The world would not be as we know it today without the advances in science and engineering. Arguably, research is an expensive passion for scientists, and a costly investment for governments and industry alike. Even then, scientific progress is one of the most stable currencies a country can operate with in the current unstable markets.

But how exactly expensive it is to make science? And more importantly, how expensive it is to make good science? We know well who the big spenders in scientific research are – USA, China, recently India, Japan, and of course the multi-billion pharma and chemical companies. Obviously European economies cannot spend as much as The Big Brother, but nonetheless, there are some countries that manage to set aside a significant amount of money to inject in their scientific programs.

But how much cash are exactly countries in Europe spending on science? And do governments meet the private sector to? It’s well known that money follow money, so naturally, where there are investments in scientific development from the state, very soon private money follow. There are extremes in Europe in this too – some of the stronger economies invest in science, some invest in education, and some barely incest anything. Does the number for educated professionals meet the market needs? Here’s an interesting iconographic to give you some of the bare numbers, so you could ponder on the questions that arise from it!