Radio Havana Cuba's Science, Technology and Environment Program:
BREAKTHROUGHFor broadcast Sunday, July 2, 2000
Written and narrated by Arnaldo "Arnie" Coro, RHC's Science Editor
Hello, welcome to RHC's Science, Technology and the Environment weekly update. I am Arnaldo, Arnie, Coro, this station's science editor, and here is our topic for today: CENIC, the Cuban national center for scientific research, celebrates its 35th anniversary.
CENIC stands for Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas -- in English, National Center for Scientific Research. This past week the organization celebrated its 35th anniversary by organizing an international symposium in which scientists presented many interesting and useful research results. The importance of CENIC to Cuban Science is twofold; in the first place, it was the first of the scientific research organizations founded by the Cuban Revolution, way back in 1965, with the objective of giving young Cubans the opportunity to be trained as research scientists. The Center started using an adapted building, and with the cooperation of everyone in the nation who had done scientific research before. A first group of 25 medical doctors acted as guinea pigs for the experiment; they were among the best students at Havana's prestigious medical school, and they volunteered to undergo training to prepare them as research scientists in different areas of biology, veterinary and medical sciences. For the first two years of an intensive postgraduate training program, they studied topics from mathematics and statistics to the use of the most advanced scientific research instruments that had never been seen or used before in Cuba. The experiment proved to be succesful and soon CENIC was seeing a second, and then a third group of postgraduate students, while the first ones took charge of the different laboratories.
Later the first Cubans trained in the former Soviet Union and Eastern European socialist countries came in, and found all the working conditions ready to carry on scientific research. CENIC's research program was carefully divided into basic and applied scienc... the balance was aimed at providing training in basic sciences, while at the same time recovering the investment by doing specific applied research that was relevant to the country's problems. For example, the chemical engineering research department started an important research program dealing with corrosion of metals, a problem that costs tropical countries millions and millions of dollars every year.
In the area of medical research, some of the world's then most sophisticated research technologies were installed and laboratory personnel trained on how to perform test procedures. This led, among other success stories, to the very early screening for and positive identification of the swine fever introduced into the country by a CIA operation intended to destroy the efforts of the nation to provide pork meat protein to the population. CENIC-led research in the field of neurobiology also laid the foundation for the design of several differnt kinds of highly successful Cuban-designed and built medical research apparatus, which nowadays are used here by our public health system and sold abroad to several nations.
But in my opinion CENIC, the Cuban revolution's first step into scientific research, had two more important spin-offs: It gave birth to the first generation of Cuban scientists, whom today we are proud to have at the most important scientific research management positions, like Dr. Rosa Elena Simeon Negrin, the Minister of Science, Technology and the Environment, and many others who have placed Cuba at the forefront of biomedical, biotechnology and veterinary sciences, animal husbandry and many other areas of applied scientific research, not to mention all the important pharmaceutical research projects, of which PPG -- a patented sugar cane wax byproduct -- stands as one of the world's best known and effective anti-cholesterol drugs. CENIC has registered many patents, both in Cuba and around the world, something that confirms the high level that its research has reached. At the same time, CENIC continues to provide other scientific research centers, created later, with the highly qualified personnel who are required to carry on the nation's ambitious scientific and technical development program.
From Havana, this was Breakthrough for today, celebrating the 35th Anniversary of CENIC, the first Cuban national research and training organization. I am Arnaldo -- Arnie -- Coro, RHC's science editor, now wishing you excellent reception of our short wave broadcasts. Your opinions about this program are most appreciated; send them to Arnie Coro, Radio Havana Cuba, Havana, Cuba.
For more information, via Air Mail:
"Breakthrough"
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