The theme of the next Discussion Club meeting of the RAS academician O.T. Bogomolov is more than burning, especially in the light of deterioration of relations with the West.

Alexey Yablokov is well-known as an active ecologist, member of the party “Yabloko”, where he heads the “Green Russia” faction. People say that the party was actually named after him, although he joined it much later. Not everyone knows that Alexey Vladimirovich is an outstanding scientist, a biologist with a worldwide reputation, corresponding member and counsellor of the Russian Academy of Sciences, as well as chairman of the Council for marine mammals that, by his own admission, are the love of all his life. We are not kings of the nature, Yablokov is sure, but only one of the numerous species living on the planet. While we are looking for intelligent life somewhere in the vastness of the Universe, other civilizations are existing beside us. Dolphins and whales, in his opinion, undoubtedly are their representatives. However, we are not absolutely ready for the contact with them. That’s probably why we do not manage to reach out to those who live much further.

The play of how the nearest entourage of the head of state, political and military elite, the main support of the Emperor Nicholas II organized a plot in the crucial year of the First World War, when the Russian Empire was a stone’s throw away from victory.

In the interview with “ES” the RAS academician, scientific director of the Nuclear Safety Institute (IBRAE) of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vice-Admiral A. A. Sarkisov told about the event, its historical interpretation. During the interview considerable attention was paid to a unique edition of “Europe and Russia in the fire of the First World War. On the 100th anniversary of the War”, published by the Orthodox Entrepreneurs Club, by the Institute for Economic Strategies and the Russian Biographical Institute with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. This is not just a book for studying that war operations, it recreates the full picture of those times events: from the origin of the war idea in politicians’ minds up to its implementation and public reaction to the military conflict.

The paper considers changes of the “Economic Strategies” opportunistic index (OIES) in January-August 2014. The contribution of supply and demand indices into OIES is estimated. Industrial production analysis is performed.

The paper presents the proof that the conflict in geocentric theater of war is conducted in the area of technological singularity, i.e. in conditions of principled non-awareness of happening. The principle of action and optimal application area of the fifth generation nuclear weapon are described. The definition of “soft power”, “controlled confrontation” in terms of conflict management technology in geocentric theater of war is given. Theorem of limitation (awareness) is proposed like one of the theorems forming the basis of engineering methodology for psychogenic systems design.

Having analyzed vast information on the world and Russian economies, the author came to conclusion that world economy is closely connected with mineral resources, countries’ possibilities to pursue an independent policy or to convert this factor in the aggression element.

With the capitalist economy development more evident becomes the tendency of a definite isolation of financial sphere from the so-called “real sector” of economy. This “isolation” is supported the basic principles of economic thought, in particular by money neutrality principle (the classic dichotomy) of the neoclassical school. Today, financial sector and financial capital have transformed from a mediator serving reproduction into a key factor, largely determining economic development of both individual national economies and the world economy as a whole. Hypertrophic growth of financial sector causes a widening gap between material-substantial and financial flows. Resulting imbalances lead to severe crises phenomena, the most powerful of which is the global crisis began in 2008. Its effects are still determining a high degree uncertainty of the whole world development. This article deals with scientific comprehension of the problem of providing financial and economic security of an open economy, which includes Russia, in arising difficult conditions of increasing instability and global competitive tension.

Strategic nature of innovative technologies race in the global economy requires to form in Russia a systemic organizational-information structure, which will serve as the center of integrated management, including strategic planning of complex development in the science and engineering field through network concentration of scientific-technical ties in key areas of knowledge.

Opening address of editor-in-chief.