The Atlantis rocket's final return from space on July 21, 2011 concluded the end of America's Space Shuttle Program. Kim Shiflett/NASA We've heard the trope that the United States is falling behind in science. But what evidence do we have for this — what do the numbers say?

Well, the data don't look good for America.

US kids do worse on math and science tests than other countries. American universities also graduate a smaller portion of science majors.

And, while the US still spends the most money on research and development, nine other countries outspend the nation when you look at that cash as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) — an important benchmark of a nation's total economic value.

The US spent $433 billion on R&D in 2013 (the most recent data analyzed), according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's 2015 Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard report.

But this made up only 2.7% of America's GDP that year.

This R&D total includes money spent on science from government, non-profit, and business sources. American companies far outspend the government on research — making up about 70% of the total, according to the National Science Foundation.

Here are the nine countries that are spending a greater share on science than the US.