National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

• 1. Lincoln's Civil War Charter

  ›

  Abraham Lincoln signed the Act of Incorporation for the National Academy of Sciences on the 3rd of March 1863. The document stated that the new academy would investigate and report on any subject of science or art whenever called upon by a government department. During the American Civil War, the organization addressed immediate practical problems like coinage, weights and measures, iron ship hulls, and the purity of whiskey. These early tasks were not theoretical but focused on sustaining the Union war effort through tangible scientific application.

  1

• 2. Wilson And Submarine Detection

  ›

  President Woodrow Wilson requested the creation of the National Research Council on the 19th of June 1916 to strengthen national defense. Secretary of War Newton D. Baker approved the Committee on Nitric Acid Supply to address shortages in propellants needed for cordite and high explosives. The council recommended importing Chilean saltpeter and building four new ordnance plants to support military production during World War I. On the 1st of June 1917, representatives from the United States met with scientists from the United Kingdom and France to discuss submarine detection methods. By October 1918, these meetings in Paris led to sound-based techniques for locating enemy submarines, which proved successful enough to keep the council active after the war ended.

  29

• 3. Three Academies Reorganized

  ›

  The National Academy of Engineering was created in 1964 under the same congressional charter as the original academy. The Institute of Medicine followed later, established in 1970 before being rechartered as the National Academy of Medicine in 2015. In July 2015, all three academies underwent a structural change that unified them under the operating umbrella known today as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. This reorganization maintained the individual charter status of each group while creating a single brand for their studies and reports. The membership across all three organizations now totals more than 6,300 scientists, engineers, and health professionals elected annually by existing members.

  340

• 4. Volunteer Study Committees

  ›

  Top scientists and experts serve on study committees without pay to answer specific sets of questions about national importance. These volunteers gather information from many sources during public meetings but deliberate in private to avoid political or sponsor influence. All committee members are selected based on distinguished achievements rather than requiring membership in any of the three academies. Federal agencies provide primary financial sponsorship for this work, though state agencies, foundations, and private sponsors also contribute funds. External sponsors have no control over the conduct or results once the statement of task and budget are finalized.

  628

• 5. Climate And Assault Reports

  ›

  In 2001, the council published Climate Change Science: An Analysis of Some Key Questions which endorsed findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. A 2013 report titled Estimating the Incidence of Rape and Sexual Assault noted that approximately 80 percent of sexual assaults go unreported to law enforcement. That same year, another publication called Abrupt Impacts of Climate Change focused on potential severe effects on physical climate systems and human societies. The 2017 update Fostering Integrity in Research highlighted concerns about reproducibility due to inadequate transparency standards in many scientific fields.

  32333436

• 6. Federal Grants And Corporate Funds

  ›

  The organization receives revenue from grants and contracts with federal agencies as well as private donations from individuals and companies. In 2023, the New York Times reported that about 70 percent of the budget came from federal funds while the rest included contributions from Chevron, Google, Merck, and Medtronic. Between 2000 and 2021, the group received $19 million from Purdue Pharma's Sackler family while advising the government on opioid policy. Financial records show total U.S. Government Agency funding reached over 208 million dollars in a single year alongside nearly 56 million dollars from private sources.

  414243