1990 Reports

Scientists, the Public and the Party Under Gorbachev

Josephson, Paul

The Soviet research and development apparatus is the largest in the world in terms of numbers of scientists, engineers, and institutions. From the first days of the Revolution, Soviet leaders, believing that science would play a crucial role in the “construction of communism,” supported its development by establishing research institutes with relatively assured financing. Yet by many standards, Soviet science has failed to perform effectively. Soviet physicists and chemists have won only eight Nobel prizes, and according to scientific citation indices, the rate at which western scholars cite their Soviet colleagues does not reflect the quantity of Soviet scientific journals. The system has proved capable of pioneering efforts in space (Sputnik), nuclear fusion (Tokamaks) and fission, and elementary particle and theoretical physics. But it has often been incapable of maintaining a lead or catching up in areas where it was behind. These failings result from structural, ideological, and administrative impediments to successful scientific performance that are part of the Stalinist legacy. The centerpiece of perestroika in science under Gorbachev is a series of wideranging, ad hoc, and as yet incomplete reforms intended to overcome these problems.