Genius and madness. Lust for fame and absolute power. A fascinating story about people who, while creating the terrifying power of the Soviet Union, did not stop at nothing. In the murderous race with God to rule over human life, they became the laughingstock of not only the scientific world
In the first decades of the 20th century, a handful of geniuses, misfit professors, and scientific charlatans made a pact with the communist regime. There was one goal:to transform Russia, ruled by Stalin, into a world superpower.
Among the scientists to whom the communist government gave a chance to conduct research bordering on science and glory were Ilya Ivanov, who tried to inseminate chimpanzees with human semen to create their crossbreeds. Also Trofim Lysenko, who fights genetics and plays in God, and Alexander Bogdanov, who himself became a victim of his own experiments with blood transfusion. Also Olga Lepieszyńska, who claimed that soda baths restore youth.
The latest book by Simon Ings, Stalin and Scientists. A history of triumph and tragedy "(Agora Publishing House 2017) is a fascinating story about people from the world of science who, on Stalin's service, turned into madmen who are the laughingstock of the world.
The hero of Simon Ings's book is, of course, Stalin himself, who tried to grow lemons in a cold climate, corrected Shostakovich's music and wrote an idiotic treatise on linguistics.
However, this is not just a story of pseudoscientific experiments. It is also a story about the involvement of scientists in building power at the expense of millions of victims of famine, epidemics, purges and wars. And also about the complicated fate and ambiguous choices of scientists who faced the alternative:serve evil with their knowledge or save life. Also about what abuses and crimes must occur when science becomes the servant of politics.
You can buy the book at empik.com:
