Federal Science Expenditures and Personnel 2023/2024: Activities in the social sciences, humanities and the arts

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Purpose

This survey collects financial and operating data on expenditures and full-time equivalent personnel on the scientific activities of Federal Government Public Administration in Canada.

Additional information

The data collected are used by federal and provincial science policy analysts, and are also part of the gross domestic expenditures on research and development (GERD). Your information may also be used by Statistics Canada for other statistical and research purposes.

Authority

Collected under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S-19.

Completion of this questionnaire is a legal requirement under this Act.

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Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects which could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Statistics Canada will use the information from this survey for statistical purposes.

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To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data-sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which have agreed to keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to federal departments and agencies located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

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For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Industry Canada.

The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to federal departments and agencies located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

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FSEP - Introduction

This introduction is intended to provide an overview of the process of collecting science expenditure data; definitions of and explanatory notes on natural sciences and engineering, social sciences, humanities and the arts, scientific and technological activities, performance sectors, and other terms used are given in subsequent sections.

The collection of science expenditure data is organized by the Investment, Science and Technology Division (ISTD) of Statistics Canada. This exercise was formerly conducted under the aegis of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat but is now solely a Statistics Canada survey.

Collection is undertaken to gather essential data describing the recent, current and proposed state of the federal resources allocated to science. Federal science expenditures data are provided to Industry Canada who in turn use the data in the development of advice to the Assistant Deputy Ministers' Steering Committee on the Management of S&T, their Minister and the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, as well as in policy development and in monitoring the implementation of science policies. Statistics Canada maintains historical expenditure series in natural sciences and engineering dating back to 1963 and to 1971 in the social sciences, humanities and the arts. These data are available through the Investment, Science and Technology Division (ISTD) or through special requests.

The basic reporting unit is the budgetary program of a department or agency. Each budgetary program forms the subject of separate scientific expenditure reports for the natural and for the social science activities within it. Both the program and the program activities within it may be scientific in whole or in part only. Only expenditures on the scientific components of a program or its activity are reported. In some programs it will be difficult to distinguish between the natural and social sciences. However, some allocation must be made and in determining this allocation, the dominant orientation of the projects and the area of expertise of the personnel involved must be considered. Detailed definitions are given on the following pages.

On the questionnaires, the identified expenditures are looked at from several different viewpoints and in various subdivisions. Expenditures on research and development (R&D) and related scientific activities (RSA) are subdivided to provide an indication of the "what" of a department's scientific effort. Expenditures in each category of scientific activity are further subdivided into "current" and "capital" segments. Current expenditures are additionally subdivided by sector, to indicate the "where" and "by whom" the activity is performed (e.g., in business enterprise, in higher education).

The human resources allocated to scientific activities are summarized in terms of the involved categories of personnel (scientific and professional, technical, etc.) and the principal focus of their efforts (R&D, RSA and, administration of extramural programs).

When completed, checked for consistency with previous reports, entered into the database and totaled along the various dimensions, these data provide snapshots of the federal resources allocated to science, supporting not only the work of central agencies but also the submissions of departments and agencies requesting resources.

Purpose

This survey collects financial and operating data on expenditures and full-time equivalent personnel on the scientific activities of Federal Government Public Administration in Canada.

Question 1: Expenditures by activity and performer

General

The social sciences, humanities and the arts consist of disciplines involving the study of human actions and conditions and the social, economic and institutional mechanisms affecting humans. Included are such disciplines as arts, economics and business, education, history and archaeology, law, language and linguistics, media and communications, philosophy, ethics and religion, psychology and cognitive sciences, social and economic geography, and sociology.

Expenditures by activity and performer

Scientific and technological (S&T) activities can be defined as all systematic activities which are closely concerned with the generation, advancement, dissemination and application of scientific and technology knowledge in all fields of science and technology, that is the natural sciences and engineering, and the social sciences, humanities and the arts.

The central activity is scientific research and experimental development (R&D). In addition there are a number of activities closely related to R&D, and are termed related scientific activities (RSA). Those identified as being appropriate for the federal government in the social sciences, humanities and the arts are: general purpose data collection, information services, special services and studies and education support.

The performer is equivalent to the sector in which the scientific activity is conducted. The basic distinction is between intramural and extramural performance. Extramural payments are classified on the basis of the performance sectors to which they are made. The appropriate extramural performers are business enterprise, higher education, Canadian non-profit institutions, foreign performers, provincial and municipal governments, and other performers.

I. Performers

lntramural activities include all current expenditures incurred for scientific activities carried out by in-house personnel of units assigned to the program; the related gross fixed capital expenditures (acquisition of land, buildings, machinery and equipment for scientific activities); the administration of scientific activities by program employees; and, the purchase of goods and services to support in-house scientific activities (include royalties or licences for the use of patents and other intellectual property rights, the lease of capital goods (machinery and equipment, etc.) and the rental of buildings to support scientific activities performed by the statistical unit in the reference year).

The intramural expenditures reported for scientific activities are those direct costs, including salaries, associated with scientific programs. The costs should include that portion of a program's contribution to employee benefit plans (e.g., superannuation and compensation) which is applicable to the scientific personnel within the program. The summation of intramural R&D activity is synonymous with the performance of R&D for the entire economy (GERD).

Extramural performers are groups being funded by the federal government sector for S&T activities. In this survey the extramural performers include:

  • Business enterprise – business and government enterprises including public utilities and government-owned firms. Both financial and non-financial corporations are included. Incorporated consultants or unincorporated individuals providing scientific and engineering services are also included. Industrial research institutes located at Canadian universities are considered to be in the higher education sector.
  • Higher education – comprises all universities, colleges of technology and other institutes of post-secondary education, whatever their source of finance or legal status. It also includes teaching hospitals (non-teaching hospitals are in the Canadian non-profit sector) all research institutes, centers, experimental stations and clinics that have their scientific activities under the direct control of, or administered by, or associated with, the higher education establishments.
  • Canadian non-profit institutions – charitable foundations, voluntary health organizations, scientific and professional societies, non-teaching hospitals (teaching hospitals are in the higher education sector) and other organizations not established to earn profits. Non-profit institutions primarily serving or controlled by another sector should be included in the controlling sector.
  • Provincial and municipal governments – departments and agencies of these governments as well as provincial research organizations. Government enterprises, such as provincial utilities are included in the business enterprise sector, and non-teaching hospitals in the Canadian non-profit institutions sector.
  • Foreign performers – all foreign government agencies, foreign companies (including foreign subsidiaries of Canadian firms), international organizations, non-resident foreign nationals and Canadians studying or teaching abroad.

II. Research and experimental development (R&D)

Research and experimental development - comprise creative and systematic work undertaken in order to increase the stock of knowledge - including knowledge of humankind, culture and society - and to devise new applications of available knowledge.

R&D activities may be aimed at achieving either specific or general objectives. R&D is always aimed at new findings, based on original concepts (and their interpretation) or hypotheses. It is largely uncertain about its final outcome (or at least about the quantity of time and resources needed to achieve it), it is planned for and budgeted (even when carried out by individuals), and it is aimed at producing results that could be either freely transferred or traded in a marketplace.

For an activity to be an R&D activity, it must satisfy five core criteria:

  • To be aimed at new findings (novel);
  • To be based on original, not obvious, concepts and hypothesis (creative);
  • To be uncertain about the final outcome (uncertainty);
  • To be planned and budgeted (systematic);
  • To lead to results that could be possibly reproduced (transferable/or reproducible).

Examples of R&D:

  • A review of theories on the factors determining regional disparities in economic growth.
  • Understanding the fundamental dynamics of spatial interactions.
  • Comparative evaluations of national education programs aimed at reducing the learning gap experienced by disadvantaged communities.
  • Research studies analyzing the spatial-temporal patterns in the transmission and diffusion of an infectious disease outbreak.

Both "research" and "development" are often used with different meanings in the government. For example, it is increasingly common to hear that a person is "researching" something (i.e. the person is looking for information about something). Similarly, there are many units with either "research" or "development" or both terms in their titles which are concerned primarily with information gathering, speech writing, and preparation of position papers. These should be excluded from the scientific activity of R&D. On the other hand, a case study on unemployment in a specific region, if applying original techniques in interviewing survey respondents could include such data collection in its R&D effort. From a broad perspective, to the extent that the social sciences are using empirical data, the same guidelines have to be applied as for the natural sciences (although excluding the testing of their results on an experimental basis).

Many social scientists perform work in which they bring the established methodologies and facts of the social sciences to bear upon a particular problem, but which cannot be classified as research. The following are examples of work which might be included in this category and are not R&D: interpretative commentary on the probable economic effects of a change in the tax structure using existing economic data; forecasting future changes in the pattern of the demand for social services within a given area arising from an altered demographic structure; operations research as a contribution to decision-making, e.g. planning the optimal distribution system for a factory; the use of standard techniques in applied psychology to select and classify industrial and military personnel, students, etc., and to test children with reading or other disabilities.

1. In-house R&D – R&D performed by personnel of the reporting program. It may include R&D carried out on behalf of another program or federal government department.

2. R&D contracts – R&D contracts to an outside institution or individual to fund R&D performed by the institution or individual. The criterion is: would the performer report the R&D contract as in-house (intramural) R&D that is government-funded? If the answer is yes the activity would be an R&D contract. If no, and the funding is to provide goods and services necessary to support the in-house R&D of the federal government it should be reported as In-house R&D.

3. R&D grants and contributions – awards to organizations or individuals for the conduct of R&D and intended to benefit the recipients rather than provide the program with goods, services or information. These funds are normally identical to that portion of the budgetary "grants and contributions" line object of expenditure which is devoted to R&D activities.

4. Research fellowships – awards to individuals for advanced research training and experience. Awards intended primarily to support the education of the recipients should be reported as "education support".

5. Administration of extramural programs – the costs of identifiable units engaged in the administration of contracts and grants and contributions for scientific activities that are to be performed outside the federal government. These expenditures should be broken down by the type of scientific activity supported, i.e. R&D or RSA.

6. Capital expenditures – the annual gross amount paid for the acquisition of fixed assets that are used repeatedly or continuously in the performance of scientific activities for more than one year. They should be reported in full for the period when they took place, whether acquired or developed in house, and should not be registered as an element of depreciation.

The most relevant types of assets used for capital expenditures are:

  • Land and buildings
  • Machinery and equipment
  • Capitalized computer software
  • Other intellectual property products

III. Related scientific activities (RSA)

Related scientific activities (RSA) are all systematic activities which are closely concerned with the generation, advancement, dissemination and application of scientific and technological knowledge. The types of related scientific activities for the social sciences, humanities and the arts are described below.

7. In-house RSA – RSA performed by personnel of the reporting program. It may include RSA carried out on behalf of another program or federal government department.

In-house RSA activities include all current expenditures incurred for scientific activities carried out by in-house personnel of units assigned to the program; the purchase of goods and services to support in-house scientific activities (include royalties or licences for the use of patents and other intellectual property rights, and the rental of buildings to support scientific activities performed by the statistical unit in the reference year). Also include expenses of persons who provide ancillary services such as security, cleaning and maintenance work, finance and administration that are proportional to the RSA being conducted. However, the personnel providing these services are not to be included in the in-house personnel counts (see Section 2. Personnel).

The intramural expenditures reported to RSA are those direct costs, including salaries, associated with scientific programs. The cost should include that portion of a program's contribution to employee benefit plans (e.g., superannuation and compensation) which is applicable to the scientific personnel within the program. Also include the costs of self-employed individuals, consultants and researchers who are working on-site on the departments' RSA projects.

8. RSA contracts – contracts to an outside institution or individual to fund RSA performed by the institution or individual. The criterion is: would the performer report the RSA contract as in-house (intramural) RSA that is government-funded? If the answer is yes the activity would be an RSA contract. If no, and the funding is for the purchase goods and services to support the in-house RSA of the federal government department, it should be reported as In-house RSA (Item 7).

Contracts to other federal government departments should be reported as a transfer of funds in question 3A (i) and 3A (ii) of the questionnaire.

9. RSA grants and contributions – awards to organizations or individuals for the conduct of RSA and intended to benefit the recipients rather than provide the program with goods, services or information. These funds are normally identical to that portion of the budgetary "grants and contributions" line object of expenditure which is devoted to RSA.

In-house RSA, RSA Contracts and RSA grants and contributions can include the following items:

  • General purpose data collection – the routine gathering, processing, collating and analyzing and publication of information on human phenomena using survey, regular and special investigations and compilations of existing records. It excludes data collected primarily for internal administrative purpose (e.g. departmental personnel statistics) as well as the collection of data as part of an R&D project.
    Data collected as part of an existing or proposed research project are charged to research. Similarly, the costs of analyzing existing data as part of a research project are R&D costs, even when the data were originally collected for some other purpose. The institution involved are generally the statistical bureaus of Canadian governments and the statistical sections of departments and agencies. If there are units whose principal activity is R&D, their costs and personnel should be assigned to R&D; specialized libraries with separate budgets should be assigned to information services.
  • Information services – all work directed to collecting, coding, analyzing, evaluating, recording, classifying, translating and disseminating scientific and technological information as well as museum services. Included are the operations of scientific and technical libraries, S&T consulting and advisory services, the Patent Office, the publication of scientific journals and monographs, and the organizing of scientific conferences. Grants for the publication of scholarly works are also included.
    General purpose information services or information services directed primarily towards the general public are excluded, as are general departmental and public libraries. When individual budgets exist, the costs of libraries which belong to institutions otherwise entirely classified to another activity, such as R&D, should be assigned to information services. The costs of printing and distributing reports from another activity, such as R&D, are normally attributed to that activity.
  • Sub category under Information services:
    • Museum services – the collecting, cataloguing and displaying of specimens and representations relating to human history, social organization and creations. The activity involves a systematic attempt to preserve and display the works of human beings and to provide information on their works, history, and nature. The scientific activities of historical museums, archeological displays, and art galleries are included. In all cases the costs of providing entertainment and recreation to visitors should be excluded (e.g. restaurants, children's gardens and museums).
      When a museum also covers aspects of natural history, the museum's operations should be divided between the social and natural sciences. However, museums of science and technology, war, etc., which display synthetic or artificial objects and may also illustrate the operations of certain technologies, should be considered as engaged in museum services in social sciences.
    • Special services and studies - systematic investigations carried out in order to provide information needed for planning or policy formulation. Demonstration projects are also included.
      The work is usually carried out by specialized units in some government departments, by consultants, by royal commissions, and by task forces. The activity is similar to R&D since it may require innovative analyses and a high degree of scientific ability. However, such studies are not intended to acquire new knowledge but to provide specific answers to specific problems (generally immediate, localized and perhaps temporary). The day-to-day operations of units concerned with departmental planning, organization or management are not normally included (i.e. administrative records kept by departments of education) but special projects may be relevant.
  • Sub categories under Special services and studies include:
    • Economic and feasibility studies – the investigation of the socio-economic characteristics and implications of specific situations (e.g. a study of the variability of a petrochemical complex in a certain region). Note that feasibility studies on research projects are part of R&D.
    • Operations and policy-related studies – covers a range of activities, such as the analysis and assessment of the existing programs, policies and operations of government departments and other institutions; the work of units concerned with the continuing analysis and monitoring of external phenomena (e.g. defence and security analysis); and the work of legislative commissions of inquiry concerned with general government or departmental policy or operations.
      Any activity aimed at providing close support to policy actions, as well as to legislative activity, should be included as a related scientific activity (RSA). This includes policy advice and relations with the media, legal advice, public relations or even technical support for the administrative activity (e.g. accounting).
      Research activities aimed at providing the decision makers with a thorough knowledge of social, economic or natural phenomena have to be included in R&D. These R&D activities are usually performed by skilled personnel - researchers - in small teams of experts and consultants and meet the standard academic criteria for scientific work (in addition to the R&D criteria).
    • Education support – grants to individuals or institutions on behalf of individuals which are intended to support the post-secondary education of students in technology and the social sciences. General purpose grants to educational institutions are excluded. The activity includes the support of foreign students in their studies of the social sciences at Canadian or foreign institutions. Grants intended primarily to support the research of individuals at universities are either R&D grants or research fellowships.

10. Administration of extramural programs – the costs of identifiable units engaged in the administration of contracts and grants and contributions for scientific activities that are to be performed outside the federal government. These expenditures should be broken down by the type of scientific activity supported, i.e. R&D or RSA.

11. Capital expenditures – the annual gross amount paid for the acquisition of fixed assets that are used repeatedly or continuously in the performance of scientific activities for more than one year. They should be reported in full for the period when they took place, whether acquired or developed in house, and should not be registered as an element of depreciation.

The most relevant types of assets used for capital expenditures are:

  • Land and buildings
  • Machinery and equipment
  • Capitalized computer software
  • Other intellectual property product

Question 2: Personnel

Full-time equivalent (FTE) – the ratio of working hours actually spent on scientific activities during a specific reference period divided by the total number of hours conventionally worked in the same period by an individual or a group. For example, an employee who is engaged in scientific activities for half a year has a full-time equivalence of 0.5. Personnel data reported should be consistent with expenditures data.

Scientific and professional – researchers and professionals engaged in the conception or creation of new knowledge. They conduct research and improve or develop concepts, theories, models, techniques instrumentation, software or operational methods. They require at least one academic degree or a nationally recognized professional qualification, as well as those with equivalent experience.

Technical – technicians and equivalent staff are persons whose main tasks require technical knowledge and experience in one or more fields of engineering, the physical and life sciences, or the social sciences, humanities and the arts. They perform scientific and technical tasks involving the application of concepts and operational methods and the use of research equipment, normally under the supervision of researchers.

Other – other supporting staff includes skilled and unskilled craftsmen, and administrative, secretarial and clerical staff participating in science and technology projects or directly associated with such projects.

Gender – refers to current gender which may be different from sex assigned at birth and may be different from what is indicated on legal documents.

Personnel in full time equivalent for intramural scientific and technological activities:

  • Column A: Personnel engaged in Research and experimental development (R&D)
  • Column B: Personnel engaged in Related scientific activities (RSA)
  • Column C: Personnel engaged in the administration of extramural R&D programs
  • Column D: Personnel engaged in the administration of extramural RSA programs
  • Column E: Total personnel

Question 3: Sources of funds

Question 3A (i). Transfers for social sciences, humanities and the arts activities

Include payments and recipients for contracts, transfers and joint programs from/to other federal government departments. Please identify the amount and names of the origination and recipient programs.

Question 3A (ii). Sources of funds for total scientific and technological activities

This question identifies the sources of funds for expenditures on scientific activities reported for all three years. It will help to ensure that work funded from outside the department is not overlooked.

  • Departmental S&T budget – that portion of the total departmental budget which was spent on social sciences, humanities and the arts activities.
  • Revenues to / from other federal departments – money transferred from this program to another federal department or money transferred into this program from another federal department for activities in the social sciences, humanities and the arts.
  • Provincial government departments – all funds from the provincial government used for social sciences, humanities and the arts activities. The funds are referred to as payments, contributions, transfers, etc. Also include provincial portions of federal-provincial cost sharing programs performed by the department program.
  • Business enterprises – all funds from business enterprises used for social sciences, humanities and the arts activities performed by the department.
  • Other – all funds for social sciences, humanities and the arts activities from sources not specified above.

Question 4: Socio-economic objectives

Intramural and extramural scientific and technological expenditures by socio-economic objective for the reporting year by activity (research and experimental development, related scientific activities, and total).

  • 1. Exploration and exploitation of the Earth
  • 2. Infrastructure and general planning of land use:
    • 2.1: Transport
    • 2.2: Telecommunications
    • 2.3: Other
  • 3. Control and care of the environment
  • 4. Protection and improvement of human health
  • 5. Production, distribution and rational utilization of energy
  • 6. Agricultural production and technology:
    • 6.1: Agriculture
    • 6.2: Fishing
    • 6.3: Forestry
  • 7. Industrial production and technology
  • 8. Social structures and relationships
  • 9. Exploration and exploitation of space
  • 10. Non-oriented research
  • 11. Other civil research
  • 12. Defence

1. Exploration and exploitation of the Earth – scientific activities with objectives related to the exploration of the Earth's crust and mantle, seas, oceans and atmosphere, as well as on their exploitation. It also includes climatic and meteorological research, polar exploration (under various headings, as appropriate) and hydrology.

Examples:

  • General scientific activities
  • Mineral, oil and natural gas prospecting
  • Exploration and exploitation of the sea-bed
  • Earth's crust and mantle excluding sea-bed and studies of soil for agriculture (objective 6)
  • Hydrology - excludes scientific activities on: water supplied and disposal (objective 2) and water pollution (objective 3)
  • Sea and oceans
  • Atmosphere
  • Other scientific activities on the exploration and exploitation of the earth

Excludes: scientific activities on pollution (objective 3), soil improvement (objective 2), land-use and fishing (objective 6).

2. Infrastructure and general planning of land use – scientific activities on infrastructure and land development, including research on the construction of buildings. More generally, it covers all scientific activities relating to the general planning of land use. This includes scientific activities into protection against harmful effects in town and country planning but not scientific activities into other types of pollution (objective 3).

2.1 Transport systems – covers scientific activities on transport systems, including road accident prevention and ancillary services such as electronic traffic aids and radar stations. Also included is general scientific activities on transport systems, road and rail traffic, inland waterway and sea transport, air traffic, pipeline transport systems, works transport systems, combined transport systems and scientific activities on the potential effects on the environment of the planning and operation of transport systems. Scientific activities on transport equipment is included only when it forms part of the co-ordinated programmes for the development of improved and safer transport systems, otherwise, such research is classified in objective 7.

2.2 Telecommunications system – covers scientific activities on telecommunications services and the planning and organization of telecommunications networks. It includes, in particular, general scientific activities on telecommunications systems, telephones, telex, data transmission, radio and television (including cable TV).

2.3 Other scientific activities – covers scientific activities on the infrastructure and general planning of land-use.

Examples:

  • General scientific activities
  • General planning of land-use
  • Construction and planning of buildings
  • Civil engineering - excludes scientific activities on building materials and industrial processes (objective 7)
  • Water supply

3. Control and care of the environment – covers scientific activities aimed at improving the control of pollution, including the identification and analysis of the sources of pollution and their causes, and all pollutants, including their dispersal in the environment and the effects on humans, species (fauna, flora, microorganisms) and the biosphere. The development of monitoring facilities for the measurement of all kinds of pollution is included. The same is valid for the elimination and prevention of all forms of pollution in all types of environment.

Examples:

  • General scientific activities on the environment
  • Protection of atmosphere and climate
  • Protection of ambient air
  • Solid waste
  • Protection of ambient water
  • Protection of soil and groundwater
  • Noise and vibration
  • Protection of species and habitats
  • Protection against natural hazards
  • Radioactive pollution
  • Other scientific activities on the environment

4. Protection and improvement of human health – scientific activities aimed at protecting, promoting and restoring human health, broadly interpreted to include health aspects of nutrition and food hygiene. It ranges from preventative medicine, including all aspects of medical and surgical treatment, both for individuals and groups, and the provision of hospital and home care, to social medicine and paediatric and geriatric research.

Examples:

  • General scientific activities
  • Medical scientific activities, hospital treatment, surgery
  • Preventive medicine
  • Biomedical engineering and medicines
  • Occupational medicine
  • Nutrition and food hygiene
  • Drug abuse and addition
  • Social medicine
  • Hospital structure and organization of medical care
  • Other medical scientific activities

5. Production, distribution and rational utilization of energy – covers scientific activities aimed at improving the production, storage, transportation, distribution and rational use of all forms of energy. It also includes scientific activities on processes designed to increase the efficiency of energy production and distribution, and the study of energy conservation.

Examples:

  • Fossil fuels and their derivatives
  • Nuclear fission
  • Radioactive waste management including decommissioning with regard to fuel/energy
  • Nuclear fusion
  • Renewable energy sources
  • Rational utilization of energy

6. Agricultural production and technology – covers all scientific activities on the promotion of agriculture, forestry, fisheries and foodstuff production, or further knowledge on chemical fertilizers, biocides, biological pest control and the mechanization of agriculture, as well as concerning the impact of agricultural and forestry activities on the environment. Also covers scientific activities on improving food productivity and technology.

6.1 Agriculture – covers scientific activities on animal products, veterinary medicine, crops, food technology and other scientific activities on agricultural production and technology.

6.2 Fishing – covers scientific activities on fishing, salting, drying, and initial freezing of products (but not on preparation and canning (objective 7)), scientific activities on fish-farming, exploration of new fishing grounds, exploration and development of new and unconventional sources of seafood.

6.3 Forestry – covers scientific activities into the ecological and economic aspects of forestry and timber production.

7. Industrial production and technology – covers scientific activities on the improvement of industrial production and technology. It includes scientific activities on industrial products and their manufacturing processes except where they form an integral part of the pursuit of other objectives (e.g. defence, space, energy, agriculture).

Examples:

  • Increasing economic efficiency and competitiveness
  • Manufacturing and processing techniques
  • Petrochemical and coal by-products
  • Pharmaceutical products
  • Manufacture of motor vehicles and other means of transport
  • Aerospace equipment manufacturing and repairing
  • Electronic and related industries
  • Manufacture of electrical machinery and apparatus
  • Manufacture of non-electronic and non-electronical machinery
  • Manufacture of medical and surgical equipment and orthopaedic appliances
  • Manufacture of food products and beverages
  • Manufacture of clothing and textiles and leather goods
  • Recycling

8. Social structures and relationships – scientific activities on social objectives, as analyzed in particular by social and human sciences, which have no obvious connection with other objectives. This analysis includes quantitative, qualitative, organizational and forecasting aspects of social problems.

Examples:

  • Education – covers scientific activities aimed at supporting general or special education, including training, pedagogy, didactics, and targeted methods for specially gifted persons or those with learning disabilities. Applied to all levels of education as well as to subsidiary services to education.
  • Culture, recreation, religion and mass media – covers scientific activities aimed at improving the understanding of social phenomena related to culture activities, religion and leisure activities so as to define their impact on life in society, as well as to racial and cultural integration and on socio-cultural changes in these areas. The concept of "culture" covers sociology of science, religion, art, sport and leisure, and also comprises inter alia R&D on the media, the mastery of language and social integration, libraries, archives and external cultural policy.
  • Political and social system, structures and processes – covers scientific activities aimed at improving the understanding and supporting the political structure of society, public administration issues and economic policy, regional studies and multi-level governance, social change, social processes and social conflicts, the development of social security and social assistance systems, and the social aspects of the organization of work.

9. Exploration and exploitation of space – all civil space scientific activities relating to the scientific exploration of space, space laboratories, space travel and launch systems. Although civil space research is not in general concerned with particular objectives, it frequently has a specific goal, such as the advancement of knowledge (e.g. astronomy) or relates to particular applications (e.g. telecommunications satellites or earth observation).

Examples:

  • General scientific activities
  • Scientific exploration of space
  • Applied research programs
  • Launch systems
  • Space laboratories and space travel
  • Other research on the exploration and exploitation of space

10. Non-oriented research – basic activities motivated by scientific curiosity with the objective of increasing scientific knowledge. It also includes funding used to support postgraduate studies and fellowships.

Examples:

  • Mathematics and Computer Sciences
  • Physical Sciences
  • Chemical Sciences
  • Biological Sciences
  • Earth and Related (Environmental) Sciences
  • Engineering Sciences
  • Medical Sciences
  • Agricultural Sciences
  • Social Sciences
  • Humanities

11. Other civil research – civil scientific activities which cannot (yet) be classified to a particular objective.

12. Defence – covers scientific activities for military purposes. It also includes basic research and nuclear and space research financed by the Department of National defence. Civil scientific activities financed by ministries of defence, for example, in the fields of meteorology, telecommunications and health, should be classified in the relevant objectives.

Question 5: Expenditures and personnel by region

Scientific and technological expenditures and personnel of federal organizations for the reference year, including current and capital expenditures for intramural R&D and RSA and by scientific and professional and total personnel for R&D and RSA.

  • Newfoundland and Labrador
  • Prince Edward Island
  • Nova Scotia
  • New Brunswick
  • Quebec (excluding NRC - Quebec)
  • National Capital Region (NCR) - Quebec
  • Ontario (excluding NRC - Ontario)
  • National Capital Region (NCR) - Ontario
  • Manitoba
  • Saskatchewan
  • Alberta
  • British Columbia
  • Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut
  • Canada Total
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