Russian parliament approves bill on academy of science reform amid protest

The upper house of Russia's parliament on Wednesday approved a bill which involves controversial reform of the country's Academy of Science (RAN), amid strong protest from scientists. The bill, approved nearly anonymously in the Russian Federal Council (FC), will be presented to President Vladimir Putin for signature. "The work (of reforming the RAN) has not been completed. The FC is going to monitor its practical appliance and correct the shortcomings, if necessary," Federal Council head Valentina Matviyenko said after the vote. Meanwhile, some 200 Russian scientists rallied outside the legislature's building in downtown Moscow, the capital of Russia, in protest of the bill, which transfers the management of most academic property to a new federal government agency. Four protesters were detained for their "improper behavior." The bill, already approved last week in State Duma, the lower house of parliament, has met strong protest among scientists who feared that the reform will put a scientific entity under the control of outsiders. They will define the value of scientific research based on financial returns rather than scientific value, opponents said. In support of the reform, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said it allows scholars more time to focus on scientific research. According to the Nature Publishing Group rating, the RAN occupies 193rd place out of the world's 200, based on the number of scientific publications.