Bookvica

[DEFENDING SOVIET GENETICS] Sbornik diskussionnykh statei po voprosam genetiki i selektsii [i.e. A Collection of Controversial Articles on Issues of Genetics and Breeding]

Item #2587

Moscow: Izdatel’stvo Vsesoiuznoi akademii s.-kh. nauk im V. I. Lenina, 1936. 336 pp. 21 ×14 cm. In publisher’s printed wrappers. Tears to the spine, mild foxing of front wrapper, otherwise in very good condition.

Limited edition of 1000 copies. Very rare. The collection is primarily interesting as a printed arena of scientific debate between the supporters and opponents of genetics, namely, between scholars following Nikolai Vavilov and Trofim Lysenko. The book was published by the IV Session of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
In all, the edition contains 21 articles. Some of them had been previously published in the magazines “Sotsialisticheskaia rekonstruktsiia sel’skogo khoziaistva” [Socialist Reconstruction of Agriculture], “Iarovizatsiia” [Vernalization], and “Selektsiia i semenovodstvo” [Breeding and Seed Production]. The articles “Genetics: Its Achievements and Errors” by M. Zavadovsky and “Experiments on Grafting in Herbaceous Plants” by A. Zhebrak were published for the first time. Articles by academician N. Vavilov and professor P. Iakovlev weren’t included.

Interestingly, this 1936 book shows us an intense but still non-violent conflict. Some of the contributors openly advocate representatives of classical genetics and constructively criticize their opponents. In particular, Mikhail Zavadovsky writes: “Genetics and the dynamics of organismal development are among the most progressive chapters of modern biology. <...> Driven by the need to be honest with myself and in the interests of a proper search for truth, I am compelled to say that what Lysenko offers us in place of Mendel’s concept is a pathetic, wretched, primitive concept unworthy of his remarkable abilities”. Zavadovsky offers constructive criticism of T. Lysenko and I. Prezent. While acknowledging their useful achievements, he focuses on dissecting their erroneous judgments – judgments that were being poisonously spread by the major press and among their fellow scientists.

Zavadovsky also overviews contemporary genetics and Soviet scholars, raising the issue of training the next generations. “N. Vavilov isn’t engaged in pedagogical work. Meister was involved in this to a small extent, Sapegin carried out work purposefully, but only for a short time and at a low-capacity university in Odessa. Karpechenko took up pedagogical work in Leningrad only two years ago, while plant genetics in Moscow was in a rather neglected state. Zhegalov worked more than others in training personnel, but he died in 1927. <...> Unfortunately, we have very few plant geneticists, and even if geneticist Vavilov heads the Institute of Plant Industry, this doesn’t at all mean that there are many
geneticists in his populous institute”.
Among other articles are the criticising Lysenko texts “A Few Words on the Works of the Odessa Institute of Selection and Genetics” and “A Few Critical Remarks”, as well as Lysenko’s replies on them.

Not found in Worldcat.

Price: $750.00