"E.Voiskunsky, I.Lukodyanov. The Crew Of The Mekong (англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автора

"Look here, Boris," said Koltukhov. "Do you think it's fair to let your
imagination run wild and make those two young men pay for it by wasting
their time and energy?"
"I'm not making them do anything. They started experimenting without
sufficient theoretical grounding. I told them what to read and gave them
some advice. That's all."
"Then why does Nikolai spend every free minute of his time in the
automation department, showering everyone there with questions?"
Privalov shrugged his shoulders. "Aren't you letting your own
imagination run wild? Dabbling in resins like an alchemist, in between
conferences?"
"I'm doing something useful. I'm improving pipeline insulation
materials."
"But you've done that already. Now you're making some smelly new
compounds. People have to hold their noses when they go past your den under
the stairway."
Koltukhov merely grinned.
"All right," he said, lighting another cigarette. "I'll let you in on
my secret. My idea is a much better one than yours. How do we protect our
pipes and steel structures from corrosion by sea water? By covering them
with insulation. Besides being expensive, this method isn't always
dependable. When cracks form in the insulation, corrosion goes ahead faster
than ever, as you yourself know. Another way of controlling corrosion is by
using electricity, but this is expensive too, and it involves a lot of work.
You have to string transmission lines and bring a positive charge to the
pipeline. My idea is a plastic coating that would serve as insulation and
have an electrostatic charge at the same time."
"Not a bad idea," said Privalov. "But mine is better. It does away with
both pipes and insulation."
Koltukhov dismissed it with a wave of his hand. "You talk like a
college boy, Boris."
The car drove into the Institute yard.
"Is old man Bagbanly in town?" Privalov asked.
"I think so. Why?"
"I'd like to get in touch with him."
"Yes, do go and have a talk with him. He'll throw cold water on your
idea, if anyone does."
They sat on the balcony drinking tea. Professor Bakhtiar Bagbanly
thoughtfully stirred his glass as he gazed out on the broad crescent of city
lights skirting the bay. A Corresponding Member of the Academy of Sciences,
he was a clever, erudite man with the skilful hands of a gifted
experimenter. He had been Privalov's favourite lecturer when Privalov was an
undergraduate twenty years before. Many of Professor Bagbanly's former
students dropped in to discuss their work with him. He was generous with his
knowledge and advice, and he addressed all the young people by their first
names. They addressed him in the Eastern fashion as "Bakhtiar Muellim",
meaning "Teacher Bakhtiar".
The old man had a large grey head, black eyebrows and a drooping
silvery moustache beneath a hooked nose.
Professor Bakhtiar Bagbanly fixed his twinkling brown eyes on Privalov