Fundamental Science and the Future of Russia (open letter)
Dear comrades, colleagues, friends!
This appeal to the President and the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation is open for signature by Soviet/Russian scientists who have permanent positions outside the (former) the USSR. It is assumed that the appeal will be sent to the addressees, as well as to the members of the Council for Science, Technology and Education under the President of the Russian Federation by the time of the meeting of this Council at the end of September this year, dedicated to the problems of fundamental science. It is possible that the appeal will be published in the Russian press.
You can sign the appeal by e-mail by sending to andrei.starinets@physics.ox.ac.uk a message with a brief indication of your data (in the "original language") according to the following sample:
Name, academic position, affiliation, country, special distinctions (if any).
Example: Vasily Ivanov, associate professor, Sitting Bull Community College, USA, Dirac medal (1991), Wolf prize (1992)
Your signatures will be placed under the letter in the order of receipt. Comments and recommendations can be sent to the above address.
With respect,
Alexander Belyaev (U.Southampton, a.belyaev@soton.ac.uk ), Andrey Nomerotsky (U.Oxford, a.nomerotski1@physics.ox.ac.uk ), Andrey Seriy (SLAC, seryi@slac.stanford.edu ), Andrey Starinets (U.Oxford, andrei.starinets@physics.ox.ac.uk )
Fundamental Science and the Future of Russiaopen letter to the President and Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation
September 9, 2009
Dear Dmitry Anatolyevich and Vladimir Vladimirovich!
We consider it our duty to draw your attention to the catastrophic state of fundamental science in the country. Regression continues, the scale and severity of the danger of this process are underestimated. The level of funding for Russian science contrasts sharply with the corresponding indicators of developed countries. The massive outflow of scientists abroad has been and remains a huge problem for Russia.
For decades, the USSR has created a powerful scientific and technical base and stable mechanisms for its reproduction, including the reproduction of personnel. It was this base, a kind of scientific "fabric" of our society, that guaranteed scientific and technological progress, the country's defense capability and, ultimately, the independence of Russia. The ongoing disintegration of this tissue will lead in the near future to a complete breakdown of communication between generations of scientists, the disappearance of world-class science in the Russian Federation and the loss of knowledge on a catastrophic scale.
Among the most acute problems of fundamental science and education , we highlight the following:
- a significant gap between Russian science and world-class science
- lack of strategic planning with clear goals
- inadequate funding of actively working scientists, a sharp drop in the prestige of scientific professions, the related personnel problem
- a serious decline in standards in the teaching of natural sciences, deterioration in the quality of training of students and postgraduates.
These problems require immediate solutions at the level of supranational state planning. We believe that the process of Strategic Scientific Planning, coordinated directly by the President and/or the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, should aim to develop, within a short time, a comprehensive plan for the stabilization and development of fundamental science and natural science education in Russia. It is necessary to involve outstanding scientists, representatives of ministries, industry, as well as foreign experts in the development of the plan. It should be a team of actively working, forward-looking, state-minded people.
Our specific proposals for the strategic plan for the development of fundamental science in the Russian Federation are as follows:
- increasing the funding of science to a level adequate to the tasks facing the country, ensuring the working and living conditions of scientists
- identification of the most important areas of scientific and technological progress and specific projects that serve as catalysts for development and lead to tangible fundamental results, which at one time were space and nuclear programs in the USSR
- active involvement of the largest scientific and technical projects on a global scale on the territory of Russia. The main task of such projects is to shift the focus of advanced scientific research to Russia, which would have a tremendous moral, psychological and practical effect and would serve as a catalyst for the development of science and technology. A unique opportunity of this type is the project of creating a new generation high-energy particle collider. The implementation of this project will require
active development of the most modern technologies. Their introduction into energy, computer science, biology, materials science and other fields, as well as their use in the creation of efficient and safe reactors would allow Russia to become a world leader in a number of high-tech industries (a letter outlining one of the possible options for this plan was sent to the President and Government of the Russian Federation in July 2008).- ensuring absolute transparency of financial flows, achievable within the framework of international projects
- cardinal improvement of the degree of integration of Russian science into global science, striving for leadership in the most important international scientific projects, active participation of Russia in the global academic labor market: creation of academic vacancies of international level, ensuring the availability of competitions for permanent and temporary academic positions for foreign candidates, creating attractive living and working conditions for candidates
- introduction of international standards for assessing the quality of scientific work, strengthening the system of independent scientific grants
- creation of the Russian Institute of Higher Studies with the involvement of public and private funding on the model of similar institutions in the USA, Canada, Japan. The opening of vacancies for the largest Russian and foreign scientists on a competitive basis in accordance with international standards, the initiation of an active program of scientific exchanges
- creation of a centralized state program of work with schoolchildren, popularization and promotion of scientific knowledge in the country.
We believe that the urgent prevention of the impending collapse of science in the country, the immediate development and implementation of a new model of scientific and technological development should be among the most important priorities of the Russian leadership.
We, the undersigned, are not bound by any political or corporate interests in the Russian Federation. Guided by the feeling that unites us all - deep concern for the fate of Russia, we call on the country's leadership to take decisive steps to resolve the problems raised in this letter, and are ready to provide our experience, knowledge and strength for expert assistance in these matters.
With respect,
Alexander Belyaev, University Lecturer, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, UK
Andrey Nomerotsky, University Lecturer, Department of Physics, Oxford University, UK
Andrey Seriy, Senior Scientist, FACET Project Head, Deputy Spokesperson of ATF Collaboration, SLAC National Laboratory, Stanford, USA, Fellow of the American Physical Society (2008)
Andrey Starinets, University Lecturer, Department of Physics, Oxford University, UK
Yuri Kolomensky, Associate Professor, Department of Physics, University of California at Berkeley, USA, Fellow of the American Physical Society (2006)
Vyacheslav Danilov, Senior Scientist, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, USA
Alexey Petrov, Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Wayne State University, USA
Sergey Belomestnykh, Senior Scientist, Department of Physics, Cornell University, USA
Alexander Shchekochikhin, University Lecturer, Department of Physics, Oxford University, UK
Arkady Zeitlin, Professor of theoretical physics, Imperial College London, UK, Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award (2001)
Constantin Zarembo, Directeur de Recherche CNRS de 2eme classe Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris, France
Sergey Solodukhin, professor, Universite de Tours, Tours, France
Vladimir Kazakov, professor, Ecole Normale Superieure (Paris) and University Paris-6, France, Humboldt Prize (2007), Servant Prize of French Academy (2007)
Alexander Buchel, associate professor/associate faculty member, University of Western Ontario/Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, Ontario, Canada
Vyacheslav Rychkov, professor, Universite' Paris 6, France
Anastasia Volovich, Assistant Professor, Brown University, USA
Andrey Korytov, professor, University of Florida, USA
Arkady Weinstein, Gloria Becker Lubkin Chair in Theoretical Physics, William I. Fine Theoretical Physics Institute, University of Minnesota, USA, J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics, APS, 1999; Ya. Pomeranchuk Prize, ITEP, 2005
Dmitry Kharzeev, Head, Nuclear Theory Group, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA
Vyacheslav Mukhanov, Professor, Head Of the Astroparticle division, LMU, München, Germany, Oskar Klein Medal (2006), Tomalla Prize (2009)
Mikhail Stefanov, Professor, Department of Physics, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA
Sergey Kuzenko, Professor, School of Physics, The University of Western Australia, Australia
Valery Lebedev, Assistant Division Head, Fermilab, USA
Igor Gaponenko, Senior Information Systems Specialist, SLAC National Laboratory, Stanford, USA
Vladimir Vogel, Senior Scientist, DESY, Hamburg, Germany
Dmitry Tsybyshev, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Stony Brook University, USA
Vladimir Shiltsev, Director of Accelerator Physics Center, FNAL , USA
Sergey Seletsky, Associate Physicist, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA
Elizaveta Shabalina, Senior Scientist at the II. Physikalisches Institut, Universitat Gottingen, Germany
Regina Demina, Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Rochester, USA
Alexey Safonov, Assistant Professor of Physics, Texas A&M University, USA, US Department of Energy Outstanding Junior Investigator (2007)
Yuri Kubyshin, Profesor agregado, Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña, Barcelona, España
Maxim Lyutikov, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics, Purdue University, USA
Mikhail Medvedev, Associate Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kansas, USA
Pavel Berlov, Reader in Applied Mathematics, Department of Mathematics and Grantham Climate Institute, Imperial College London; Associate Researcher, Department of Physical Oceanography, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, USA
Sergey Nazarenko, Professor of Mathematics, University of Warwick, UK
Igor Efimov, The Lucy and Stanley Lopata Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA, Fellow of the American Heart Association, Fellow of the Heart Rhythm Association
Lev Kofman, Associate Director, Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Toronto, Canada
Sergey Nagaytsev, Senior Scientist, Associate Division Head, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, USA; Fellow of the American Physical Society (2006)
Nikolay Solyak, Senior Scientist, Department Head, Fermi National, Accelerator Laboratory, USA
Victor Yarba, Senior Scientist, Associate Division Head, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, USA, Fellow of the American Physical Society
Vyacheslav Yakovlev, Senior Scientist, Head of Research Group, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, USA
Valery Chukhlomin, Academic Coordinator and Department Chair, Marketing and Organizational Behavior, State University of New York, Saratoga Springs, USA
Vadim Dudnikov, Senior Accelerator Scientist, Muons Inc., Batavia IL, USA
Sergey Ketov, professor, Physics Department, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Japan
Andrey Davydychev, Principal Research Scientist, Schlumberger, Sugar Land, TX, USA
The signatures are given as of 09/28/09.
The collection of signatures continues on the page
http://www.hep.phys.soton.ac.uk/~belyaev/open_letter/Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru