@allison @Arcana @nyoom @lizzie @kaia @tiskaan @Moon @meso I have known about the Jewish problems for a long time, and I think about them often, as one of many examples of intellect set against sick bureaucratic cruelty which have shaped my worldview.

Tiskaan, go read the intro to Tanya's article and think about whether I sympathize with the Jewish students forced to do something 100x harder than they should have been given, and still *fucking* doing it, or the petty tyrants who believed in secrecy as a defense against human capability.

I do not believe that everything that doesn't kill you makes you stronger, but I cannot doubt that the brutality of Soviet times and the wastefulness of their economy were somehow related to the amazing thoughts and discoveries that were made by ordinary people despite the odds they faced.

Another fun story: https://mathoverflow.net/a/53245