Academy of Sciences of the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic

the highest scientific institution of the Georgian SSR. Founded in 1941 on the basis of the Georgian branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences and several scientific research institutions that had previously been part of Tbilisi State University. Located in Tbilisi.

In 1968 the academy had 52 acting members and 57 corresponding members. Since 1941 the president has been Academician N. I. Muskhelishvili of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR.

The academy has six divisions and 31 scientific research institutes: the division of mathematics and physics (scientific research institutes—the Tbilisi A. M. Razmadze Mathematics Institute and a physics institute); the division of earth sciences (scientific research institutes—geophysics and geology, and the Vakhushti Institute of Geography); the division of applied mechanics and control processes (scientific research institutes—cybernetics; electronics, automation, and remote control; structural mechanics and seismic resistance; and the G. A. Tsulukidze Institute of Mining Engineering and the Physics of Detonation); the division of chemistry and chemical engineering (scientific research institutes —P. G. Melikishvili Institute of Physical and Organic Chemistry; the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry and Electrochemistry; the I. G. Kutateladze Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry; and an institute of metallurgy); the division of biology (scientific research institutes—paleobiology, botany, zoology, and physiology; the A. N. Natishvili Institute of Experimental Morphology); the division of social sciences (scientific research institutes—linguistics; the Sh. Rustaveli Institute of the History of Georgian Literature; the K. S. Kekelidze Institute of Manuscripts; the I. A. Dzhavakhishvili Institute of History, Archaeology, and Ethnography; the Institute of Georgian Art History; Oriental studies; philosophy; the D. N. Uznadze Institute of Psychology; economics and law; the D. I. Gulia Institute of the Abkhazian Languages, Literature, and History; South Ossetian Scientific Research Institute; and the Batumi Scientific Research Institute); as well as a number of other scientific research institutions, among which are the Abastumani Astrophysical Observatory, a computer center, a laboratory of plant biochemistry, and three botanical gardens. The central science library had 1,725,000 items in 1968.

The leading research trends are in mathematics and mechanics; physics and astrophysics; geology, geophysics, and geography; cybernetics, electronics, automation, and remote control; structural mechanics and seismic resistance; mining mechanics, machine mechanics, and the mechanics of polymeric materials; physical and organic chemistry; inorganic chemistry and electrochemistry, and pharmaceutical chemistry; physiology, botany, and genetics; paleobiology, biochemistry, and biophysics; experimental morphology and zoology; history, archaeology, and ethnography; linguistics and the history of literature; Oriental studies, archaeography (the study of ancient historical documents), philosophy, and psychology; economics and law; and the history of Georgian art.

The academy publishes the scientific periodicals Soobshcheniia Akademii nauk Gruzinskoi SSR (Report of the Georgian SSR Academy of Sciences, in Georgian and Russian, since 1941), Matsne (Herald, the organ of the department of social sciences, since 1960); and the popular science periodical Metsniereba da tekhnika (Science and Technology, since 1949). The academy also publishes monographs, collections of articles, and separate scientific works in various branches of knowledge, and is preparing the Georgian Soviet Encyclopedia for publication.