Creating future today: summed up results of 4th Congress of Young Scientists
From November 27 to 29, on the Federal Territory of Sirius, for the fourth time, the Congress of Young Scientists gathered representatives of the academic and university community, state corporations and private business, and public associations. It is the key annual event of the Decade of Science and Technology in Russia, announced by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in 2022-2031.
The events and activities of the Congress, the main theme of which is "Priorities for scientific and technological development: creating the future today", makes it possible to see the future of Russian science through the eyes of young scientists.
"Young scientists - scientific leaders in priority areas of development, from space and quantum technologies to biomedicine and the humanities - shared their vision of Russia as a technological leader. It is impressive that they have a clear idea how our life will look like on the horizon of 2036, and understand how to achieve it. At the same time, the priority for them is a person - his inner nature and inner harmony, which is important to preserve when introducing the latest technologies," said Anton Kobyakov, Adviser to the President of the Russian Federation, Head of the Interdepartmental Working Group on the Preparation and Conduct of the Congress and Satellite Events.
This year, the Congress is attended by more than 7,000 people from 85 regions, including new Russian regions, and 63 foreign countries. Participants range in age from 6 to 87, with an average age of 33. The number of universities taking part in the Congress includes about 500 institutions, among them 95 foreign higher educational institutions.
336 volunteers worked at the site - students of the country's leading universities, most of them spoke BRICS languages, and even such as Farsi, Hindi, Bengali, Japanese.
PROGRAM ACTIVITIES
The most significant event was the plenary session attended by more than 1200 people. The Head of State sent greetings to the participants and guests. At the opening of the plenary session his greetings were read by Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation Andrei Fursenko. V. Putin noted Russia's openness to a constructive, equal and mutually beneficial international partnership in the scientific field.
The plenary session was moderated by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Chernyshenko. He stressed the current year is marked by the most important dates: the 300th anniversary of the Russian Academy of Sciences and St. Petersburg State University, as well as the 300th anniversary of the birth of the philosopher Immanuel Kant.
The Deputy Prime Minister summed up the results of the year, noting a significant increase in interest in science. He mentioned the success of the exhibition "Russia" at VDNKh, where the interactive exposition "Decade of Science and Technology" took place having brought together more than 140,000 visitors.
"The Decade of Science announced by our President has united the country. The total number of events held in the regions of the Russian Federation in 2024 exceeded 12, 000. The Congress of Young Scientists is the largest one. The events and activities made it possible to see the future of Russian science through the eyes of young scientists. Hundreds of events of federal and regional significance were held, dozens of projects of state corporations were presented in various areas of the country's scientific and technological development. Scientific playgrounds and new tourist routes have opened. Now one can go on a trip to 76 popular science destinations in 24 regions. Thanks to the Congress we have taken a serious step in popularizing research and innovation among residents of our country of all ages. The share of students planning to build a scientific career in Russia has grown to 92%," Chernyshenko emphasized.
The plenary session was held for the second time in a dialogue format between talented young scientists who spoke about their scientific work and shared stories of their professional success, and mentors who assessed the relevance and potential of developments, gave competent advice on how to build an effective investment strategy, and offered support tools.
The plenary speakers were the authors of breakthrough scientific and technological developments and discoveries, heads of high-tech companies.
Within the framework of the plenary session, an award ceremony for the competition of young innovators of the BRICS countries took place. Its goal is to determine the best projects that can contribute to the development of world science and economics, as well as to involve as many young scientists as possible in international scientific and technical cooperation.
The winner is a scientist from Brazil, professor at the Federal University of Technology of Paraná Chiago Ejivages. The Second place - Professor of the Scientific and Technical University of China Yuan U. The third place went to the Russian scientist - representative of the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology Dmitry Shadrin.
The winner in the special nomination is another representative of China - Tongji University innovator Xin Cai.
Within the framework of the program more than 190 events were held in four main areas: "Big challenges and priorities of scientific and technological development", "Science without borders: sharing principles, uniting minds", "Development resources: people, ideas, infrastructure", "Initiatives of the Decade of Science and Technology in Russia".
A. Fursenko stressed during the Congress that Russia continues to be open to cooperation with different countries, because scientific achievements have universal value.
"The geopolitical situation, borders and commercial interests do not affect the interaction of scientists from different countries so much, because they build relationships based primarily on their scientific interest. The Congress of Young Scientists gathered a record number of young innovators from different countries, and it indicates the existence of conditions in Russia for the development of international scientific dialogue," Fursenko said.
Round tables, sessions, discussions and educational events were held in various areas of research activities, in which 933 speakers took part. They discussed the development of quantum, microfluidic and neurotechnology, the use of artificial intelligence in science, education and medicine, the labor market in the professions of the future, digital services for the scientific community, the commercialization of scientific developments, the development of youth science and the popularization of science. The international track talked about the role of scientific interaction in a multipolar world and new scientific and technological leaders.
The events were attended by laureates of the Presidential Prize of the Russian Federation in the field of science and innovation for young scientists. In 2023 the prizes went to professor at the Department of Neurotechnology, Director of the Research Institute of Neurosciences of Nizhny Novgorod State University. N.I. Lobachevsky, Head of the Center for Neuromorphic Computing ANO "Neymark" Susanna Gordleeva; leading designer for the product "OKB named after A. M. Lyulka" branch of PJSC "UEC-UMPO", senior lecturer of the FSBEI HE "MAI" Georgy Gogaev; Professor at the Department of Geochemistry, St. Petersburg State University, Researcher of the RAS Institute of Recambrian Geology and Geochronology Olga Yakubovich; Senior Researcher at the Laboratory of Ecological Physiology, Institute of Animal Systematics and Ecology, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Sergey Pavlushin.
"The Young Scientist Congress is one of the key events of the year for young researchers in our country. This year the participants were especially actively involved in the work of the sessions, presented their developments and scientific projects, their vision of the development of science. We hope that their ideas will be implemented. And, of course, I have no doubt that young researchers who took part in the Congress have gained valuable experience and new useful contacts here that will help them in their future scientific careers," said Gennady Krasnikov, President of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
BRICS ACTIVITIES
At the site of the Congress the events of the IX Forum of Young Scientists of the BRICS countries were held. It gathered the largest number of participants in its entire history - 180 delegates. This is due to the entry into the international association of new participating states: since the beginning of the year Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have joined the BRICS. The Forum completed the Russian chairmanship in BRICS in the field of science, technology and innovation.
For the first time in test mode AI-based simultaneous translation into 9 languages was used for numerous foreign guests - the text broadcast could be read in real time from the smartphone screen.
The service was used in the plenary and some program rooms.
EXHIBITION OF RUSSIAN TECHNOLOGIES
The traditional exhibition of modern Russian technologies was located at the Congress site: scientific achievements, developments and startups were presented by 50 largest Russian companies, leading universities, scientific and educational centers, state and public organizations. The exhibition area was almost 7000 square meters.
State corporations presented their developments. The NASHA LABA project brought modern Russian and Belarusian equipment and reagents to the Congress to equip modern scientific laboratories and research centers. At the stand of the Research Center "Kurchatov Institute" there talked about the role of the organization in the modern scientific landscape and the development of units in various scientific areas. More than 60 inventions of its participants were shown at the stand of the "Movement of the First".
For the convenience of foreign guests the exhibition stands were equipped with QR codes with a link to the description of the exposition and the projects presented at the stand in Russian, English, Arabic, Chinese and Portuguese. As part of the work of the stands thematic sessions, master classes and lectures on promising technologies, scientific and engineering professions were held.
At the "REC Square" scientific and educational centers from all over the country showed their developments. The team of the Kuzbass-Donbass Scientific and Educational Center presented 40 exhibits: developments in the field of ecology, coal mining and processing, metallurgy, medicine and culture, created in close cooperation between science and business.
The presented technologies are already being introduced in production. A mine dump truck of the Jupiter class with a carrying capacity of 125 tons, jointly developed by specialists from the Kuzbass State Technical University named after T. F. Gorbachev and PJSC "KamAZ", will be tested at the Kuzbass coal mine in January 2025. Another development presented is nutrient media created at the Research Institute for Complex Problems of Cardiovascular Diseases (RICPCD). It allows studying cells, developing new treatments and medicines. Kemerovo cardiologists and their industrial partner have already produced and sold nutrient medias worth 1.5 million rubles.
The world-class scientific and educational center "Yenisei Siberia" has demonstrated 17 developments in the field of new technologies, digital humanities, radio communications, environmentally friendly processing of materials, biotechnology, software, and medicine. These are VR-simulators for transformer repair and safety training in oil and gas fields, a handwritten document recognition service, software for monitoring forests, phosphors for light-emitting devices, smart clothes and accessories, and much more.
Joint developments with Sevastopol State University were presented at the stand of REC "MoreAgroBioTech". Among the unique developments: the Sargan surface unmanned vehicle, designed to test communication and control systems, and the Barabulka modular surface multifunctional platform, for environmental monitoring of the bottom.
The Eurasian REC showed import-substituting developments of the advanced engineering school "Motors of the Future" - non-contact high-performance electric motors for unmanned aircraft, which are 97% composed of domestic components. To date, they are already being adopted into mass production or are undergoing the latest flight tests. Biodegradable polymer composites made of recycled raw materials were also demonstrated at the stand, reducing costs by recycling materials. Another exhibit is a hydroboard, a small-sized swimming vehicle that can be used by water rescuers, the military to overcome water obstacles, as well as for entertainment purposes.
The Russian Science Foundation School held seminars for grantees - on the areas of grant support, the peculiarities of scientific expertise and the mechanics of selecting applied projects. The speakers of the school gave advice on how to prepare grant applications, how scientists interact with each other and present research results to society. An open microphone was also held with Andrei Blinov, Deputy General Director of the Russian Science Foundation, who answered questions from grantees and listened to their ideas for improving the system of grant support.
The Scientific Lounge introduced the Congress participants to the most modern technologies of Russian production – a smart edible film, the Pushkin Digital resource, a Russian smartphone with a special security mode, an intelligent facial emotion recognition system and others. In the media space of the Lounge screenings of popular scientific films and lectures by leading Russian scientists were held.
In the zone of the initiative of the All-Russian complex "Mentally Ready for Labour and Defense", participants were tested for the level of cognitive functions: reaction speed, visual and spatial memory, logic, attention and others.
In the service of scientific networking "eTalk" from ITMO University, which was first organized at the Congress, 2066 meetings were held in the format of quick acquaintances.
The exhibition "Science in Faces" was presented at the site - an exposition of portraits of 24 outstanding Russian scientists, engineers, inventors, laureates of the Presidential Prize of the Russian Federation in the field of science and innovation for young scientists.
AGREEMENTS SIGNED AT THE CONGRESS
During the Congress 27 agreements were signed between various organizations aimed at developing scientific and educational cooperation in the country. The largest: the agreement on the creation of a scientific and educational consortium between the Kurchatov Institute Research Center, Moscow Technical University of Communications and Informatics, ITMO National Research University, National Research Nizhny Novgorod State University named after N.I. Lobachevsky, Samara National Research University named after Academician S.P. Korolev, Kazan Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences; the program for the development of the Obninsk Tech international scientific and educational center for nuclear and related technologies for the period 2024-2030 between NRNU MEPhI, the Government of the Kaluga region and the state corporation "Rosatom"; the cooperation agreements between the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation and the Challenge Fund for the Development of Scientific and Cultural Relations, as well as the Ministry of Education and Science the Russian Federation and the operator of the Decade of Science and Technology ANO "National Priorities", entered into agreements on the creation of thematic initiatives with the state corporation for atomic energy, PJSC Sibur Holding and Geoskan Group of Companies.
SPORTS AND CULTURAL PROGRAM EVENTS
Traditionally more than 40 events of sports, cultural and evening scientific, entertainment programs for participants took place. The sports program includes events in eight sports. The intellectual sports lounge worked on the site, where the Rapid Chess Congress Cup was held with the ID assignment of the Russian Chess Federation, a session of simultaneous play with the champion of Russia under 19 years old Anna Zhurova, as well as master classes in chess, drafts and Go play.
Coaches of the student hockey league teams held a hockey master class for members of the Coordinating Council for Youth Affairs in the Scientific and Educational Spheres of the Council for Science and Education under the President of the Russian Federation and titled Russian judokas. Chairman of the Coordinating Council, the Head of the Kurchatov synchrotron-neutron research complex of the Kurchatov Institute Nikita Marchenkov, the Champion of the London 2012 Olympic Games Mansur Isaev, the bronze medalist of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo Madina Taimazova and the head coach of the Russian national judo team Vitaly Makarov, as well as other scientists and athletes went on the ice.
Four talented scientists presented their reports during the on-move conference "Thoughts in Motion".
Participants played in fidgital football and sports programming tournaments, and also attended a friendly match between the Russian and Azerbaijani women's national football teams and the KHL game Sochi HC - Ak Bars.
The Sports Programming Cup was won by Leonid Chesnikov, a student at Voronezh State University of Engineering Technologies. In May he won the international competition held by the Russian Sports Programming Federation.
Within the framework of the cultural, scientific and entertainment program, there were film screenings with discussions, a musical and technological quiz, a karaoke battle, the final of the university league of scientific battles, a night of scientific failures, an intellectual game "What? Where? When?" with the participation of club experts and young scientists.
The final of the University League of Scientific Battles, the night of scientific failures and the musical quiz "How many decibels are needed?" were organized by the Scince Slam Russia Association and the MISIS University of Science and Technology.
The Challenge Youth Community held a karaoke battle. Participants performed famous songs with the text rewritten in a scientific way: the main plot of musical compositions was built around scientific terms, theories and phenomena. The best performers were awarded memorable prizes.
"Polyquiz" from the Polytechnic Museum took place - a team quiz with questions of varying complexity, including those invented using artificial intelligence.
For the first time, "ScientificRock" appeared in the program - performances and a rock concert, where leading scientists and leaders of large scientific and industrial organizations acted as speakers and musicians. X Holding organized astronomical walks for the participants.
Intellectual game "What? Where? When?" was held with the participation of club experts and young scientists. The main prize - a trip to the world's only nuclear icebreaker base in Murmansk and a top (one of the main symbols of the game) - received by the team of the Coordinating Council. Participants visited the museums of Sochi and the Krasnodar Territory and the Sochi Park amusement park.