S. Popov: The research itself was definitely interesting, because it provided mental nourishment and fuelled new scientific ideas, it gave us... and there were not even really any constraints placed... whereas in this country [the U.S.] there are constantly constraints being placed on things. You're told, "That's unrealistic, that's a waste of money, not worth doing, we don't have faith in your..." That is, it was possible to realize virtually any idea, and there was always money. There was always more money than necessary. The issue was... the only issue was to be able to make use of all that money. You could take any idea and with an amazing amount of freedom, make that idea happen. And then, well, it came to a standstill, it was as if there wasn't enough air, because you would work and work, you would do something and no one knew about it. And things started to seem almost like a dead end. You know, kind of, what is the point, ultimately?
Plus, there were other problems... Frequently... well, the last time... I... I vowed that I would never again work with animals. You see, they just stopped feeding the animals. President Yeltsin decreed an end to the biological program. They stopped feeding all the animals, and everyone quit and went home. That was it. Well, that was just horrible, it was barbarous, really. We tried, you know, to collect a little bit of grass and things for the guinea pigs... It's just that... that the system... the system was cruel in that regard, and it seemed as if it would be... it would be just a huge relief to let all of that go, leave it, so to speak, behind, and just call an end to it.