
, and State funding of universities of their respective nations. In the United States, a member of the National Academy of Sciences can sponsor a Direct Submission for publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
. PNAS serves as a channel to recognize research of importance to at least one member of the National Academy of Sciences.
Public policy can directly affect the funding of capital equipment, intellectual infrastructure for industrial research, by providing tax incentives to those organizations who fund research. Vannevar Bush
, director of the office of scientific research and development for the U.S. government in July 1945, wrote "Science is a proper concern of government" Vannevar Bush directed the forerunner of the National Science Foundation
, and his writings directly inspired researchers to invent the hyperlink
and the computer mouse. The DARPA initiative to support computing was the impetus for the Internet Protocol
stack. In the same way that scientific consortiums like CERN
for high-energy physics have a commitment to public knowledge, access to this public knowledge in physics led directly to CERN's sponsorship of development of the World Wide Web
and standard Internet access for all.
, applied research
, development
, and facilities and equipment. Translational research
is a newer concept that seeks to bridge the gap between basic science and practical applications.
Basic science attempts to stimulate breakthroughs. Breakthroughs often lead to an explosion of new technologies and approaches. Once the basic result is developed, it is widely published; however conversion into a practical product is left for the free market. However, many governments have developed risk-taking research and development organizations to take basic theoretical research over the edge into practical engineering
. In the U.S.
, this function is performed by DARPA.
On the other hand, technology development is a policy in which engineering, the application of science, is supported rather than basic science. The emphasis is usually given to projects that increase important strategic or commercial engineering knowledge. The most extreme success story is doubtless the Manhattan Project
that developed nuclear weapon
s. Another remarkable success story was the "X-vehicle" studies that gave the US a lasting lead in aerospace technologies.
These exemplify two disparate approaches: The Manhattan Project was huge, and spent unblinkingly on the most risky alternative approaches. The project members believed that failure would result in their enslavement or destruction by Nazi Germany
. Each X-project built an aircraft whose only purpose was to develop a particular technology. The plan was to build a few cheap aircraft of each type, fly a test series, often to the destruction of an aircraft, and never design an aircraft for a practical mission. The only mission was technology development.
A number of high-profile technology developments have failed. The US Space Shuttle failed to meet its cost or flight schedule goals. Most observers explain the project as over constrained: the cost goals too aggressive, the technology and mission too underpowered and undefined.
The Japanese fifth generation computer systems project met every technological goal, but failed to produce commercially-important artificial intelligence
. Many observers believe that the Japanese tried to force engineering beyond available science by brute investment. Half the amount spent on basic research rather might have produced ten times the result.
policies prioritize scientific projects that significantly reduce suffering
for larger numbers of people. This approach would mainly consider the numbers of people that can be helped by a research policy. Research is more likely to be supported when it costs less and has greater benefits. Utilitarian research often pursues incremental improvements rather than dramatic advancements in knowledge, or break-through solutions, which are more commercially viable.
In contrast, monumental science is a policy in which science is supported for the sake of a greater understanding of the universe, rather than for specific short-term practical goals. This designation covers both large projects, often with large facilities, and smaller research that does not have obvious practical applications and are often overlooked. While these projects may not always have obvious practical outcomes, they provide education of future scientists, and advancement of scientific knowledge of lasting worth about the basic building blocks of science.
Practical outcomes do result from many of these "monumental" science programs. Sometimes these practical outcomes are foreseeable and sometimes they are not. A classic example of a monumental science program focused towards a practical outcome is the Manhattan project
. An example of a monumental science program that produces unexpected practical outcome is the laser
. Coherent light, the principle behind lasing, was first predicted by Einstein in 1916, but not created until 1954 by Charles H. Townes with the maser
. The breakthrough with the maser led to the creation of the laser in 1960 by Theodore Maiman. The delay between the theory of coherent light and the production of the laser was partially due to the assumption that it would be of no practical use.
prevented mass famine over the last thirty years. The focus, unsurprisingly, is usually on developing a robust curriculum and inexpensive practical methods to meet local needs.
provide considerable funds (primarily to universities) for scientific research (in fields such as physics
and geology
) as well as social science research (in fields such as economics
and history
). Much of this is not intended to provide concrete results that may be commercialisable, although research in scientific fields may lead to results that have such potential. Most university research is aimed at gaining publication in peer review
ed academic journal
s.
A funding body is an organisation that provides research funding
in the form of research grants or scholarship
s. Research councils are funding bodies that are government-funded agencies engaged in the support of research in different disciplines and postgraduate funding. Funding from research councils is typically competitive. As a general rule, more funding is available in science and engineering disciplines than in the arts and social sciences.
, the two main research councils are the Australian Research Council
and the National Health and Medical Research Council
.
, the three main research councils are the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council
, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
. Additional research funding agencies include the Canada Foundation for Innovation
, Genome Canada, the Networks of Centres of Excellence http://www.nce.gc.ca/ partnerships between university, government and industry, the Minister of Research and Innovation (Ontario)
, and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSFHR) http://www.msfhr.org.
is carried out through the European Research Area
, a system which integrates the scientific resources of member nations and acts as a "common market" for research and innovation. The European Union's executive body, the European Commission
, has a Directorate-General for Research
, which is responsible for the Union's science policy. In addition, the Joint Research Centre provides independent scientific and technical advice to the European Commission and Member States of the European Union
(EU) in support of EU policies. There is also the recently-established European Research Council
, the first European Union funding body
set up to support investigator-driven research.
There are also European science agencies that operate independently of the European Union, such as the European Science Foundation
, European Space Agency
, and the European Higher Education Area
created by the Bologna process
.
, which covers both science
and humanities
.
Other funding authorities are the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO), the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Department of Ocean Development (DOD), the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR), and the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MEF) etc.
.
(NWO) http://nwo.nl/ and Agentschap NL http://www.agentschapnl.nl/.
was established in January 2007 by Ministry of IT, Government of Pakistan with the vision to transform Pakistan's economy into a knowledge based economy by promoting efficient, sustainable and effective ICT initiatives through synergic development of industrial and academic resources.
(SNSF) http://www.snf.ch/E/Pages/default.aspx, the innovation promotion agency CTI (CTI/KTI) http://www.bbt.admin.ch/kti/index.html?lang=en, Ressortforschung des Bundes http://www.ressortforschung.admin.ch/, and Eidgenössische Stiftungsaufsicht http://www.edi.admin.ch/esv/.
, there are seven grant-awarding Research Councils:
has a long history of government support for science and technology. Science policy in the United States is the responsibility of many organizations throughout the federal government
. Much of the large-scale policy is made through the legislative budget process
of enacting the yearly federal budget
. Further decisions are made by the various federal agencies which spend the funds allocated by Congress, either on in-house research or by granting funds to outside organizations and researchers.
Research funding agencies in the United States are spread among many different departments, which include:
Public policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
concerned with the policies that affect the conduct of the science and research enterprise, including the funding of science
Funding of science
Through history, the systems of economic support for scientists and their work have been important determinants of the character and pace of scientific research. The ancient foundations of the sciences were driven by practical and religious concerns and or the pursuit of philosophy more generally...
, often in pursuance of other national policy goals such as technological innovation to promote commercial product development, weapons development, health care and environmental monitoring. Science policy also refers to the act of applying scientific knowledge and consensus to the development of public policies.
Science policy thus deals with the entire domain of issues that involve the natural science
Natural science
The natural sciences are branches of science that seek to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world by using empirical and scientific methods...
s. In accordance with public policy being concerned about the well-being of its citizens, science policy's goal is to consider how science and technology can best serve the public.
History
StateState (polity)
A state is an organized political community, living under a government. States may be sovereign and may enjoy a monopoly on the legal initiation of force and are not dependent on, or subject to any other power or state. Many states are federated states which participate in a federal union...
policy
Policy
A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done, this is normally referred to as either procedure or protocol...
has influenced the funding of public works
Public works
Public works are a broad category of projects, financed and constructed by the government, for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community...
and science for thousands of years, dating at least from the time of the Mohists, who inspired the study of logic during the period of the Hundred Schools of Thought
Hundred Schools of Thought
The Hundred Schools of Thought were philosophers and schools that flourished from 770 to 221 BC during the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period , an era of great cultural and intellectual expansion in China...
, and the study of defensive fortifications during the Warring States Period
Warring States Period
The Warring States Period , also known as the Era of Warring States, or the Warring Kingdoms period, covers the Iron Age period from about 475 BC to the reunification of China under the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC...
in China. General levies of labor and grain were collected to fund great public works in China, including the accumulation of grain for distribution in times of famine, for the building of levees to control flooding by the great rivers of China, for the building of canals and locks to connect rivers of China, some of which flowed in opposite directions to each other, and for the building of bridges across these rivers. These projects required a civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
, the scholars
Scholar-bureaucrats
Scholar-officials or Scholar-bureaucrats were civil servants appointed by the emperor of China to perform day-to-day governance from the Sui Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1912, China's last imperial dynasty. These officials mostly came from the well-educated men known as the...
, some of whom demonstrated great mastery of hydraulics
Hydraulics
Hydraulics is a topic in applied science and engineering dealing with the mechanical properties of liquids. Fluid mechanics provides the theoretical foundation for hydraulics, which focuses on the engineering uses of fluid properties. In fluid power, hydraulics is used for the generation, control,...
.
In Italy, Galileo noted that individual taxation of minute amounts could fund large sums to the State, which could then fund his research on the trajectory of cannonballs, noting that "each individual soldier was being paid from coin collected by a general tax of pennies and farthings, while even a million of gold would not suffice to pay the entire army."
In Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
Sir Francis Bacon had a formative effect on science policy with his identification of "experiments of .. light, more penetrating into nature [than what others know]", which today we call the crucial experiment. Governmental approval of the Royal Society recognized a scientific community
Scientific community
The scientific community consists of the total body of scientists, its relationships and interactions. It is normally divided into "sub-communities" each working on a particular field within science. Objectivity is expected to be achieved by the scientific method...
which exists to this day. British prizes for research spurred the development of an accurate, portable chronometer
Chronometer
Chronometer may refer to:* Chronometer watch, a watch tested and certified to meet certain precision standards* Hydrochronometer, a water clock* Marine chronometer, a timekeeper used for celestial navigation...
, which directly enabled reliable navigation and sailing on the high seas, and also funded Babbage's computer.
The professionalization of science, begun in the nineteenth century, was partly enabled by the creation of scientific organizations such as the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
, the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute
Kaiser Wilhelm Institute
The Kaiser Wilhelm Society for the Advancement of Science was a German scientific institution established in 1911. It was implicated in Nazi science, and after the Second World War was wound up and its functions replaced by the Max Planck Society...
, and State funding of universities of their respective nations. In the United States, a member of the National Academy of Sciences can sponsor a Direct Submission for publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, usually referred to as PNAS, is the official journal of the United States National Academy of Sciences...
. PNAS serves as a channel to recognize research of importance to at least one member of the National Academy of Sciences.
Public policy can directly affect the funding of capital equipment, intellectual infrastructure for industrial research, by providing tax incentives to those organizations who fund research. Vannevar Bush
Vannevar Bush
Vannevar Bush was an American engineer and science administrator known for his work on analog computing, his political role in the development of the atomic bomb as a primary organizer of the Manhattan Project, the founding of Raytheon, and the idea of the memex, an adjustable microfilm viewer...
, director of the office of scientific research and development for the U.S. government in July 1945, wrote "Science is a proper concern of government" Vannevar Bush directed the forerunner of the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
, and his writings directly inspired researchers to invent the hyperlink
Hyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink is a reference to data that the reader can directly follow, or that is followed automatically. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text with hyperlinks...
and the computer mouse. The DARPA initiative to support computing was the impetus for the Internet Protocol
Internet Protocol
The Internet Protocol is the principal communications protocol used for relaying datagrams across an internetwork using the Internet Protocol Suite...
stack. In the same way that scientific consortiums like CERN
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , is an international organization whose purpose is to operate the world's largest particle physics laboratory, which is situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border...
for high-energy physics have a commitment to public knowledge, access to this public knowledge in physics led directly to CERN's sponsorship of development of the World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
and standard Internet access for all.
Basic versus applied research
The programs that are funded are often divided into four basic categories: basic researchBasic Research
Basic Research is an herbal supplement and cosmetics manufacturer based in Salt Lake City, Utah that distributes products through a large number of subsidiaries. In addition, their products are sold domestically and internationally through a number of high-end retailers. Dennis Gay is the...
, applied research
Applied research
Applied research is a form of systematic inquiry involving the practical application of science. It accesses and uses some part of the research communities' accumulated theories, knowledge, methods, and techniques, for a specific, often state, business, or client driven purpose...
, development
Research and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...
, and facilities and equipment. Translational research
Translational research
Translational research is a way of thinking about and conducting scientific research to make the results of research applicable to the population under study and is practised in the natural and biological, behavioural, and social sciences...
is a newer concept that seeks to bridge the gap between basic science and practical applications.
Basic science attempts to stimulate breakthroughs. Breakthroughs often lead to an explosion of new technologies and approaches. Once the basic result is developed, it is widely published; however conversion into a practical product is left for the free market. However, many governments have developed risk-taking research and development organizations to take basic theoretical research over the edge into practical engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
. In the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, this function is performed by DARPA.
On the other hand, technology development is a policy in which engineering, the application of science, is supported rather than basic science. The emphasis is usually given to projects that increase important strategic or commercial engineering knowledge. The most extreme success story is doubtless the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
that developed nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s. Another remarkable success story was the "X-vehicle" studies that gave the US a lasting lead in aerospace technologies.
These exemplify two disparate approaches: The Manhattan Project was huge, and spent unblinkingly on the most risky alternative approaches. The project members believed that failure would result in their enslavement or destruction by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. Each X-project built an aircraft whose only purpose was to develop a particular technology. The plan was to build a few cheap aircraft of each type, fly a test series, often to the destruction of an aircraft, and never design an aircraft for a practical mission. The only mission was technology development.
A number of high-profile technology developments have failed. The US Space Shuttle failed to meet its cost or flight schedule goals. Most observers explain the project as over constrained: the cost goals too aggressive, the technology and mission too underpowered and undefined.
The Japanese fifth generation computer systems project met every technological goal, but failed to produce commercially-important artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
. Many observers believe that the Japanese tried to force engineering beyond available science by brute investment. Half the amount spent on basic research rather might have produced ten times the result.
Utilitarian versus monumental science policy
UtilitarianUtilitarianism
Utilitarianism is an ethical theory holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes the overall "happiness", by whatever means necessary. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined only by its resulting outcome, and that one can...
policies prioritize scientific projects that significantly reduce suffering
Suffering
Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, is an individual's basic affective experience of unpleasantness and aversion associated with harm or threat of harm. Suffering may be qualified as physical or mental. It may come in all degrees of intensity, from mild to intolerable. Factors of duration and...
for larger numbers of people. This approach would mainly consider the numbers of people that can be helped by a research policy. Research is more likely to be supported when it costs less and has greater benefits. Utilitarian research often pursues incremental improvements rather than dramatic advancements in knowledge, or break-through solutions, which are more commercially viable.
In contrast, monumental science is a policy in which science is supported for the sake of a greater understanding of the universe, rather than for specific short-term practical goals. This designation covers both large projects, often with large facilities, and smaller research that does not have obvious practical applications and are often overlooked. While these projects may not always have obvious practical outcomes, they provide education of future scientists, and advancement of scientific knowledge of lasting worth about the basic building blocks of science.
Practical outcomes do result from many of these "monumental" science programs. Sometimes these practical outcomes are foreseeable and sometimes they are not. A classic example of a monumental science program focused towards a practical outcome is the Manhattan project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
. An example of a monumental science program that produces unexpected practical outcome is the laser
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
. Coherent light, the principle behind lasing, was first predicted by Einstein in 1916, but not created until 1954 by Charles H. Townes with the maser
Maser
A maser is a device that produces coherent electromagnetic waves through amplification by stimulated emission. Historically, “maser” derives from the original, upper-case acronym MASER, which stands for "Microwave Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation"...
. The breakthrough with the maser led to the creation of the laser in 1960 by Theodore Maiman. The delay between the theory of coherent light and the production of the laser was partially due to the assumption that it would be of no practical use.
Big Science versus small science
Government versus academic control of research direction
Scholastic conservation
This policy approach prioritizes efficiently teaching all available science to those who can use it, rather than investing in new science. In particular, the goal is not to lose any existing knowledge, and to find new practical ways to apply the available knowledge. The classic success stories of this method occurred in the 19th century U.S. land-grant universities, which established a strong tradition of research in practical agricultural and engineering methods. More recently, the Green RevolutionGreen Revolution
Green Revolution refers to a series of research, development, and technology transfer initiatives, occurring between the 1940s and the late 1970s, that increased agriculture production around the world, beginning most markedly in the late 1960s....
prevented mass famine over the last thirty years. The focus, unsurprisingly, is usually on developing a robust curriculum and inexpensive practical methods to meet local needs.
Science and the public
Science and politics
Science policy by country
Most developed countries usually have a specific national body overseeing national science (including technology and innovation) policy. In the case developing countries many follow the same fashion. Many governments of developed countriesDeveloped country
A developed country is a country that has a high level of development according to some criteria. Which criteria, and which countries are classified as being developed, is a contentious issue...
provide considerable funds (primarily to universities) for scientific research (in fields such as physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
) as well as social science research (in fields such as economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
and history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
). Much of this is not intended to provide concrete results that may be commercialisable, although research in scientific fields may lead to results that have such potential. Most university research is aimed at gaining publication in peer review
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
ed academic journal
Academic journal
An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...
s.
A funding body is an organisation that provides research funding
Research funding
Research funding is a term generally covering any funding for scientific research, in the areas of both "hard" science and technology and social science. The term often connotes funding obtained through a competitive process, in which potential research projects are evaluated and only the most...
in the form of research grants or scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
s. Research councils are funding bodies that are government-funded agencies engaged in the support of research in different disciplines and postgraduate funding. Funding from research councils is typically competitive. As a general rule, more funding is available in science and engineering disciplines than in the arts and social sciences.
Australia
In AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, the two main research councils are the Australian Research Council
Australian Research Council
The Australian Research Council is the Australian Government’s main agency for allocating research funding to academics and researchers in Australian universities. Its mission is to advance Australia’s capacity to undertake research that brings economic, social and cultural benefit to the...
and the National Health and Medical Research Council
National Health and Medical Research Council
The National Health and Medical Research Council is Australia's peak funding body for medical research, with a budget of roughly 700 million dollars a year...
.
Canada
In CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the three main research councils are the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada is an arm of the Canadian federal funding agency. SSHRC supports a wide range of research and scholarship in the social sciences and humanities. The current president of the Council is Chad Gaffield.- History :SSHRC was formally...
, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council
The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada is a Canadian government agency that provides grants for research in the natural sciences and in engineering. Its mandate is to promote and assist research....
, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canadian Institutes of Health Research is the major federal agency responsible for funding health research in Canada. It is the successor to the Medical Research Council of Canada. It aims to create new health knowledge, and to translate that knowledge from the research setting into real world...
. Additional research funding agencies include the Canada Foundation for Innovation
Canada Foundation for Innovation
Created by the Government of Canada in 1997, the Canada Foundation for Innovation strives to build our nation’s capacity to undertake world-class research and technology development to benefit Canadians...
, Genome Canada, the Networks of Centres of Excellence http://www.nce.gc.ca/ partnerships between university, government and industry, the Minister of Research and Innovation (Ontario)
Minister of Research and Innovation (Ontario)
The Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation is a government ministry of the Province of Ontario. The current minister is Glen Murray.-History:...
, and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSFHR) http://www.msfhr.org.
European Union
The science policy of the European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
is carried out through the European Research Area
European Research Area
The European Research Area is a system of scientific research programmes integrating the scientific resources of the European Union . Since its inception in 2000, the structure has been concentrated on multi-national co-operation in the fields of medical, environmental, industrial and...
, a system which integrates the scientific resources of member nations and acts as a "common market" for research and innovation. The European Union's executive body, the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
, has a Directorate-General for Research
Directorate-General for Research (European Commission)
The Directorate-General for Research or DG Research, located in Brussels, is a Directorate-General of the European Commission.- Mission :The Directorate General’s mission is evolving as work on the European Research Area continues...
, which is responsible for the Union's science policy. In addition, the Joint Research Centre provides independent scientific and technical advice to the European Commission and Member States of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
(EU) in support of EU policies. There is also the recently-established European Research Council
European Research Council
The European Research Council is the independent body that funds investigator-driven frontier research in the European Union . It is part of the Seventh Research Framework Programme ....
, the first European Union funding body
Funding of science
Through history, the systems of economic support for scientists and their work have been important determinants of the character and pace of scientific research. The ancient foundations of the sciences were driven by practical and religious concerns and or the pursuit of philosophy more generally...
set up to support investigator-driven research.
There are also European science agencies that operate independently of the European Union, such as the European Science Foundation
European Science Foundation
The European Science Foundation is an association of 78 member organisations devoted to scientific research in 30 European countries. It is an independent, non-governmental, non-profit organisation that facilitates cooperation and collaboration in European research and development, European...
, European Space Agency
European Space Agency
The European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
, and the European Higher Education Area
European Higher Education Area
The European Higher Education Area was launched along with the Bologna Process' decade anniversary, in March 2010, during the Budapest-Vienna Ministerial Conference....
created by the Bologna process
Bologna process
The purpose of the Bologna Process is the creation of the European Higher Education Area by making academic degree standards and quality assurance standards more comparable and compatible throughout Europe, in particular under the Lisbon Recognition Convention...
.
Germany
German research funding agencies include the Deutsche ForschungsgemeinschaftDeutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft is an important German research funding organization and the largest such organization in Europe.-Function:...
, which covers both science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
.
India
Research funding by the Government of India comes from a number of sources. For basic science and technology research, these include the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Science and Technology (DST), and University Grants Commission (UGC). For medical research, these include the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), CSIR, DST and Department of Biotechnology (DBT). For applied research, these include the CSIR, DBT and Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC).Other funding authorities are the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO), the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Department of Ocean Development (DOD), the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR), and the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MEF) etc.
Ireland
Irish funding councils include the Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET), the Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences (IRCHSS), and the Science Foundation IrelandScience Foundation Ireland
Science Foundation Ireland ), is the statutory body in the Republic of Ireland with responsibility for disbursing funds for basic science research with a strategic focus...
.
The Netherlands
Dutch research funding agencies include Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk OnderzoekNederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
The Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek is a scientific research organization in the Netherlands....
(NWO) http://nwo.nl/ and Agentschap NL http://www.agentschapnl.nl/.
Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan has mandated that a certain percentage of gross revenue generated by all telecom service providers be allocated to development and research of information and communication technologies. The National ICT R&D FundNational ICT R&D Fund (Pakistan)
The National ICT R&D Fund was established in January 2007 by Ministry of Information Technology & Telecom, Government of Pakistan. The purpose behind the establishment of this R&D Fund is to support research and development projects proposed by industry and academia...
was established in January 2007 by Ministry of IT, Government of Pakistan with the vision to transform Pakistan's economy into a knowledge based economy by promoting efficient, sustainable and effective ICT initiatives through synergic development of industrial and academic resources.
Switzerland
Swiss research funding agencies include the Swiss National Science FoundationSwiss National Science Foundation
The Swiss National Science Foundation is a science research support organization mandated by the Swiss Federal Government. The SNSF was established in 1952 as a foundation under private law. Its secretariat is based in Bern....
(SNSF) http://www.snf.ch/E/Pages/default.aspx, the innovation promotion agency CTI (CTI/KTI) http://www.bbt.admin.ch/kti/index.html?lang=en, Ressortforschung des Bundes http://www.ressortforschung.admin.ch/, and Eidgenössische Stiftungsaufsicht http://www.edi.admin.ch/esv/.
United Kingdom
In the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, there are seven grant-awarding Research Councils:
- Arts and Humanities Research CouncilArts and Humanities Research CouncilEstablished in April 2005 as successor to the Arts and Humanities Research Board, the Arts and Humanities Research Council is a British Research Council and non-departmental public body that provides approximately £102 million from the Government to support research and postgraduate study in the...
(AHRC) - Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research CouncilBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research CouncilBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council is a UK Research Council and NDPB and is the largest UK public funder of non-medical bioscience...
(BBSRC) - Economic and Social Research CouncilEconomic and Social Research CouncilThe Economic and Social Research Council is one of the seven Research Councils in the United Kingdom. It receives most of its funding from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, and provides funding and support for research and training work in social and economic issues, such as...
(ESRC) - Engineering and Physical Sciences Research CouncilEngineering and Physical Sciences Research CouncilThe Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council is a British Research Council that provides government funding for grants to undertake research and postgraduate degrees in engineering and the physical sciences , mainly to universities in the United Kingdom...
(EPSRC) - Medical Research CouncilMedical Research Council (UK)The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded agency responsible for co-ordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is one of seven Research Councils in the UK and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
(MRC) - Natural Environment Research CouncilNatural Environment Research CouncilThe Natural Environment Research Council is a British research council that supports research, training and knowledge transfer activities in the environmental sciences.-History:...
(NERC) - Particle Physics and Astronomy Research CouncilParticle Physics and Astronomy Research CouncilThe Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council was one of a number of Research Councils in the United Kingdom. It directed, coordinated and funded research in particle physics and astronomy for the people of the UK...
(PPARC) - Science and Technology Facilities CouncilScience and Technology Facilities CouncilThe Science and Technology Facilities Council is a UK government body that carries out civil research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including particle physics, nuclear physics, space science and astronomy .-History:It was formed in April 2007 as a merger of the Particle...
(STFC)
United States
The United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
has a long history of government support for science and technology. Science policy in the United States is the responsibility of many organizations throughout the federal government
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
. Much of the large-scale policy is made through the legislative budget process
United States budget process
The process of creating the budget for the United States government is known as the budget process. The framework used by Congress to formulate the budget was established by the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921, the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, and by other budget...
of enacting the yearly federal budget
United States federal budget
The Budget of the United States Government is the President's proposal to the U.S. Congress which recommends funding levels for the next fiscal year, beginning October 1. Congressional decisions are governed by rules and legislation regarding the federal budget process...
. Further decisions are made by the various federal agencies which spend the funds allocated by Congress, either on in-house research or by granting funds to outside organizations and researchers.
Research funding agencies in the United States are spread among many different departments, which include:
- Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
- United States Department of EnergyUnited States Department of EnergyThe United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
Office of Science - National Institutes of HealthNational Institutes of HealthThe National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
: biomedical research - National Science FoundationNational Science FoundationThe National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
: fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. - Office of Naval ResearchOffice of Naval ResearchThe Office of Naval Research , headquartered in Arlington, Virginia , is the office within the United States Department of the Navy that coordinates, executes, and promotes the science and technology programs of the U.S...
See also
- History of science policy
- History of military science
- Politicization of sciencePoliticization of scienceThe politicization of science is the manipulation of science for political gain. It occurs when government, business, or advocacy groups use legal or economic pressure to influence the findings of scientific research or the way it is disseminated, reported or interpreted. The politicization of...
- Office of Science and Technology PolicyOffice of Science and Technology PolicyThe Office of Science and Technology Policy is an office in the Executive Office of the President , established by Congress on May 11, 1976, with a broad mandate to advise the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs.The director of this office is...
- Big ScienceBig ScienceBig Science is a term used by scientists and historians of science to describe a series of changes in science which occurred in industrial nations during and after World War II, as scientific progress increasingly came to rely on large-scale projects usually funded by national governments or groups...
- Haldane principleHaldane principleIn British research policy, the Haldane principle is the idea that decisions about what to spend research funds on should be made by researchers rather than politicians...
- List of books about the politics of science
- Operations ResearchOperations researchOperations research is an interdisciplinary mathematical science that focuses on the effective use of technology by organizations...
- Suppressed research in the Soviet UnionSuppressed research in the Soviet UnionSuppressed research in the Soviet Union refers to scientific fields which were banned in the Soviet Union, usually for ideological reasons. Science and humanities were placed under a strict ideological scrutiny in the Soviet Union. All research was to be founded on the philosophy of dialectical...
- Science and Technology Policy Research (SPRU)
- Science of science policyScience of science policyThe science of science policy is an emerging interdisciplinary research area that seeks to develop theoretical and empirical models of the scientific enterprise...
(SoSP) - List of funding opportunity databases
- The Battelle Center for Science and Technology Policy, OSU