Stamping Out Science, 1948
Trofim Lysenko’s attacks on geneticists had long-term effects on Russian science and scientists, despite a lack of evidence to support his beliefs about biological inheritance.
ViewFull Profile
Learn about ourEditorial Policies.
ABOVE: Trofim Lysenko (left) and his audience at the Lenin All-Union Academy of Agricultural Sciences meeting in Moscow in 1948.
COURTESY OF THE RUSSIAN STATE ARCHIVE OF FILM AND PHOTO DOCUMENTS
On July 31, 1948, a middle-aged man took his position behind a lectern at the Lenin All-Union Academy of Agricultural Sciences meeting in Moscow and began a speech to hundreds of biologists, economists, and other specialists assembled for what promised to be a historic event. The address, entitled “The Situation in Biological Science,” was a tirade against the field of genetics, which the speaker declared to be pseudobiology, anti-Soviet, and counter to agricultural progress. The remarks carried authority, he advised listeners later in the meeting: “The Central Committee of the Communist Party has examined my report and approved it.”
Members of the audience, some of whom were prominent geneticists, were only too familiar with the speaker, Trofim Lysenko, and his ...
Become a Member of
Related Topics
Meet the Author
After undergraduate research with spiders at the University of Oxford and graduate research with ants at Princeton University, Catherine left arthropods and academia to become a science journalist. She has worked in various guises atThe Scientistsince 2016. As Senior Editor, she wrote articles for the online and print publications, and edited the magazine’sNotebook,Careers, andBio Business sections. She reports on subjects ranging from cellular and molecular biology to research misconduct and science policy. Find more of her work at herwebsite.
View Full Profile
Published In
