Samara University Announced the Start of the Large-Scale Educational Project “Possessed by Science”

In 2025, Samara National Research University implements the educational project “Possessed by Science”. Within the project, unique author’s content about young scientists and their achievements will be created.

The project is being implemented with the support of Russia’s Ministry of Education and Science, as part of the Decade of Science and Technology. It includes creating video series, audio podcasts, long-reads, news publications about scientific research and development, with the content adapted for social networks. Offline activities are also planned: meetings with scientists, creating the merchandise, integrating with small-sized businesses.

“I am sure that it is necessary to popularize science, young scientists, results of their research and achievements! They definitely deserve the widest attention. Young people’s fresh look helps find a non-trivial solution, seeing unordinarily a scientific problem.

It is important to talk about what our scientists are doing so that a wide range of people understand how this world works, how outcomes of scientific achievements and obtaining new knowledge contribute to developing society.

It is important to popularize interdisciplinary research, the interaction of fundamental and applied sciences, intersectoral synergy and, as a result, the emergence of new products in the field of space, aviation, including UAVs, propulsion engineering, remote sensing of the Earth, information technology, automation and control in all spheres of life.

The appearance of such information in the mass media helps shape people’s understanding of what is currently at the borderline of science, where their potential can be directed, and, of course, this kind of information helps scientists themselves learn about what their colleagues all over the world are doing, and therefore build cooperation for new scientific research”, emphasized Evgeny Shakhmatov, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Scientific Supervisor of Samara University.

The Score Films team represented by Daniil Matveev, Dmitry Gorokhov, and the director of photography Vadim Frenkin, are working on the video series.

“We have discovered for ourselves scientists as new stars. Sincerely and without exaggeration. Today’s young scientists are charismatic, smart guys and girls who live by science. They are passionate about their work and inspire. They may become idols.

I believe that such projects are just the beginning of a long journey. We turn on the camera, turn on the lights, and show real heroes. And people fall in love with them afterwards. Everyone will find among the scientists of Samara University someone who will become an example for following and sincerely admiring, no doubt about it”, said Dmitry Gorokhov about the work on the project.

The project identity and the website have been developed by the BLNC design studio.

Aleksander Chumak, the host of the Science Slam Samara, an international project aimed at popularizing science, became the author and the presenter of the audio podcasts, and Aleksander Aleksandrov became the sound engineer.

“For me, participating in this project is a special personal story. Firstly, I myself am a graduate of Samara University: it is a pleasure to return to the walls of my alma mater. Secondly, for over 10 years now, I have been leading the Science Slam and watching how scientists’ ideas and developments pass the whole path from hypotheses and prototypes to outstanding outcomes. We are going to tell some of these stories in our audio podcasts”, shared his plans Aleksander Chumak.

Aleksey Sokolov, Irina Kudrina, Petr Slizevich, Elena Pamurzina, scientific communicators from Samara University, as well as journalists from leading editions of the Samara Region, are working on the creation of long-reads and news publications.

“We have relied on the quality of the content to be created, and are working hard on its meaning and presentation. It is important for us to make an interesting product that will be useful to people. First of all, to schoolchildren and their parents and teachers. Because the main goal of the project is supporting and inspiring those who are interested in science, as well as showing them the prospects of a scientific career”, commented Anna Sitnik, the project producer, Director of the Public Relations Centre at Samara University.

Photo by Andrey Pavlov and Olga Zharkova