sure - they're the most common NIH grant mechanism - generally 4 or 5 years @ up to $500k/year (though they can be smaller, which NIH program officers always ap

sure - they're the most common NIH grant mechanism - generally 4 or 5 years @ up to $500k/year (though they can be smaller, which NIH program officers always appreciate). If you plot the number of NIH grants per investigator, there are a small but significant number of investigators out in the right tail with 4+ R01's. In general grants beget grants, such that bigger and better-funded labs are better positioned to get the next grant. Details re R01 mechanism are here [1]. A recent proposal that would cap the number of grants an investigator could lead at one time was shot down by the old guard [2]. NIH continues to struggle for alternatives, because unless the overall budget grows, which it will not in the foreseeable future, any strategy will involve taking from the rich(er) and giving to the poor(er). [1] https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r01.htm https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r01.htm [2] http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/06/updated-nih-abandons-controversial-plan-cap-grants-big-labs-creates-new-fund-younger http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/06/updated-nih-abandons-...