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Susanna Gordleyeva, winner of the 2023 Presidential Prize in Science and Innovation for Young Scientists

The prize was awarded for the development of models and technologies of neuromorphic artificial intelligence based on biophysical neuron-astrocyte network models for memristive electronics.

Susanna Gordleyeva was born on November 5, 1987, in Gorky. She is a professor at the Lobachevsky National Research State University of Nizhny Novgorod and holds a Doctorate in Physics and Mathematics.

Susanna Gordleyeva’s research interests include radio physics, biophysics, mathematical modelling, computational techniques, and programme systems. Academic footprint (number of publications/h-index): WoS – 52/19, Scopus – 77/20, RSCI – 114/15.

Susanna Gordleyeva’s research focuses on the development of mathematical models of neural networks in the human brain that can be used to create new biosimilar AI technologies – neuromorphic artificial intelligence systems.

Susanna Gordleyeva obtained a series of fundamental results that uncovered new principles of information processing, learning, and function generation in brain systems based on the interaction between neurons and glial cells. Additionally, her work shed light on the factors leading to the development of neurodegenerative diseases during the aging process. The patterns identified have significantly advanced the field of neural network theory and have played an important role in the emergence of a new scientific domain dedicated to developing fundamental principles for artificial intelligence systems based on biosimilar neural networks.

Using the formulated mathematical models, app solutions have been created in the area of neuromorphic artificial intelligence and predictive medicine to prevent the onset of neurodegenerative diseases and promote healthy longevity. The technologies developed for neuromorphic artificial intelligence demonstrate the capability to surpass the constraints of current machine learning methods, particularly in terms of energy efficiency and addressing challenges related to time coding of information.

The capabilities of current microelectronics allowed Susanna Gordleyeva to begin the physical implementation of new neural systems in the form of cutting-edge hardware applications: microelectronic neurochips emulating various functions of the brain. Such devices are already being tested in the country’s leading research facilities.

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Sergei Pavlushin, winner of the 2023 Presidential Prize in Science and Innovation for Young Scientists

The prize was awarded for the discovery of new mechanisms to regulate reproduction outbreaks of agricultural and forestry pests: from theory to practice.

Sergei Pavlushin was born on October 14, 1987, in the village of Krasnoobsk, Novosibirsk. He is a senior researcher at the laboratory of ecological physiology at the Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and holds a Doctorate in Biology.

Sergei Pavlushin’s research interests include molecular biology, botany, virology, microbiology, entomology, genetics, ecology, biotechnology, biological resources, biological and agricultural fields/industries. Academic footprint (number of publications/h-index): WoS – 21/9, Scopus – 21/9, RSCI – 32/7.

Sergei Pavlushin’s research is of important theoretical value and offers promising applications in practical efforts to protect forests from the threat of the gypsy moth, which is moving further north through the territory of Russia at a speed of 40 kilometres per year because of climate change.

Sergei Pavlushin found that the gypsy moth population can adapt to resistant tree species, such as conifers, and successfully produce a third generation of offspring on them. This indicates the heightened adaptive capabilities of these insects. Sergei Pavlushin described the conditions and probability of reproduction outbreaks in new areas and suggested preventive measures. The scientist’s research provided the first global insight into the impact of prolonged spring development on insect physiological parameters and their susceptibility to viral and bacterial infections.

The scientific data obtained by Sergei Pavlushin has substantially contributed to a better understanding of the importance of natural virus strains, in particular, the cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus, which can be used to create biological protection against the gypsy moth. From the practical point of view, Mr Pavlushin’s findings are important for long-term control of the population of lepidopterans in the northern areas. The new strain has been patented and will become the basis for an insecticide.

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Olga Yakubovich, winner of the 2023 Presidential Prize in Science and Innovation for Young Scientists

The prize was awarded for the development of the isotope geochemical method as an effective tool for searching for deposits of strategically important metals: gold and platinum.

Olga Yakubovich was born on December 3, 1987, in Leningrad. She is an Associate Professor, Department of Geochemistry, St Petersburg State University, Candidate of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences.

Her scientific interests include Earth and environmental sciences, geochronology, isotope geochemistry, mineralogy, geology of mineral deposits. Academic footprint (number of publications/h-index) are: WoS – 31/7, Scopus – 28/7, RSCI – 31/7.

Olga Yakubovich’s work is devoted to developing fundamental ideas about helium retention in metals and some sulphides, as well as developing and using methods to determine the age of ore-forming processes, using radiogenic helium to search for gold and platinum deposits.

One of the most important parameters that makes it possible to assess the prospects of a particular site for the discovery of new deposits is the age of ore formation, since it allows mineralisation to be linked to large-scale processes in the Earth’s evolution and thereby makes it possible to predict the discovery of an ore deposit. Determining this parameter is a complex isotope-geochronological task. Until now, the most popular method has been using rhenium-187 and osmium-187. However, it is methodologically complex, expensive, and requires a lot of work.

Olga Yakubovich discovered high retention of helium in native metals (gold and platinum) and some sulphide minerals and used isotope systems based on radiogenic helium for direct age determination of ore-forming processes for the first time in geological practice. Using a high sensitivity mass spectrometer (a measuring complex upgraded by the creator), Olga Yakubovich studied the kinetics of helium release from native metals; the source of radiogenic helium in metals was determined, making it possible to recommend new methods of isotope geochronology, platinum-helium and uranium-thorium-helium methods, and to introduce them into geological practice.

Olga Yakubovich’s methods and techniques are in demand in geological exploration in Russia, as well as in a number of African countries, and have been successfully tested in fields in the Khabarovsk Territory, the Southern and Polar Urals, Yakutia, and Altai.