Сентябрь 2000 г.

Российская наука и мир (по материалам зарубежной электронной прессы)

CONTENTS / ОГЛАВЛЕНИЕ


• 3rd Sino-Russian Economic Symposium Opens
• Industrial-scientific forum opens in Nizhny Novgorod
• Russia's schools struggle to find a fresh slate
• EU official to discuss cooperation of European Union, Russia
• Personality Characteristics of the Nentsy in the Russian Arctic
• U.S. Eyes Russia's Nuclear Waste
• Russia Researchers Back From Arctic
• Soviet-Era Work On Bioweapons Still Worrisome
• Eagle On the Edge
• Russian scientist calls for closer interaction with NATO
• Report: Space tourist to begin training in two weeks
• Even in Space, a Hammer Comes in Handy

В Китае открылся III Китайско-Российский экономический симпозиум, целью которого является обсуждение путей усиления двусторонних торговых связей между двумя странами. Около 100 экономистов и экспертов обсудят экономические перспективы обеих стран в 21 веке, вопросы глобализации экономики, экономические реформы и китайско-российские экономические и торговые связи.

BEIJING, (Sept. 7) XINHUA -- The Third Sino-Russian Economic Symposium opened today, with the aim of discussing ways to increase bilateral trade ties between the two countries. During the eight-day gathering, sponsored by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, nearly 100 economists and experts from both countries will focus on the economic prospects of the two countries in the 21st century, economic globalization, economic reforms and Sino-Russian economic and trade cooperation.
Wang Luolin, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the international political and economic structures as well as social and economic situations in both countries have undergone profound changes in the past 10 years. Therefore, it is meaningful to discuss how to deal with the changing situation as well as matters of common concern. Dmitry Lvov, secretary of the Department of Economics of the Russian Academy of Science, said that he hopes similar symposiums could provide a venue for economists from both countries to exchange views.
The Russian participants will also visit the Capital Iron and Steel Complex, the Zhangjiang High-Tech Industrial Park and the Pudong New Area in Shanghai.
The previous two events were held in Moscow in 1988 and 1999 respectively. A new Russian initiative aims to bridge the gulf between universities and the nation's science strongholds, the institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS). Russia's Ministry of Education and the U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) announced last week that three regions each will receive $1 million to create centers that bring university and RAS researchers together.
The RAS's 325-odd institutes have long been the preferred workplace for Russia's top scientists, as they can work unfettered by teaching demands. But last year, in a bid to improve science teaching, the Education Ministry and CRDF hatched a plan to create joint RAS-university centers that would be funded by U.S. foundations and Russian sources (Science, 29 May 1998, p. 1336).
From 80 proposals emerged three winners: Far Eastern State University in Vladivostok, whose center will focus on marine life; Krasnoyarsk State University in Siberia, which will develop techniques for environmental remediation; and three universities in the Rostov region, which will study earthquake safety and pollutant monitoring. Another four centers are expected to be announced next May.

NIZHNY NOVGOROD, September 6 (Itar-Tass) -- Nizhny Novgorod has become Russia's economic capital for five days after the 5th all-Russia scientific and industrial forum " Russia united" opened here at noon today.
Opening the forum, Vice-Premier Ilya Klebanov described the forum as a special event in the course of strengthening Russia's common economic space.
President Vladimir Putin has sent a message of greeting to participants and quests of the forum which was read out by Plenipotentiary representative of the Russian president in the Volga Federal District Sergei Kiriyenko. The president said in his message that the forum would promote development of science and industry, help improve the forms and methods of state support to innovation activities in the scientific and industrial sector and promote contacts with regional and foreign partners.
The forum is being attended by representatives of 17 countries, over 1, 500 enterprises and around 5,000 business people from 57 regions of Russia.

В школах России в этом году не хватает 50,000 преподавателей. Даже в относительно благополучной в этом отношении Москве имеется 1,000 вакансий, главным образом для учителей литературы, математики и английского языка. Средняя зарплата учителя в Москве менее $ 50 в месяц. На такую зарплату очень трудно прожить в настоящее время, и многие учителя ушли из школ. Но большинство остались, потому что кто - то должен делать эту работу, кто - то должен думать о детях

Too few teachers, outdated courses face students on opening day. There will be the usual laughter, speeches, and parents snapping pictures when School No. 119 opens for the new year today in Moscow. And in accordance with Russian tradition, students will form into ranks and troop through the bare, dimly lit corridors to their new classrooms, each one bearing a bunch of flowers for the teacher.
It is a very Russian irony that the pile of bouquets may well be worth the teacher's annual salary. "We don't think about money, that's how we get by," says principal Svetlana Churakova. While struggling with meager state funding, Russian educators also are wrestling with how to stem a drop in once-enviable standards and debating their fundamental goals. "The Soviet military-industrial complex needed a lot of engineers and scientists, and the school system was geared up to produce them," says Yuri Gromyko, president of the Moscow Academy for Culture and Education. "Now we need people who are free thinkers and responsible citizens first of all, but our existing schools have no idea how to teach these qualities."
Experts say the teachers who keep the system going are mostly well-trained and dedicated, but they are increasingly unable to cope. "Tests show that educational standards are falling dangerously," says Sergei Bebchuk, director of the School League, a professional association of teachers. "Students today cannot pass science, math, and literature tests that were routine for Soviet-era children, though the curriculum in these subjects hasn't changed. Problems of drugs, alcohol, and street violence are creeping into our schools, and there are no provisions for handling any of this." Changing social conditions have yet to be matched by deep educational reform, and this may be the most essential problem.
The US school system has been putting more emphasis on teaching math and science in recent years, while Russian schools have been moving erratically toward greater stress on liberal arts. "We do not have a clear approach, students are just presented with a variety of viewpoints and told to decide for themselves," says Tatiana Makarevich, a history teacher at School 119. "No one wants to take responsibility. This may be better than teaching Communist dogma, but without at least some guidelines, it does not seem a very useful way to teach."
Bureaucratic resistance and misplaced national pride conspire to block reforms, says Mr. Bebchuk, himself a public-school principal. "Everything is still dictated from above, by officials who are pursuing their own departmental interests and have their own conception of what education should be," he says. "We need innovations based on what future citizens need in a changing world, yet we work with a curriculum that's 20 years old."
While the Education Ministry keeps no formal records, anecdotal evidence suggests that for those who can afford it, private schools are becoming an increasingly popular option.
But the current system has its defenders. "Even now, in extremely unfavorable circumstances, Russian schools are much better than American ones in such subjects as physics, chemistry, and math," says Gennady Yagodin, the Soviet Union's education minister from 1985 to '91, and currently rector of the International University in Moscow. "Much of what the Russian system could do before, it can still do surprisingly well."
School 119, a crumbling eight-story prefab concrete box surrounded by the high-rise housing estates of southwest Moscow, is typical of the schools that some 20 million Russian pupils will be returning to today. Its worn interior has been painted and scrubbed by volunteer groups of parents, the teachers' committee has been preparing the curriculum for weeks, and all seems ready. But the accumulated underfunding of at least a decade shows in the overgrown grounds, sputtering light fixtures, groaning plumbing, and Ms. Churakova's grim smile when she talks about the school's problems.
The average teacher here earns less than $50 a month; even Churakova, the highest-paid, makes the equivalent of just $70 a month. "It's very hard to survive on such wages, and a lot of people have left the profession," she says. "But most of us stay because someone has to do this work. Someone has to think about the children."
"The watchword is to make do," Churakova says. Teachers are reminded that pencils can be used right down to their stubs, a piece of paper has two sides, and lessons written on a blackboard can be left for the next class to save chalk. Better-off parents are asked for donations.
"Sometimes I just take them and show them our conditions, or mention something we need," says Churakova. "Usually the parents find a way to fix the problem for us. If we had to rely on the local Board of Education, our situation would be hopeless." Most parents, unable to contribute financially, give their labor as occasional cleaners, repairmen, or groundskeepers.
Still, there is no avoiding the impression that School 119 is gradually being dragged under by the strains. "In these days, everyone is riveted on Russia's technological catastrophes [last month's sinking of the Kursk submarine and a fire that devastated the Ostankino television tower Aug. 28, knocking out service to the Russian capital], but a human one is unfolding slowly but surely in our education system," says Mr. Gromyko. "The best-qualified teachers have been streaming out of the public system, there is almost no investment in new schools and equipment, and, worst of all, we do not have an educational doctrine suitable for modern times."
Russia's Ministry of Education says there is a shortfall of 50,000 teachers in the country this year. Even relatively prosperous Moscow has 1,000 openings, mostly in subjects like literature, math, and English.
One solution may be to revive the Soviet-era practice of compelling teacher trainees to work for a certain period after graduation. "I've heard there are serious plans to bring this system back, and it may be a useful stopgap solution," says Bebchuk.
But without better funding, little can be expected to change. "Education is fundamental," he says.
"Our society will die unless we begin to seriously invest in our schools."

В Москву с рабочим визитом прибыл Филипп Басквин - член Европейской комиссии, отвечающий за научные исследования. Программа визита предусматривает встречи с премьер-министром России Ильей Клебановым, министром атомной энергетики Евгением Адамовым и министром промышленности, науки и технологий Александром Дондуковым.

MOSCOW, September 7 (Itar-Tass) - Member of the European Commission in charge of scientific research Philippe Busquin arrived in Moscow on Thursday on a three-day working visit.
A representative of the office of the European Commission in the Russian Federation told Itar-Tass that the programme of the visit of the European commissioner envisaged meetings with Vice- Premier of the Russian government Ilya Klebanov, Minister of Atomic Energy Yevgeny Adamov and Minister of Industry, Science and Technology Alexander Dondukov, as well as representatives of the State Duma Committee for education and science.
The main themes of talks of Philippe Busquin with Russian officials will be cooperation between Russia and the European Union in the space field and problems of nuclear security.
The commissioner of the European Union plans also to study Russia's attitude towards the initiative of the European Union in the field of scientific and technological cooperation "the European zone of researches".

Abstract: Fifty female and 30 male students of Nenets ethnicity were compared with 46 female and 34 male students of Russian ethnicity by means of the Russian adaptations of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI). On the NEO-PI-R, there were 14 significant differences out of the 35 comparisons, and on the POI, 8 out of 10. Nenets participants scored lower in Openness to Experience and Extraversion on the NEO-PI-R and lower on Self-Actualization, Spontaneity, and Self-Acceptance on the POI. These results are integrated with other psychological and anthropological findings about the Nentsy, and several lines of follow-up research are proposed.
The purpose of this article is to report on the application of the Russian-language versions of two American personality inventories, the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI), for the comparison of two culturally different samples in the Russian Federation' one composed of ethnic Russians in a major city in Central Russia and the other consisting of members of a small traditional ethnic group in the Russian Arctic, the Nentsy. Although the NEO-PI-R and POI have been used in cross-cultural comparison, this is the first time, as far as we know, that these instruments have been applied for the comparison of a traditional, small-scale ethnic group with a major modern culture. To this end, the characteristics of the Nentsy and the features of the two inventories, in both their original American and translated Russian versions, will be described.

Министр энергетики США Билл Ричардсон посетил ведущий Российский центр проектирования ядерного оружия в г. Саров, где он открыл технологический парк для гражданских целей. Саров, известный в советские времена как Арзамас-16, является российским эквивалентом ядерной лаборатории Лос Аламос в штате Нью- Мексико. Работы по созданию ядерного оружия закончатся в городе в 2003 году. Администрация Сарова уже передала 10 зданий для использования в гражданских целях. В октябре прошлого года Б. Ричардсон открыл компьютерный центр в Сарове, а в одном из зданий работает фирма, производящая оборудование для почечного диализа. Ричардсон отметил, что завод, на котором изготавливаются детали автомобилей, займет другое здание, и он пообещал еще $ 13 миллионов, чтобы ускорить процесс создания рабочих мест на гражданских предприятиях для ученых и специалистов города.

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (AP) - Pushing ahead with a major campaign to help the cash-strapped Russian government clean up its aging nuclear arsenal, Energy Secretary Bill Richardson has unveiled facilities to handle nuclear waste and create civilian jobs for military scientists.
In a tour across Russia this week, Richardson inspected the progress of a U.S. program to ensure that nuclear materials are disposed of safely. On Friday, he unveiled two storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel from decommissioned submarines at Vladivostok, the main base of Russia's Pacific Fleet.
The impoverished Russian government has been floundering in its efforts to clear up hundreds of decaying nuclear weapons systems and warheads left from the Cold War.
The United States has taken a major role in funding nuclear decommissioning and storage projects. The Clinton administration says the program is vital to prevent nuclear weapons or weapons-grade material from falling into the hands of terrorists or hostile governments.
"Our nonproliferation programs are working and must continue, as it is in America's best interest to help Russia convert these massive Cold War-era facilities into non-weapons work," Richardson said at the start of his visit to Russia this week.
Environmentalists have long warned of the dangers posed by the deteriorating Russian nuclear storage areas and dismantling facilities, and urged the government to accelerate its efforts to safely dispose of the decommissioned nuclear submarines and their waste.
Current plans call for some 125 Russian nuclear submarines and their reactors to be dismantled by 2010. Many of the submarines now lie beached at Vladivostok and other naval bases around Russia, while some reactors have been dumped in the sea.
Russian officials have acknowledged that some of the submarines were decommissioned 25 years ago, and have languished dockside far longer than safety permits, posing increasing threats of leaking deadly radiation.
The Russian government has been unable to provide enough storage to handle the buildup of waste from its nuclear fleet, and it has asked the United States, Japan and other nations to help deal with the problem.
"The Russian military initially grumbled about Americans getting close to their coveted secrets and disarming Russia, but gradually they abandoned such complaints," said Ivan Safranchuk, an analyst with PIR-Center, an independent think tank dealing with nuclear issues. "Russia desperately needs foreign money to deal with its nuclear waste." The United States has already provided several hundred million dollars to help Russia build new nuclear waste storage and disposal facilities.
Thomas Nilsen, a researcher for the Norwegian environmental group Bellona, said the possible consequences of theft of nuclear materials made such programs worthwhile.
"I think I would agree with Mr. Richardson that these are good programs, especially when you consider the risk of theft of highly-enriched uranium in Russia," Nilsen said.
The theft of highly-enriched uranium from a submarine base near Murmansk in 1993 was in part what spurred the U.S. aid program, he said.
Another part of the U.S. program focuses on helping convert Soviet-era nuclear weapons plants to civilian use. The end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union left thousands of highly-skilled scientists with no way to make a living, raising fears they might work for states such as Iran and help create missiles and other advanced weapons. Richardson on Wednesday visited a premier Russian nuclear weapons design center in Sarov, where he inaugurated a civilian technological park.
Sarov, known as Arzamas-16 during Soviet times, is Russia's equivalent of the Los Alamos nuclear laboratory in New Mexico. Russian officials have said that the facility will end nuclear weapons work by 2003.
Officials in Sarov have already transferred 10 buildings to civilian use. Last October, Richardson inaugurated a computer center in Sarov and a firm producing kidney dialysis equipment has moved into one of the other buildings.
Richardson said that an automotive parts manufacturing plant will take over another building, and he promised another $13 million to help speed up Sarov's transfer to civilian use.

MOSCOW (AP) - Russia's continental shelf may be bigger than previously believed, researchers said Saturday upon return from the country's first major state-sponsored expedition to the Arctic Sea since the Soviet era.
The ship Academic Fyodorov returned Saturday to the northern port of Murmansk after a six-week journey, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported.
Vladimir Kryukov, director of the state-run company that led the expedition, said the results of research in the area of the Mendeleyev rise "could be a serious argument for expanding Russia's continental shelf" by more than 480,000 square miles, pending U.N. approval, ITAR-Tass said. Kryukov said the ship studied areas that previous researchers had not been able to reach, and that it was Russia's first such large-scale expedition in nine years. The report did not explain what the researchers found. Russia is already the world's largest country in land mass. The trip was sponsored by the Defense Ministry, the Natural Resources Ministry and the state Meteorological Agency

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