Welcome to your weekly ITMO digest, featuring cool discoveries and bright ideas

💡 A microlaser that controls light: researchers from ITMO and the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences have developed a compact perovskite microlaser that controls the rotation and direction of vortex light.

🧬 Bridging physics and biology: at ITMO’s interdisciplinary center “Bridge,” researchers develop hybrid biology and physics projects for as drug delivery systems and medical sensorics. Read what Dmitry Zuev, the center’s head, has to share.

🔦 Like a spinning top: scientists from ITMO and their international colleagues have discovered that the spin of light can behave like a slowing-down spinning top, a phenomenon with potential in optical information technologies.

And here are other key stories from this week:

🎸 Get ready for an evening of live music! On November 8, ITMO’s student bands will take the stage at Lomonosova St. 9 for Lovely Sound Festival. Find out what’s planned and how to join.

🎬 Ever wondered how films, TV shows, and animations disappear from history? Explore fascinating examples of Russian lost media and the efforts to rediscover them.

#newsdigest

👍 ITMO on VK

Having fun at our recent photoshoot 🕺

Did you get the reference?

👍 ITMO on VK

When was the last time you wrote a letter… to yourself? 💌

Thanks to our library, you have a unique opportunity to send one into the future, right on campus!

Just imagine: a year from now, you’ll be a slightly different version of yourself. And receiving a letter from the past might feel like getting a hug through time.

If you’d like to join, just follow these simple steps:

1️⃣ Visit ITMO Library or a coworking space and find the letter zone
2️⃣ Write a letter and put it in an envelope
3️⃣ Take a number, stick it to your letter, and then fill out the form
4️⃣ Place the envelope inside or next to the mailbox (if your envelope doesn’t fit)
5️⃣Return in a year to pick up your letter!

If you participated last year, your letter is waiting for you in the library! To retrieve it, simply give your ISU number to a librarian. Additionally, you’ll receive a reminder email with your letter number.

Where can you send a letter?

📍Lomonosova St. 9, room 1505 (ITMO Library)
📍Kronverksky Pr. 49, room 1303
📍Grivtsova Ln. 14, room 320

#events

ITMO adopts a new university management model 💼

For the first time ever, a Russian university will be managed by a board of directors consisting of leaders in key fields.

The university will develop horizontal connections between its teams, adopt a distributed management system, and implement the most efficient business practices.  This is another step towards transforming the university into a tech corporation.

Read more about the new model as it was presented to Valery Falkov, the Minister of Science and Higher Education, at the recent meeting of the Academic Council.

#itmoinfo

👍 ITMO on VK

This week’s digest has it all: new labs, cancer research, and unusual art 🎨

💡 Exciting news for physicists: ITMO’s new youth lab for optical computing will receive 15 million rubles annually in 2026-2028 to develop energy-efficient optical chips for big-data processing.

🛠️ And for school students: at yet another lab, students in grades 5–11 can learn science, robotics, and programming by building and testing their own devices.

🧬 ITMO scientists found that hesperidin, a natural compound in citrus fruits, may help slow glioblastoma growth and reduce cancer-related cell damage.

And here are a couple of posts you don’t want to miss:

🧣 Learn 7 niche Russian words for clothes before the cozy season starts.

🖼️ Uncover hidden secrets from the art world with these unusual and unsettling paintings by Russian artists.

#newsdigest

👍 ITMO on VK