Cambridge, Mass. — Amid the budget turbulence in Washington, it’s easy to miss the fact that part of what’s at stake is America’s dominance in science, engineering and innovation. The United States has been the world leader in these categories for so long that we have stopped believing it could be any other way. But other nations, seeing us lose focus, are seizing the chance to rise.

Scientific and technological leadership doesn’t happen by accident. It results from an open political and competitive economic system, from a commitment to recruit and train top talent from all social and economic levels, and from sustained investment. Since World War II, federal investment in research has been a key to keeping the United States at the forefront. Federal dollars have enabled scientists and engineers to investigate advanced ideas and the most unlikely technical solutions, to develop new knowledge before it’s clear whether it will be profitable. That new knowledge has revolutionized health care, spawned new businesses and created the digital world. As President Ronald Reagan put it, “although basic research does not begin with a particular practical goal,” it’s “one of the most practical things government does.”

Other nations understand this and are aggressively challenging our lead by trying to copy the United States model. They are making scientific investment a priority and are pushing for partnerships between government, universities and industry.

China is the clearest example. Since 2000, China’s spending on research and development has grown by an average of 18 percent each year, while ours grew by only 4 percent. This has placed China a decisive second in R & D expenditures behind the United States, where the government and private sector together invest far more than any other country. Even so, the share of R & D funded by the federal government declined to about 25 percent from just over 30 percent from 2010 to 2015.