"Under long and prolonged applause ..."

We publish scientists' comments on the General Assembly of the Russian Academy of Sciences on March 20, 2017:

Lev Beklemishev, member. RAS, member of the club "July 1", deputy. Director for scientific work Mian:

As for the general conclusions, the system degradation says how it reacts to arising crises. Was the Academy reaction to the 2013 crisis adequate? No-unlikely, perhaps, the more healthy reaction of the scientific community, which tried to somehow help and support. In the leadership of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in essence, everything remained as it was. Was there a reaction to the current crisis of 2017 adequate? If we talk about the past meeting - also, alas, no.

I am not saying, like some, that the president of the Fort Academy we had elected four years ago, had to resist and not withdraw his candidacy from the elections. This cannot be demanded of a person without being in his own skin. The error was made earlier: from the very beginning, he should not agree to be put forward for a second term in conditions when there were so obvious signals that they would not deal with him. Instead, it was necessary to spend efforts on finding a worthy and capable candidate in the following presidents. The fact that this did not happen indicates the inadequacy of the perception of life in the leadership of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

As for the meeting, it was put in conditions when no substantial decision could be made without going beyond. The most offensive is that the meeting was curtailed too early. The demoralized presidium began to close it even before the completion of the obligatory points of the agenda. Not only did they not allow everyone to cope (but it was necessary to at least take their souls, or even commemorate, again - so many presses gathered), but Fortov himself did not even make any farewell speech in the role of the president of the Academy. But it was clear that he would not have more opportunity to make such a speech. And according to some rumors, perhaps he is generally the last president of the Russian Academy of Sciences elected by the general meeting.

No one really, except for academician Vladimir Evgenievich Zakharov, who nevertheless found the right words, told him thanks for the difficult and ungrateful work for four years. Unfortunately, the universal confusion and some bitterness of what was happening triumphed. So everything is inglorious and ended.

Of course, in this situation it was difficult to navigate, but if Vladimir Evgenievich Fortov simply honestly told the meeting that where the black car was driving him, he was forced to withdraw his candidacy, and said goodbye to those present in the hall, he would have received a long and prolonged ovation, and not different offensive words that I did not want to repeat, because he would have expected our sincere gratitude, he would have desired, because he would have desired, because he would have expected it. He did what he could, and a lot, and, in the end, we ourselves chose it in due time to this position. And the work turned out to be much more difficult than it could be foreseen in the spring of 2013.

Mikhail Sadovsky, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, member of the club "July 1", laureate of the Golden Medal named after V. L. Ginzburg RAS for 2016:

I am disappointed that Vladimir Fortov succumbed to blackmail on top. If the elections were held according to the established rules and on time, then I almost have no doubt that he would be elected by the overwhelming majority of the votes, and then the authorities would have to drop the masks and either agree to this or not to approve his candidacy. Instead, a “special operation” was carried out, during which Fortov completely lost his position.

I don't like all this much. I supported Fortov in two elections, and I was actually one of the first (as a member of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences), who nominated him and who performed his support during the current election campaign. The Ural branch nominated him for the first of all branches of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and I was one of the first to act on this subject at the Presidium of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

So I always supported Fortov. I don’t know how the events will develop in the fall, what options will be there, but now I have no confidence that I will support it again, although I can’t call an alternative candidate on the move. This is my personal position at the moment.

The matter was fundamental. There are rules of the game, there is the charter of the Academy, and there is a provision on elections, approved at all levels, and you should not cancel the elections, no matter how strong the pressure from above.

Alexey Kondrashov, professor at the University of Michigan (USA), winner of the first competition of megagrators of 2010, creator and head of the laboratory of evolutionary genomes of the faculty of bioinformatics and bioenginery of Moscow State University:

We should be indignant at the next stage of destruction of the Russian Academy of Sciences. I am indignant - but it turns out so -so. Even if you do not take into account the "Akamediks and Akaselikov", then they sit there for the most part mediocrity. Looking for a list of members of the department of biological sciences - which of them would receive (in their best years - not now) Tenure at a strong American university? Among the members of the bureau - of course, V. T. Ivanov (Hirsch = 36, links in 4700 articles - for a biochemist not super, but decent). Perhaps INGE-VEWOMOMS (22), Ovchinnikov (33) and Makarov (25). The rest - I doubt it. Academician Alimov Hirsch = 7, and refer to him already in 100 articles. This is even funny for the zoologist. And these are Academicians-Generals.

It is clear that with the monstrously inflated wounds, whose members are well fed by power, this is exactly how they will turn. I have no constructive proposals, unfortunately. The obvious idea - to make a normal academy among a clean field - has already been tried and failed. A few years ago, I refrained from the unambiguous advice to the young and strong to leave. And now I believe that such advice should be given - since there will be few opportunities to self -realize the scientist in Russia in the foreseeable future. Although the devil knows, forecasts are slippery.