Hamlet Isaxanli In Search of “Khazar” - DSpace at Khazar University

4In Search of "Khazar"University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(I was unable to visit those at the time) in order tounderstand their distinct features.The crisis that has started in the higher educationsystem in Azerbaijan was deepening further in thesecond part of the eighties. Historically, Azerbaijan hasgained great successes in the art of music and otherforms of art, and some fields of science had developedto the point that the foundations of certain scientificschools had been established. Meanwhile the moralvalues that the society was resting upon began to bereduced to dust, and the economic basis was about to bedestroyed. These developments influenced every sphereof society including science and education. The habit ofcorruption, accepting bribes and falsifying the students’grades was spreading day by day from one university toanother and from one lecturer to another. There was nocontrol over corruption and it was becoming accepted ascommon practice. The scientists and intellectuals thatwere trying to maintain their integrity and distancethemselves from the surrounding world were slowlybecoming mere observers. The level and intensity ofscientific research was sharply decreasing. The politicaland economic crisis in the Soviet Union started havingan impact on universities and research institutes. Manyclaimed that the pitiful lecturer earnings forced them totake bribes, and this number was gradually increasing.Lies and hypocrisy, dilettantism and protectionism wereprospering.In July 1990 I was invited to Great Britain as oneof the keynote speakers at the 11th International DundeeConference on Ordinary and Partial DifferentialEquations. There I met my old friends and some new