Nikolai Vavilov
The great scientist Nikolai Vavilov geneticist, geographer, author of the law of homologous series in hereditary variation of organisms, the creator of the theory of biological principles of selection and the centers of origin and diversity of cultivated plants, an academician of the USSR and AS USSR.
For the first time Nikolai Vavilov was in Poltava 30 March 1910, at this time, he studied at the Moscow Agricultural
Institute. In Poltava, then there were the first standing Scientific Institution of the Russian Empire - Pilot field. The head of Nikolai Vavilov, Academician Dmitry Pryanishnikov, singled out among all the talented students, and recommended him to undergo the practice at Poltava experimental field, which in 1910 turned into a research station. There being a student Nikolai Vavilov made his first observations and conclusions.
Already, being a famous scientist, Nikolai Vavilov fondly remembered Poltava period of his life, in particular, the old laboratory, research enthusiasm, cheerfulness, which emanated from the experimental field, where he spends 14-15 hours a day. He went there the first, and until the director of field time to view the experimental plots.
Classmates of N. Vavilov, known in the future, soil scientist, the first President of the Ukrainian Agricultural Academy (now the Ukrainian Academy of Agrarian Sciences), academician Alexei Sokolovsky, recalling the practice in Poltava, wrote: "...wherever he appeared, Nikolai Vavilov always knew how to find common interests and a common language with every person". The same was said and the doctor of biological sciences, professor L. Breslavets, who then worked at the station: "Nikolai was still a student differed in his knowledge and dedication."
The daughter of the director of the station, S. Tretyakov – L. Tretyakova - wrote: "My father very appreciated Nikolai Ivanovich, and noted him as the most talented, gifted, cultural and erudite man, even my father promised a great future for him. In our family we all loved Nikolai and were proud of his success".
Also, just in Poltava in the journal "Farmer" trainee Nikolai Vavilov published three of his first independent scientific work. On the fertile soil of Poltava, he really felt the taste of science, has established himself as a specialist. N. Vavilov read many scientific papers, comparing them, summing up the facts. Those works helped him to choose the correct direction of research. This is how he recalled in the letter of greeting to the famous psychopathologists A. Yachevsky: "...15 years ago as a student-trainee of Poltava experimental station, I read your book "Rust bread". This book was at that time a great event and involuntarily attracted young naturalists to work, and was itself the result of observation, knowledge". After graduation in the summer of 1912, Nikolai Vavilov arrived in Poltava, to study the stability of some pure-line varieties of wheat to stem rust and powdery mildew.
Ten years after reading the book of A. Yachevsky Nikolai Vavilov was the founder of the doctrine of immunity of plants and published his first monograph on this subject. One of the founders of the agricultural affairs of Russia and Ukraine, the director of the Poltava Experiment Station, S. Tretyakov, Nikolai Vavilov regarded as his teacher. Practice in Poltava, which lasted only six months, Vavilov considered one of the most important stages of his life. Upon returning to Moscow from Poltava, he wrote in his diary: "November 25, 1910. 23 years today. If try to set off any stage associated with this anniversary, perhaps it would be next - joining in agronomy (the practice field at Poltava)".
In the future, Nikolai Ivanovich did not break relations with the research station until the end of his life. He helped it financially, helped many of its employees.
Some of them he brought to his work abroad. It is primarily concerned with Dmitry Borodin. N. Vavilov called him "a very useful man, who knew perfectly the languages". Nikolai Ivanovich put D. Borodin at the head of the created New York Bureau of Applied Botany. N. Vavilov called him "a window to the world". And this is true, because Dmitri Borodin honorably acquitted this appreciation by sending in Russia 10 000 samples of seeds of pumpkins, melons, watermelons, corn, sunflower. All of them were transferred to research institutions and, above all those which are in Ukraine.
In 1924 when the scientists was 37 years old, and he took place not only as an agronomist, but as a geneticist, geographer, he again stressed the vital role of Poltava in his scientific career: "For me personally, the experimental field, its whole team gave impetus for all further work, gave faith in the agronomic work".
No matter what high positions Nikolai Vavilov occupied, he always spoke of himself quite simply: "I am agronomist". And he became it in Poltava. Residents of the city immortalized outstanding scientist, named after him one of the avenues and installing a tablet on the facade of the main building of the Poltava Agricultural Experiment Station (Shveds'ka street, 86).
With boundless energy and a legendary capacity for work, for his not very long life Vavilov managed to do a lot. He walked along the roads and off roads of the five continents. He formulated the major scientific generalizations in the field of genetics and evolutionary theory, he has wrote over 10 books, he made a huge organizational work to establish a coherent system of institutions of agricultural science in a country as vast as the USSR.
Starting from college Vavilov devoted his life to science, to the study of cultivated plants, pursuing the noble goal - to increase their productivity, thereby eliminating the threat of food shortages for the people of our country and all mankind.
By 20-ies and early 30-ies there were numerous expeditions of Vavilov to collect and study of cultivated plants, which
Vavilov made himself, or which he organized with the participation of its employees. Vavilov visited about 40 countries. Many of his trips were connected with great difficulties and risks, particularly difficult and dangerous were expeditions in Afghanistan (1924) and Ethiopia (1927). For the first one scientist was awarded the gold medal of the Russian Geographical Society for geographical feat.
Organizational activities of Vavilov were very important for Soviet genetics. In 1930 he headed the country's first academic institution in genetics - a laboratory, which three years later became the Institute of Genetics, USSR Academy of Sciences. In this institution Vavilov collected young talented researchers. There also had been invited to work well-known foreign scientists (among them - the future Nobel laureate American H. Muller). In 1934 the Institute of Genetics was transferred to Moscow, but Vavilov continued to operate it until 1940. Now this institution (Institute of General Genetics RAS) bears his name.
In 1923 N. Vavilov was elected a corresponding member, and in 1929 a full member of the AN USSR. He also was elected a foreign member of the British Royal Society, the Czech and Slovak, Scottish, Indian, German (in Halle) Academy of Sciences, the American Botanical Society and several other national and international organizations.
Since the mid 30-ies Vavilov and his staff were involved in the debate on genetics and breeding. In the last period of his life N. Vavilov had to bravely defend his scientific beliefs, and his line of application of science achievements in the practice of agriculture. In these discussions N. Vavilov was the chief opponent of T. Lysenko, who rejected the laws of heredity and produced to geneticists political accusations.
The end of Vavilov’s life was tragic: the terrible machine of repression, which then gathered momentum, and destroyed the world-famous scientist. In August 1940 Vavilov was arrested, endured hours-long interrogations, the court sentenced him to capital punishment - execution, prolonged detention on death row. Later the death sentence was commuted to 20 years imprisonment. January 26, 1943 in the Saratov prison Vavilov died of starvation.
