Applied Science
Block number three of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) is one of two-dozen nondescript socialist blocks, just off from Tsarigradsko Chaussee. On an early morning in June, the empty, endless greens between the blocks breathe sleepiness.
Not exactly the place one would expect someone with the drive of Nikolay Miloshev, director of the Geophysical Institute and also deputy chairperson of the general assembly of BAS.
"It gets busier later in the day," he says, while he turns away from his office window, just over the entrance of block number three.
"Many people say BAS is a mastodon, and that is true. But it is there as a structure and it does have potential. Unused potential, I do agree with that," Miloshev says.
He has set himself the task of showing that his Institute and – with a bit more work – all of BAS, is actually useful to society.
From his first words, Miloshev makes it clear that the problem of BAS is that of a mentality stuck in the so-called golden years – the 1960s – when fundamental research, funded by the socialist system, was king.
"At the moment we are stuck with a structure that is a legacy from a time when we did fundamental research, and this hinders us. I say this, both as a director of this institute and as a deputy-chair of the board of BAS," he says.
"Look," says Miloshev, "BAS first has to take several serious steps if it wants to survive".
Currently, BAS consists of 69 institutes. If it was up to Miloshev, only 30 or so larger ones would remain. But that process is not easy. "At the moment, we are trying to merge three institutions, but one of them is reluctant. Some institutions just don’t have a critical mass; they are too small," he says.
One of the next steps, according to Miloshev, would be to think about setting up a structure of communication departments within each institute. "We have to, one way or another, justify the money that society puts into this institution," he says later.
Beta
In the weeks before our interview with Miloshev, several local media spotted a new website (http://ndc.geophys.bas.bg/) that had appeared on the servers of the Geophysical Institute, but that was not yet linked to the institute’s main website.
"This is a new site and is still under development," Miloshev says.
The site can best be described as a mashup, the kind that one has come to expect in a web 2.0 environment, hardly a place where one is used to seeing an organisation like BAS.
The website combines the institute’s own database of earthquake data with a Google map to allow users to visualise the location, incidence and frequency of earthquakes in the Balkans.
For the time being, the site is still under beta-testing. "Data is entered automatically and could contain an error," Miloshev says.
There is, of course, a difference between errors and errors. A wrong weather forecast is unlikely to have serious consequences; earthquakes, on the other hand, are scary.
"This is why we have staff on duty 24-hours to double check the automated data. These tests have now been running two or three months, so we expect to be ready with the site within the next couple of weeks," Miloshev says.
The current version of the site does provide an option to select between automatic and manual control, the latter only showing data for earthquakes that has been checked by a seismologist. The final site will only have this manual option, Miloshev says, in order to minimise the risk of mistakes.
Modernisation
Until 2005, all earthquake data at the Geophysical Institute was recorded using analogue equipment and large rolls of paper. In late 2005, the institute switched to a modern, electronic measurement network nationwide.
"That was a project funded by the Ministry for Emergency Situations," Miloshev says. Funding was limited, but the institute made the most of available budgets. "Later, colleagues from Belgium and the US told me they were surprised we managed to do this for so little money," Miloshev says with some pride.
"I believe you have to do these things within the possibilities of the country. We’re not a rich country; we cannot afford expensive solutions, but we do want a qualitative solution," he says.
Later, rounds of funding allowed the institute to complete the modernisation of equipment in its measurement network.
The website is only the latest step in the modernisation of the institute’s entire measurement network, allowing it to present the outcome of its research to society.
"At this point, we are a well-equipped institute. We could wish for a denser measuring network with more stations, but that is not within the budget of a country like Bulgaria," Miloshev says, two feet firmly on the ground.
More than one
Besides the earthquake-data website, the institute has a number of web pages where it shares results from its research. These include its Geomagnetic observatory and the six-hour geomagnetic storm forecasts it publishes (http://www.geophys.bas.bg/kp_for/kp_mod.htm), to its Ultra-Violet index monitoring with one day forecasts (http://www.geophys.bas.bg/uv_index/uv_index.htm).
"This has become popular in recent years," Miloshev says about the UV forecasts.
The institute’s current three stations are to be expanded with two more in Borovets and Bansko before the ski season.
"This way we can provide tourists with more information," Miloshev says.
New research at the institute includes measuring the thickness of the ozone layer over Bulgaria, something unprecedented here.
"Combining our own measurements with satellite measurements produces a good picture of the thickness of the ozone layer over the country. As it turns out, there is no thinning of the ozone layer over the country," Miloshev says.
This research for now runs until September 2009, but Miloshev is hopeful the ministry will enable the institute to continue measurements.
Hidden gems
When asked why few people seem to know about the institute’s website, Miloshev says; "I am afraid of making these sites too well known, because they are not yet ready as public presentations. I would like to see this improved first."
"What we miss is that we do not have people who can do this type of communications; we are learning the ropes as we go along," he says.
Until a larger scale reorganisation of BAS has been realised, according to Miloshev, the solution is to include communicators in new projects, a decision that has already been taken.
Forecasts
A phone call interrupts the interview. When he comes back, Miloshev begins with a joke; "A professor does research and reports on the results. At some point, one of his colleagues asks ‘but where are you going to apply that?’ ‘What do you mean where?’ the professor answers; ‘in my professional folder.’"
Serious again, Miloshev continues; "we are expecting a report from the European Scientific Foundation, which will help us greatly by showing us where we stand and where we should be."
He expects change to pick up speed once the report is out.
"Science and higher education in Bulgarian in the past 20 years have seriously decreased in quality. This is true for BAS, for the Sofia University, the Technical University, and all the others," Miloshev says.
Blaming a 20-year lack of political vision regards science and higher education, Miloshev says he now sees things improving.
"This country has vulgarised incredibly in the last 20 years. Someone has to put an end to this," he says.
To explain what he means, Miloshev quotes a Bulgarian saying; "акъл не ми давай, пари ми дай" (Don’t give me advice, give me money) and offsets it with a paraphrased translation of an American version;" дай ми акъл, аз парите сам ще ги изкарвам (Give me advice, money I can make). "I think that last one is more valid," Miloshev says.
"One way or another, we have to justify the money society provides us. This kind of thinking is lacking here. They do not want to understand there is no such thing as a free lunch, that it is no longer the communist party that decides how much money we will get," Miloshev says.
He says "the worst inheritance" from Bulgaria’s socialist era is the attitude "that we should not think, someone else will think for us and we only have to comply".
Miloshev sums up what BAS should be. "We have to be the intellectual elite of this country. We should be marching ahead and hand society things that will prove themselves with time, even if these things seem unrealistic at first. That is our work, our role in society."
Not exactly the place one would expect someone with the drive of Nikolay Miloshev, director of the Geophysical Institute and also deputy chairperson of the general assembly of BAS.
"It gets busier later in the day," he says, while he turns away from his office window, just over the entrance of block number three.
"Many people say BAS is a mastodon, and that is true. But it is there as a structure and it does have potential. Unused potential, I do agree with that," Miloshev says.
He has set himself the task of showing that his Institute and – with a bit more work – all of BAS, is actually useful to society.
From his first words, Miloshev makes it clear that the problem of BAS is that of a mentality stuck in the so-called golden years – the 1960s – when fundamental research, funded by the socialist system, was king.
"At the moment we are stuck with a structure that is a legacy from a time when we did fundamental research, and this hinders us. I say this, both as a director of this institute and as a deputy-chair of the board of BAS," he says.
"Look," says Miloshev, "BAS first has to take several serious steps if it wants to survive".
Currently, BAS consists of 69 institutes. If it was up to Miloshev, only 30 or so larger ones would remain. But that process is not easy. "At the moment, we are trying to merge three institutions, but one of them is reluctant. Some institutions just don’t have a critical mass; they are too small," he says.
One of the next steps, according to Miloshev, would be to think about setting up a structure of communication departments within each institute. "We have to, one way or another, justify the money that society puts into this institution," he says later.
Beta
In the weeks before our interview with Miloshev, several local media spotted a new website (http://ndc.geophys.bas.bg/) that had appeared on the servers of the Geophysical Institute, but that was not yet linked to the institute’s main website.
"This is a new site and is still under development," Miloshev says.
The site can best be described as a mashup, the kind that one has come to expect in a web 2.0 environment, hardly a place where one is used to seeing an organisation like BAS.
The website combines the institute’s own database of earthquake data with a Google map to allow users to visualise the location, incidence and frequency of earthquakes in the Balkans.
For the time being, the site is still under beta-testing. "Data is entered automatically and could contain an error," Miloshev says.
There is, of course, a difference between errors and errors. A wrong weather forecast is unlikely to have serious consequences; earthquakes, on the other hand, are scary.
"This is why we have staff on duty 24-hours to double check the automated data. These tests have now been running two or three months, so we expect to be ready with the site within the next couple of weeks," Miloshev says.
The current version of the site does provide an option to select between automatic and manual control, the latter only showing data for earthquakes that has been checked by a seismologist. The final site will only have this manual option, Miloshev says, in order to minimise the risk of mistakes.
Modernisation
Until 2005, all earthquake data at the Geophysical Institute was recorded using analogue equipment and large rolls of paper. In late 2005, the institute switched to a modern, electronic measurement network nationwide.
"That was a project funded by the Ministry for Emergency Situations," Miloshev says. Funding was limited, but the institute made the most of available budgets. "Later, colleagues from Belgium and the US told me they were surprised we managed to do this for so little money," Miloshev says with some pride.
"I believe you have to do these things within the possibilities of the country. We’re not a rich country; we cannot afford expensive solutions, but we do want a qualitative solution," he says.
Later, rounds of funding allowed the institute to complete the modernisation of equipment in its measurement network.
The website is only the latest step in the modernisation of the institute’s entire measurement network, allowing it to present the outcome of its research to society.
"At this point, we are a well-equipped institute. We could wish for a denser measuring network with more stations, but that is not within the budget of a country like Bulgaria," Miloshev says, two feet firmly on the ground.
More than one
Besides the earthquake-data website, the institute has a number of web pages where it shares results from its research. These include its Geomagnetic observatory and the six-hour geomagnetic storm forecasts it publishes (http://www.geophys.bas.bg/kp_for/kp_mod.htm), to its Ultra-Violet index monitoring with one day forecasts (http://www.geophys.bas.bg/uv_index/uv_index.htm).
"This has become popular in recent years," Miloshev says about the UV forecasts.
The institute’s current three stations are to be expanded with two more in Borovets and Bansko before the ski season.
"This way we can provide tourists with more information," Miloshev says.
New research at the institute includes measuring the thickness of the ozone layer over Bulgaria, something unprecedented here.
"Combining our own measurements with satellite measurements produces a good picture of the thickness of the ozone layer over the country. As it turns out, there is no thinning of the ozone layer over the country," Miloshev says.
This research for now runs until September 2009, but Miloshev is hopeful the ministry will enable the institute to continue measurements.
Hidden gems
When asked why few people seem to know about the institute’s website, Miloshev says; "I am afraid of making these sites too well known, because they are not yet ready as public presentations. I would like to see this improved first."
"What we miss is that we do not have people who can do this type of communications; we are learning the ropes as we go along," he says.
Until a larger scale reorganisation of BAS has been realised, according to Miloshev, the solution is to include communicators in new projects, a decision that has already been taken.
Forecasts
A phone call interrupts the interview. When he comes back, Miloshev begins with a joke; "A professor does research and reports on the results. At some point, one of his colleagues asks ‘but where are you going to apply that?’ ‘What do you mean where?’ the professor answers; ‘in my professional folder.’"
Serious again, Miloshev continues; "we are expecting a report from the European Scientific Foundation, which will help us greatly by showing us where we stand and where we should be."
He expects change to pick up speed once the report is out.
"Science and higher education in Bulgarian in the past 20 years have seriously decreased in quality. This is true for BAS, for the Sofia University, the Technical University, and all the others," Miloshev says.
Blaming a 20-year lack of political vision regards science and higher education, Miloshev says he now sees things improving.
"This country has vulgarised incredibly in the last 20 years. Someone has to put an end to this," he says.
To explain what he means, Miloshev quotes a Bulgarian saying; "акъл не ми давай, пари ми дай" (Don’t give me advice, give me money) and offsets it with a paraphrased translation of an American version;" дай ми акъл, аз парите сам ще ги изкарвам (Give me advice, money I can make). "I think that last one is more valid," Miloshev says.
"One way or another, we have to justify the money society provides us. This kind of thinking is lacking here. They do not want to understand there is no such thing as a free lunch, that it is no longer the communist party that decides how much money we will get," Miloshev says.
He says "the worst inheritance" from Bulgaria’s socialist era is the attitude "that we should not think, someone else will think for us and we only have to comply".
Miloshev sums up what BAS should be. "We have to be the intellectual elite of this country. We should be marching ahead and hand society things that will prove themselves with time, even if these things seem unrealistic at first. That is our work, our role in society."