-By Matthew Diasio
If you know a scientist, you probably don’t have to try hard to get most of us to talk about the importance of research in today’s world. Whether it’s discovering the building blocks of matter or developing new treatments for diseases, we’re all working to contribute to society with the knowledge we develop. The federal government has helped fund much of the basic research done in the 20th century. Government funding of basic research is especially important because it enables researchers to study topics that might not have an immediate return on investment to companies. For example, Pfizer recently announced plans to stop Alzheimer research since there have not been major treatment changes in the last 15 years, but the government increased funding for Alzheimer’s and dementia research for the 2019 budget. Even though there may not have been a specific application in mind, the new knowledge produced by basic research can still end up benefiting society in unexpected ways. For instance, many of the technologies in smartphones can be traced back to research either performed or funded by government agencies across the world. CRISPR, a popular system for genetic engineering that may be used to help treat certain diseases, was originally discovered as a result of basic research into how bacteria protect themselves.
The Commonwealth of Virginia is the fourth largest recipient of federal research and development funding, which came out to over 6 billion dollars in the 2018 fiscal year. At UVA, this funding primarily comes from the Department of Health and Human Services (mainly in the form of grants from the National Institutes of Health), followed by the National Science Foundation, and the Departments of Defense, Education, and Energy. This funding has helped establish new initiatives like the UVA Brain Institute and research into topics ranging from preschool readiness to the development of new materials for computers and electronics to investigations of how college students learn by performing research themselves.
In addition to the scientific benefits, this research funding also economically benefits local communities. In 2017, the University of Virginia received $372.4 million for research, and over 70% of that came from the federal government. This research generated $644.5 million annually in economic impact at the local and state level. Federally-funded research laid the groundwork for many of the 50-plus UVA-related start-up companies between 2005 and 2016, generating additional jobs within the community. In 2016, the Charlottesville area was noted as the fastest-growing market for venture capital investment since 2010, and much of this growth has been attributed to academic research at UVA. For instance, in 2015, six of the nine local companies that received venture funding were based at UVA. UVA spin-off companies are helping educators make more effective lesson and school plans, developing new ways to diagnose and treat diseases, and even making better fitting ear plugs. Federally funded research not only benefits society by increasing the knowledge base, but it leads to innovative technology and techniques and generates jobs and revenue for the communities it’s apart of.
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