Vladimir, Автор в Т-инвариант / T-invariant

Personal resistance. Essay on the biography and scientific activity of Stepan Timoshenko

The eighth essay in the “Creators” series is dedicated to Stepan Timoshenko, one of the founders of modern applied mechanics. In the “Creators” project T-invariant in collaboration with RASA (Russian-American Science Association) and with the support of the Richard Lounsbery Foundation continues to publish a series of biographical essays about people from the Russian Empire who made significant contributions to world science and technology.

The Air Routes. The Essay on the biography and scientific activity of Igor Sikorsky

The seventh essay in the “Creators” series is dedicated to Igor Sikorsky, one of the founders of modern aviation. In the “Creators” project, T-invariant together with RASA (Russian-American Science Association) and with the support of the Richard Lounsbery Foundation continues to publish a series of biographical essays about people from the Russian Empire who made significant contributions to world science and technology.

Tamer of Anger. Essay on the biography and scientific activities of Tamara Dembo

The sixth essay in the “Creators” series is dedicated to Tamara Dembo, an outstanding psychologist whose work on the study of “anger as a dynamic problem” and the rehabilitation of people with disabilities remains scientifically relevant to this day. The “Creators” project, created by T-invariant together with RASA (Russian-American Science Association) with the support of the Richard Lounsbery Foundation , talks about people from the Russian Empire who made significant contributions to world science and technology.

How a scientist from Odessa saved the 20th century from plague and cholera. Essay on the biography and scientific activities of Vladimir Haffkine

The fifth essay in the “Creators” series is dedicated to Vladimir (Waldemar) Haffkine, the creator of the first effective vaccines against cholera and plague. At the end of the 19th century, Haffkine carried out the first mass vaccination in India. His laboratories have developed and produced tens of millions of doses of cholera and plague vaccines. In the “Creators” project, T-inavariant, together with RASA (Russian-American Science Association) and with the support of the Richard Lounsbery Foundation, continues to publish a series of biographical essays about people from the Russian Empire who made a significant contribution to world science and technology,

Condemning the Hamas Attack on Israel and Rejecting Hate Speech: A Public Response to a Colleague

T-invariant publish open letter by Alexander Kabanov, Mescal S. Ferguson Distinguished Professor, Director, Center for Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery Chapel Hill, UNC. He writes: "The terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, shocked me deeply. I was also disappointed by the statement issued by the UNC Chapel Hill Faculty, Graduate Students, and Staff Regarding Justice in Palestine, which said, among other things, “…We believe that an understanding of such loss must be situated within the historical and political context of ongoing colonial oppression.” On November 3, 2023, I sent a brief note to about 40 UNC faculty members who had signed this statement by then..."

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

T-invariant and CISRUS launched a chronicle of violations of the rights and freedoms of scientists and teachers

Updates: Andrey Boyarshinov, Dmitry Ivanov, Valery Golubkin, Boris Kagarlitsky, Svetlana Drugoveyko-Dolzhanskaya.
Additions: Alexander Lukanin, Alexey Vorobyov.

Dismissals, fines, stigmatization, criminal cases, torture — all this awaits in Russia those who are trying to tell the truth, oppose war, protect peace, criticize the authorities or simply honestly do their academic and teaching work .
T-invariant and the CISRUS Centerwill work together to chronicle the persecution of scientists in Russia for as long as it continues. If you have witnessed or been the target of academic harassment, please contact us at [email protected].
The chronicle records violations of the rights and freedoms of scientists and teachersas citizens of the Russian Federation, as well as violations of their academic rights and freedoms by the leadership of their scientific institution.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Gleb Verdian

Date of the incident: September 7, 2023
Type of violation: conviction for treason
Institution: Astrakhan State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering

Summary: The Moscow City Court has sentenced 21-year-old student of the Astrakhan State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Gleb Verdiyan, to six years' imprisonment in a strict penal colony for treason against the state (Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). This was announced by the press service of the courts of general jurisdiction in Moscow. In addition to the prison term, Verdiyan was sentenced to a fine of 200 thousand rubles and a restriction of liberty for one year.

Sources: Current Time, Mediazona, BBC News

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Valery Garbuzov

Date of the incident: September 1, 2023
Type of violation: Dismissal
Institution: Georgy Arbatov Institute for U.S. and Canada Studies Russian Academy of Sciences (RAN)

Summary: Russian historian and political scientist Valery Garbuzov confirmed to TASS on September 2 that he was dismissed from his post as director of the Institute for U.S. and Canada of RAN, at the initiative of the founder:" Yes, yesterday an order was signed to terminate my contract. The reason as such is not stated there, there is such an article of the employment contract - at the initiative of the founder, that's how it is formulated."

Source: TASS, "Nezavisimaya Gazeta"

“Putin has done so many bad things that it would be very helpful to simply reverse these decisions.” Sergei Guriev — on future reforms

What is the extent of ideologization of education in Russia? Why will it be impossible to carry out lustration in the field of education? What awaits researchers in Russia and Ukraine after the war? What are the prospects for economic reforms in Ukraine? T-invariant spoke with Sergei Guriev, Provost of Sciences Po University in Paris.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Yulia Galyamina

Date: August 25, 2023
The court declared the dismissal illegal
Institution: RANEPA

Summary: The Koptevsky District Court of Moscow partially satisfied the claim of former municipal deputy, associate professor Yulia Galyamina, who challenged her dismissal from the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA). This is stated on the court's website. In Galyamina’s telegram channel writes: “I was reinstated at RANEPA as an assistant professor. They collected 115 thousand for illegal dismissal. Of these, 10 are compensation for moral damage (we asked for 500).”

Sources: Telegram channel of Yulia Galyamina, Mediazona, court website

«Brother» and «Mouse». The founders of the MSU Z-organization turned out to be the children of Yuri Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation

At Moscow State University, a student organization of Z-activists is raising money for ammunition and equipment for ultranationalists fighting Ukraine, using the official support of the university's law faculty. T-invariant has found out that the founders of the association are the son and daughter of Yuri Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation.

Man of the Earth. Essay on the biography and scientific activity of Selman Waksman

T-invariant, in collaboration with RASA and with support from the Richard Lounsbery Foundation, is launching the "Creators" project. The project will publish a series of essays on immigrants from the Russian Empire who have made significant contributions to global science and technology. The first essay is dedicated to Selman Waksman, Nobel Prize winner and discoverer of streptomycin.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Alina Olekhnovich, Ivan Trofimov

Date of incident: July 26, 2023
Type of violation: house arrest
Institution: Higher School of Economics

Summary: The Basmanny District Court of Moscow placed 22-year-old Ivan Trofimov and 21-year-old Alina Olekhnovich under house arrest until September 24 in the case of participation in the activities of an extremist organization. Trofimova and Olekhnovich are students of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, according to the university’s website, both are studying in the field of “cinema and video art” at the Department of Contemporary Art. Propagandist Vladimir Solovyov wrote about the detention of young people in his Telegram channel.

Source: Mediazona

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Mikhail Lobanov

Date of incident: July 7, 2023
Type of violation: dismissal
Institution: Moscow State University

Summary: On June 23, the Ministry of Justice recognized candidate of physical and mathematical sciences Mikhail Lobanov as a foreign agent, which technically prohibits him from teaching. Lobanov writes: “I saw a photo of the order dismissing me from the position of associate professor of mechanics and mathematics at Moscow State University. The order is dated July 7, issued and signed on behalf of the acting. Rector of Moscow State University by Vice-Rector Andrei Fedyanin.”

Source: RBC

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Center of Historical Memory

Date of incident: July 4, 2023
Type of violation: violation of autonomy
Institution: Center of Historical Memory, Perm

Summary: On July 4, the Center for Historical Memory (successor to the Perm department of the human rights research organization Memorial) was fined 300 thousand rubles in the case of “discrediting” the Russian army (Article 20.3.3 Part 1 Administrative Code). Since the decision was made in absentia, the exact reason for drawing up the protocol is currently unknown. Presumably, the reason could have been the appeal of the International Memorial on February 24 last year on the Perm Memorial website. The same domain is now used by the Center for Historical Memory.

Source: PROPERM.RU

«Are there now enough Curies, Bohrs, and Rutherfords to help scientists from these three countries?» Natalia Berloff on the new symbolism of the Gamow Prize

In 2023, the Georgy Gamow Prize will again be awarded to two scientists. The organizer, the Russian-American Association of Scientists (RASA), announced the start of the collection of nominations. This year, the Gamov Prize committee was chaired by Cambridge (UK) professor Natalia Berloff.

Mikhail Sokolov: «The prism through which people now look at Russia is war»

Sociologist of Science Mikhail Sokolov gives a prediction for T-invariant. What kind of historical experiment is being conducted on scientists left behind in Russia, and why a scandal will erupt when GPT-chat starts re-checking textbooks in Russian.

Fear and trembling: Why do AI leaders frighten humanity?

Artificial Intelligence development leaders compare AI to a pandemic and nuclear war. Are they genuinely wrong, or do they benefit?

Donation to «extremists» or «state treason»: FSB long «led» a major academic leader to arrest

Sergey Abramov, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has been under house arrest for two months now. He is accused of "financing an extremist organization." Details of the criminal case remain unpublished, but T-Invariant found out that Abramov had previously been investigated under the article of law on "state treason," and the scientist had a security clearance for state secrets.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Mikhail Belousov

Date of incident: 06/02/2023
Type of violation: dismissal
Institution: St. Petersburg State University

Summary: The management of St. Petersburg State University (SPbSU) dismissed Mikhail Belousov, associate professor at the Institute of History, for distributing materials “discrediting the conduct of a special military operation by the armed forces of the Russian Federation and insulting the memory of those killed in the line of military duty.” The decision was justified by the fact that criticism of the war “violates the moral traditions of the university and generally accepted ethical standards.”

Sources: Mediazona, Fontanka

Hypersound silence. How scientists become the prey of the FSB

Three physicists were arrested in so called "Novosibirsk case". It wasn’t the first time. Previously, four scientists were also accused of treason in different years. All of the scientists accused in all these cases participated in the projects of the seventh framework program of the European Union "TransHyBerian" (coordinator — Von Karman Institute of Hydrodynamics, Belgium). However, the interlocutors and sources of T-invariant suggest that the contacts of scientists with China and Iran are only an excuse, not the reason for the arrests.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Sergey Chernyshov

Date of incident: May 26, 2023
Type of violation: recognition by a foreign agent, dismissal
Institution: Novosibirsk Novocollege

Summary: On May 26, college director Sergey Chernyshov was recognized as a foreign agent. The main reason is the refusal to hold "Conversations about the Important" in the college. For some time he remained the director. As Chernyshov wrote in his VK, a foreign agent cannot teach, but he can organize the learning process, that is, he can work as a director. But this state did not last long - on June 15, Chernyshov left the post of director of the New College.

Sources: Siberia.Realities, VK by Sergey Chernyshov (posts on May 26 and June 15)

«In matters of climate, Russia cannot be removed from the globe»

The military-industrial complex is one of the dirtiest industries in terms of its impact on climate and the environment, even in peacetime. It is especially harmful to the planet during active combat operations. Why was Russia not excluded from the global climate process after February 24, 2022? Climate policy experts Marianna Poberezhskaya and Olga Dobrovidova explain.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Mordovian State University

Date of incident: May 22, 2023
Type of violation: forced voting
Institution: Mordovia State University

Synopsis: Rector Dmitry Glushko forced students of Mordovian State University to vote for him in the United Russia primaries. The demands were distributed through the Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Law, Irina Ginzburg. Glushko plans to become a member of the regional parliament.

Source: telegram channel SOTA

War as a crisis of rationality

How science helps resist the archaic, explains Eugene Koonin, Senior Investigator at the National Center for Biotechnology Information at the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Natalia Podolyak

Date of incident: May 11, 2023
Type of violation: dismissal
Institution: Siberian Institute of Business, Management and Psychology

Brief: Teacher and activist Natalia Podolyak was fired from the Siberian Institute of Business, Management and Psychology, where she ran a sports club. The motivational part of the order states that the dismissal was caused by violations of the law on countering extremism and violations of labor duties. Earlier, Natalia Podolyak was fined for discrediting the Russian army in connection with her comment that the Russian military in Ukraine is fighting "on foreign soil." In addition, in 2020 she was sentenced to 10 days for “insulting the police.” According to Podolyak, she had no disciplinary sanctions for her work.

Sources: Radio Liberty, Natalia's FB post Podolyak (order of dismissal)

Irina Savelieva: «You should have seen the world outside your hut»

Irina Savelieva, former director and one of the founders of the A.V. Poletaev Institute for Humanitarian History and Theory Research at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, talks about the rise, heyday and end of the famous institute, the impact factor, the «5-100» program and the academic kitchen of the Higher School of Economics.

Global Warming and Political Cold

The past year brought a series of weather anomalies: extreme heat and drought, high precipitation and flooding. This spring began with a heat wave in Spain. We asked climate experts Alexander Chernokulsky and Olga Dobrovidova about weather anomalies and asked them to assess the development of global warming as well as how Russia's position on international cooperation on a variety of climate-related issues affects the global environmental agenda.

Where will cultural evolution lead us?

How do random variability, heredity, and selection work in cultural evolution? Wars as fluctuations in cultural evolution, lessons from Franklin's missing expedition, hierarchy of prestige, copying of skills, level of trust and natural selection of ideas, competitive environments without wars — Alexander Markov talks about all this in episode 4 of the podcast «Invasion».

Alexander Markov on War in terms of Cultural Evolution

Is modern war in terms of cultural evolution the norm or the terrible exception? Was Steven Pinker wrong when he wrote his book «The Best in Us: Why There's Less Violence in the World»? Aleksandr Markov, doctor of biological sciences, argues in episode 3 of Olga Orlova's podcast «Invasion. Science in a Time of War.»

Elena Bunina: «I was saved by mathematics»

«I will not go back: I cannot work in a country that is at war with its neighbors,» Yelena Bunina, CEO of Russia's Yandex, wrote to colleagues in early March 2022 and did not return to Russia from vacation. Today, Elena Bunina, a professor at Bar Ilan University talks about the losses and gains of the past year.

«I will not be able to return to Russia…»

Philologist Boris Gasparov, professor at Columbia University in New York spoke in an interview with T-invariant about his new book, the impossibility of doing Russian cultural history today, and why the current emigration of intellectuals is more like the German emigration of the 1930s than the «philosophical steamer.»

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Sergey Abramov

Date of incident: April 12, 2023
Type of violation: arrest
Institution: A. K. Ailamazyan Program Systems Institute of RAS

Summary: Corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Sergei Abramov was arrested under the article on financing extremism (Part 1 of Article 282.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). By a resolution of the Pereslavsky District Court of the Yaroslavl Region dated April 12, 2023, a preventive measure was chosen against him in the form of house arrest for a period until June 10, 2023. House arrest was extended until August 10. On this charge, Abramov faces up to 5 years in prison in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 282.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

More details in T-invariant

Stubbornness of Fact VS Loyalty of Lies

Why is it important for global science to maintain ties with the scientific community in Russia? Arguments of Associate Professor at the University of Johannesburg Aleksei Oskolski.

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Valery Zvegintsev, Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk

Date of incident: April 7, 2023
Type of violation: arrest
Institution: Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Summary: On April 7, Valery Zvegintsev, Doctor of Technical Sciences, founder of the laboratory "Aerogasdynamics of High Velocities" of the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was arrested. Earlier, two more employees of the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Anatoly Maslov and Alexander Shiplyuk were arrested. All of them became suspects in a criminal case on “high treason” (Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

More about this case wrote by T-invariant

Chronicles of persecution of scientists

Pavel Kolosnitsyn

Date of incident: April 6, 2023
Type of violation: fine
Institution: Novgorod University

Synopsis: In January, police drew up an administrative report against archaeologist Pavel Kolosnitsyn from Novgorod University for his comment on a post about mobilization, in which he assessed Russia’s losses in Ukraine. On February 21, the court fined Kolosnitsyn 30 thousand rubles. for abuse of freedom of the media (part 9 of article 13.15 of the Administrative Code). The scientist said he would appeal the decision. On April 6, the Novgorod District Court left the court decision unchanged. Earlier, Kolosnitsyn said that a denunciation against him was written by an acquaintance from another city.
Source: North.Realities

Philosophical scooter: How does academic solidarity work in an age of catastrophe?

The war caused the largest and fastest «brain drain» from Russia since the early 1990s. What is the peculiarity of this wave? T-invariant launches a series of videos titled «Philosophical Scooter». Первый выпуск: «Brain Drain: How Scientists Go to Israel». We discuss with Yakov Krasik, Professor, Department of Physics, Professor, Department of Physics, The Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

AI
Progress

Letter from Billionaires: Stop Artificial Intelligence!

The head of Tesla and SpaceX Ilon Musk, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and more than a thousand experts signed an open letter calling for a halt in the development of a «giant artificial intelligence.» The text of the letter was published by Future of Life Institute. T-Invariant asked experts and AI to comment on this open letter.

Free university cannot be deemed «undesirable»

The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation announced that the Free University had been given the status of an undesirable organization. «Our censors and persecutors are a little too late,» believes Kirill Martynov, co-founder of the Free University. He even sees some pluses in the new status.