The National Science Foundation (NSF) is a federal agency that funds research and provides information technology services. With a budget of more than $8 billion, NSF supports approximately 20% of federally supported basic research in the US. It awards about 11,000 new research proposals each year and has a strong focus on fields like mathematics, computer science, and social sciences. NSF also plays a significant role in supporting science and engineering education from pre-K to graduate school. The agency is known for its rigorous merit-review system and has funded researchers who have received numerous prestigious honors, including over 200 Nobel Prizes.