The Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Science (UIPE RAS) is the biggest centre of national and world geophysics. It carries out a wide range of researches, fundamental and applied, in physics of solid Earth. It dates back from 1928 and belongs to the oldest scientific institutions of RAS. Prominent scientific schools in planetary geophysics, seismology, experimental geophysics, geo-electromagnetic research were formed in the Institute.
The present-day staff of the Institute includes 109 Doctors of Science, 203 Philosophy Doctors, a RAS member (V. A. Magnitskiy) and is headed by the director of the Institute - RAS Corresponding Member - Aleksandr Olegovich Gliko.
UIPE RAS is the leading organization of RAS in the field of seismicity and the relevant processes, analysis of geophysical data, siesmotectonic and geodynamic researches, physical and mathematical modeling for detecting spatio-temporal laws of earthquake source development. The specialists of the UIPE RAS study physical fields of the Earth, questions of paleomagnetism and magnetic properties of rocks. They also develop methods geophysical monitoring for predicting natural as well as man-caused catastrophes and study the problems of origin and early history of the Earth, deal with mathematical geophysics and geo-informatics. The Scientists of the Institute have achieved important results, fundamental and applied, aimed at decreasing the danger of geodynamic catastrophes. The main scientific achievements are described in numerous monographs and scientific publications for Russian as well as international conferences. The Institute has been cooperating for a long time with a number of leading scientific centres in the field of geophysics from the USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Finland, Norway, China, India, Iran, Japan and other countries. Within the framework of international cooperation between Geophysical observatory "Borok" of UIPE RAS and Paris Institute of Physics of the Earth, France, the "Borok" observatory has been engaged into the global network of digital geomagnetic observatories that perform digital real-time registration - INTERMAGNET. During the past several years the scientists of the Institute have been actively participating in different projects supported by European grants of INTAS, INCO-Copernicus, and bilateral scientific projects with Greece, China, and India.
UIPE RAS is equipped with modern computers, local network, and has access to global computer networks. Information and telecommunication system (ITS) of the Institute is based on multi-protocol (NETBIOS, TCP/IP) local network that incorporates into one information medium all the computing, software and other resources of each division. ITS is connected with outer world via (INTERNET global network) a high-speed channel that, in particular, allows to obtain seismologic information from global geophysical networks (IRIS, GPS, etc.). Maintenance of communication, e-mail, system administration and routing are performed by the central server-router on the platform of one of the latest LINUX OS versions, which gives the opportunity of efficient utilization of geophysical information from world data centres.
The participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will visit the laboratories of strong earthquakes and seismology, continental seismicity and seismic hazard forecast, physical and chemical dynamics of tectonosphere, main geomagnetic field and petromagnetism.
General Physics Institute named after Prokhorov, Russian Academy of ScienceGeneral Physics Institute, RAS was founded in 1982 following the decision of the USSR AS Presidium. It was headed by academician Aleksandr Mikhailovich Prokhorov - founding father of laser physics and quantum electronics, 1964 Nobel Prize winner together with N. G. Basov and Ch. Towns. By the time of foundation the level of researches in lasers and their application in science as well as in other fields of human activity had reached a very high level. Academinian Prokhorov was by right considered a leading researcher in this field. General Physics Institute is well known around both in Russian and abroad as the leading scientific and research institute in the science of physics.
Today the staff of the Institute includes many scientists and is headed by the director of the Institute, RAS Corresponding Member I. A. Shcherbakov - a first-rate specialist in the field of solid-state lasers; RAS Member E. M. Dianov - famous specialist in fiber optics; RAS Member F. V. Bunkin - prominent scientist in the field of interaction between radiation and matter; academician V. V. Osiko - outstanding scientist in large crystals creation; RAS Corresponding Member V. I. Konov - specialist in nanotechnologies; RAS Corresponding Member P. P. Pashinin - well known scientist in the field of powerful lasers and interaction between radiation and matter; RAS Corresponding Member N. V. Karlov - famous scientist in quantum electronics, who used to be the Head of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) for ten years starting from 1987.
Scientific lines developed in the Institute are: quantum electronics, optics; solid-state physics; microelectronics; integral optics; fiber-optical communications; plasma physics; radio-physics and acoustics; theoretical physics; laser medicine; ecology.
The subjects studied along these lines are numerous: new types of lasers including solid-state lasers with diode pumping; interaction between laser radiation and matter including that in the super-strong fields; super high-speed photo-electronics; condensed media physics; spectroscopy; plasma physic; hydro-physics including ocean acoustics and non-linear acoustic diagnostics; laser medicine; ecology.
The Institute has always carried on pedagogical work aimed at upbringing of talented youth and involving them in the work of scientific institutes of RAS. In September 1973 academician A. M. Prokhorov's Department of "Radiation-Matter Interaction" was formed in GPI RAS. In 1987 it changed its name into "Laser Physics". 6 base departments are currently working in the Institute and 6 scientific and educational programmes are conducted:
Leading higher schools that have their departments presented in GPI RAS are: Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (state university - MIPT), Moscow State Institute of Radio Engineering, Electronics, and Automation (MIREA), Kovrov State Technological Academy, D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia (MUCTR).
The Institute takes part in large number of international cooperation programmes and tries to involve students and post-graduates. Active researches are carried out in medicine, ecology, material processing, and environment exploration.
The participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will visit the laboratory of plasma physics and look at the Stellarator "Л2-М" plant, the laboratory of surface effects laboratory and have a look at tunnel microscope. It will be also possible to visit the Scientific of fiber optics and observe the process of optical fibers manufacture.
Paleontological Institute, Russian Academy of SciencesPaleontological Institute (originally called Paleozoological Institute) was set up in 1930 as a part of Biological Sciences department of USSR AS.
Paleontological Institute is the only specialized scientific institution in Russia that studies morphology, taxonomy, and phylogeny of fossil organisms, laws of formation and development of ecosystems and biosphere in general, and develops models and symptomatology of ecological crises of the past.
The Institute has more than 100 research officers on the staff. The structure of scientific departments is built using systematic approach, i.e. each laboratory joins specialists in certain large group of organisms (species, class etc.).
New independent branches of science have been formed in the Institute (paleo-ecology, evolutional morphology, Precambrian paleontology, formation of skeleton organisms, bacterial paleontology).
Paleontological Museum - one of the three largest and most famous in the world - was organized by the efforts of the Institute members and is successfully working nowadays.
Paleontological Institute functions in close creative cooperation with Moscow State University, whose graduates form the backbone of the Institute. Its members have many years' creative connections with scientists from many other countries, and firstly, those of Polish Academy of Sciences, Universities of Australia, California University (Berkley) and other universities of the USA, Paris Paleontological Institute, Upsala University (Sweden), a number of universities and institutes of Great Britain, China, Germany, Italy, and Iran.
All the works of the Institute are based on richest collections of fossils and some groups of modern organisms, which took efforts of several generations of Russian scientists to gather. This is not limited by the exhibits of the Paleontological Museum but also includes huge collections, amassed in the Institute storage. There are over 5 thousand collections and over a million exhibits, according to the registry.
Perennial expeditionary researches, performed by the Institute members on the territory of former Soviet Union, China, Mongolia, and other countries allowed to gather splendid collections of paleontological material, part of which is currently demonstrated in the Museum exhibition. Four exhibiting zones of the Museum, including six halls, consistently acquaint with the mysterious world of ancient animals and plants, starting with the most ancient and ending with those of the present day. In each hall visitors can see not only groups of organisms typical for certain geological period, but also the most interesting faunal complexes.
The new Paleontological Museum received its first visitors in 1987. It has become one of the most prominent scientific and educational centres in Moscow since then.
The participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will visit the Institute Museum, watch the work of scanning electronic microscope (fossil bacteria), have a look at the pareparator and sculpture studios, take partt in a lecture presentation about the work of Russian paleontologists.
Centre "Bioengineerings" Russian Academy of SciencesCentre "Bioengineerings" RAS (director - member of The Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Professor Konstantin Georgievich Skryabin) was created in May 1991. It for this was stipulated by the necessity to rapidly introduce the latest achievements of national science in the sphere of biotechnologies and bioengineering into practice. The Centre is now one of the key organizations in Russia in the field of gene engineering of plants, molecular microbiology, bio-informatics, and bio-safety.
The Centre applies modern methods of gene, protein, cell engineering and bio-informatics, genetics and selection for solving such urgent tasks as creation of genetically modified (GM) plants with better agricultural properties, creation of biofactory-plants (discovery of "edible vaccines" in plants), creation of microorganisms - hyperproducers of the new generation antibiotics as well as other biologically active substances, microbiological and chemical synthesis of steroid hormones, identification of cellular factors, leading to pathogen reproduction in plants (viruses and viroids), decoding of differentiation mechanisms in living organisms using the morphogeny of Compositae flowers as an example, development of computer technologies for optimizing the research work in the field of molecular biology, enzymes bioengineering to obtain biologically active compounds with adjustable activity.
Among the most significant achievements of the Centre for the past several years one can mention: creating GM potatoes based on the best Russian sorts that is stable against Colorado beetle, development of computer-mathematical model describing the genetic supervision over plant evolution using the morphogeny of Compositae flowers as an example, determination of complete nucleotide sequence of chloroplast genome of duckweed (Lemna minor) that is the first genome of cellular organelles sequenced in Russia (GM plants of duckweed can be ideal "photo-bio-reactor" for important medical protein production, including antibodies and vaccines), development of methods of intensifying the microbiological transformation of phytosterols - available steroid raw material - into the compounds necessary for the synthesis of pharmaceutical substances of steroid structure: androgene, gestagene, anabolics, mineral and glucocorticoid, mastering and improving methods for GMO identification in foodstuff, participation in setting up the Russian system of government control in the sphere of gene-engineering activities (preparation of legislative basis in the field of bio-safety provision).
In cooperation with Scientific and Educational Centre of Biotechnologies, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russian Society of bio-engineers, and leading Moscow organizations in this field, Centre "Bioengineerings" RAS carries out a scientific and educational project "Specialists for bioengineering". It is aimed at creating an "incubator" of knowledge for talented youth from regional state universities with the idea of building and maintaining Russia's potential in the sphere of modern bio-engineering.
The participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will inspect the laboratories of gene engineering, steroid biotechnologies, greenhouse, collective usage centre "GM organisms safety control", artificial climate experimental setup.
A.N. Frumkin Institute of Electrochemistry Russian Academy of SciencesIn 2005 the Institute of Physical Chemistry, RAS bearing the new name of "A.N. Frumkin Institute of Electrochemistry" has celebrated its 60th anniversary.
Today the Institute is one of the leading chemical institutes of RAS. Its history dates back further than the date of its official foundation in 1945, when it was given the name of "Physical Chemistry Institute". Its actual birth took place 70 years ago, when it was called "Colloid-electrochemical Institute". Its first director was academician V. A. Kistyakovskiy - a prominent scientist in the field of colloid chemistry, electrochemistry, and corrosive processes. When he organized Colloid-chemical laboratory in the Academy of Sciences in 1929 he thus laid the foundation that the Institute has grown upon.
During its lifetime the Institute was headed by such people as academician V. A. Kistyakovskiy, academician A. N. Frumkin, USSR AS corresponding-member G. V. Akimov, academician V. I. Spitsyn, RAS corresponding-member Yu. M. Polukarov. Scientific departments were headed by outstanding scientists and researchers: academicians M. M. Dubinin, P. A. Ribender, B. V. Deryagin, corresponding-members N. A. Izgaryshev, S. Z. Rogonskiy, K. V. Chmutov, A. K. Pikaev, Professor A. D. Heldman and others.
Today headed by academician A. Yu. Tsivadze, the Institute carries out fundamental as well as oriented fundamental researches in the following fields:
The success of present day researches rest upon the unique experimental base. The Institute is capable of performing researches at a very high level, both technical and methodical. In order to increase the efficiency and convenience of work the Centre of Collective Usage of Physical Research Methods was created in the Institute in 2002.
The most up-to-date high technologies are based upon the results of researches carried out along the mentioned priority scientific lines.
Within the framework of scientific-cultural programme the participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will learn about the history of the Institute, the work of key scientists and laboratories. They will also visit the following laboratories of the Institute:
The Mechanical Engineering Institute was founded in 1938. Its first director as well as one of the founding fathers of the MEI was academician Evgeniy Alekseevich Chudakov, a prominent specialist in automobile theory. Every automobile owner in the USSR knew E. A. Chudakov, because aside from researches in stability of motion of automobile and other theoretical problems he also issued educational - and very popular - books on automobile design and working instructions.
The second director of the MEI was an outstanding scientist-armourer, owner of two titles of Hero of the Soviet Union, academician Anatoliy Arkadievich Blagonravov, whose name is given to the Institute by right. He is the author of world known textbook on the theory of automatic weapon. He used to be the head of the Artillery Academy, the Chairman of the Space Commission. There is yet another - less known but probably more interesting fact that he was competent participant and creator of the famous Kalashnikov assault rifle. It was Blagonravov who summoned M. T. Kalashnikov from the hospital and applied his knowledge to assist the young and talented designer, who had practically no profile education at that time that was necessary for designing and calculations of such complicated machinery as automatic weapon.
Since 1975 the Institute has been headed by an outstanding scientist, RAS member Konstantin Vasilievich Frolov, a most prominent specialist in the theory of oscillations, vibration mechanisms and technologies, vibroprotective systems, and "human-machine-environment" systems.
A lot of prominent scientists used to work in the Mechanical Engineering Institute: academician I. I. Artobolevskiy (theory of Machines and Mechanisms), academician Yu. N. Rabotnov (problems of durability and afterflow of new materials), academician A. A. Bochvar академик А.А. Бочвар, two times Hero of Socialist Labour, laureate of Lenin and State prizes (physical metallurgy), academician N. N. Davidenkov (science of materials), USSR AS corresponding-member V. I. Dikushin (machine-tool construction), academician V. O. Kononenko (mechanics), academician, Hero of Socialist Labour A. A. Mikulin (aviation engines), USSR AS corresponding-member I. A. Oding (physical metallurgy), academician S. V. Serensen (strength of materials and structures), academician B. S. Stechkin (aviation engines), academician A. I. Tselikov (prominent metallurgy scientist) and many others.
Today there are 4 main departments working in the Institute, whoso scientific lines are: strength, safety, and durability of mechanisms, headed by RAS corresponding-member N. A.; tribology трибология (theory of friction, lubrication, wear) headed by distinguished scientist, Professor Yu. N. Drozdov, Doctor of Engineering Sciences; biomechanics, vibroacoustics, vibrotechnologies headed by academician K. V. Frolov; theory of machines and mechanisms, robotics, mechanism synthesis headed by Professor V. K. Astashov, Doctor of Engineering Sciences.
Above this there is a youth multiple-access educational centre "UNIKtUM" that represents the Mechanics Engineering Institute in "Step into the Future" programme (the Centre is headed by Professor L. N. Polilov, Doctor of Engineering Sciences).
Besides the introduction conference on the history oand achievements of the Institute, which will be held in the Museum, on the Exhibition, and in the Conference Hall of the Institute, the participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will visit the following laboratories: mechanics of composite materials, methods of measuring strain fields (photoelasticity, holography, electronic speckle interferometry), vibration technologies (vibration tables), laser technologies (powerful lasers for cutting metal after any desired pattern), ion-plasma sputtering (creation of thin and precision coatings for friction elements in space and aviation industries).
The younger staff of the UNIKtUM Centre will receive the guest, treat them with hot tea with cakes and offer to play billiards and table tennis.
Mission Control CentreMission Control Centre of the Russian Space Agency controls the flights of spacecrafts of different types: manned orbital complexes, space vehicles, unmanned planetary stations, and artificial Earth satellites. At the same time it works as scientific and research organization.
The Mission Control Centre dates its history from the very beginning of space era started by the first artificial Earth satellite, launched in the Soviet Union on October, 4. 1957. At first, it was a computation centre that enabled spacecraft control. Then in 1965 in was transformed into coordinating and computing centre and served the flights of unmanned planetary stations "Venera"(Venus) and "Mars", "Soyuz" space vehicles and "Salyut" space station, "Meteor" and "Proton" artificial earth satellites and others. In 1973 the Soviet Mission Control Centre was formed on its base as a part of "Soyuz-Appolo" project. The "service record" of the MCC includes serving the "Salyut", "Soyuz", "Progress" orbital complexes; 15 years of uninterrupted work (1986-2001) with "Mir" manned orbital station; supervision of manned flights of international crews with pilots from France, India, Syria, Bulgaria, Afghanistan, Japan, Great Britain, Austria, Germany, European Space Agency, USA, and Slovakia; unmanned planetary stations control - flights to the Moon, Venus, Halley's Comet, Mars and its satellite Phobos; assurance of flight of "Buran" space shuttle; implementation of International Space Station programme.
The participants of the 17th European Union Contest for Young Scientists will learn about the work of the MCC, watch the information channels transmitting data from the International Space Station in real-time, and take part in the communication session with the crew of the ICC, working on the orbit.