Forget all the hand-waving about the glorious successes of past breakthroughs—the real justification for research investment is what we get for our money. Here’s what economists say.

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MIT Technology Review

Economists have developed new methods to measure the return on investment (ROI) of R&D spending, finding that government-funded research delivers exceptional returns. Studies show that investing $1 in R&D yields about $5 in economic returns, with public R&D responsible for 20-25% of private-sector productivity growth since WWII. Public research creates three times more productivity spillovers than private R&D because it focuses on fundamental science. Despite these strong returns, federal R&D funding has declined to just 0.6% of GDP, its lowest level in 70 years, while proposed budget cuts threaten to further reduce scientific investment.

How to measure the returns to R&D spending