Frequently Asked Questions About US Government Funding for R&D

This article will be updated as the state of the academic literature evolves; you can read the latest version here.Table of ContentsHow much does the US federal government spend on R&D?What kind of R&D does the government fund?What’s a reasonable guess at the average return on investment (ROI) of R&D?Has the average ROI of R&D spending changed over time?What’s a reasonable guess at the marginal, rather than average, ROI of government R&D?Is government support for R&D self-financing?Can private s...