The budgets of several English research laboratories for at least eight consecutive years were examined to obtain an estimate of the rate of change of cost per scientist. Trends were considered separately for wages, buildings and equipment. The largest real-price growth rates per scientist were in major equipment costs, with increases of up to 20 percent per annum in some laboratories. Residual growth rates per scientist, after allowing for the effects of inflation, are referred to as "sophistication factors," although it is recognized that these residual effects may arise from other factors, such as a redeployment of research effort, in addition to increasing sophistication of the research. (Author/AL)