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Rebuilding the Russia House

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Rebuilding the Russia House California Institute of Technology Volume 27, No.1 Febftlary 1993 From left, profeaaora Peter Orde.hook, Vyachealav Nlkonov, Fuad Aleakerov, and Rod Klewlet ahare Ideaa and data aa they con alder the myriad political and economic challengea facing Ruaala. Rebuilding the Russia House By "IIIary Bha.karan In America, if someone renrwates his or Although generalizations, these Moscow economics professor and social scientists haven't given up on rhe her hOlm, a neighbor might think: "Maybe examples help illustrate some of the research department director at the future of democracy or capitalism in I should imprrwe my house too." But in fundamental differences between Institute of Control Sci ences of the the new country, or on the potential for RUJJia, if someone imprrwes his 0" her howe, American and Russian values--differ­ Russian Academy of Sciences, was a new ideas to take root. a neighbor's natural inclination might be to ences that make the westernization of visiting lecturer ar Cal tech last quarrer; When these scholars and students burn the house d(tuJn, thinking: "Why is he Russia all the more difficult. The first two Russians will visit this quarter; look at specific problems facing Russia, getting rich <md I'm not!" example comes from Vyacheslav and three Russian students-Katya it is no surprise that they see education In Americ", people respect the Constitu­ Nikonov, a Russian political counselor She~styuk, Olga Shvetsova, and Mishel as rheit avenue toward change. In their tion fo,' its guarantees of individual liberties for the International Fund for Econom­ Myagkov-are earning their social roles, each can hammer away at a few in the Bill of Rights. In Russia, the dr"ft­ ic and Social Reforms, who was a vi sit­ science doctorares here. key points as they wotk coward bridg­ ers of a new constitution believe that, for i ng lecturer at Calrech last quaerer. Looking through a wide-angle lens, ing what Nikonov calls "an enormous R'lJSians to have faith in this document, it The second example comes from Petet rhese social scientists are sttuck by the gap" between Russian and W estern must guarantee the right to housing, pen­ Ordeshook, a Cal tech professor of enormity of the challenge of redesign­ thinking. sions, and other soci"lis! ideals. political science, who visited Russ.ia in ing a country in crisis. Everything Education will be necessary for 1991 and 1992 and analyzed a draft of must be rebuilt-from the sputtering everyone, including the educators. For the country's constitution. economy, co the crumbling infrastruc­ starters, the whole concept of political The Cal tech-Russian connection ture, co the fractious multicultural science, as it is understood and taught extends far beyond these two men. In sociery, co the unstable political sys­ in the West, must be imported to the Division of the Humanities and tem. They recount how the average Russia. Many of the country's current Social Sciences alone, the following Russian is just waiting for something polirical analysts have their degrees recent interactions have taken place: to happen, whethet it be a rebellion Ot in American or European studies. Rod Kiewiet, a Cal tech ptofessor of perhaps a return to authorirarianism. political science, visited Russia in They understand why many Russians February of 1992; Fuad Aleskerov, a equare democracy with chaos. But the Continued on page 4 2 CAMPUS UPDATE He earned his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania in 1974, and joined the Cal tech faculty in 1976 after two years as an IBM Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the father of two daughters, the elder of whom, Maha, is a junior at the Insti­ tute, majoring in chemistry. Now a U.S. cieizen, Zewail was elected to ehe National Academy of ((Race, Politics, and Sciences in 1990. In 1989 he traveled to Saudi Arabia co accept ehe King Region" Program to Faisal International Prize in Science, and last year he was the reci pient of the probe diversity in Carl Zeiss International Award. His ocher honors include the American Southern California Chemical Society's Harrison-Howe Award, the Nobel Laureate Signature What will an incteasingly multira­ Award, and the Buck-Whitney Award; cial and urban Western world be like and the American Physical Society's during the 21st century? Much like Earle K . Plyler Prize. In 1992, Science southern California today, many Watch, which tracks erends and perfor­ authorities believe. speak directly to the concerns of our From left, Caltech political .clentl.t mance in basic research, named Zewail Yet surprisingly little is known own region, and also serve as a model EII.abeth Gerber, hl.torlan Doug fifth among the world's fifey most cited Flammlng, and hl.torlan and .oclal chemists, a ranking that helped propel about the political, racial, and cultural for similar programs throughom the .clentl.t Morgan Kou ••er will bring dynamics of this complex region, says United States. their own dlv_ per.,.ectlve. to a Douglas Flamming, Caltech assistant "Southern California is the ideal new In.tltute program that will examine racial, political, and cultural professor of history and cofounder of geographic region for such a program," dlver.lty In .outham California. the new Race, Politics, and Region Flamming adds. "Los Angeles has (RPR) Program in Caltech's Division of emerged as one of rhe most important the Humanities and Social Sciences. multi-cultural centers in the world, The program is intended to offer a new and, as a result, must deal with intense focus for research that Caltech histori­ interracial and interethnic issues. ans and political scientists are already "The critical questions facing Los carrying out in the field of racial and Angeles now-such as how people Zewail wins erhnic politics, and to build a bridge from such diverse backgrounds can get between academic research and com­ along, and how an urban society can WoljPrize munity inreresrs. equitably meet their needs--are ques­ The program will include three tions the rest of the nation, and indeed A few years ago he was called to major components- research, educa­ the world, had better start trying to Riyadh. Then came trips to Cairo and tion, and community interaction-and answer. Alexandria. Now, he's on his way to wiJI support visiting scholars from a "We urgently need co find ways to Jerusalem. Henry Kissinger or James variety of disciplines, including politi­ create and sustain a JUSt and equitable Baker? No, it's Ahmed Zewail, cal science, history, sociology, and an­ multiracial society. Doi ng so wi II de­ Caltech's Linus Pauling Professor of thropology. In collaboration with these mand more than present-minded policy Chemical Physics, who has been guest scholars, Cal tech faculty will analysis. It will require basic social­ awarded the highly presrigious Wolf design and teach courses for both un­ scientific research into the long-term Prize in chemistry by rhe J erusalem­ dergraduate and graduate students, dynamics of race, ethnicity, and politi­ based Wolf Foundarion. Established in Ahmed Zewall expanding the Institute's curriculum in cal behavior. Long-term perspectives 1978, the award-a medal and multicultural and ethnic studies. can shed new light on our present di­ $100,OOO--has proven to have some The success of RPR rests largely on lemmas, and theteby allow us to build predictive power with regard to the Caltech to first place as the institution the insights co be gained by interac­ a better future. That is the challenge Nobel Prize. Previous Calrech recipi­ with the highest number of ci tations tions among students, scholats, and and the opportunity before us." ents are biologists Seymour Benzer, for chemistry in the world. community leaders, says Flamming. The origins of the RPR Program Edward Lewis, and Roger Sperry, and Commenting on Zewail's arrival in The program's first major undertaking, Stem in part from remarks made by chemist Rudy Marcus. Zewail will the ranks of the Wolf winners, his a monthly seminar series entitled "Race President Everhart at the Institute's receive the honor from the president of longtime chemistry colleague, fellow Relations in America: H istorical Per­ 1992 commencement exercises. Com­ Israel in a ceremony this May. Wolf winner, and 1992 Nobel laureate spectives and Present Imperatives," menting on the tecent upheavals in Los The Wolf prize committee decided Rudy Marcus said, "Zewail's winning has been under way since late last year, Angeles, Caltech's president said that unanimously to confer the award on this high award is a reflection of his and appears, says Flamming, "co be rhe Institute had a responsibility to Zewail, who has carried out pioneering ability to recognize important prob­ providing a lively forum for public playa role in improving race rel ations research in the new field of laser femto­ lems and his fearlessness in atracking debate." in so uthern California. Everhart's com­ chemisery---chemistry on the femto­ them. In his work on seeing molecules The program's plans include sympo­ ments prompted discussions among second time scale. Using lasers and fall apart, ci ted by the Wolf Prize com­ sia, colloquia, and on-campus work­ humanities and social science faculty, beams of molecules, Zewail and his minee, he combined two different shops. In additi0n, RPR hopes to which resulted in the formation of the research team have been able toinves ti­ techniques--femtosecond lighr pulses create summer student internships in RPR Program. gate the dynamics of chemical reac­ and molecular beams--and opened up public service agencies. The involve­ Flamming, whose research specialty tions-the breaking and formation of a new area of study.
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