His view was echoed by James Decker, acting director of the office of science of the Department of Energy in Washington.
That figure came from a survey conducted by Lana Skirboll, director of the office of science policy at the National Institutes of Health.
King, 68, is due to leave government next month after seven years as chief scientific advisor and head of the government office of science.
Since the 1950's, physical scientists and engineers have had a nearly unbroken hold on the directorship of the White House office of science and technology.
The package of funding includes £65m from the higher education funding council for England, the office of science and technology and the north-west development agency.
"Unfortunately the current budgetary climate is very challenging and additional funding has not been identified," William Brinkman, director of the office of science at the Department of Energy, said in a letter to the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel on Jan . 6
"I was surprised by the volume and rapidity of off-label use," said Dr. Larry Kessler, the director of the drug agency's office of science and technology in its Center for Devices and Radiological Health.
At long last, it seems as if a US president will be getting honest scientific advice about climate change, with Barack Obama's appointment of John Holdren as the director of the White House office of science and technology policy.
To consider the direction that Nasa should pursue, President Obama's White House office of science and technology policy formed the review of US human space flight committee in early June, chaired by veteran aerospace executive Norm Augustine.
Dr. Kate Mahaffey, a senior research scientist in the office of science coordination and policy at the E.P.A. who studies mercury in fish, said she was not surprised by reports of high concentrations.
