“I have to do this. This is my destiny.
If not me, then who? Who else if not me!”
There lived in our city an amazing man, Serik Murzabaevich Sharipov (1962-2012), a scientist who, in his short life, left a bright mark on the souls of everyone who knew and loved him.
We can call such altruists differently: in Shukshin’s style, cranks, Cervantes’ Don Quixotes, Jack London’s Martin Edens. But after their departure, as if having come to their senses, they lament sadly and enlightenedly - “the earth is empty without you.”
There are amazing coincidences in the destinies of extraordinary scientists: the future Doctor of Technical Sciences Serik Sharipov studied at the Sergeevsky school, the successor to the school in the village of Maryevka, Sergeevsky district of North Kazakhstan, which bears the name of the outstanding scientist of Kazakhstan Evney Buketov. Of course, the rural school was named so because the founder of the second university in the Kazakh SSR, Karaganda University, academician, Doctor of Chemical Sciences Evnei Arystanovich Buketov, graduated from it. The blessed fertile land of northern Kazakhstan is capable of giving birth to wonderful sons of the fatherland, guardians of the native land.
The Ishim River in Sharipov’s homeland was blocked in Soviet times with good intentions - the Sergeevskoe reservoir of the same name was built here, which, by the way, still supplies water to the neighboring regional center of Kokshetau. And Maryevka went under water...
"We are from Atlantis!" – Serik joked quite accurately and fairly in his youth. The village boy, the youngest in the family, kenzhe, the Kazakhs say, was especially loved by his older sisters and brothers for his kind, easy-going disposition, and was also a favorite of school teachers, who from childhood saw in the teenager and then the youth a rare gift, a spark of God.
And the family of Kazakh intellectuals sowed the seeds of reason, goodness - a cult of knowledge, a cult of intellect reigned in the house. You can't argue against blood, blood
- great power.
Kenzhe’s successes delight his relatives and encourage the most restless boy, striving for the heights of science: in 1979, Serik graduated from school. Student years at the Tomsk Institute of Civil Engineering are a time of growing up and developing character. This ancient Siberian city, a well-known large scientific and innovation center in the east of the country, is also called a youth city: ambitious intellectuals from all over the Union sought knowledge here. Admission to the prestigious graduate school of the famous Moscow Institute of Civil Engineering, MISS, in the specialty
“Building materials and products made from them” became a defining moment in the fate of the Kazakh scientist.
The topics of Serik Murzabaevich’s Ph.D. thesis become relevant for modern construction research: “Polymer-cement compositions for radiation-loaded structures.” After all, first of all, the practical benefits of scientific research for the national economy of the country are always important. And the results are very effective: the results of Sharipov’s scientific work were implemented at the Institute of High Energy for the electrical insulation of the magnet windings of the proton beam crushing station. It is gratifying that the technical solutions developed by the scientist have been introduced into the construction industries of Karaganda, Balkhash, Stepnogorsk, Petropavlovsk, and Astana.
Since 1991, Serik Murzabaevich has been teaching at the Kokshetau General Technical Faculty of the Karaganda Polytechnic Institute; in 1993, he was appointed deputy dean and elected head of the construction department. Since 1996, Sharipov has headed the department of the same name at the Agricultural Institute, which was subsequently merged with the general technical faculty of KarPTI at the Kokshetau Regional University named after Shokan Valikhanov.
Modest in everyday life and in communication, the scientist did not need awards to confirm his real professional worth. But Sharipov will be awarded the medal “For Merit in the Development of Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan” in 2009, three years before his death. At the time of defending his doctoral dissertation on a complex, difficult-to-pronounce, inaccessible topic for the average person, “Modified polymer-cement mortars and concretes based on industrial waste,” there were only seven doctors of technical sciences in the republic. Lyudmila Sofronova, a lecturer at the Department of Mining, Construction and Ecology at Kokshetau University named after Shokan Valikhanov, who worked at the university next to the scientist Sharipov, warmly remembers her colleague: “Serik Murzabaevich taught me, then, in 1991, still a student at the KarPTI branch, to think for the future, to go towards your goal. Go to the end, don't give up. We greatly respected and loved this mentor, dishonest in all respects, for his humanity, sincerity, and willingness to help. In 1995, my beloved teacher invited me to the newly organized department of construction, which he headed. It was safe and comfortable to work with him, he taught me a lot, patiently explained the most difficult things, and tactfully suggested how to correctly place emphasis. I fully owe the defense of my Ph.D. dissertation to Serik Murzabaevich; I think, in fact, that I became a scientist, largely thanks to my supervisor, whose necessary support I always felt in everything.” Kokshetau University named after Shokan Ualikhanov played a special role in the life and fate of Serik Sharipov; it was here, in student classrooms and research laboratories, that his bright talent as a scientist, organizational gift, leadership qualities and exceptional teaching abilities were fully revealed. Particularly dear to Serik Murzabaevich is the medal awarded to him in connection with the half-century anniversary of Kokshetau State University named after Valikhanov; in the same year 2012, the scientist will pass away after a serious illness... The scientist’s sister, Sholpan Murzabaevna Tleuberdina, is an honored and well-known veteran of pedagogical work in the Akmola region , a history teacher, remembers his younger brother with unrelieved pain and an unhealed wound in his heart. “My younger brother Serik had something that we, the other seven children in the family, did not have. Illumination, obsession with a calling, an internal need to devote oneself to a task without reserve, a pronounced energy of creation, excessively vigorous activity in the name of science. He was burning in the literal textbook sense of the word... My brother was distinguished by a special analytical mind. The spirituality of his intellect was combined with simplicity in communication: the brother was dexterous, hard-working, handy, and did not shy away from the most menial, hard physical work. “A golden head attached to golden hands” - this is definitely about Serik. As a doctor of science, he climbed to patch the leaky roof of a private university, where he was invited to teach, and took on any work with fire and enthusiasm. In the construction industry, Serik was an aerobatics ace. Because I was never an armchair scientist. My brother knew how and loved to work, he knew how to work with inspiration, infecting and charging those around him with rare enthusiasm. “And in the slow flame of everyday life we burn like heretics” - this is not about our Serik... The illness changed his attitude to life, his brother tried to leave the good light in time allotted to him by the Almighty in his only life. He did not go into illness; he had no fear or horror of an incurable illness. On the contrary, our Serik, a wrestler by nature, by spirit, by blood, in spite of all deaths, continued to work fully. It seemed that work was saving him. Only the one who saves himself will be saved... Day after day, the brother continued to fight for life, stubbornly believing defeat in death. Even when he was seriously ill, practically doomed, as soon as he felt a little better after painful procedures, he burst out of the hospital room into the air of freedom. Weak and exhausted, Serik was eager to attend conferences and symposiums in Almaty and the capital, where he was invited: everywhere, everywhere, the energetic participation and strong will of the scientist-inventor was irreplaceable and in demand. 3 textbooks, 2 patented inventions. Under his leadership, Adiya Zhumagulova, now a teacher at Gumilyov ENU, defended her defense, for whom the memory of the Teacher is dear to this day. Very indicative for understanding the intrinsic value of Sharipov’s personality is the recognition of his pupil Duman Dyusembinov: “In our family there is no more respected person than Serik Murzabaevich Sharipov. If it weren’t for him, my life would have turned out differently; I don’t know whether it would have been easier or harder, but I probably wouldn’t have become a scientist without his warm participation and kind, selfless help. There were no builders in our family, and after finishing school, I decided to choose the specialty of environmental engineer, and I was interested in environmental problems, and perceived the concept of “engineer” as an appendage to the profession of environmentalist. Serik Murzabaevich at that time was the head of the department and taught several subjects for us. But it was a fateful meeting: Sharipov not only became for us a teacher in the usual sense of the word, but a real scientific mentor: enthusiastic, active, infecting with his seemingly inexhaustible, unstoppable energy. Construction materials were his element. How many of his students did he manage to involve in it? It all started with the desire to become like him. And to be like Serik Murzabaevich means to become an engineer and scientist. If he saw a student’s sincere desire to engage in scientific work, he was completely imbued with his fate and spared neither effort nor time for him. It used to be that Serik Murzabaevich was next to me almost twenty-four hours a day, they carried out experiments until late, brought me to his home, where they continued to count, discuss, and draw up plans for the next research until late. A graduate of the Tomsk Institute of Civil Engineering, he defended his Ph.D. thesis in Moscow and his doctorate in Almaty. At the same time, he sincerely loved our city of Kokshetau, repeating, not without irony, for our edification: “You can become a scientist in Kokshetau. There is no need to leave anywhere, we have enormous opportunities.” And he demonstrated this brilliantly in practice. “Kazakhstan has significant raw material resources to saturate the construction market with modern highly effective binders and cement materials with a wide range of applications”, “Prospects for the development of the construction industry of Kazakhstan determine the feasibility of producing highly effective polymer cement mortars and concrete based on modifiers from recycled materials and local industrial waste” - these are provisions from the introductory part of his dissertation. Serik Murzabaevich knew how to find the optimal, and, note, inexpensive, most profitable options for improving the universal building material - foam concrete, based on the capabilities and needs of our region. This was achieved with the help of additives from industrial waste: ash, supplied in abundance by our boiler house, stone crushing screenings. Complex modified additives for heavy and light concrete were even obtained from processed post-alcohol stillage. Their strength increased by 30%. Due to this, the content of much more expensive cement was reduced. But, of course, all this was very difficult: countless experiments, complex calculations, sleepless nights... And, of course, scientific contacts, friendly connections and simply good relations with his many friends, fellow scientists. “Do you want to see a real foam concrete worker?” – my mentor asked me a cheerful and lively question. And now we are already on the road, going to Uralsk to see Professor, Doctor of Technical Sciences Kaber Shintimirov. And in the west of the country there is a powerful production base; we lived with a scientist for several months and worked for days on end. And the most important thing is that they didn’t waste their time and returned with excellent results. A special solution made using the technology he developed was used to fill the floors in the assay and analytical laboratory of Altyntau Kokshetau LLP. At the Balkhash mining and processing plant, the baths from which copper was directly extracted were covered with a polymer cement solution, the formula of which belongs to Serik Murzabaevich. The previous coating had to be changed after each process. Sharipov's invention lasted much longer. We could give examples of the implementation of his scientific developments for a long time; there are many of them, and there would be much more if Serik Murzabaevich Sharipov had not passed away so early. What remained was his family, which had always been his strong, reliable support. We remained, his grateful students. I am only one of many who, thanks to Serik Murzabaevich, became engineers and took up science. I became a candidate of technical sciences at the age of 24 only thanks to my Teacher, I continue to work, do science, now live in the capital, head a department at Gumilev ENU.” “My brother always wanted to gather young boys and girls around him, to unite and unite them in order to direct them along the path that, as it seemed to him, they needed to follow on the path to professional excellence,” Sholpan Murzabaevna continues to recall. “All my brother’s actions and deeds carried a charge of creation. He gave this life more than he took. He knew how to be friends with young people, communicated with them as equals, and could go on stage with the guys after long rehearsals and show the highest class of creative intuition. He worked with his students and undergraduates disinterestedly, selflessly, took them home, where discussions on the topic continued until midnight, scientific problems were constructively discussed. He knew how to listen and hear his interlocutor, he had respect for other people’s views and judgments, maintained an even intonation with his colleagues and taught young people to behave with dignity. Organically, he did not know how to burden anyone with himself, perhaps this is intelligence... Despite the monstrous workload, Serik could never give up the need to read. His favorite author was Olzhas Suleimenov, a poet of fierce life-affirming civic power. The steppe did not like high mountains, The flat steppe did not like protruding trees. I reproach you ten centuries in advance, O my Kazakhs, young and ancient!... The steppe pulled towards itself So that the legs bent under the weight, So that the cheekbones became angles, And the compressed heart of people, And crushed the eyes, So that the slits smiled slyly. The steppe could not stand tall, clear-faced people. Whoever did not give up, She hurriedly broke his backbone, And she threw tall stones on his grave, And she was proud of the tall one, And again she caressed the guys. She raised the short ones, took revenge on the tall ones out of envy. Serik Murzabaevich Sharipov has not been with us for ten years. Time does not heal, it does not heal, but cripples - after all, everything passes with it. But there is an indomitable power of the healing memory of everyone who loved the man of Good, a man who did not surrender to the blows of fate, faithful to his destiny to do good on earth until his last breath.
