Megascience Projects Research Articles

Project and Process Approaches in Science. Overview of Large Scientific and Technical Projects

The analysis of the management of large scientific and technical projects is carried out. The nuclear and space projects of the USSR, the nuclear project of the USA (Manhattan project), international and Russian megascience projects, federal scientific and technical programs (FNTP) and complex scientific and technical programs and projects (KNTP) are considered. The issues of problem formulation (substantiation of the relevance of the work), allocation of resources for projects, project implementation management are analyzed. From the examples considered, megaprojects include projects that were implemented in the USSR and the USA, some international projects of the mega-science class, and individual KNTP projects. Russian mega science projects, and most of the KNP from the point of view of management should be attributed to the class of large rather than megaprojects. It is shown that federal targeted programs, federal scientific and technical programs are rather not project-based, but process-based (they represent a set of small-scale projects that are not aimed at a common practical result), therefore they should be considered in the appropriate management logic.

Socio-Economic Impact of the Creation and Operation of Mega-Science Projects

Challenges of development facing society and states require efforts consolidation, in the research field in particular. Therefore, to organize international cooperation and to conduct basic and applied research, mega-science infrastructures are being created and implemented all over the world. Currently, research facilities of the mega-science class are being created in the Russian Federation. They play an important role in the development of science and the innovation process. The competitiveness of Russian science is a determining factor for ensuring the safety and technological independence of Russia. Therefore, the Federal program for the development of Synchrotron and Neutron research and research infrastructure for 2019-2027 was approved in March 2020. In the present article, the concept of the socio-economic impact of the operation of large-scale research infrastructure is revealed. The authors refer to the materials on the socio-economic impact analysis, which was based on the data on the Swedish neutron source (European Spallation Source). The article provides a generalized idea of the main indicators for assessing the potential of the research infrastructure as well as their application to characterize the research facilities in the Russian Federation. It is worth highlighting that each large research facility is unique and it is not possible to unify the analysis of the socio-economic impact. However, the obtained results can be used for a similar analysis of research infrastructures, based on the same physical principles and created to solve general scientific problems.

The protection of megascience projects from deepfake technologies threats: information law aspects

The paper examines the potential threats of the malicious use of deepfake technology to destabilize and discredit megascience projects in the global information space. The phenomenology of using artificial intelligence (AI) to create video recordings and voice messages, in which people do and say something that did not take place in reality, is considered. Special attention is paid to speech synthesis technologies based on arbitrary text and spoofing, i.e. replacing the speaker’s personality while preserving the content of the original speech message. The authors’ definition of a voice deepfake is as follows: an artificial creation of digital voice clones of a person for the purpose of intellectual or material forgery (fabrication of a pseudo-real information and communication event). A specific classification of deepfake technologies according to the types of their criminogenic use is given in the article. The authors highlight the imperfection of the Russian legislation on the legal protection of the individual voice of a person as an intangible value and on the protection of individuals from the unauthorized use of voice personal data taking into account the policy of social networks (Facebook, Twitter, TikTok) aimed at protecting users from synthesized audio and video disinformation. Based on the results of the research, a number of decisions are proposed to change the criminal and civil legislation in order to ensure the national security of the state, to protect international megascience projects, other scientific activities and individuals from the negative consequences of the potentially destructive and / or criminal use of voice deepfakes, including discrediting and defaming international megascience projects and their representatives in the media environment. The proposed legislative amendments may be used in other contexts by foreign countries and interstate associations.

Improving the legal mechanisms of interaction between national, international and foreign entities in the implementation of the Megascience projects

A present-day scientific experiment requires organized and self-organizing interaction of hundreds and thousands of specialists. We can offer some recommendations for improvement of the legal mechanisms of international scientific and technical cooperation. The creation of a unified national infrastructure supporting international scientific and technical cooperation of Russian organizations and research teams should be singled out as a separate project within the framework of a federal target program. It seems necessary to develop a special contract system for organizations participating in the Megascience projects, as well as a procedure for selection, monitoring and reporting standards. The issues of recruitment and training of the personnel involved in the functioning of the infrastructure of the Megascience projects are of particular relevance: competency profiles of experts in the management of international research projects should be developed, and the issues of their educating should be resolved as well. An important mechanism of interaction between national, international and foreign entities within the framework of the implementation of the Megascience projects is the creation of a single specialized web portal that would combine the resources of all the participants, simplify and accelerate interaction between research teams, and provide users with the necessary methodological support, in the national language as well. The improvement of legal mechanisms for attracting international and foreign entities for the implementation of the Megascience projects should be based on the creation of an infrastructure that provides administrative, financial, organizational, and legal support for research teams. At the same time, this activity should take into account the opinion of scientists themselves and never directly interfere in scientific and technological processes, allowing for a flexible approach to solving various issues.

Crowdsourcing in Megascience projects in Russia: current state and prospects

Within the framework of this article, the potential application of crowdsourcing mechanisms for the development of Megascience-class projects in Russia and the issues that arise in this regards are considered. Examples of the use of crowdsourcing mechanisms in current projects of this class are given. Proposals for their possible use in the future are made. The work raises the question of the branches of law, with the help of which it will be possible to regulate crowdsourcing in Russia.

Improving the Funding of Megascience Projects under Current Budget Policy of Russia

The article looks at the peculiarities of funding national projects and large-scale scientific projects as part of adoption of innovative economic model of the society’s development. In particular, funding of mega-science projects in Russia and abroad and its specifics has been studied. Particular examples of financial activities undertaken by the entities implementing mega-science projects like PIK and NICA have been provided. Ways to improve the funding of this sphere have been specified.

New challenges and approaches in training personnel for research projects of the “MegaScience” class

MegaScience projects are unique scientific experiments and facilities of a large scale that were initiated to allow to go beyond modern knowledge in the field of fundamental sciences and open up new opportunities in the technological development. The implementation of such complex projects requires the combined efforts of many scientists and institutions at national and multinational level. The paper presents an analysis of new trends in the training of researchers in the field of elementary particle physics, high energy physics and cosmophysics for research projects and experiments at MegaScience facilities. The authors consider the vast experience of extensive training of MEPhI students for fundamental science and analyzed new approaches to organizing the individual training of researchers at the university. The result of this work was presented and discussed within the proceedings of the Third Conference “Personnel training and legal support for the implementation of scientific projects of the Mega-science class” organized by National Research Nuclear University MEPhI and Kutafin Moscow State Law University on 17 June 2021.

Megascience Projects at the Brookhaven National Laboratory

Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is a multipurpose research center that primarily supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. BNL operates cutting-edge large-scale facilities for studies in physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, applied science, and a wide range of advanced technologies. Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) is a megascience facility at BNL that allows to conduct research in nuclear and particle physics. In these proceedings, we will review the current status and future prospects of the megascience complex RHIC.

Organizational and Legal Models of International Scientific and Technical Cooperation in the Establishment and Operation of a Global Research Infrastructure in the Nuclear Field

The study is caused by the need to identify advantages and disadvantages of different legal forms and models of international scientific and technical cooperation (ISTC), the possibilities of their application to megascience projects on the territory of Russia. The ISTC organizational and legal model with the use of existing framework international intergovernmental organizations or legal entities under national law and with the establishment of new special subjects can be schematically represented in the form of a four-level system. The first level includes the existing legal framework used to regulate the activities of an international intergovernmental organization or the national legislation of the State where the legal entity is established. The second level is represented by the internal law of an international intergovernmental organization or a local regulatory act issued by an “umbrella” structure. The third level consists of various memoranda of understanding. The fourth level is optional and it usually includes various bilateral agreements of the organization. The advantage of using the “umbrella” type organizational legal models is preconditioned by the readiness of the majority of their instruments and mechanisms that have already proven themselves in practice – they only need to be adapted to the specifics of a particular project – and the possibility to use them to implement a significant number of projects. The establishment of a special legal entity of a project type (international or national) is necessary to ensure a precise partners’ equity participation in the implementation of the project, their financial obligations and the governance structure that depends on them. Depending on the “legal environment,” the advantages of the international intergovernmental organization model include certain benefits, immunities and privileges, exemption from the jurisdiction of the host State on a number of issues, etc. A significant advantage is that it is much more difficult to subject international intergovernmental organizations to politically motivated unilateral restrictive measures (“sanctions”). The use of the legal entity established under national law can provide greater efficiency, flexibility and low administrative costs of the process. Moreover, exceptions from national law can also be envisaged for them.

Indiscipline as Method: From Telescopes to Ventilators in Times of Covid

There is no unproblematic way to study things as “African”, yet an epistemologically situated approach based on concrete technological projects situated in Africa and their social and political implications offers an important account of the intersection of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and African Studies. We explore this perspective through the notion of “indiscipline” using the Square Kilometre Array radio telescope project (SKA) based in South Africa as a case study through which to observe “indiscipline” as a methodological approach to technoscience at work. Indiscipline helps frame the socio-technical (by)products of astrophysics and engineering, and we present the production of ventilators for COVID-19 patients as an example of how the design of mega-science projects can become entangled with the dynamic concerns of society. Our conclusion elaborates on the politics of large technological systems, opening up a conversation on the intersection of science and society in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in African settings, using the template of experiences with the SKA and the National Ventilator Project in South Africa.

Bibliometric Review of the Most Actively Cited Russian Publications in the Scopus Database

The article presents a bibliometric review of the array of the of the most actively cited Russian publications in the Scopus database for the period 2010-2020. The criteria for studying the array of publications with the highest citation were the following: frequency distribution of publications by type; determination of the share in open access; frequency distribution of documents by quartiles of publications; frequency distribution by SciVal topics; frequency distribution by the degree of relevance of topics (percentiles); analysis of publications by the number of co-authors; Influence on field-weighted citation (FWCI); determination of the share of publications made with and without foreign participation; determination of the list of countries with which the greatest amount of work was carried out; distribution of publications by shares in various fields of knowledge; determination of the average number of co-authors per 1 publication; determination of leading organizations by the number of publications included in the top 550 by citation for the period 2010-2020.It was found that the vast majority of publications with the highest citations were issued by major international organizations, and most of them are concentrated in journals with a high open access rating, mainly in the first CiteScore quartile. The leading fields in terms of the number of most cited documents are Medicine, followed by physics and astronomy, as well as biochemistry, Genetics and molecular biology. It is shown that it is preferable to use SciVal themes, rather than the thematic area of journals. It is shown that when ranking publications by citation, one should focus on the influence of citation weighted by field, but not on the overall citation. The greatest citation of Russian publications is observed in works performed within the framework of MegaScience projects in international mega-co-authorship. The study of the array of the most actively cited Russian scientific publications is important both for monitoring the dynamics of their significance level and for developing a strategy to increase it.

On the key vectors of legal protection of intellectual rights of the Russian participants of the foreign “megascience” projects

Globalization of scientific research entails a range of complex legal problems substantiated by the organizational aspects of creation and functioning of large research projects, such as the absence of the uniform legal approach towards creating “megascience” project, imbalance between legal force of the norms of international agreements and national norms within the legal system of the accepting country depending on the organizational form of the project. The object of this research is the complex of public relations that influence the building of legal protection mechanism for intellectual rights of the Russians participating in foreign “megascience” projects. Within the framework of this research, the author analyzes the questions of participation of the Russian scholars in “megascience” projects, including the problems of protection of their intellectual rights. The questions are studied in the context of the uniform system of specificity of problem situations that emerge in the course of implementation of “megascience” project. The main conclusion lies in the thesis that indicates the need to provide Russian scientific organizations and individual scholars participating in “megascience” projects with the necessary s methodological recommendations in form of an optimal model of legal protection of their rights and legitimate interests in conducting research within the framework of foreign megascience projects or using “megascience” installations. The activity of Russian scholars engaged in foreign “megascience” projects requires information-legal and organizational-legal support for the effective protection of intellectual rights. The novelty of this work consists in examination of the questions of participation of Russian scholars and scientific organizations in “megascience projects” abroad without reducing it to solely financial and scientific component problem.

Financial and Legal Relations and Key Legal Categories in the Field of Megasience

The paper is devoted to the examination of some legal aspects of the legislative regulation of public relations in the field of large-scale international research infrastructures. The author identifies the features of public relations in the field of Megasience, examines various approaches to the definition of this category. In particular, it is determined that it is the rules of financial law that regulate the complex of public relations within which public financial activities are carried out in the field under consideration, namely: relations concerning financing at the expense of centralized funds (budgets) as well as using extrabudgetary sources for creating large-scale research infrastructures — unique scientific Mega-science installations; relations associated with the application of various tax incentives and preferences, investment tax credits by scientific and other organizations involved in the implementation of Megascience projects; financial control and supervision relations in the process of creation and operation of global research infrastructure facilities. The author makes proposals concerning the need to develop and adopt a special federal law of the Russian Federation regulating public relations in the field under consideration, as well as public relations in the field of international collaboration related to the implementation of international research activities based on Megascience facilities by the States Parties to such activities. The author gives possible definitions of key concepts applied in the field of Megasience.

Financial and Legal Relations and Key Legal Categories in the Field of Megasience

The paper is devoted to the examination of some legal aspects of the legislative regulation of public relations in the field of large-scale international research infrastructures. The author identifies the features of public relations in the field of Megasience, examines various approaches to the definition of this category. In particular, it is determined that it is the rules of financial law that regulate the complex of public relations within which public financial activities are carried out in the field under consideration, namely: relations concerning financing at the expense of centralized funds (budgets) as well as using extrabudgetary sources for creating large-scale research infrastructures — unique scientific Mega-science installations; relations associated with the application of various tax incentives and preferences, investment tax credits by scientific and other organizations involved in the implementation of Megascience projects; financial control and supervision relations in the process of creation and operation of global research infrastructure facilities. The author makes proposals concerning the need to develop and adopt a special federal law of the Russian Federation regulating public relations in the field under consideration, as well as public relations in the field of international collaboration related to the implementation of international research activities based on Megascience facilities by the States Parties to such activities. The author gives possible definitions of key concepts applied in the field of Megasience.

The Study on Knowledge Self-Organization and Technological Structure of the Russian Regions by Means of Kohonen’s Self-Organizing Maps

The article proposes a novel model for assessing the quality of technological development which differs from the similar spillovers by introducing a fundamentally new parameter of knowledge selforganization. Unlike spillovers measuring financial R&D flows, knowledge spillover measures structural similarities presented in patents, articles and other quantized units. Being the results of the reactions on the emergence of technological tasks and absorbing new technologies themselves, patents reflect real industrial picture of distribution of new technologies in any particular area. Implementation of selforganizing neural maps unveiled strong self-organized structural patterns distributed across the Russian Federation which were undetectable by means of conventional spatial econometric methods. Furthermore, neural maps exposed serious drawbacks of the Russian knowledge flow system, which is a drastic lack of flow in several high tech areas such as biotechnology. Self-organization indicator can be applied for evaluation of Megascience projects or other programs on both regional and federal levels. The structure of regional technologies based on 24 technological areas is studied and mapped on neural model, thereby it has been hypothesized that self-organization has an effect on qualitative processes of technological development. The study presents validation model of this hypothesis based on Kohonen’s self-organizing maps. Enhancement of this model on the further spatial studies is shown. Knowledge self-organization variable is developed to indicate technology integration and emergence.

Immunity of States and International Organizations in the Court of Justice of the European Union Practice and its Significance in the Implementation of Megascience Projects

In recent years, Russia has invested significant assets in unique scientific facility of the “Megascience” class that are being built or are already operating on the territory of foreign countries, mainly member states of the European Union: the International Thermonuclear Research Reactor-ITER (France), the European X-ray Free Electron Laser-European XFEL, the Large Hadron Collider (Switzerland and France), etc.How reliable and safe are such investments in the context of the sanctions policy of the West, including the EU, against our country? To what extent are they protected by the principle of immunity of states and international organizations, which is generally recognized, but is not interpreted and applied in different legal systems? The paper considers these issues in the context of the development of the judicial practice of the supranational institution of the judicial power of the EU, namely the Court of Justice of the European Union and the concept of relative immunity (immunité relative) formulated herein.Having conducted a comparative legal review of the current state of the sources of law and doctrine on the issues of immunity of states and international organizations, the author analyses and evaluates the decisions of the EU Court of Justice and the legal positions of its attorneys General: — Mahamdia v. Algeria, 2012: for the first time ECJ formulates the concept of relative immunity in relation to states;— "Rina" and "Suprim" cases, 2020: EU Court clarifies the interpretation of the concept of acta iure imperii (acts of public authority), in respect of which states retain immunity in the EU, and extends its concept of relative immunity to international intergovernmental organizations.The final section deals with legal issues that yet to get a clear answer in the practice of the EU Court of Justice. In this regard, the author highlights possible directions of its evolution, and studies other recent decisions of the EU Court of Justice that may affect Russia’s national interests in the context of cooperation with EU member states in the scientific and technical sphere, including megascience, and in other areas.

The Application of the Science Diplomacy Model: the Russian and International Experience

Introduction. Science diplomacy is one of the tools that allows a nation to engage in full-scale dialogue with its international partners. The global discussion of how science and diplomacy interact and affect one another came to prominence only fairly recently. Nonetheless, this subject is seeing more and more interest from both governmental structures and the general public. In countries where science diplomacy is well-developed, the mechanisms of such diplomacy are seeing active use in the pursuit of optimal decision-making regarding the emerging challenges in the field of international politics. On the world stage, achieving the desired results in science, politics or various other fields depends on how well developed the model of scientific diplomacy implemented by a given country is. The purpose of this study is to highlight the potential of science diplomacy in Russia by studying its mechanisms, tools, methods and key forms of execution. Furthermore, we attempt to formalise Russian science diplomacy, compare it to the most productive foreign models and offer suggestions on how to develop science diplomacy in Russia by leveraging successful domestic and international case studies. Methods. We use the descriptive method to provide the international experience of science diplomacy (as exemplified by the USA, Great Britain, France and Germany), as well as the potential for deploying the most successful projects in Russia. The Russian experience of science diplomacy is analysed through the method of modelling. Furthermore, we use the methods of analysis and synthesis to single out the most important features of international cooperation. In turn, the comparative approach allows us to assess the predictions for how ready Russia and other countries are to face global challenges. The specifics of applying the mechanism of science diplomacy in Russia are considered through the lens of science diplomacy's classical iterations: science within diplomacy, diplomacy for science and science for diplomacy. Results and Discussion. Based on the results of our study, we propose a model for science diplomacy in Russia, including programmes for international cooperation among the authorities and governing bodies of different countries, as well as the activities of various scientific and educational institutions in this area, major mega-science projects, expert research at research foundations and more. To expand the formats of interaction among actors in science diplomacy and boost the development of scientific communications, we make suggestions on applying Western experience to Russian practice. We recommend the following in order to improve the productivity of science diplomacy methods: creating a single unified portal for foreign researchers, developing a new concept of Houses of Science and Culture, creating Russian institutions abroad, offering platforms for interaction among science attachés, getting scientists actively involved in resolving international issues, etc. Conclusion. Science diplomacy has unique potential in the system of international relations, besides being an effective tool for promoting national interests. Therefore, its further development is highly promising. The recommendations listed in this study are applicable not just to Russia, but to any nation interested in diversifying its approaches to foreign policy-making and thereby securing more influence on the global stage.

The system of financial control of the projects of the Megascience class in the Russian Federation

This article is dedicated to the system of financial control of the projects of the megascience class in the Russian Federation. The author highlighted the structure of this system, defined the goal, objectives, and principles of financial control of projects of the megascience class, investigated the features of the implementation of external and internal state financial (budget) control of megascience projects. The article concludes that the priority of budget financing for megascience projects in the Russian Federation predetermines the leading role of budget control. The financial control model is also influenced by the organizational and legal form used in the implementation of megascience projects. The article demonstrates that the assignment of the functions of the operator of megascience projects to an international intergovernmental organization or a specially created organization with the distribution of shares among the countries participating in the project, allows to provide more transparency of information on the progress of its implementation in general and financing in particular. The study showed the need for wider application of independent audit control of megascience projects being implemented in the territory of the Russian Federation. Based on the results of the study, proposals were formulated aimed at increasing the efficiency of spending money in the process of implementing megascience projects and the transparency of the activities of scientific institutions with regards to the public.

National experience in funding scientific megascience projects: legal modeling

The research presents the current models of financing mega science projects in the Russian Federation. The work describes the existing in the Russian Federation the system of financing projects megascience. Legal relations in the sphere of financial activities of the states-participants of the projects of the megascience class occupy one of the central places in the system of public social relations arising in the process of construction and operation of large-scale research infrastructures. Emphasizes that Megascience projects are implemented in the public interest. Thus, the main goal of their development is to conduct comprehensive scientific research and breakthrough knowledge and innovative technologies for the benefit of all mankind. Megascience projects solve quite specific problems, and in this concern there is no need for their mass construction, and the high cost makes international cooperation economically feasible in the area under consideration. Legal relations in the sphere of financial activities of the states-participants of the projects of the megascience class occupy one of the central places in the system of public social relations arising in the process of construction and operation of large-scale research infrastructures.

The legal issues of foreign citizens participation in megascience projects

The article is devoted to the analyses of the issues of legal regulation of issues of foreign citizens participation in megascience projects. The large-scale nature of megascience objects that distinguishes them from other research infrastructures is expressed primarily in the scale of the objects of research, in terms of the complexity of their creation, the complexity of operation, as well as the exchange of workforce in the process of research exercising. Considering the issue of personnel exchange in the framework of large-scale research, it is necessary to focus not only on conducting the research in the framework of megascience, but also on legal regulation of foreign researchers attraction, or the problem of the entry and residence of foreign scientific researchers. The EU has a procedure for admitting third-country nationals recruited for the purpose of conducting research activities, independent of their legal relationship with the host research organization and not requiring a work permit in addition to authorization. This procedure is based on cooperation between research organizations and the immigration authorities of the EU Member States. The existence of specific procedure for the entry and residence of foreign scientific researchers helps to remove barriers in the migration of researchers, expand the scientific exchange. In this regard the EU legal experience in the scope of researchers migration regulation should be used as a model for improving the Russian Federation legal regulation in the same scope.