The Take Back Truth Blog
Why Support Science?
Government support of science through its federal agencies lets the United States lead the world in discovery. Supported discoveries not only ENRICH the human soul--they also fuel LIVE SAVING medical advances and most of the technology we use EVERY DAY.
Industry does not usually support the kind of basic science research America's government has funded for most of the past century. The lead-time for basic research can be decades, but government investment in basic research is estimated to have at least a six-fold return, economically--so cutting it is an extraordinarily bad move for our country's finances.
NASA put Americans on the Moon
The Apollo missions to the Moon cost taxpayers about $26 billion in 1960s dollars.
They inspired everyone on Earth, including many of today's science and technology leaders.
Investment in Apollo made the US the world-leader in space exploration, and it jump-started the US microelectronics industry , advanced MRI and water purification systems, and created a host of today's common technologies, like cordless tools..
Taxpayers investment, about $180 billion in 2025 dollars,, has led to ~$1 trillon in returns so far.
The Apollo program was a downpayment on the digital revolution.
NIH research has decreased death from cardiovascular disease by ~70% since the 1960s
Taxpayer-supported efforts by National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported researchers have led to remarkable prevention strategies and treatments for stroke and heart disease.
In 1969, the age-adjusted death rate for heart disease was ~520 per 100,000. By 2019, it had dropped to ~165 per 100,000.
That’s a drop of ~68%.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) enabled most of what you think of as the Internet.
Every time you stream a show, find a job online, have a video chat, or use a business' website—you're benefiting from taxpayers' investment in NSF.
NSF funded the NSFNET in the 1980s, a nationwide computer network that connected US universities and researchers. NSFNET evolved into the backbone of today’s commercial internet.
NSF supported basic research in computer networking, along with the early development of web browsers, search engines, and the cybersecurity systems that let you speedily and safely use the web every day.