Numbers might not lie, but they do not necessarily tell the whole truth. Such is the case with the Ministry of Science and Technology’s National Science and Technology Survey for 2020, released on Dec. 30. It touted that overall technological research and development (R&D) spending was NT$718.8 billion (US$25.95 billion), up 8.8 percent over 2019 and exceeding NT$700 billion for the first time, while the ratio of R&D spending to GDP rose to a record 3.63 percent. R&D is vital to maintaining a country’s industrial competitiveness, which is why R&D spending in Taiwan has increased annually, rising substantially from NT$307 billion