NTI - National Technology Initiative - program for Russia's global technology leadership by 2035.

The NTI Olympiad is a promising system of team engineering competitions for schoolchildren that give them privileges when entering Russian universities. It should become the main mechanism for involving engineering-oriented students in higher education programs focused on the markets of the National Technology Initiative. The project should complement the university selection system, which today consists of the Unified State Exam and subject Olympiads, with a third component: engineering competitions.

The Olympiad was organized by Moscow Polytechnic University, Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Far Eastern Federal University, Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University), NRNU MEPhI, Innopolis University, ITMO University with the support of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives and the Russian Venture Company.

The Olympiad is held in three stages: individual qualifying, team qualifying and final. Finalists will work with real engineering equipment, applying in practice the knowledge demonstrated at the qualifying stages. The Olympiad is held in 17 profiles.

The winner of the Olympics is determined simply: everything works for him correctly.

The Inzhevika laboratory gathered schoolchildren to participate in the Olympiad in the following profiles:

Profile "Neurotechnology", which is dedicated to human-machine interaction, recognition of human emotional states, expanding the possibilities of interaction with the outside world. These global tasks are solved by analyzing human bioneurosignals, as well as creating bioprostheses and accelerated learning systems.

NTI Markets: HealthNet, NeuroNet

Profile "Electronic Engineering: Smart Home". In this profile you have the opportunity to feel like a designer of the house of the future, to equip it with security and fire alarm systems based on sensors of presence, smoke, leaks. You will be able to provide the house with access control, video surveillance, smart lighting, calculate heat and energy consumption.

NTI Markets: EnergyNet, HealthNet, NeuroNet, TechNet

The NSU laboratory “Inzhevika” plans to cooperate with the organizing committee of the NTI Olympiad as a methodological platform for the “Neurotechnology” profile and a platform for preparing for the NTI Olympiad for the “Engineering biological systems” profile.

Also, during the academic year, the Laboratory conducts programming lessons for schoolchildren to work on projects in the following profiles: "Virtual and Augmented Reality", "Engineering Biological Systems".

Curators of the preparation of schoolchildren: Solomatin B. N., Polikarpov I. A

• Basic principles
• Markets
• Implementation
• International cooperation
• miscellanea

• What's on the agenda of the National Technology Initiative (NTI)? Is this about import substitution?

  The National Technology Initiative includes:

  • identification of new markets, including the main drivers of demand, key market niches and possible types of products and services that will fill these niches;
  • identification of key technologies due to which products and services will be created in new markets;
  • a set of support and incentive measures, including institutional, financial and research instruments, allowing to grow national champion companies in new markets.

  NTI has no tasks of import substitution or modernization of existing industries. NTI involves the creation of strategies for the development of fundamentally new markets. But some of the key technologies that form predecessor markets for the NTI markets may appear as part of the process of import substitution and modernization.

• How does NTI correlate with the existing system of public administration, with the business community, with the scientific system, with the education system, etc.?

  STI develops a matrix of priorities and communities around roadmaps for new markets and key technologies. From this matrix follow:

  • setting tasks for fundamental and applied research;
  • the policy in the field of advanced training of personnel - and the corresponding tasks for the education system;
  • investment priorities in new industries on the part of state-owned companies;
  • joint projects of society and business that do not require the participation of the state;
  • directions of international technological cooperation.
• In recent years, Russia has already had enough initiatives in the field of technological development - why do we need another initiative?

  We have made many mistakes in innovation management. Some of these mistakes were inevitable - we did not have experience in building such management models, we sometimes thoughtlessly transferred Western institutions and memes to Russian soil, which work brilliantly in the United States, but are not suitable in Russian conditions. Now we have gained experience, we understand what works and what doesn't. At the same time, we cannot return to the USSR, it is counterproductive to restore the Soviet system - the command-administrative system no longer exists. Even the USSR, which possessed the power of a superpower and a human potential of 270 million people, could not withstand the scientific and technological race in the 1970s and 1980s. There is no reason to believe that in the second decade of the 21st century, with a potential of 143 million people, Russia will be able to restore the Soviet system, which is also not very effective. This will be a direct route to North Korea.

  In order to create a new system of innovation management, it is necessary to pass between the Scylla of the Soviet administrative command system and the Charybdis of the American venture capital model.

  NTI does not envisage pumping trillions of rubles into lobbied projects. We do not plan to build monumental structures or conduct propaganda from central television. We propose to identify future markets and form coalitions aimed at capturing those markets. The rest will follow.

• And why do you think you can do anything?
  

  Until now, all the main issues of innovative development were solved by smart officials, this was the sphere of bureaucratic regulation. NTI must create conditions where private money will be more important than public money - and we believe that projects with private investment will be more effective. Simply giving away government money is the most ineffective strategy. Smart strategies of development management, practices of joint investments, joint funds, crowdfunding and crowdinvesting should appear. Separate elements of such an ecosystem have already been created. For example, the model of the fund of funds of the Russian Venture Company seems reasonable. We will disseminate the best practices of RVC and other development institutions in NTI.

  However, the main issue is not about money or beautiful documentation. Any document that we write will be another "strategy" in a series of already adopted and not working roadmaps. A group of like-minded people is more important than a pile of papers. Therefore, we need a network of bright leaders with shared vision and values ​​from the spheres of business, science and government - and it is these leaders who will be able to implement any plan in any political and institutional climate. These leaders can be called "technological patriots" - because each of them believes that the country is capable of generating a technological breakthrough, and their trust in each other on high value grounds is more important than the struggle for resources. These are people who are ready to extend their personal interests for 20 years in advance, so that their children and grandchildren would go to the same schools as they do - and there would be no shame in either the grandchildren, or the schools, or the country.

• The country has a bad investment climate, the basic institutions of modern society do not work, and the level of corruption is off scale. What kind of technological development can we talk about? How are you going to retain high-quality specialists and entrepreneurs - after all, it is easier for many to leave and do a project where institutions work much better?
  

  The institutional and investment climate, in contrast to the usual, is changed by the combined efforts of people, and not by the grace of God. Russia has never had a fully business-friendly business climate. Everyone for whom comfort, sun, wine, mountains and the ocean of California are most important, we think, have already left Russia. The rest understand that in Sevastopol the sun, wine, mountains and sea are no worse.

  A bad climate provides no excuse for inaction. We must move forward with possible steps, and not wait for someone to change this climate for you. At the same time, each NTI roadmap should contain proposals for changing the situation, for which we will fight together. Our experience in the implementation of the National Entrepreneurship Initiative, the Global Education program, WorldSkills shows that sometimes it turns out even more than you expect. We must develop positive tools for retaining high-profile professionals in the country.

• You have chosen 2035 for your forecast - and in our country no one is planning that far. A lot will change over the next 20 years, are you going to be in charge of your forecasts at all?

  2035 is the planning horizon, that is, the extreme point to which we distribute forecasts and projects. At the same time, NTI roadmaps at the level of practical actions will be built for 2015-2018. with implementation control every six months. This means that we must look 20 years ahead and do it starting from today.

  New companies, new educational programs, new scientific laboratories will become the results of the work in the near future - and if everything goes as it should, in a few years we will see a significant increase in high-tech Russian exports.

• Why is the Agency for Strategic Initiatives engaged in the National Technology Initiative? Are you going to replace RVC and FANO?

  The Agency for Strategic Initiatives is a structure whose main task is to launch strategic initiatives ordered by the country's leadership. We have proven our success in entrepreneurship support programs and in projects related to the development of children's and vocational education. In the national theme of technological development, it was precisely these links that were lacking - work with entrepreneurs who give orders for new technological solutions, and work with education (including children's clubs and hobby groups), which creates competitive skills for the development of technologies and markets.

  We are not going to run science or the venture capital sector. The Agency for Strategic Initiatives is a platform where it is convenient to negotiate between different groups and strata of society; our role is a moderator, not a boss. ASI does not plan to apply for budgets in the management of NTI. The whole practice of our previous work was to initiate large processes of change, but at the same time remain a small governing structure.

  Foresight and subsequent work on creating roadmaps will show who exactly will have to manage NTI. As moderators of this process, we do not have much secret knowledge.

• You have chosen nine markets for NTI - EnergoNet, NeuroNet, AeroNet, MarNet and others. Why are you starting with the markets? Why "No" - why are they so strangely called? Why exactly these nine?

  The global technological revolution is replacing established industries and creating new markets. Most Western technology strategies use 2035 as a key point: they will set aside the next ten years for the refinement of technological solutions and the introduction of new products to the market, and the next ten years will be spent on dividing the world market and replacing existing technologies. For example, there is not a single major car company investing in an internal combustion engine or a person behind the wheel after 2025 - they are all gearing up for self-driving electric vehicles. For the time being, we continue to invest in the construction of an industry that has 10 years to live and is controlled by foreign manufacturers who are not going to transfer intellectual property to us for key competencies of the future market.

  Why is the word ‘net’ in the names of all markets of the future? All emerging new markets either use the physical infrastructure of the Internet, or its protocols, or are built in its likeness. This principle will be used by “smart grids” that will connect many producers and consumers of electricity - that is, EnergoNet. This is how the transport systems of the future - AeroNet, AvtoNet and MariNet will be organized. Even conservative markets such as agricultural machinery are turning into networks of cyber-physical devices owned by the manufacturer and leased to farmers and renewed software licenses. That is, all the markets of the future are networks at the same time.

  Why exactly these? We do not believe that there can be an exhaustive model for describing the future, and our recipe is a combination of systems analysis and leadership energy. In the pilot work on NTI roadmaps, we relied on obvious markets where we see similar movements in other countries, and where Russia has strong leaders and communities. The list of markets is not exhaustive and we expect to launch work on new markets every year. If we see that we have missed a significant market, we will start working on it in 2016.

  Those markets that are currently allocated for work are organized according to the following logic:

  • three of them relate to the security of the country and its systematic provision of resources: the market for food (FoodNet), energy (EnergyNet) and security (SafeNet)
  • three relate to transformations in the transport system: this is the market for unmanned vehicles (AutoNet), air transport (AeroNet) and sea / river transport (MariNet)
  • and finally, three relate to the most important areas of human life, where “crazy” technological changes are taking place: the market for “digital” health (HealthNet), new finance (FinNet) and neurocommunications (NeuroNet).
• Why is the emphasis on creating markets rather than developing science or technology?

  Technology by itself means nothing if there is no demand for it. For this, as a rule, a market is needed - and if the technology is not in demand by the market, then its development becomes difficult.

  Of course, the market-based approach is not the only one possible. Just as important is looking through national security challenges, as many of today's markets have evolved, from energy and basic food markets to cybersecurity and space launches. But the maximum effect is achieved where both problems are solved - meeting market demand and state security. An example is the GLONASS project - at the same time it is state security in the field of geolocation, and a very large market for those companies that started working with it. Perhaps the 2016 foresight fleet will be organized precisely through this prism.

• If I think that you have left out some important market, may I come up with my proposal? What do I need to be heard and my proposal taken into account in further work?

  If you think that there is an important new market that needs to be taken into account in further work on NTI, then first of all answer yourself the following questions:

  • Is there an opportunity in this area to create fundamentally new technological standards? (that is, whether the market is new)
  • Is there or not in Russia a community of entrepreneurs and scientists who share the idea of ​​the possible emergence of such a market? (i.e., is there a leadership energy)
  • Are there or not similar international projects or consortia in the same direction? (that is, is it possible to find international partners with whom the launch of this market can be realized)

  If the answer to these questions is affirmative, then we ask you to submit an application to the ASI for the inclusion of a new market, and we promise to organize its comprehensive public discussion and inclusion in case of a positive decision.

• In our country, more than 80% of the economy is under the direct or indirect control of the state - why do you even place such an emphasis on entrepreneurs and markets?
  

  We believe that the experiment with the construction of state capitalism in Russia has already shown the inefficiency of this model, and the future belongs to effective models of public-private partnership. On the whole, we cannot do without the significant role of the state, even in new areas of the economy. This shows, for example, the struggle unfolding before our eyes between Yandex and Google. But relying only on state-owned giants is futile, we need developed supply chains and ecosystems of medium and small technology companies.

• Why should we discuss new markets if we have a crisis on our nose and we need to feed the country?
  

  One of the key NTI markets - FoodNet, that is, the food market, solves the problem of more efficient production, delivery and processing of food, taking into account the needs of large cities. This market is already forming before our eyes, and although it will reach maturity in 15-20 years, many solutions can be applied now: for example, robotization of dairy farms multiplies milk yield, product quality control and efficiency of delivery to the end consumer - and this technology pays off in a very short period of time. Unfortunately, the consumer is not yet aware of most modern technological solutions and is not motivated to apply them - and this is a consequence of the current model of government incentives in this area. Therefore, the state must demonstrate new priorities in order to launch a technological upgrade. Practice has shown that our country is able to quickly create entire branches of agriculture - in less than 10 years, we turned from importers of chicken meat into its exporters. In this logic, by 2035 we can become leaders in many areas of high-tech agricultural production.

• Where in NTI is the place for the idea that for global competitiveness a country must solve global problems? Say, environmental problems or providing the world's population with water and food?
  

  Tackling global challenges is a possible strategy for achieving global leadership through which it will be imperative to look at all of our technology initiatives. We will definitely do this within the framework of the project, including at the Foresight Fleet.

• Why do we need to develop new technology businesses if there is no market for them yet? If they create something valuable, either Russian Technologies or Google will buy them.
  

  This is one of the key risks of NTI. However, selling companies to Russian state-owned companies with global potential (like Russian Technologies) or even international technology companies (like Google) is not necessarily bad in itself - in innovation markets, this is one of the market strategies that allows business creators to capitalize on their efforts.

  It is important that there remain a part of new businesses that will decide to develop independently and challenge the existing giants in the struggle for new markets - these are the companies that can become the new global champions. The task of NTI is to ensure that there are as many such companies as possible, and that they retain the potential for global growth. How exactly to achieve this - we propose to decide together in the coming months, we are open to ideas and suggestions. One of the solutions is the practice of corporate spin-offs - large corporations must learn how to create their own venture funds and allocate promising areas into separate business units. Another is the creation of a new generation of "patent trolls" in unoccupied niches. The third is the practice of transferring IP to the country and quickly growing national champions under the state order, with a predetermined model of export to Asian markets. There are options.

• We will make 20 roadmaps for development - what next? Why do you think they will be implemented?
  

  To implement NTI, we want to use the successful mechanism of the National Entrepreneurial Initiative (NPI), which allowed Russia to significantly improve its position in the world rankings of the business climate (for example, in the Doing Business rating, Russia showed record dynamics, rising from 124th to 60th place for 2 years). The NPI is based on the following model: roadmaps for improving the business climate are formed under the coordination of the ASI; each roadmap is led by a group of entrepreneurs and government officials who make sure the map is not bureaucratic. At the same time, NPI cards are controlled from the highest level of government. A similar mechanism is laid down in the STI.

• What will happen if the President does not accept the NTI roadmaps?
  
• What monetary resources will be used to pay for the implementation of NTI roadmaps? If my project needs funding - how can I get it within the NTI?
  

  NTI is, first of all, people, not a roof or a pocket. If for the success of the project you need public money, and only - you probably should not participate in NTI.

  But at the same time, it is clear that for the success of NTI, new scientific research must be launched and high-risk technology projects must be supported. Therefore, representatives of the Russian Science Foundation, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the RVC, Skolkovo, the Assistance Fund, the Ministry of Education and Science, MPT, and the Ministry of Economic Development are involved in the development of NTI, which will embody the priorities of NTI in their policy to support new projects.

  The set of institutional solutions required to launch the market should be developed by the working group itself. But we are not going to turn this into a lobbying process and predetermine certain decisions. The ultimate criterion is the ability to form a market with the maximum growth potential, rather than taking into account the interests of individual players.

• If the state starts NTI - what will happen to the existing initiatives and projects? Should we cancel existing government programs to support technological development and close any of the existing development institutions?

• Why are foreign specialists not involved in the development of NTI roadmaps?
  

  When developing a national technology policy, it is essential that it starts at the national level. In the next step, we will build systems of cooperation and consortia with international partners, but at the start this issue is predominantly national.

  When creating NTI roadmaps, we use the results of all major international, national and corporate foresights in the respective areas. Foresight fleet participants in selected areas are deeply integrated into the international process of developing future market standards.

  In particular, on the basis of the Russian initiative Foresight of Education 2035, the Global Education Futures project was launched in 2014, within which education leaders from all over the world form the vision and global standards for the development of new education markets that support learning throughout life.

• Where in NTI is robotics, the Internet of Things, sustainable development, climate change and other topics relevant to the modern international agenda?
  

  We believe that a number of mistakes in scientific and technological development were associated with uncritical borrowing of Western concepts-memes, behind which were marketing interests in promoting specific companies. It is essential for us to maintain “semantic hygiene” and use terms that indicate specific markets and technologies in order to focus on specific areas of growth potential.

  An example of an uncritical attitude is the concept of a “smart city with centralized control”. Practice shows that behind this there is an attempt to impose super-expensive technological solutions, while the most effective solutions are those that support decentralized governance based on local communities.

• The country is in a difficult geopolitical situation. How can a technological future be built while in isolation and under sanctions from the international community, including in the field of technological cooperation?

  When the rocket and space project was launched in 1932, the country was in a significantly less advantageous position - and it coped. Even in the worst scenario, we are doomed to renew and develop our economy - without this we simply have no future.

  However, we hope that the process of developing technology policy in our country will take place in cooperation with the largest countries of the world with which we have no isolation, and work has already begun on a number of standards - these are China, India and other BRICS countries, as well as a number of rapidly developing new economies. But we hope that science will remain global, and new "iron curtains" will not be created in it. A number of projects aimed at global cooperation, rather than isolation, continue in Russia - this is the "5 in the Top 100" program for leading Russian universities, this is the "Global Education" program for training specialists in leading educational institutions of the world with a return to their homeland, projects Big Science, and others.

• Modern technology standards are by definition global - how are you going to get in with your standards and why will they listen to you?

  According to our definition, new markets differ from existing ones precisely in that they lack established international technological standards. At the same time, you need to understand that in a number of technology markets - including the Internet - the position of the United States is too dominant, and this does not suit many other economies. The BRICS countries' common position is that standards for next-generation markets should not be US- and Euro-centric, and that truly global standards should emerge.

  We see the urgency of the task of building truly global standards for all BRICS countries. Therefore, we immediately go into dialogue with them on this issue, so that there is an opportunity to mutually take into account our national interests - at least in the format of a "second standard", which can be built on the principles of an open architecture. We do not limit the participation of the USA and the EU countries in this dialogue, but it should take place according to common rules. And over time, it is very likely that the condition for admission to the markets of the BRICS countries will be precisely the ability to comply with the formulated standards - just as it happens now with admission to the markets of the European Union and North America.

• How does the NTI foresight compare with the scientific and technological forecast that the Higher School of Economics makes at the request of the Ministry of Education and Science?

  NTI uses the results of scientific and technological forecast. Its co-authors work in all NTI groups.

• The project involves, among other things, entrepreneurs who have failed in the creation of high-tech industries and brought large losses to investors. Why do you invite not only successful, but also bankrupt businessmen to the project?
  

  The most valuable property of a businessman is his practical experience, which can only be gained in battle. If we do not release all the losers into battle, then we will have no fighters left. At the same time, one should look at the achievements of each individual leader, including scientific and social ones, and at his ability to recover from defeats.

• To what extent is NTI based on the scientific and technological groundwork that exists in our country?
  

  NTI builds work from the future and from the needs of the markets. The stake only on the groundwork, which served as the basis for science and technology policy in recent decades, has already shown its ineffectiveness. One cannot endlessly rely on the Soviet experience; the time has come to create new groundwork where their potential can be maximally used.

How are schoolchildren taught to work on projects at the NTI All-Russian Engineering Olympiad?
Participants of the All-Russian Engineering Olympiad NTI can try themselves as a space engineer, start designing houses of the future and solve problems at the intersection of biology and nanotechnology. The competition includes tasks for 17 profiles, one of which - the track "Nanosystems and Nanoengineering" - was developed by ITMO University together with its Moscow colleagues. The main feature of the Olympiad is its project nature and teamwork. For more than two months, schoolchildren from Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan fought in two rounds. As a result, the best will go to the final in Sirius, where they will have to solve problems close to the requirements of modern high-tech industries. About what distinguishes the NTI Olympiad from other subject contests, why it is more productive to work in a team than alone, and what prizes await the winners - in the material ITMO.NEWS.

NTI Olympiad - Engineering Challenges and Teamwork

NTI - National Technology Initiative - program for Russia's global technology leadership by 2035. It includes the support and development of promising industries that can become the backbone of the world economy over the next 20 years. The NTI All-Russian Engineering Olympiad is dedicated to the acquisition and development of knowledge and skills that are in demand in the framework of new markets.

The Olympics have been held since last year. The organizers of the competition are RVC and the Agency for Strategic Initiatives. Students of grades 7-11 can become participants. The main feature of the Olympiad is the project orientation and skills development in a team. That is why schoolchildren are given applied tasks, and starting from the second qualifying round, the participants form teams in which they begin to distribute tasks and responsibility for the result among themselves.

The NTI Olympiad is held in three stages: an individual qualifying stage, where students solve tasks in subjects (in mathematics, physics, computer science, chemistry or biology within the chosen profile), a qualifying team stage, during which participants already form groups and solve applied problems at the junction sciences in online simulators and on the MOOC platform, and the final, which this year will be held at the Sirius educational center in Sochi and at several venues in Moscow, as well as in Yekaterinburg, Kazan, Vladivostok, Tomsk and St. Petersburg. According to the organizers of the Olympiad, the finalists will work with real engineering equipment, applying in practice the knowledge demonstrated at the qualifying stages.

This year, for the first time, the competition went beyond the borders of Russia: in addition to schoolchildren from different cities of the country, children from Kazakhstan and Belarus took part in the Olympiad. Participants could choose one or several tracks from 17 Olympiad profiles. Among them - "Autonomous transport systems", "Communication and remote sensing systems (space systems)", "Big data and machine learning", "Intelligent robotic systems", "Creation of prosthetics systems (neurotechnology)", as well as the profile "Nanosystems and nanoengineering ”developed by ITMO University in cooperation with STEM-IGRY and specialists from the Moscow Poly.

Profile "Nanosystems and Nanoengineering"

This profile is built on the relationship between physics, chemistry and biology in the modern scientific world. At the first stage, the participants solved problems within the framework of individual subject disciplines. The test for each subject took two days. The second stage consisted of combined tasks requiring knowledge of several disciplines. Mikhail Mukhin, head of the nanocenter of the laboratory of metamaterials at ITMO University, emphasizes that at this level the participants performed tasks that were close to real ones. At the same time, already at the second stage, the students had to unite in teams, which allowed them to combine knowledge and effectively allocate time to work on the project. The tasks of the second stage are preparing for the main test, which the schoolchildren will have to pass in the final. This year the task is aimed at solving the problems of nanobiotechnology.

« The task of the second stage of selection is to fully immerse the children in the subject area. That is why a simulator was developed that allows you to diagnose, for example, tests for the presence or absence of markers for hepatitis C, invent a drug, develop and test it in this simulator, understand how effectively it will interact with hepatitis C cells. This simulator was available on the Stepik platform. The guys could offer several solutions at once, for each next one, if it was more successful, they received more and more points. Everything was checked automatically, the developed simulator made it possible to effectively evaluate and rank the quality of the proposed solutions", - says Mikhail Mukhin.

Mikhail Mukhin

At the same time, in parallel with completing tasks, schoolchildren could acquire additional knowledge necessary to complete tasks from interdisciplinary areas. Simultaneously with the Olympiad, online courses were launched on the Stepik.org platform, which helped the participants go beyond the school curriculum and get acquainted with the requirements of modern engineering.

In total, more than 2,400 schoolchildren from Russia, as well as Belarus and Kazakhstan entered the first stage in the Nanosystems and Nanoengineering profile, 382 of them entered the second round, some of whom formed teams of 3-5 people even before the final. 44 participants (12 teams) reached the final, which will take place at the end of February at the Sirius educational center; 9th grade). Now they have to finally form the teams that will begin to fulfill the main engineering task of the Olympiad.

The final stage at Sirius

Finalists in nine areas of the NTI Olympiad (including finalists in the area of ​​"Nanosystems and Nanoengineering") will meet in Sochi, the rest of the winners of the qualifying rounds will compete in flagship universities in Moscow, as well as on sites in Kazan, Tomsk, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg and St. Petersburg. 640 schoolchildren from all over the country, as well as neighboring countries, made it to the finals. Tellingly, this year the participants had no restrictions on choosing a profile, which is why many completed tasks on several tracks of the competition at once. As Mikhail Mukhin notes, on the one hand, such a spread affected the overall results (and not always for the better), but on the other hand, the wide choice helped the students to determine the direction they were really interested in.

NTI Olympiad. Source: nti-contest.ru

According to the organizers, this year, unlike the previous year, where the winners from the central region of the country prevailed, most of the finalists were in Siberia - more than 100 participants who made it to the final stage represent the Novosibirsk region. St. Petersburg also distinguished itself this year. If last year schoolchildren from the Northern capital could not even make it into the top ten, then this year they were immediately in second place in the number of finalists of the Olympiad - 50 participants who made it to the final.

As part of the final in Sirius (to be held from 23 to 28 February in Sochi), the winners of the second stage in nine profiles will have to pass both a team test, involving the solution of an applied engineering problem, and an individual test, within which the knowledge of each specific finalist will be objectively determined in physics, mathematics, chemistry and biology.

This year, within the framework of the Nanosystems and Nanoengineering profile, the finalists will be offered a problem at the intersection of biology and nanotechnology. Participants will try out the chain of actions used to synthesize pure protein from already developed genetic material.

Why is this needed? Thanks to the modern data obtained, it is known that many diseases, including hereditary ones, are determined precisely by the violation of the functioning of certain proteins and protein complexes. In modern medicine, proteins are already widely used, such as insulin or digestive enzyme substitutes. With the improvement of delivery methods, the number of protein drugs will increase, especially since in the future it is possible to synthesize individually selected protein variants for each patient.

NTI Olympiad. Source: nti-contest.ru

The finalists in Sirius will also be able to dive into this area. The first stage of the final task includes the production of plasmids in E. coli culture. This is one of the options for obtaining material for further transfection (apart from it, for example, cell-free synthesis systems are used). In a similar way, genetic material is obtained in pharmacology, but the participants have to find a balance between the amount of plasmid and its purity.
The second stage in the industry also uses bacteria, but the task developers will invite participants to try to use for this a common laboratory system for obtaining a protein - a culture of HEK (human embryonic kidney). It is known that the yield of HEKs is noticeably lower than that of bacterial systems; therefore, the participants will have to evaluate the applicability of such cultures for the creation of individual drugs, and not only for laboratory needs.

« At the Fund for Infrastructure Educational ProgramsRusnano”, Which sponsors the profile, has a large portfolio of nanobiotech companies. Previously, together with our Moscow colleagues, we formulated several design problems in physics, chemistry and biology. As a result, having discussed projects together with representativesRusnano”And our Moscow colleagues, we realized that this year the most interesting thing is to invite participants to try themselves in the field of nanobiotechnologyth. This is not a speculative task, it has a clear need for a solution. SoBy developing a solution in a simulator, testing their developments, conducting research, the guys were able to feel the drug development process, which is carried out in practice in high-tech companies", - comments Ivan Mukhin, Researcher, Laboratory of Metamaterials.

What the winners get

Since 2017, the profile "Nanosystems and Nanoengineering" has been included in the list of the Russian Council of Olympiads for Schoolchildren (RSOSH) and brings bonuses for admission to universities. This year, the winners of the Olympiad will receive 100 USE points upon admission to ITMO University, and the winners of the Olympiad will earn 10 points towards the USE results for individual achievements.

Guide to the "National Technology Initiative" Olympiad: what profiles are held, how to participate and what you need to know to successfully complete assignments

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How it works

The task of the National Technological Initiative Olympiad is to find technical specialists in our country and help them realize themselves in the profession. The competition is held by the RVC Institute for Development of the Russian Federation. The NTI Olympiad is part of a large-scale development program for our country, which was developed in 2015 on behalf of the President.

Teams of 3-5 people participate in the main stages of the Olympiad. The participants themselves unite in groups, and their number depends on the profile.

Profiles

In the 2018–2019 academic year, you can participate in any of 19 profiles at the Olympiad. Since there are many profiles and they are very different from each other, each of them has different organizing universities and partner companies. The preparation of participants in different areas and the preparation of tasks are carried out by specialists in narrow fields.

Here is a list of profiles for the 2018–2019 school year.

1. Big data and machine learning. The assignments have a strong emphasis on programming: participants solve math problems and analyze a large amount of data. For example, in 2017–2018, they created an algorithm that analyzed texts and identified the author of anonymous works, knowing excerpts from the works of already famous writers.

2. Technologies of wireless communication. Participants understand wireless systems: how to build and ensure uninterrupted communication under heavy loads.

3. Virtual and augmented reality. Teams are looking for the use of virtual and augmented reality technology in education, medicine, industry and the military industry.

4. Intelligent energy systems. Participants write a program that will distribute electrical energy from stations to consumers.

5. Smart city. Schoolchildren solve the problems of managing an entire city. For example, they distribute traffic on roads, develop security systems and smart lighting.

6. Financial technologies. The block is dedicated to the financial industry. Participants are engaged in ATMs that recognize customers by sight, and assistant programs, which in the future should replace the operators in the bank.

7. Autonomous transport systems. Participants face the problems of unmanned vehicles, learn to assemble cars or copters from a construction set, and then program their work.

8. Systems of communication and remote sensing of the Earth. The teams design the satellite and program its flight.

9. Unmanned aircraft systems. In the block, participants are developing software for controlling unmanned aerial vehicles.

10. Intelligent robotic systems. Teams write programs to help robots make decisions. For example, optimize the operation of a loader robot or a rescue robot.

11. Aerospace systems. Participants are looking for habitable planets in other solar systems, analyzing fluids on their surfaces and learning how to operate an interplanetary rover.

12. Water robotic systems. In this profile, specialized robots and underwater vehicles for ocean exploration are designed.

13. Nanosystems and nanoengineering. The teams work at the intersection of physics, chemistry and biology to solve problems of synthesizing nanoparticles and analyze them using optical methods.

14. Advanced manufacturing technologies. Participants work in fablabs - small workshops, working on the principle of "make almost everything from almost nothing." In 2017–2018, teams needed to make a stand-alone overhead crane using a 3D printer.

15. Composite technologies. In this block, teams are engaged in modeling complex structures made of polymeric materials. Participants use them, for example, to create airplanes. The most successful solutions will have a chance to be introduced into real production.

16. Engineering biological systems. The profile is devoted to solving practical biological problems, for example, molecular genetic and biosynthesis.

17. Neurotechnology. Teams are engaged in the joint work of a machine and a person, recognizing emotions and expanding the interaction of people with the world around them.

18. Cognitive technologies. The block uses technologies that in the future will allow a person to give commands to a computer or mechanisms with the help of thoughts. For example, with the help of a special helmet, a rescuer will be able to control a robot that clears up debris after a disaster.

19. Analysis of satellite images. Teams solve problems at the intersection of big data analysis and geography. For example, the participants are writing a program that will be able to determine the age and stock of timber from satellite images.

The team solves the problem of the profile "Intelligent Energy Systems", photo from the official website of the Olympiad

Stages

Qualifying round takes place online, on it they solve problems from the school curriculum. For each profile they pass their own items. The participant has three attempts - the most successful one, with the maximum number of points scored, will be counted. It is not necessary to solve all the problems correctly to proceed to the next stage.

Team stage. In the team stage, participants solve interdisciplinary problems related to calculations and programming. Each profile has a different recommended team size, for example, in the Wireless Technologies profile it is 4-5 people, and in Intelligent Robotic Systems it is 2-3 people. The organizers advise to assemble a team in advance - before registration and the first stage, in order to unite in the second. You can participate alone, but it will be more difficult to reach the final.

Participants of the profile "Autonomous transport systems", photo from the official website of the Olympiad

The final stage. The finals for different profiles are held in different cities at different times. You also need to participate in teams, but on the first day everyone solves individual problems. For the next three days, the team solves common problems. Participants are provided with modern equipment: oscilloscopes, multimeters, microcontrollers and special constructors.

Schedule of the Olympiad stages for the 2018–2019 academic year from the official website

What gives a victory or a prize

13 profiles of the Olympiad were included in the list of Olympiads for schoolchildren. The winners in these blocks will receive benefits upon admission to universities - 100 points in the Unified State Exam in computer science.

Profiles that are not included in the list give benefits only upon admission to universities participating in their organization. Here is a list of these profiles:

• autonomous transport systems,
• aerospace systems,
• advanced production technologies,
• composite technologies,
• cognitive technologies,
• analysis of satellite images.

For example, in the 2017-2018 academic year, the participants of the Olympiad could apply for the following benefits when entering the organizing universities. Information about benefits in 2018–2019 will soon be posted on the website of the Olympiad.

How to prepare

Profile pages. For each profile, the organizers have prepared online courses, manuals and articles for preparation. Most of the online courses are posted on the Stepic resource - they will help you understand issues that go beyond the school curriculum, for example, about modern programming languages.

Hackathons. In addition to online training, hackathons or training camps are held as part of the Olympiad. They give the team a problem that needs to be solved in a short time. Hackathons go on for several hours, so you have to quickly come up with and solve problems.

Here is an example of an assignment that was submitted to a hackathon in the "Intelligent Energy Systems" profile.

Programming. Almost all profiles require knowledge of programming in Python, C ++, Java. To be ready for such tasks, the organizers advise taking courses in these languages.

An example of a task in C ++ for the Smart City profile

Elizaveta Avdeenko, winner in the Nanotechnology profile in 2018

At the first stage, specific skills are not required, for example, school knowledge was enough for me. Be sure to look at the problems of past years for each stage and solve them. The materials that the organizers post on the website of the Olympiad are also very helpful. True, they only give basic knowledge. To understand a specific problem, you need to look for a lot of additional information.

In the team and final stages, a project assignment awaits you. It is necessary to distribute tasks within the group, otherwise there will not be enough time to solve them. I advise beginners to take the time to find a strong team. The Olympiad is interdisciplinary, therefore the composition should include participants who are well versed in their field of knowledge. It is impossible for one person to know all objects. For example, in my profile there were tasks in physics, chemistry and biology. I don't understand biology at all, but I was able to win due to good points in the other stages.

Egor Sechinsky, winner in the profile "Communication systems and Earth remote sensing" and the winner as part of the team in the VR / AR profile in 2018

My main mistake was that I did not prepare in subjects in which I was confident. As a result, our team was unable to solve the problem from the area in which I understood.

I advise you to carefully study the materials and courses from the Olympiad website. We came across one assignment, which was partially sorted out in preparation. It will be very helpful if you find yourself a mentor. Such people can be found in centers of additional education or at a university.

What to remember

• To participate in the NTI Olympiad, it is worth assembling a team of specialists in different fields of knowledge, otherwise it will be difficult to solve interdisciplinary problems.
• To understand the specifics of assignments, you need to solve the problems of past years.
• The Olympiad website has very good profile pages. All useful information about the profile is collected on them, courses, manuals and tasks are laid out. They will help you understand what tasks will be at the Olympiad.
• Webinars and hackathons will help prepare for the real challenges that will meet at NTI.
• To solve programming problems in Python, C ++ and Java, it is better to take training courses.