Russian Science: Discussion Thread

The directive is given: the scientific infrastructure of the Russian Federation will become the best in the world, by Alena Nefedova, Denis Gritsenko for Izvestia. 09.23.2024.

The head of the Kurchatov Institute National Research Center predicted a technological breakthrough for the country and told the president about new projects.

Russia's research infrastructure will become the best in the world in the next five to eight years. This was discussed at a meeting between Vladimir Putin and the head of the Kurchatov Institute National Research Center Mikhail Kovalchuk. According to the scientist, the technological breakthrough in the country will also speed up the return of domestic specialists to their homeland, many of whom have worked in foreign research institutes since the 1990s. In addition to the ongoing development of nuclear technologies, the main areas of work of the national research center include the development of agriculture, genetics, and the creation of unique mega-installations. Among the scientific developments of the Kurchatov Institute are prototypes of engines for flights into deep space and a deep-sea manned vehicle. How heat is provided in the Arctic and can we expect an expedition to Mars - in the Izvestia material.

On the contribution of the Kurchatov Institute to the development of nuclear energy.

Vladimir Putin began his working week in the Kremlin: on September 23, he met with the president of the Kurchatov Institute, Mikhail Kovalchuk. The institute was originally founded in 1943 to create Soviet atomic weapons, and now it is developing many unique scientific fields. According to Mikhail Kovalchuk, a powerful interdisciplinary center of more than 20 institutes has been assembled under the roof of the NIC.

“Kurchatnik” is no longer an institute, it is a whole agglomeration of various institutions, and it is developing in a variety of ways and is engaged in almost all areas of research,” said Vladimir Putin.

The Kurchatov Institute unites a significant part of Russia's scientific potential in the fields of nuclear physics, energy, materials science, biology and genetics, as well as information technology. According to Mikhail Kovalchuk, today the center is actively engaged in "bringing order" to the Arctic using nuclear energy, namely, providing heat supply in remote and hard-to-reach regions where there is no centralized energy supply. We are talking about the "Elena-AM" project - a pilot nuclear thermoelectric power station developed by the Kurchatov Institute.

— We are developing a fundamentally new nuclear energy. We have the Elena station — a “battery” built at the plant, it produces up to a megawatt of electricity and up to 15 MW of heat. But in the Arctic, where there are no large consumers, where it is impossible to create either a network structure or a large station, these local stations solve the problem, — Mikhail Kovalchuk specified.

The development of the nuclear complex remains the central vector of the Kurchatov Institute’s work: back in 2007, Russia declared that it was ready to close the nuclear cycle, make it completely safe and fully provide for global energy consumption, experts recalled.

As for nuclear energy in general, the development of a new direction of fast neutron reactors is of particular importance now. Their difference is that they use spent nuclear fuel from thermal reactors, in turn producing fuel for them, thereby closing the nuclear cycle, said Vladimir Reshetov, professor at the Institute of Laser and Plasma Technologies of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI.

— Today, this development is already being implemented at the engineering level, and we are ready to provide the entire world with energy by burning uranium-238. A fast neutron reactor is the future of all nuclear energy, — he says.

In general, Mikhail Kovalchuk identified several main areas, including energy and materials science.

— We have only two priorities, or rather three, but two main ones. The first is that any human thought that arises in the head materializes in the form of materials. For example, you have come up with a painting — you need paints, a canvas, an easel, and so on. You have come up with a melody — you need a piano, a musical instrument, notes, ink. That is, any thing is a material, and to create a material, you need energy, — he said.

“And the soul?” Vladimir Putin asked.

— And the third priority is the soul and the intellect, absolutely right. That's all. These three, which we possess, I think, are among the best in the world, because if we did not know how to do this, we would not have gone into space and created nuclear energy in the shortest possible time. These are two breakthrough projects of the 20th century, where we have always been leaders. Therefore, I think that our situation today is good, — Mikhail Kovalchuk answered.

On Nature-Like Technologies and Quantum Network

An important direction for the development of science in Russia will be the restart of fundamental research. This is especially relevant against the backdrop of scientists returning home after the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) ended its cooperation with them. "And in this sense, we have every opportunity for a technological breakthrough," Mikhail Kovalchuk emphasized.

Among other priority areas of the Kurchatov Institute are the development of nature-like technologies and a genetic program. Mikhail Kovalchuk touched upon programs for the development of agriculture. In particular, in this sector, the Russian Federation needs to stop depending on large Western corporations in the area of ​​creating and maintaining genetic material for food production, Pavel Volchkov, head of the MIPT genomic engineering laboratory, explained to Izvestia.

This is especially noticeable in the production of chicken meat and eggs. There is less dependence in plant growing, especially in the cultivation of sugar beet. For some areas, the possibility of importing genetic material remains, despite the sanctions. For others, where, for example, complex hybrids are needed, it is no longer possible. At the same time, for effective agriculture it is necessary not only to maintain the gene pool, but also to improve it. Therefore, the development of genetic technologies and the creation of new varieties has become a matter of survival for the country today, — Pavel Volchkov specified.

Also, Russian scientists working at the Kurchatov Institute National Research Center are developing neuromorphic microelectronics and a quantum network as part of the network research infrastructure, the head of the scientific center reported.

"We are working on fundamentally new neuromorphic microelectronics. Today, we have concentrated almost all, almost 100% of the network infrastructure for science, the entire supercomputer part, all the networks - 20 thousand km of networks, uniting hundreds of scientific institutes and universities," the scientist added.

According to Igor Pivovarov, chief analyst at the MIPT Center for Artificial Intelligence, the creation of neuromorphic computing networks opens up great prospects for the development of more powerful computers.

— Modern software artificial neural networks (ANN) are a mathematical model of brain neurons, united into large arrays. But they are still calculated on conventional processors. If the processors themselves are made according to the neuron principle, then they will be thousands of times faster. And if you assemble such artificial neurons, that is, unite them into a network, then you will get a neuromorphic computer. Such a network is 1,000 times faster and requires very little energy, — he explained.

In addition, the program for creating unique mega-installations throughout the country is in full swing, the head of the Kurchatov Institute recalled. According to his estimates, in the next five to eight years, Russia will have the best research infrastructure in the world.

On the conquest of space

In addition, the National Research Center is developing plasma electrodeless engines for deep space flights.

— Today we fly into space like Munchausen on a cannonball. Our RD-180 engine worked for three hundred seconds, gave a kick, and we flew along ballistic trajectories that we cannot influence. And we need to patrol, land on the Moon, — said Mikhail Kovalchuk.

Now, according to him, the institute has prototypes of engines that provide a completely different thrust for flight. For example, a lunar station based on the principle of the "Selena" battery, Mikhail Kovalchuk noted. This is a self-regulating nuclear station based on the principles of direct energy conversion.

What is “direct conversion”? We are now converting the reactor heat into steam, the steam turns the turbines. This is not direct. And direct — there are thermoelectric elements, a special substance. You surround the station with these elements, and all the heat is directly converted into electricity, — continued Mikhail Kovalchuk.

According to Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Cosmonautics Andrei Ionin, the development by the Kurchatov Institute of devices based on the principles of nuclear energy for use in space is absolutely necessary for the development of domestic cosmonautics.

The Kurchatov Institute Research Center is working on a project for a nuclear power plant operating in space. It may have different names. The project was launched back in Soviet times, but the public phase began in 2009. It will take a lot of time to implement, because it is a breakthrough technology. It needs to combine two areas that were previously developing in parallel: nuclear energy and space exploration, — said Andrei Ionin.

This is necessary for the exploration of deep space, including an expedition to Mars. The implementation of the Kurchatov Institute projects will provide at least a third of the necessary developments and research for a flight to this planet. With the help of atomic energy, it will be possible to implement the operation of aircraft engines, maintain life support systems and produce everything necessary in orbit. The Selena lunar station project looks very promising in this context, the expert emphasized.

About studying the depths and a unique simulator

Specialists from the Kurchatov Institute have also developed a deep-sea manned vehicle that can be used to monitor the condition of pipelines laid at depth, along the seabed, said Mikhail Kovalchuk. Recall that in September 2023, Vladimir Putin spoke about attacks on the Turkish Stream and Blue Stream, through which Russia supplies gas to Turkey, at a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The modern device is designed for two people and descends to 2.2 km, while a remote-controlled device has also been developed that explores the seabed. Kovalchuk explained in detail how it will work: "We have made a unique simulator, a complete imitation, you sit in this cabin, descend, a complete imitation of diving. The simulator is a completely unique thing."

— I went down 2 km in Baikal. 1.9 km, — the president recalled. — At such a depth, I think, nothing can be seen in the Black Sea. Hydrogen sulphide environment.

Vladimir Putin has made several such dives: in 2009, while still the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, he made a four-hour dive in the Mir-1 vehicle to the bottom of Lake Baikal. In 2019, he made a dive in a bathyscaphe to the bottom of the Gulf of Finland, to the site of the demise of a submarine that sank during the Great Patriotic War. The dive lasted about 30 minutes in the autonomous deep-sea vehicle C-Explorer 3.11.

https://iz.ru/1763525/alena-nefedova-denis-gritcenko/dana-ustanovka-nauchnaia-infrastruktura-rf-stanet-luchshei-v-mire

500 Russian scientists about to be kicked out of CERN

Sure hope Russia has the letters of invitation prepped and ready to be sent

This liquidation is a gigantic mistake:

I know, therefore I exist. What's happening to the country's main encyclopedia, by Valery Konovalov for Rossiyskaia Gazeta. 10.14.2024.

The recent announcement of the liquidation of the Scientific and Educational Center "Great Russian Encyclopedia" (BRE), which created the scientific and educational portal of the same name based on the 35-volume national encyclopedia published by the same team, caused a great stir. Work on the portal, by order of the government, began at the end of 2019, and it has already begun to operate. However, last year, funding for the project was stopped. And now they are talking about its closure and the transfer of all the materials developed to the Internet encyclopedia "Ruviki", which should become a possible domestic analogue of "Wikipedia". What does all this mean? We ask these questions to the editor-in-chief of the Great Russian Encyclopedia Sergey Kravets.

So, Sergey Leonidovich, you failed to replace Wikipedia, now this task is being transferred to others along with the already prepared materials?

Sergey Kravets: A very common, but incorrect idea. We are not competitors with either Wikipedia or Ruviki. These are completely different areas of activity: ours is scientific and educational, theirs is reference and information. The lack of understanding of this has largely created the current problems. It seems that those who made decisions on the BRE really considered us an analogue of Wikipedia, its possible replacement. And this is a mistake.

What do you mean?

Sergey Kravets: The thing is that a national scientific encyclopedia is an asset that not all countries can have. Because this requires, first of all, historical, cultural and scientific sovereignty. A powerful scientific base is needed, capable of generating scientifically verified texts in all areas of knowledge. There must be sufficient organizational and financial resources, an appropriate methodology. And finally - interested users. Only under these conditions can a national universal encyclopedia be created. And today in the world there are very few such scientifically verified encyclopedias. For example, there is a national encyclopedia in China - it is more like a dictionary and all scientific institutes of the country were involved in its creation. There is the famous "Britannica", which, although it has changed some approaches and lost its connection with Great Britain, still remains for the English-speaking world. Just like for the German-speaking - the no less famous "Brockhaus" before, however, also lost its belonging to Germany due to the processes of globalization. But these are their problems. And we are creating our own national encyclopedia. And we can lose something that will be very difficult to get back later.

We are not competitors with either Wikipedia or Ruviki. We have a scientific and educational sphere, they have a reference and information sphere.

But are foreign encyclopedias also being forced to compete with Wikipedia?

Sergey Kravets: Yes, it has absorbed many, being a completely different kind of product. Once the head of "Britannica" compared "Wikipedia" to an ocean of chaotic opinions that creates a hum. Unlike a scientifically verified encyclopedia, where you hear the voice of an authoritative specialist. But the need for encyclopedic sources exists among those who need reliable, relevant and complete scientific knowledge.

Who are you talking about?

Sergey Kravets: About our main audience. These are primarily students, high school students, young teachers, and postgraduates. University professors and school teachers recommend using our articles when preparing papers. References to the Great Russian Encyclopedia in scientific work are quite authoritative, unlike other Internet resources. Our main users - more than 65 percent - are under 34 years old. This year, even without funding, we reached a four-million peak in monthly portal traffic in April-May, and this is preparation for the session, submission of essays, term papers, diplomas, applicants preparing to enter universities. Over the summer, traffic drops to two and a half million. And in September, more than three again, and this is in the absence of new articles This is our obvious audience, and even the president said: use the Great Russian Encyclopedia, at a meeting with teachers. A very accurate recommendation. In general, in the first four months of this year, the growth of users of our portal year-on-year compared to 2023 reached more than 200 percent.

So where did the problems come from? They emerged last year, when the project funding stopped? And before that, about 4 billion rubles had already been spent.

Sergey Kravets: Then the first stage of the encyclopedia's creation was completed. It's like building a factory, which precedes the production of cars. It was necessary to create a database, debug everything, including creating a unique software package for preparing articles for the entire cycle from including a concept in the Dictionary to publication, taking into account the functionality of all our editorial offices and services, with its own built-in editor capable of creating text in 60 languages, including ancient ones, and with reverse writing and hieroglyphic, and simultaneously with all the necessary physical, mathematical, chemical signs, including musical ones.

At the end of 2019, we received about 3 billion 900 million rubles for 36 months to create and launch the portal. In 2022, we created a public version of the Portal, which everyone uses, it was in test mode for six months. In 2023, the Portal entered commercial operation, and both the editorial complex and the 6,000-strong author community began working at full capacity. We have been constantly increasing the release of articles: 18 thousand in 2022, 24 thousand in 2023, and in 2024 we planned to publish at least 30 thousand.

We applied for the 2024 budget. And it was rejected. At the same time, we continued working. Then, after the budget was adopted, there were meetings in the government - they were looking for ways out of this situation. But the issue was not resolved and was not resolved. The tension in connection with the non-payment of wages was growing. And so in early September they decided to use the Reserve Fund. But immediately the question: what next? There is no money for 2025. And then the government, using its right as a founder, decided: to stop work, liquidate the ANO, and take care of the fate of the inheritance.

And what is the hereditary mass of articles?

Sergey Kravets: We currently have a little over 49 thousand articles on the Portal, plus 60 thousand articles in the electronic version of the BRE, which exists together with the Portal. Another 50 thousand articles are at various stages of editorial preparation. The total number of articles on the Portal should have reached the threshold of approximately 200 thousand articles, and then the main task would have been to update the existing body of knowledge. We sought to create new articles to expand the capabilities of the encyclopedia for users, and did not seek primarily to republish those articles of the Electronic version that are still relevant.

What is the difference between them?

Sergey Kravets: There are many differences, first of all the text itself, on the Portal it is, as a rule, more relevant and voluminous, because neither the editors nor the author are limited by the strict framework of a printed publication. Secondly, the Portal has a sharply increased multimedia content - historical and modern maps, illustrations, video and audio files. For example, in the article "The Civil War of 1917-1920" there are about 15 illustrations, six maps and also newsreels. And in articles about outstanding performers, for example, soloists of the Bolshoi Theater, you can listen to them in one click. In the bibliographic section you can go to electronic copies of books, from the indication of a document or a citation from it in an article - to the document itself, or use our service "Geochronotope" and get a brief systemic knowledge of a settlement, etc. Well, and also the opportunity to create your own collection of articles on the topic of interest to you, provide them with your comments and notes and even show these notes to another user. This service is often used by teachers, highlighting the main points in articles for their students.

We were also preparing new services that were supposed to be launched in 2024. One of them is "I Read and Understand", which is historical and cultural commentary on the main literary texts in the school curriculum. So that there would be no such thing as with A.S. Pushkin's poem "The Prophet", in which schoolchildren at best interpreted the "six-winged seraph at the crossroads" as an alien monster. Another service is "I See and Understand". This is an opportunity to get a link to our article on an artistic image, for example, a portrait, when you hover over it, or to find out, for example, what orders and medals are in the photograph of a grandfather or great-grandfather - a participant in the Great Patriotic War.

So can all your developments be transferred to "Ruviki"?

Sergey Kravets: This is the prerogative of the government and its decision, but I personally doubt the feasibility of such a decision. First of all, because the articles on the Portal are protected by copyright. As are all media materials - by agreements on their use only on the BRE Portal.

Then, having come to our senses, we will have to start building, but from scratch. As it happened with our planes
What could happen next? What are the options?

Sergey Kravets: There is no clarity yet. Multilateral consultations are currently beginning at the Ministry of Digital
Development. We clearly understand that the Portal should remain a single independent scientific space, living by its own principles, the main one being the joint responsibility of the author and the editorial board. The multi-stage system of text preparation should be preserved, because the BRE articles are not only codifying, but also normative. Thirdly, I think that the best solution would be to preserve a very experienced and trained editorial team, at least its core, and certainly preserve the author community. Otherwise, even from a financial point of view, this will be money wasted. Then, having come to our senses, we will still have to start building from scratch. As has often happened with us, when we started building our own airplanes, our own microelectronics production facilities. Just as in our case, it will be difficult to return the lost traditions, schools, authors. It is very difficult to assemble such a scientific and editorial team again, where a physicist would listen to a lyricist, and together they would listen to a historian. After all, an encyclopedia is a chronicle of our life. That is, we can deprive ourselves of reliable and scientifically verified knowledge of our history, of our present life, of our relations with other countries of the world, of these countries themselves. And in order not to make an irreparable mistake, we must no longer confuse the national scientific encyclopedia with other Internet resources. We are not competitors. We work with our environment. But it is this environment that is the future of our country.

https://rg.ru/2024/10/13/znaiu-znachit-sushchestvuiu.html

They are mad that they lost their funding, so they will talk about impossibilities and other stuff

In the end, if something needs an endless source of money to handle something when an open source option doesn't, then that is gonna be the better route. So its closure wont be a problem. Resources and research all going to the Russian open source alternative is the best option.

Seriously, not everything needs to have a boatload of money handed to it. Russians are trying to be as bad as their American counterpart.