The U.S. share of global science and technology activity has shrunk in some areas even as absolute activity has continued to grow, as China and other Asian countries have invested in science and engineering education and increased their research spending.
That's one of the main takeaways of the "State of U.S. Science and Engineering" 2020 report, published by the National Science Board Wednesday. The report has historically been published every other year, but starting with this year's edition, the NSB is transitioning its format from a single report published every two years to a series of shorter reports issued more frequently.
"While the U.S. remains a leading player, other countries have seen the benefits of investing in research and education and are following our example," said Julia Phillips, chair of the NSB Science and Engineering Policy Committee. "While China is not the only story, its dramatic annual rate of R&D [research and development] growth is impressive. Other countries have seen the benefits of investing in research, and China is on a path to shortly become the world's largest R&D performer.
National Science Board report finds US dominance in science is slipping
State of U.S. Science and Engineering - 2020 report
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday January 19 2020, @02:43PM (1 child)
The individuals on the left that oppose research are few and far between compared with the right and they mostly don't have any political clout. And they don't generally oppose anywhere near the amount of research that the ones on the right do. What's more, it tends to be based in actual understanding rather than fear of proving something they don't want to be true.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday January 19 2020, @03:56PM
Sure. I present the Precautionary Principle and its widespread use as a counterexample.