In the first episode of the podcast "Academic Dialogues" by Academ.Media – a conversation about modern education, materials science, and DeepTech. The guest was Doctor of Technical Sciences Oleksiy Milenin – a leading researcher at the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the NAS of Ukraine, and an associate professor at the Department of Applied Physics and Materials Science of the Kyiv Academic University.
The conversation is about education through research, materials science as the foundation of technological development, and how science becomes part of DeepTech and real innovations.
One of the key topics was the concept of "learning through research." According to Oleksiy Milenin, it is impossible to form a future researcher solely through classroom lessons – that is why students of Kyiv Academic University are involved from the very first days in work within real scientific teams and laboratories of the NAS of Ukraine. This approach allows practical experience not to be postponed "for later," but to be developed in parallel with studies, working in conditions of uncertainty where there are no ready answers.
Special attention in the conversation was given to materials science as one of the key fields of modern science. Historically, the development of civilization was determined by materials – from stone to metals, and today nanomaterials and metamaterials come to the forefront. In wartime conditions, the development of new armored materials and solutions to increase the durability of equipment is especially relevant. At the same time, the development of "green" energy and sustainable economy also requires fundamentally new materials.
Another important emphasis is the role of DeepTech as a bridge between fundamental science and real technological solutions. In the modern world, this boundary is gradually erasing: scientific ideas are increasingly quickly transforming into products. This, in turn, changes approaches to research management: it is important for scientists to understand the potential practical application of their developments already at early stages.
The podcast also discusses the formation of a new type of specialist – interdisciplinary, capable of combining knowledge from physics, engineering, and management. This approach opens broader career opportunities: from academic science to work in R&D divisions of companies or creating their own technological startups.