I think there are several other reasons why hard sciences developed more than soft sciences in former Communist states:<p>1.You can&#x27;t really use ideology to fight them. If a researches comes and says that 2 + 2 = 4, even the most fervent apparatchik (Communist party member) would have had a hard time spinning it into 2 + 2 = -1. While in other fields such as sociology or history... things are a bit more malleable.<p>2. They&#x27;re practical and quite far removed from anything that might stir up anti-establishment actions.<p>3. The &quot;1984&quot; factor: if you need highly skilled mathematicians and physicists for your weapons, you really need them. You wouldn&#x27;t want to issue your army 7.5mm rounds for their 7.62mm rifles because someone was bad at engineering :)