The article is devoted to a brief biography of S. A. Lebedev, the man who stood at the origins of the creation of computers in the Soviet Union.

Brief biography of Lebedev: the formation of a scientist

Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev was born in 1902. His family belonged to the creative intelligentsia, which left a positive imprint on the formation of the personality of the future scientist.
In 1920, Lebedev's family moved to Moscow, where Sergei entered a higher technical school and graduated with a diploma in electrical engineering. In Soviet Russia, a large-scale electrification program was unfolding and people with Lebedev’s education were in extreme demand.
Lebedev works at the Electrical Engineering Institute, and after the creation of a special energy institute, he becomes a teacher there. The scientist’s scientific developments are widely used in the creation of new power plants in the country. In 1936, Lebedev was awarded the title of professor for his success in scientific work.
30s were a time of unprecedented terror, under the threat of which no one felt safe. The practice of informing for personal interests, with the aim of moving up the career ladder, has become common. To Lebedev’s credit, it should be noted that the employees working under his leadership felt absolutely safe and could concentrate exclusively on scientific work. The scientist was brought up in the traditions of the real Russian intelligentsia and could not afford unworthy actions and deeds. He demanded the same from his employees.
Lebedev's scientific work combined deep theoretical developments with the obligatory practical orientation of all research.
During these years, the scientist began to seriously study the binary number system and the possibilities of its practical application.
During the war, all efforts of Soviet science were aimed at achieving victory, creating new weapons and improving existing ones. Lebedev is the author of the homing torpedo project. Another of his achievements was the creation of a stabilization system for firing from tanks. The scientist's work was awarded major government awards.

Brief biography of Lebedev: creation of a computer

After the war, Lebedev moved to Kyiv. Here he heads the Institute of Energy. Over many years of work, the scientist was engaged in a large number of mathematical calculations that required a lot of effort and attention. He addresses the problem of automating this kind of cumbersome calculations. For this purpose, scientists carried out a lot of work, the result of which was the creation of a small electronic calculating machine (MESM) with program control - the prototype of the future computer. Despite the fact that in our time Russia is significantly inferior to the West in the field of computer technology, it was in the Soviet Union that the first working prototype of a modern computer was created.
Under the direct participation of the scientist, a significant breakthrough was made in the field of high technology in the Soviet Union. For a long time, these developments were revolutionary in nature, but were mainly used exclusively in the field of the military industry. In particular, with the help of MESM, the most complex calculations were carried out for the needs of space and rocket technology, as well as in the field of thermonuclear processes.
The scientist’s work took place in the strictest secrecy, as it was carried out in the interests of the military industry. The government of the Soviet Union was seriously interested in Lebedev's developments. He was transferred to Moscow, where he created a new model - a high-speed electronic calculating machine.
In 1956, Lebedev made an international report on his work, which caused a sensation. The computer model created in the USSR turned out to be the fastest in Europe and was not inferior to the best American analogues.
Over the course of his life, under Lebedev’s leadership, fifteen computer models were created, starting with lamp-powered samples and ending with devices based on integrated circuits. Health problems forced the scientist to leave official work, but he continued to engage in scientific work at home. Lebedev's latest research was used in the development of the Elbrus computer. The scientist spoke out sharply against copying American computer developments, defending domestic designs and considering them more promising.
Lebedev died in 1974, going down in history as the father of domestic computer technology. He became the owner of many government awards and titles. Made a huge contribution to the development of the domestic computer industry. The scientist’s works were deservedly appreciated abroad, where he was recognized as one of the pioneers of computer technology and the creator of the Soviet computer.

Perhaps you have read or seen articles on the portal about how the domestic electronic computing industry has developed. If not, then before reading this material I recommend that you read at least the first part.
So, the main figure in this story was the scientist Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev, who paved the way for all the current developments in Russia and the former Soviet Union. In 1948, he designed the first computer in the USSR “MESM” - the Small Electronic Calculating Machine. His merits and work are remembered to this day. Prestigious awards, streets in cities are named in his honor, and most importantly, his name is proudly borne by “ITMiVT” - the Lebedev Moscow Institute of Precision Mechanics and Computer Technology.

Within its walls, Sergei Alekseevich developed the most productive computer in the USSR, “BESM” - the Large Electronic Calculating Machine, which in many ways surpassed even Western analogues of that time. In the Soviet Union this was completely nonsense. Despite its name, BESM was more compact compared to another popular computer, Strela. The BESM required 100 square meters of space in the room, and the Strela required as much as 800. Despite its reduced dimensions, the BESM was much more productive than the Strela. I repeat, you can read more about the hardware.

Today we will talk about a quiet, modest man who did his job without wanting fame or money. He did this for himself, for his Motherland, for the future, which has already become the present for you and me. There will be no beautiful story of the “American Dream” of an ambitious entrepreneur who gave up everything for his business. This story is about an ordinary person, like you and me, who loved his family, loved his work, loved to study and teach, worked long and hard, dreaming of changing the world.

Childhood

Young Lebedev

Sergei Lebedev was born on October 20, 1902 in Nizhny Novgorod back in Tsarist times.

Sergei's parents

Father Alexey Lebedev was a teacher and writer, and mother Anastasia Petrovna was a hereditary noblewoman. In addition to Sergei, Alexei and Anastasia also had an eldest daughter, Tatyana.

Tatyana Alekseevna Lebedeva (Mavrina)

Just like Sergei, Tatyana Alekseevna was an outstanding person, but in the absolutely opposite field - in the creative field. All her life she was engaged in book illustration and painting.

Tatyana Lebedeva in her youth

From 1921 to 1929, she studied at the Moscow higher art and technical institution "VKHUTEMAS", now known as RAZHVIZ (Russian Academy of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture) named after Ilya Glazunov. For her work, in 1981 Tatyana was awarded the honorary Order of the Honored Artist of the RSFSR.

So Sergei had worthy people in his family who served as an example for him, thanks to whom they instilled in the young man love for his homeland, courage and patience, without which he would not have been able to achieve such heights. In the same year as his sister, Sergei entered the Moscow Higher Technical School named after Bauman.

Student years

During his studies, Sergei loved sports. Active hobbies were an integral part of his life. He often took part in group hikes, skiing and river rafting. And all this did not interfere with his studies in science.

The topic of his thesis was the problem of energy system installations. The entire process of writing the thesis took two years. The process was led by the Russian and Soviet electrical engineer Karl Adolfovich Krug, who owns many scientific works on asynchronous motors, as well as on the problems of converting electric current.

After defending his diploma, Sergei becomes a teacher at the Moscow Energy Institute (MPEI). In 1936, he received the title of professor, having defended his doctorate on the theory of stability of energy systems. In 1939 he defended his dissertation for his doctorate. In the early 1940s, Sergei was involved in the design of the famous Kuibyshevskaya hydroelectric power station (now Zhigulevskaya hydroelectric power station) on the Volga River. Even today, this hydroelectric power station is the second most powerful among all hydroelectric power stations in Europe.

He combined his main job with his hobby, which was to develop a device designed to calculate differential equations. This project, which Sergei worked on, became the starting point before designing the famous MESM (Small Electronic Computing Machine).

The Great Patriotic War

Unfortunately, the Great Patriotic War delayed the young scientist’s plans for several years. Wanting to defend his homeland, in 1941 Sergei joined the ranks of the people's militia, since due to his age he was not subject to military conscription. As a result, he was not taken to the front, since the VEI (All-Russian Electrotechnical Institute) urgently moved to Sverdlovsk for the period of hostilities, where Lebedev continued to teach.

At this time, Sergei’s family was in poverty. They had to live in barns and other temporary shelters. In 1943, the threat of an attack by fascist invaders on Moscow passed. And all the staff of the institute, together with Sergei, returned back to Belokamennaya.

The incredibly terrible and bloody era he experienced influenced the scientist in the future. One of the applications of his computers was the development of air defense equipment. Lebedev himself personally participated in the work on them together with the USSR army. He wasn't interested in murder weapons. What he was working on was intended to protect the homeland from military incursions from the air. So many modern Russian defense systems also take their roots from the developments of Sergei Alekseevich.

Creation of MESM

At first, the scientist’s attempts to develop the creation of computing devices were not taken seriously by the organizational bureau of the Soviet Union. The scientist almost gave up, but on the recommendation of his friends, Lebedev moved to the Kiev Institute of Energy to take up the post of its head.

In 1947, the institute was divided into two separate institutions, one of which began to deal with thermal power engineering, and the other with electrical engineering. Lebedev became director of the Institute of Electrical Engineering, which finally allowed him to organize a laboratory in which, together with his colleagues, he began to develop the first computer.

In one of the points above, I mentioned that Lebedev worked on the design of the Kuibyshev hydroelectric power station and at the same time was engaged in research in the field of computer technology. Because of the Great Patriotic War, he had to shelve these studies. At that time, not a single computer had yet been created in any country in the world. So, if not for the attack of Nazi Germany, the USSR could have become the country in which the world's first computer was developed. But this happened a little later.

In 1949, Lebedev began the first work on designing the MESM. About 42 people took part in its creation. After launch, it was debugged around the clock. Lebedev himself did not leave his workplace for days, remaining with his brainchild. After successful testing by engineers, it was recorded that the machine could solve complex equations that would take a lot of time to solve even for a well-educated person.

After this, a report on the work done was sent to the supervisory authorities. This time the scientist’s work was properly appreciated by the authorities. For this, in 1952, Lebedev received the position of head of the institute in Moscow.

The building in which work on MESM was carried out is located in Feofaniya on Akademika Lebedev Street, building 19

MESM is the first computer developed in Europe.

BESM

Having gained vast experience in the development of MESM, Sergey Lebedev immediately applied it to the creation of another project - the Large Electronic Computing Machine (BESM). There is a legend that Lebedev wrote down the entire circuit of the new computer on packages of Kazbek cigarettes. Lebedev himself chuckled sarcastically when he was asked about the veracity of this legend.

And only a few saw the huge thick notebooks covered with circuit diagrams of the computer in great detail.

BESM was the most productive computer in Europe at that time. It could perform ten thousand operations per second. Thanks to such computing capabilities, BESM complexes were actively used in research and military institutes for complex calculations requiring high accuracy. The launch of the first artificial satellite, and then a person into space, would have been impossible without the computers created by Lebedev.

Later, Lebedev developed the following generations of BESM - (BESM-2 - BESM-6), as well as a separate line of supercomputers M-20, M-40, M-50. You can find out more about all this in our article about “early computers” released in the Soviet Union.

In the early 1970s, Sergei Lebedev, an academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was given not the easiest task - to create a computer with a computing speed of about 100 million operations per second. At that time, even abroad, there were no computers with similar performance. This is how the Elbrus project was born, which continues to this day.

Lebedev chose this name for a reason. In his youth, being a lover of outdoor activities, he managed to conquer the highest mountain peak in Russia and Europe - Elbrus.

I must say on my own that there is a certain symbolism in this. After all, creating a high-quality and super-efficient computer, the likes of which have no analogues anywhere, is just as difficult as conquering Elbrus.

During that period, there was a tendency to copy Western IBM computers. Lebedev was an ardent opponent of this, since he believed that without unique developments and inventions of his own technologies, domestic science could stop developing and begin to degrade. Unfortunately, Lebedev’s words didn’t really influence anything. And over time, IBM clones began to become the main models of Soviet computers.

Fortunately, today, albeit in a very dubious implementation, the creation and development of domestic computer equipment is beginning to improve. I really hope and believe that in the future the quality indicators of Russian technological products and production will increase. And perhaps we will use devices that are developed and assembled in our native land.

Last years

Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev died in the summer of July 3, 1974 at the age of 71 from a serious illness. All his life he was surrounded by the best people - his family, friends, colleagues. He was a very caring and hardworking person. He loved his homeland. While still in his native Volga region, he vowed to serve his fatherland forever and continued to do so until the end of his days.

During the analysis of documentation belonging to the scientist, one folder stood out - these were drawings and detailed descriptions of the very first MESM computer, created by Lebedev. It was signed with the words “Keep forever.”

Sergei Lebedev is rightfully considered the leading designer and developer of domestic electronic computers. His contribution to this branch of science is compared to the role of Korolev in rocket science and Kurchatov in the creation of nuclear weapons. In addition to scientific work, he was active in teaching and trained many young world-famous scientists.

Childhood and youth

Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev was born on November 2, 1902. His father, Alexey Ivanovich, having graduated with honors from a school for orphans and a teacher's institute, taught in the village of Rodniki, Ivanovo-Voznesensk province. Sergei Lebedev's mother, Anastasia Petrovna, was a hereditary noblewoman. She left her rich estate to also become a teacher.

Sergei had three sisters, one of whom, Tatyana, is a world-famous artist. The parents of the future scientist tried to be a model for their students and children. Such qualities as hard work, decency and honesty were put at the forefront of education. There were a lot of books in the Lebedev house, and the children were instilled with a love of theater, music and folklore.

Sergei's favorite activities as a child were swimming, music, reading, chess and carpentry, which his uncle taught him. Even then he was interested in electrical engineering - he made a dynamo, an electric bell, and a Leyden jar.

After the revolution in 1917, a family of teachers was transferred from one city to another. In 1919, Sergei moved to Moscow with his father, who was entrusted with organizing the production of transparencies for educational and propaganda purposes. In 1921, S. A. Lebedev passed the school exams and was admitted to the Moscow Higher Technical School. N. E. Bauman.

Studying at the institute

During his student years, the young scientist was fond of sports: he went to the mountains, skied, and kayaked. An active lifestyle did not prevent him from doing science - in his graduation project he developed the problem of the stability of the operation of large power plants in a system where consumers and electricity producers were located at long distances.

This was his first serious scientific work, work on which took 2 years. At the age of 26, having defended his diploma at the Moscow Higher Technical University, he became the most competent specialist in this matter.

Work in the pre-war years

The work biography of Sergei Lebedev begins with teaching at the Moscow Higher Technical School. At the same time, he was on the staff of the All-Union Electrotechnical Institute (VEI). Under his leadership, a special laboratory was created, in which the scientist continued to work on his chosen topic. Its difficulty lay in the fact that when designing main power networks it was necessary to make very complex calculations. This prompted the young scientist to develop models of electrical networks and search for new methods for calculating their operating modes.

In 1935, Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev was awarded the title of professor. The basis of his dissertation for the title of Doctor of Science, which he defended in 1939, was a new theory of the stability of energy systems. In 1939-1940 he participated in the design of the Kuibyshev hydroelectric complex. In addition, he was involved in the creation of a device for solving differential equations, and then began to develop an electronic computer based on the binary number system.

The Great Patriotic War

In 1941, Lebedev enlisted in the people's militia, since he was no longer subject to military conscription due to his age. He was not allowed to go to the front, and VEI was evacuated to Sverdlovsk. Work switched to defense topics. In a short time, the scientist mastered aerodynamics and began developing homing aircraft torpedoes, as well as a system for stabilizing a tank gun during aiming.

Like all VEI employees, Sergei Alekseevich worked in logging in the winter. During the evacuation, the Lebedev family was in poverty: they had to live in a dressing room, the children were often sick. In 1943, when the threat of a Nazi attack on Moscow had passed, the institute was transferred back to the capital.

There Lebedev continued his teaching and scientific activities. In 1943, he was appointed head of the Department of Automation of Electrical Systems at the Moscow Energy Institute, and in 1944 - head of the Central Design Bureau for Electric Drives and Automation. In 1945, the scientist was elected a member of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR.

On the way to the computer

In 1945, the scientist made the first attempt to organize work on the design of digital machines. But the leadership of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks did not take Sergei Lebedev’s idea seriously. Through the patronage of his acquaintances, he was offered to move to Kyiv and head the Institute of Energy, which made it possible to expand this work.

In 1947, this institution was divided into two institutes - thermal power engineering and electrical engineering. S. A. Lebedev became the director of the latter. Here he finally created a laboratory for solving problems related to electronic computer technology.

Even during the design of the Kuibyshev power line, the scientist was simultaneously developing the foundations of the binary number system, but because of the war he had to interrupt his research. At that time, there were no computers in the world. Only in 1942, Atanasov’s computer was assembled in the USA, designed to solve systems of simple linear equations. Lebedev came to his technical solution on his own, so he can be called a pioneer of domestic computer technology. If not for the war, the first computer could have been created in Russia.

BESM and MESM - large and small electronic counting machine

In 1949, S. A. Lebedev began work on designing the MESM. It was conceived as a layout with fixed-point rather than floating-point representation, since the latter option led to a 30% increase in hardware volume. Initially, it was decided to stop at 17 binary digits, then they were increased to 21.

The first circuits were cumbersome, and many components had to be reinvented, since standard reference books on the circuitry of digital devices simply did not exist at that time. Suitable schemes were recorded in a journal. Due to a lack of financial resources, household electronic lamps were installed in the car. Debugging of the MESM went on around the clock, and Lebedev himself worked continuously for 20 hours. In 1951, the first working computer in the USSR and Europe was built. It could perform 3,000 operations per minute, and data was read from a punched card. The area occupied by the machine was 60 m2.

Since 1951, MESM has been used to solve important defense and theoretical problems in the fields of space flight, mechanics and thermonuclear processes. For Lebedev, the creation of this machine was only a step towards the development of BESM. Its performance was 2-3 times higher than that of the MESM, and in 1953 it became the most productive computer in Europe. BESM could work with floating point numbers, and the number of digits was 39.

In 1953, Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev was elected academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, and then he was appointed head of the ITMiVT (Institute of Precision Mechanics and Computer Technology), where he worked almost until his death.

Further developments

Following MESM and BESM Lebedev, more advanced electronic computers were designed (BESM-2 - BESM-6, M-20, M-40, M-50, 5E92b, 5E51, 5E26). Some of them were used in the defense and space industries. The M-20, built using semiconductors, became the prototype for the commercially produced BESM-4.

In 1969, Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev, an academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was given a very difficult task for those times: to create a computer with a productivity of 100 million operations per second. There were no analogues with such characteristics even abroad. The scientist named his project to create a super-productive computer “Elbrus”, in memory of the peak he conquered in his youth.

The first step towards this goal was the Elbrus-1 computer, which was put into operation after the scientist’s death in 1979. Its performance was still far from necessary - almost 7 times less. The second modification that followed demonstrated 1.25 times greater operating speed than required. The Elbrus computer, a development of Soviet engineers, was 14 years ahead of the first superscalar computer Pentium-I.

Personal qualities

Relatives and colleagues of Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev noted his kindness, modesty, directness and integrity in everything: from everyday trifles to work. He easily found a common language with young people and was respected among students and graduate students.

The scientist never fawned over the authorities, and one of the indicative facts is that when receiving the Order of Lenin in 1962, he sat next to None of the invitees wanted to compromise themselves by communicating with the church leader.

Many friends always came to the Lebedevs’ house, including famous actors and musicians. He never retired to work in his office, but studied in the common room, while talking with the children.

Sergei Alekseevich met his future wife, 16-year-old cellist Alisa Steinberg, in 1927, and 2 years later they got married. The scientist treated his wife with respect and addressed her informally. After the birth of her first child - Seryozha's son - Alisa Grigorievna fell ill and was admitted to the hospital. Lebedev himself cared for the baby and took him to his wife twice a day so that she could breastfeed the child. In 1939, twins Katya and Natasha were born into the Lebedev family, and in 1950 an adopted son, Yakov, appeared.

Lebedev Sergey Alekseevich: awards

For his fruitful work, the scientist received many awards, including the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, the title of Hero of Socialist Labor, the Lenin and State Prizes of the USSR and others.

For his services in the development of Soviet electronic computing technology, Lebedev was awarded the Order of Lenin 4 times during his lifetime, and in 1996 (posthumously) he was awarded the “Pioneer of Computer Technology” medal.

Memory of Sergei Alekseevich

In 1974, after a long illness, the scientist died. Sergei Alekseevich was buried at the Moscow Novodevichy cemetery. Now the ashes of his wife, who survived her husband by only 5 years, and his son also rest there.

The Institute of Precision Mechanics and Computer Science named after S. A. Lebedev still operates and trains specialists in Moscow. RAS (Russian Academy of Sciences) awards prizes to them every year. Lebedev for the developments of domestic scientists in the field of information systems. Streets in his hometown - Nizhny Novgorod and in Kyiv, where he worked, were also named in honor of Sergei Alekseevich.

Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev(lived 1902 - 1974) - founder of computer technology in the USSR, academician, developer of power plants, developed advanced weapons systems during the Second World War.

Sergei Alekseevich Lebedev (1902 - 1974)

S. A. Lebedev trained scientific personnel; he headed the computer department at MIPT, gave lectures, and personally supervised the scientific work of many graduate and postgraduate students. Over twenty years, under his leadership, 15 high-performance computers were created.

In the process of designing, setting up and putting into operation the MESM, BESM, M-20 machines, he acted as the chief designer, as a commissioning engineer, and if circumstances required, then as an installation technician. Later, with the advent of qualified specialists, Lebedev entrusted them with a significant part of the work, leaving himself the most difficult areas associated with the justification of innovations, with the theoretical justification of the structure and parameters of the computer.

S A Lebedev Biography

S. A. Lebedev was born on November 2, 1902 (October 20, old style) in Nizhny Novgorod. In 1921, Lebedev began studying at the Moscow Higher Technical University at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, from which he graduated in 1928, becoming an electrical engineer. The results of his further work were used in the operation of domestic power plants and high-voltage transmission lines. In 1939, Lebedev defended his doctoral dissertation on the theory of artificial stability of power systems.

During the war, Lebedev was involved in the development of homing torpedoes and developed a system for stabilizing a tank gun when aiming. Lebedev was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and the medal “For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.”

In 1945, Lebedev was elected a full member of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR and became director of the Institute of Electrical Engineering of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR. At the end of 1947, a prototype of a digital electronic calculating machine (MESM) began to be created at this institute, the trial launch of which took place on November 6, 1950. MESM could calculate factorials of natural numbers and solve the equation of a parabola.

At the same time, Lebedev, in laboratory No. 1 of ITM and VT in Moscow, worked on the creation of BESM, a high-speed electronic calculating machine. Lebedev himself developed the BESM structure and drew up a plan for implementing the project for its development; he constantly monitored the progress of this project, which was successfully completed in April 1953.

In June 1953, Lebedev was appointed director of ITM and VT, which has been named after him since 1975. On October 23, 1953, Lebedev was elected a full member of the USSR Academy of Sciences in the Department of Physical and Mathematical Sciences. He became the first academician to specialize in calculating devices. For the creation of BESM, Lebedev was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1954, and in 1956 he was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor.

After the creation of the Computing Center of the USSR Academy of Sciences in February 1955, ITM and VT were tasked with preparing BESM for serial production. Almost all major computer centers in the country were equipped with BESM-2 machines. BESM-2 carried out calculations during the launches of artificial Earth satellites and the first spacecraft with a person on board.

In October 1955, in Darmstadt (Germany), at the International Conference on Electronic Computing Machines, Lebedev’s report on BESM was read to foreign specialists. This report created a sensation: BESM turned out to be the best computer in Europe!

After the success of BESM, Lebedev began to create the principles and architecture of the new M-20 computer, which was supposed to become the fastest in the world. Many textbooks were written to work with this computer, and courses on studying the M-20 and programming for it were included in the university curriculum.

In parallel with the development and creation of universal computers, Lebedev paid great attention to work related to the country's defense. On his initiative, in 1955, special vehicles Diana-1 and Diana-2 were developed to guide fighters to aerial targets. The future academician and director of ITM and VT V.S. Burtsev participated in this work; their continuation led to the creation of a whole series of computers designed to solve missile defense problems. On the basis of these machines, the country's first missile defense system was created, for which its authors, including Lebedev and Burtsev, received the Lenin Prize.

The pinnacle of Lebedev’s work on creating universal computers was the world’s most famous domestic computer BESM-6 (1967). Based on the results of work on BESM-6, Lebedev with a group of ITM and VT employees, which included the future academician V. A. Melnikov and the future chief designer of the modular conveyor processor (the best computer in Russia in the 90s) A. A. Sokolov, received the State Prize .

S. A. Lebedev set himself the goal of creating a computer with a speed of 100 million op/s. The work began with a computer complex for the air defense system, known as the S-300, which is still in mass production in a modernized form. The element base tested on machines for the S-300 was used in the development of the Elbrus 1 MVK.

An important result of his developments was the AC-6 multi-machine real-time information and computing complex, which was actively used in spacecraft flight control centers.

The Russian Academy of Sciences established the S. A. Lebedev Prize, which is awarded once every two years to Russian scientists who have made a major contribution to the development of domestic computer technology.

S.V. Lebedev, an outstanding Russian chemist, founder of the industrial method of producing synthetic rubber, was born on July 25, 1874 in Lublin (now in Poland). He was the third child in the family. My father taught Russian literature at school, but at the age of 32 he became a priest. When Sergei was nine years old, his father died of consumption, and the family’s fate changed. Sergei was sent to live with his grandparents, and then he and his mother moved to Warsaw, but they had little money and lived modestly.

In 1885, Sergei entered the 1st grade of the Warsaw Gymnasium and already in the 5th grade he realized that he wanted to become a chemist. After graduating from high school (1895), he became a student in the natural sciences department of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of St. Petersburg University and already in his third year began scientific research under the guidance of the famous chemist A.E. Favorsky.

In 1899, Sergei Vasilyevich was passionate about social movements, participated in strikes and meetings. At one of the demonstrations he was arrested, but three days later he was released with an undertaking to immediately leave St. Petersburg. However, the deportation did not last long, and in the fall he received permission to continue studying at the university.

After graduating from university (1900) with a first-degree diploma, Lebedev began giving physics lessons in secondary schools and working in a laboratory at the Zhukov brothers' soap factory.

In 1902, Sergei Vasilyevich was invited to St. Petersburg University as a laboratory assistant in the department of technical and analytical chemistry. In 1904-1905 his scientific activity was interrupted by conscription into military service, but at the end of his service he went to Paris and worked at the Sorbonne with Professor Victor Henri.

Returning to the university, in 1906-1916. Sergei Vasilievich is engaged in research into the processes of polymerization of unsaturated hydrocarbons. From 1915 he became a professor at the Women's Pedagogical Institute.

Lebedev's main works are devoted to polymerization processes. In 1909-1910 the scientist published works on the polymerization of isoprene and diisopropenyl, and in 1910 he obtained a sample of synthetic butadiene rubber. His work “Research on the Polymerization of Diethylene Hydrocarbons” (1913) became the scientific basis for the industrial synthesis of rubber.

In 1913, Lebedev defended his master's thesis, was elected private associate professor at St. Petersburg University and professor at the Neurological Institute, and in 1914 began experiments in the field of polymerization of acetylene and ethylene hydrocarbons.

In 1916, the scientist became a professor at the Military Medical Academy in Petrograd, and from 1925 he simultaneously headed the oil laboratory he organized at Leningrad University (since 1928 - the laboratory of synthetic rubber).

In 1930, under the leadership of Lebedev, construction of a pilot plant and research laboratory began (currently the S.V. Lebedev Research Institute of Synthetic Rubber). The plant produced divinyl and then rubber in large volumes. Later, this rubber was used to make tire covers.

In 1931, Lebedev “for particularly outstanding services in solving the problem of obtaining synthetic rubber” was awarded the Order of Lenin.

Since 1932, according to Lebedev’s method, the world’s first synthetic rubber industry began to be created in the USSR.

In the 1930s, S.V. Lebedev carried out a series of studies in the field of hydrogenation of ethylene hydrocarbons and established the dependence of the rate of hydrogen addition at the double bond on the size, nature and location of substituents in the ethylene molecule. He developed methods for obtaining lubricating oil thickeners from petroleum fractions used in the production of high-viscosity lubricants for aircraft engines.

The scientist’s scientific activity was recognized by the USSR Academy of Sciences. In 1928 he was elected a corresponding member, and in 1932 - a full member of the academy.

July 7, 1932 S.V. Lebedev took part in the ceremonial launch of the first large synthetic rubber plant in Yaroslavl, and in May 1934 he died of typhus. He is buried in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, in the necropolis of artists, and his grave is located not far from the graves of P.I. Tchaikovsky and A.P. Borodina, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov and A.I. Kuindzhi. There is a laconic inscription on the monument: “Academician Sergei Vasilyevich Lebedev - inventor of synthetic rubber.”

Tombstone S.V. Lebedev in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg

FACTS OF SCIENTIFIC BIOGRAPHY

In 1908, at a meeting of the Russian Chemical Society, S.V. Lebedev made a preliminary report on the rate of polymerization of acrylic acid esters. However, soon, leaving work in this area, the scientist began classical studies of the polymerization processes of diene hydrocarbons. And already at the December meeting of 1909, Lebedev demonstrated a rubber-like thermopolymer of divinyl. It is difficult to imagine how a scientist could achieve such amazing results in such a short time. It is necessary to take into account that Sergei Vasilyevich actually did all the work alone and was only partially helped by two volunteers from St. Petersburg University.

Caricature 1913 Defense of S.V. Lebedev master's thesis

As a result of the research, the scientist received only 19 g of the substance, and made a report on the outstanding discovery in just half an hour - Lebedev was always distinguished by strict logic of presentation and clarity of language. After the meeting, many of those present remained in the hall to congratulate the scientist. In response to congratulations, Lebedev remarked: “You see, two years of work - and only half an hour of results. Such is the life of a chemist: behind every word there are years of work. But this is our strength.”

Sergei Vasilievich was always very demanding of himself and others. He said that a chemist must be a laborer, a thinker, a researcher of matter. The scientist extremely highly valued the ability to choose correctly and conduct experiments well in order to obtain a reliable answer to a question of interest. “The one who wins in science,” he said, “is the one who works correctly.” Many instruments in the laboratory were designed and assembled by his hands. With great dexterity and skill, he performed the duties of a glassblower, mechanic, and assembler, and taught his students to work in the same way. He was never nervous at work. His harshest condemnation: “This is not good.”

At first, the scientist used oil to obtain divinyl, then replaced it with alcohol, and potatoes served as the raw material for alcohol. Thus, at first it took 500 kg of selected potatoes to make one car tire.

From the memoirs of Anna Petrovna Lebedeva, the scientist’s wife: “Sometimes he lay on his back, and it seemed to me that he was sleeping, and he would suddenly take out a notebook and write chemical formulas in it... In general, I noticed many times how Sergei Vasilyevich, sitting at a concert and, apparently excited by the music, suddenly hurriedly took out his notebook or, if he didn’t have one, he hurriedly took the poster and began to write down chemical formulas on it and then hid it in his pocket.”

In 1926, by order of I.V. Stalin The Soviet government announced an international competition for the best work on the synthesis of SC with a prize of 100 thousand rubles. The deadline for the competition was set at January 1, 1928. According to the conditions, in addition to a description of the method, it was required to submit 2 kg of SC and a developed scheme for its production at the factory. The raw materials for the rubber compound had to be accessible and cheap, and the rubber from these raw materials had to be of no lower quality than natural rubber and no higher in cost. Lebedev immediately organized a group of seven of his students and employees and began work.

The conditions of the competition were so stringent that none of the samples presented by the world's leading laboratories fully met all the requirements. However, the method developed by Lebedev was recognized as the best and was the only one awarded at the competition. The examination showed that the yield of divinyl per alcohol consumed was 22% instead of the 20% indicated by Lebedev in the description of the method (later the yield of divinyl was increased to 40%).

The method for producing SA from alcohol was recognized as very valuable, and the necessary funds were allocated for its further development. In the fall of 1928, Lebedev submitted to Glavkhimprom a plan for further work necessary to draw up a project for a pilot plant. During 1930, the Liter “B” Experimental Plant was built in Leningrad.

Name S.V. Lebedev is worn:

• Research Institute of Synthetic Rubber named after. Academician S.V. Lebedeva (FSUE "NIISK") is the largest Russian scientific center for research in the field of rubbers and latexes. The Scientific Research Institute of Synthetic Rubber was created on the basis of the former Experimental Plant SK Liter “B”, which also bore his name since 1935.
• Memorial Museum-Office of S.V. Lebedev in St. Petersburg (Gapsalskaya str., 1).
• The street where he lived in recent years. In 1949, in connection with the 75th anniversary of the academician, it was named Lebedev Street. Since 1956, the street has had its modern name - Academician Lebedev Street.
• Prize named after S.V. Lebedev, awarded by the Russian Academy of Sciences since 1995 for outstanding work in the field of chemistry and technology of synthetic rubber and other synthetic polymers.