Science and Fear (Slaves Do Not Repent)

Publisher Marketing: Science and Fear (Slaves Do Not Repent) is a mixture of memoirs, journalism, and storytelling in the form of a novel. It is an artistic representation of the life of scientists during last years of the Soviet regime. Deep professional depiction of the psychological, intellectual, and social status of the researchers has not anything equal in the world of modern literature. The final chapters portray the exodus of Russian scientists and the features of their adaptation to the U. S. academic world. The reader is immersed in the workaday activity of geophysicists studying climate change, in their passions and pastimes, religion and sex, their views on despotism and democracy, and their relationships with the authorities. A broad panorama of life gives the possibility to represent a wide spectrum of personalities and social positions, from an alcoholic (Leninism is in proletarians' blood together with a neat spirit. The more alcohol, the more Leninism.) in a vodka line to a professor (The fact of the human sperm and egg cell preservation at ultra-low temperatures could serve as evidence of our extraterrestrial origin. Acquiring such a property in the refined and protected conditions of our planet is impossible.; The tragedy of Russia is in its mixture of the highest European culture and medieval Asian political and executive power.), from depiction of research institute's degradation and speculations on climate problems to international prostitution. There are matchless chapters (The Gorbachev Loop and The Last Soviet New Year Night) completely woven from the jokes and folklore of the 1980s. This story captivates the reader by the novelty of the subject, a variety of scientific ideas, and the tragedy of the primal confrontation between an extraordinary personality and a mediocre environment. The narrative employs a multilayer structure with a unique plot blending scientific and entertaining events, an authentic depiction of which can rarely be found in world literature. Contributor Bio:  Polyak, Ilya 1937: Born in Ufa, Ural, Russia. 1941-1942: Resident of the Blockaded Leningrad (In 1989, I was given a memorial medal). 1942: Evacuated (almost dead) from Blockaded Leningrad on the icy "Road of Life" through frozen Ladoga Lake to Siberia. 1942-1946: Our family was in evacuation in Omsk. 1946: My parents were thrown into prison. 1946-1948: With brother and sister, I was an inmate of the DPR (Children's Receptor-Distributor, a kind of transit prison for children) in Luga, not far from Leningrad. The DPR's children were not schooled, so we lost two years of schooling. I escaped from that DPR eight times. 1948-1951: We were inmates of the Children's Home No. 26, Leningrad, 10 Prilukskaya Street. 1951: I was expelled from the Children's Home, from the school, and from the Komsomol for improper behavior. 1951-1956: In exile with parents in Ishim, Siberia, where, during the first year, our family of five lived in a dug out, underground hole of about 9x7x6 feet in size. 1955: My parents were fully acquitted (after Stalin's crimes were exposed). 1957: Graduated from high school with honor and started Leningrad University in the Department of Mathematics. 1962: Graduated from the University with a master's degree in mathematics. 1966: PhD. degree. 1975: Doctor of sciences degree in physics and mathematics. 1962-1989: Researcher, head of the software lab, professor of mathematics. 1978 (October, November): a scientist at the World Meteorological Organization, UN, Geneva. 1983: Finished a novel about the DPR. 1990: In a tough competition with outstanding works of living and dead famous Russian writers, my novel "The Songs of the Bedraggled Children's Receptor-Distributor" was published by the Moscow thick literary magazine "October" No. 1. It received excellent reviews in Russia and in the United States (version in English: "I Am Your Prisoner for Life," Vantage Press, New York, 2000.) 1990: Emigrated to the United States. 1992-2003: Associate Professor at Texas A&M University, NASA Senior Scientist, methodologies and software developer at several companies. 1962-1996: Published four scientific books and many papers. 1996: Became a citizen of the United States. 2003: Retired as scientist. 2005: Several miniature memoir stories, "Babushka Bertha's Maises," published by magazine "Mishpoha" No. 17, Vitebsk, Belorussia. 2010: A novel: "Science and Fear (Slaves Do Not Repent)" published by the publishing house "Retro," St. Petersburg, Russia