George Malinetskii
Win the war a school teacher and the parish priest, Bismarck, emphasizing the role of education and spirituality in the defense of the Fatherland. The twentieth century has confirmed that victory is forged not only on the battlefields and factory floors, but also in scientific laboratories, at seminars, in think tanks. If the Soviet engineers and researchers have not dealt with space and nuclear projects, the world would be quite different.
Current and future state of Russian science – one of the key factors of national security. This is particularly relevant today – the leaders of many defense companies say that the new generation weapons not science.
On the question of what are Russia’s prospects in this area, would have to answer “Strategy of scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation for the long term”. The MoE announced a competition for the creation of such a document and, judging by the website of the Department, has won the Higher school of Economics and Center for strategic research under the direction of Alexei Kudrin. The project posted on the Federal portal http://regulation.gov.ru/ really answer questions, but in their own way. The collapse of the Russian education and the elimination of domestic science will be continued. So the plan for the next “operation against the will of the patient” should be discussed more, especially because we have this very “sick”.
A raw materials appendage
To science played an important role in the defense of the country and its economy, should be closed circle of reproduction and innovation: analysis of problems, development trends and space capabilities – goal setting and planning – fundamental research and training – applied research – development work, the creation of technology – the output of goods to the market or the implementation of the opportunities the other way – investing the proceeds in a result of this activity funds all elements of the cycle, analysis of issues, trends, new situations, etc. In the USSR, the circle of the reproduction of innovation is closed one way, in the US anyway. In the new Russia he is open.
The essence can be explained with a simple analogy. So the car went, he had to have the windshield in Navigator and steering wheel, you also need the motor and the wheels.
The role the windshield plays a system of scientific information that allows you to see where to go. This system collapsed. For example, the Russian state library subscribes to 350 foreign scientific journals. If you consider that naukovedy in 2004 counted 72 thousand scientific disciplines, enrolling in the RSL is negligible.
Navigator serve as the fundamental science and the education system. Conventionally, we assume that they cost one ruble. Minobr, active hand in the scrapping of the two, has achieved some success. For example, in 2013, implemented the reform of the Medvedev-Golodets-Livanov, which resulted in the Russian Academy of Sciences took research institutes and handed them over to the Federal Agency of scientific organizations (FANO). This glorious institution was expected to perform economic functions, to look after the property transferred to the use of scientists of the RAS (buildings, laboratories, landfills, experimental fields). But using FANO went financing institutions, and he who pays the Piper calls the tune. Therefore, business executives began to steer scientists and engaged in the merging of institutions. Obviously, to manage it easier. The draft mentions the institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Apparently, the authors of the document unaware that such no longer exist, and the wounds turned into a club of distinguished professors, the severed head of the hero who talked to Ruslan in Pushkin’s poem.
Strategists underdevelopment
The motor plays a role of applied science, which is based on the knowledge obtained in the course of fundamental research offers a new technical solution, creates prototypes, prototypes, etc. in this sector is 75 percent of inventions, and it costs 10 rubles. Most of this key sector, which was supposed to engage in scientific research and development (R & d), was destroyed in the 90-ies. Many of the largest defense enterprises in Russia simply there are no divisions that are doing research. Many of them are trying now to revive Soviet development, and perhaps rightly so when there is no other. But do not forget that in Soviet times had passed a quarter of a century and the world is not standing still.
As the wheels are the large high-tech companies. They create a reliable and effective technology, lead development (R & d), producing products and display it on the world market. The sector is already worth 100 rubles. Obviously, the main consumer of the technology industry. The main role in the global arms market large companies play a leading OCD research, and occasionally basic research. For example, Lockheed has a turnover of 36 billion dollars, which is comparable to half the defense budget of Russia. Recently the company has developed a new launch vehicle.
Unfortunately, large high-tech companies during the reforms in Russia has not arisen. Those that have, seem much more modest foreign competitors. In addition, after years of collapse of our manufacturing industry, they were planted “on the needle” of Western components. The situation is very complex, requiring effective management, especially given the defeat of military science.
But the authors of the “Strategy” is optimistic. It turns out that we are experiencing “a stage of transition to the innovative development of Russia (2007 – present), characterized by the creation of tools and the implementation of measures to support innovation activities. During this period, established institutions of innovative development of the international level, state-owned companies in knowledge-intensive sectors of the economy, measures to support research and development of world-class University sector, a Federal tools and digital infrastructure that implements a common approach to the management of public research organizations, including universities and institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences…” However, it is unclear why such cases the share of our country on the world market of high technology products is only 0.3 percent.
Interestingly, the recognition of one of the ideologists and organizers of the Russian reforms, German Gref, delivered at the Gaidar forum in 2016: “We lost the competition, I must honestly say. This technological enslavement – we were among the countries that lose, in the list of countries-downshifters. Countries and people who have managed to adapt in time and invest in it – they are the winners.”
In terms of sanctions there was a question about import substitution, primarily in the interests of the defense industry. Experts estimate the number of items that should be replaced, in the tens of thousands, while the current capacities of the country allow you to replace several hundred per year. So the rating Gref much closer to reality than the optimism of the authors of “Strategy”.
Another thing – how did we get to such a life, turning technological and scientific superpower into a raw materials appendage, a third world country.
Creative Kudrinsky center
According to the authors of “Strategy” the most important trends influencing national research policy, the so-called big challenges (probably it’s the creative Kudrinsky. There are five of them: “the exhaustion of traditional resources in socio-economic growth in industrialized countries; slowing the reproduction of the natural environment due to anthropogenic pressures; the industrial revolution and the allocation of a limited group of countries with a new technology package; increased complexity and reduced manageability of socio-technical systems; demographic transition and changing lifestyles”.
On the one hand, it’s nice that our science is taken for all global challenges. This is reminiscent of the era of the futurists, presidents of the globe”. And on the other – somehow this smacks of “new thinking” times gorbachevschiny, which turned out to be thinking.
What are the goals of Russian science, in the understanding of “strategists”? Four of them: “to ensure meaningful results that meet long-term challenges of the global economy (and really, worldwide); to function as a social institution “science – technology – innovation” (unclear, but it sounds nice); to integrate into the world markets research and development (this is important!); to acquire and maintain leadership in the new and rapidly developing fields of knowledge” (and with the old-what to do backlog which was growing rapidly in the years of stagnation?).
In other words, set by the authors of the “Strategy” task is irrelevant to the acute problems facing Russia. Thoughts on “strategists”, it is difficult to expect any benefit from domestic science. Let yourself performs a decorative function, dreams of global issues and their future greatness, and also integrates third-party roles in the global markets.”
But common sense dictates otherwise. In fact, the military budget of Russia in 2014 amounted to 84 billion dollars in China – 216 billion in the US – 610 billion and 950 billion from NATO as a whole. A difficult thing to defend the Fatherland at a time when opponents are spending on your army and weapons ten times more. In order to successfully cope with this task, needed scientific and technical breakthroughs. Readers VPK it is not necessary to explain that nuclear weapons in the twenty-first century is not a panacea. Against Russia being cold war high-intensity, and scientific and technical breakthroughs in the defense industry – a guarantee that she will not turn into a hot. Science here is what to do.
The main opportunities and the biggest risks of the XXI century likely to be associated with the person, his health, the development and use of creative abilities. Every third scientific work in the world is now being done in the field of medicine. Great progress has been made. According to the international journal The Lancet, between 1990 and 2013, life expectancy in the world rose by an average of 6.2 years, and healthy life without diseases, significantly reducing its quality) is 5.4 years. Unfortunately, Russia is far behind. Our citizens began to live only 1.7 years longer, and their healthy life is extended by 1.6 years. According to this indicator Russia is on the 109th place out of 189 countries.
Finally, the new industrialization. With the announcement of sanctions against Russia and the remnants of the new thinking, and Gaidar paradigm, asserting that all buy abroad, and the mantra of “inevitability of globalization” vanished overnight. The question arose: what can you do yourself? Before the sanctions, in 2013 the volume of Russian imports exceeded $ 300 billion – the budget of the huge state. It became obvious that the preservation of our sovereignty is associated with a substitution, and it is – with the new industrialization. And here the role of science is enormous. To build factories, to revive or create entire industries have on a new technological basis. And it planning, strategic forecast… If our science is obsessed with solving such problems and succeeded, that would be more than enough.
Following mathematical tradition, we argue by contradiction. Imagine that this is not done and it goes something like this, as suggested in the discussion of “Strategy”. The gap from the West, and hence dependence on him will grow even faster than it is now. Living standards in comparison with the countries-leaders will continue to fall. This will set the stage for a crisis of the elites and the “orange revolution”, a further matter of technique.
At a recent meeting with economists, the President of the Russian Federation Alexey Kudrin has put forward a proposal to enter the second or third role in the world economy. What Vladimir Putin responded harshly: Russia is not selling its sovereignty. This fully applies to this “Strategy”, which the authors do not see Russia in the top League of countries that define the scientific and technical development of the world. However, there is no alternative – to preserve the sovereignty, we have in many areas of science and technology once again become the first.
Gibberish
However, we must pay tribute to the developers – the document to be “creative”. Along with the classical liberal mantras, it has a lot of interesting stories.
From the classics: “For the transformation sector research and development changes key task of state institutions, the management and administration of the network of scientific organizations are minimized, efforts are directed to the development of the system of regulation, providing knowledge, stimulating their development, access to national and global market of technologies and science intensive products. Simultaneously, the authorities focused on creating high-quality and affordable services necessary for the realization of creative and intellectual potential of the teams of researchers and developers”.
In short, the government should leave science to take the functions of goal setting, focus on “services” and “regulation”.
And the world is just the opposite. The leading countries of scientific-technical development – USA, Japan, China, Finland, South Korea, Singapore have the scientific strategy put major tasks facing scientists and invest in science a lot of money (not forgetting to check the obtained results). You can appeal to the experience of the new Russia. Where the state “took” very quickly started to degrade, which ended in a collapse.
My colleagues see in this part of the “Strategy” incompetent developers who want to re-step on a rake. In my opinion, this is the optimism of the doctor and his penchant for research. If the cure doesn’t work nine times in a row, then maybe it will work on the tenth?
Among the mechanisms for the implementation of the “Strategy” proposes “a new simplified system of appropriation of scientific qualification, based on the representation of the totality of the results obtained and the recognition of their importance for the development of science, economy and society directly by the organizations leaders with the participation of the state exclusively in the legal regulation, supervision and welfare…”
Qualifications not assign her to achieve intense and independent work, so probably we are talking about assignment of scientific degrees. Thoughts on “strategists”, the government should leave… VAK of the USSR was a serious reputable organization. However, in the Yeltsin era it was turned into a modest Department of the Ministry of education that has led to the degradation and disintegration of the system of scientific personnel appraisal. This collapse is invited to complete. Obviously, and hence the state should withdraw, giving all at the mercy of “business leaders”. I wonder what dissertation boards will undertake to evaluate the significance of the “totality of results” for the economy and society. It seems their business is a science, and “economy and society” are on the other side.
Now about the novels. In the “Strategy” much has been said about the “openness” and “transparency” of science. For example: “Effective community engagement contribute to enhancing the transparency of science, the availability of information about the results of the research and development of large-scale inclusion in educational programs leading research universities.”
Notice that our weapons are effective primarily because the results of the research developments which were made in its creation, remain closed and opaque. And all the competition in the sector of high-tech products based on the fact that some companies learn to do what others can not, and are not eager to share secrets. Bright future has not yet arrived. And generally somehow it is undemocratic to deprive a piece of bread, a huge intelligence community, interested in our technology and development…
Another discovery: “the Dominant feature of universities is the production of individual professionals, and interdisciplinary project teams of like-minded people”. Indeed all new – well forgotten old! This is the brigade method! My father told me that in 30 years of trying to teach in school. Who knows how to read – let them read, and evaluation – with the whole team. Who knows how to count – let them work for everyone. But then somehow it went wrong this wonderful experiment.
In the “Strategies” many other interesting finds. Here and “the re-export of technology”, “system of patronage”, “collaboration of scientists, engineers and technology entrepreneurs, high capitalization organizations”, “engineering-production consortiums”, “establishment of “principal investigators”, “branding”, “attracting young foreign scientists”, “company Champions”, “the redesign of government programs”… As you can see, creativity to creativity.
What is the result? Success is:
•”entering the top ten countries-leaders in the global competition for talent;
•entering at least 30 Russian centres of excellence, universities and the Russian territories, high-tech companies in the hundred leaders of the relevant international ratings of innovative and scientific-technological development;
•growth in funds for research and development from foreign sources”.
Europe will help us! Enter the ratings, and will be all happy!
At a recent Assembly General of the army Makhmut Gareev lamented that the leadership of the Military historical society of Russia was not a military one. Apparently, the same situation. According to the text, “Strategy”, wrote the economists, the financiers, the “effective management”. Probably, it and natural science and technology are too important to entrust them to those who has an idea about them.
Thought long and hard about what genre to classify discuss “Strategy.” Likely, to pornography, to good, philosophical sense of the word. Classic of postmodern philosophy Jean Baudrillard, this term means works that deny meaning and significance of what they describe. If the document is called “Strategy”, then where next?
However advise readers to not dismiss this text which is posted on the Federal portal, where you can leave a review. Our society needs the feedback. Without it, things don’t get better. Science, education and technology of Russia directly related to the defense and national security, too important to give them at the mercy of “strategy” employed Minobrom.
