Ruština
Kniga o nauke, ob uchenykh, rabotavshikh v trudnoe vremya, o vernosti, poryadochnosti, o nastoyashchikh uchenykh i lzheuchenykh. O zhiznenoy sile. O druzhbe molodogo i starogo uchenogo, ikh razgovory i spory Mark, molodoy uchenyy, priezzhaet v gorod nauki, v Institut, v kotorom issleduyutsya svoystva zhiznenoy sily. Zdes' on znakomitsya s Arkadiey, starym uchenym, kotoryy byl repressirovan, i tak i ne sumel potom dognat' nauku, zato postroil sobstvennuyu laboratoriyu doma.. V kontse knigi Arkadiy vynuzhden razrushit' svoyu laboratoriyu, i pogibaet. A Mark proshel vse stadii uvlecheniya naukoy, v kontse razocharovalsya v ney, reshil napisat' knigu o nauke i stal pisatelem. V knige ispol'zovan fakticheskiy material, avtor sam rabotal v akademicheskom Institute mnogie gody. No v knige zalozhena i fantasticheskaya ideya: zhiznennaya sila, kotoruyu otritsaet sovremennaya nauka, okazyvaetsya, sushchestvuet, vokrug nee idut zharkie spory
