275 years ago in the "Ode on the day of accession to the All-Russian throne of Her Majesty the Empress Empress Elisaveta Petrovna of 1747" M.V.

Lomonosov wrote:

"Silence, fiery sounds,

And stop wavering the light;

Here in the world to expand science

Elisabeth did."

A similar permission now comes from the meek Elizabeth II.

The similarity is incomplete, since the fiery sounds, by which the poet meant artillery volleys, very much shake the light - and with the active participation of Her Majesty's ministers - however, a remarkable expansion of sciences is now prescribed.

The Queen's First Minister, Boris Johnson, in fulfillment of the monarch's will, announced that Russian scientists would find a welcome home in the British Isles, inviting those who were dissatisfied with the situation in Russia to move to his country.

Johnson said this on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Bavaria, writes The Guardian.

Initially, it was all called "Researchers at Risk", it was assumed that about 130 Ukrainian scientists would be invited to Britain and receive support.

But now it will also apply to their colleagues in Russia: “Russian scientists who no longer feel safe in Russia can safely apply to move to the UK.

They will be able to work in a country that values ​​openness, freedom and the pursuit of knowledge.”

Right in the spirit of the inscription on the New York Statue of Liberty:

"All those who yearn to breathe freely, abandoned in need,

From the narrow shores of the persecuted, the poor and orphans.

Send them, homeless and exhausted, to me,

I raise my torch at the golden gate!

A statue with the head of Boris Johnson will also look very impressive.

However, compared to the New York model, the current British model is more limited.

It is deprived of the universal quantifier - "All those who are thirsty to breathe freely, etc.", which is logical.

In the mouth of Johnson, who periodically announces his intention to send the wrong Ukrainian refugees to Rwanda, such broadcasting would be inappropriate.

But within the framework of the educational qualification, the undertaking of the British government looks extremely generous.

This is all the more remarkable because until recently, Russian origins greatly interfered with the organization of scientific affairs on the islands.

A certain girl showed outstanding achievements in astrophysics at the university and was undoubtedly destined to remain at the university in the form of knowledge of the secrets of the universe.

But then it happened on February 24, and everything was cut off with graduate school.

Not only scientific knowledge did not help, but also deeply progressive convictions.

The astrophysicist girl turned out to be in the role of Klim Petrovich Kolomiytsev -

“Sends the referent to the referent.

"You know, you're right, but, nevertheless,

This is not the time for this."

Now, after the promises of Boris Johnson, things may go differently.

Although, if you look closely, it may turn out that he is softly spreading, and what it will be like to sleep is not clear.

“They can safely apply to move to the UK” - no one bothered to apply before.

"Scientists who no longer feel safe in Russia" - but how can they prove their threatened position?

Simply straining your imagination, as was the case with applying for an American visa in the late 1980s and early 1990s?

Or presenting some undoubted facts?

Or just "I'm a scientist, that's how I feel"?

In any case, this is both a strong opportunity for arbitrariness on the part of the British authorities, and a large scope for fraud on the part of Russian applicants.

Yes, there are times when a brilliant scientist is extremely nonconformist.

Radical 20-year-old Republican Evariste Galois.

The future academician Landau, who in 1938 declared Stalin a fascist worse than Hitler and Mussolini.

But cases of a combination of "both a scientific genius and a determined opponent of the existing political regime" are quite rare.

Most of the time it's just one thing.

Just look at the names of today's anti-regime activists.

They know how to hate the Russian authorities.

But are they able to make a significant (or even any) contribution to the development of British, as well as any other science?

There are doubts.

There is, of course, the question of what Her Majesty's prime minister has in mind.

To make another noise, aka hype, on the principle of “not a day without a new eventful occasion”, spending another amount of pounds sterling on this business?

It's quite real.

Probably, individual citizens of the Russian Federation will successfully fuss, declaring themselves "researchers from the risk group."

Arrange a really serious drain of high-quality brains from Russia so that there is no one to develop domestic science and technology?

This task is much more difficult.

Well, again, one should always remember the fate of Friedman and Aven.

They were super-loyal to the British crown - and what, did the island Poles help them?

And from what does it follow that for scientists, unlike bankers, an exception will always be made?

The point of view of the author may not coincide with the position of the editors.