PROF., DR PRETIDEV RAMDAWON

𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐒𝐌𝐈𝐂 𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐔𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐘:
𝐀 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐘𝐮𝐫𝐢 𝐆𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧’𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐬 “𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐓𝐀”

The photograph below documents a formative period of my medical scientific career in the mid‑1980s, during my work and training in Moscow.

At that time, I had the privilege of collaborating with the research group responsible for the early development of MILTA, a multimodal biophysical technology emerging from the Soviet Union’s aerospace and cosmic research ecosystem. Unlike later commercial adaptations, the original MILTA systems were conceived within a multidisciplinary environment where millimetre‑wave physics, low‑intensity laser biomedicine, and engineering design intersected to address complex questions of human physiology and adaptation.

My work brought me regularly into the laboratory of Prof. Christoforov, the chief constructor engineer of MILTA. He was a scientist of remarkable technical depth and human warmth, widely respected within the Soviet scientific community. His laboratory was equipped with the full spectrum of electronic instrumentation characteristic of that era — oscilloscopes, signal generators, prototype assemblies — reflecting the rigorous experimental culture of Soviet applied research.

A distinctive feature of that laboratory was a wooden velvet‑covered chair, yellow with a black tinge, which Prof. Christoforov repeatedly identified as the seat used by Yuri Gagarin, the first human in outer space, during his visits to the institute. Each time I entered the laboratory, he would gesture toward it and say:

“Sit here. This is Gagarin’s chair.”

In the context of Russian scientific tradition, this gesture carried a meaning far deeper than hospitality. It signified recognition, collegial respect, and inclusion within a lineage of scientific endeavour that bridged aerospace engineering and biomedical innovation. Sitting in that chair was a symbolic reminder of the continuity between the early cosmic program and the emerging field of biophysical medical technologies.

This photograph, taken in that very laboratory beside Prof. Christoforov, represents one of the most meaningful moments of my scientific life. It captures not only a personal memory but also a historical intersection — the environment in which the foundational concepts of MILTA were shaped, tested, and refined.

Sharing this image today allows me to honour the legacy of Prof. Christoforov, the scientific culture that shaped my early career, and the origins of a technology that would later influence clinical practice far beyond the borders of its creation.

𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐯 𝐑𝐚𝐦𝐝𝐚𝐰𝐨𝐧, 𝐌𝐃, 𝐏𝐡𝐃, 𝐏𝐡𝐃, 𝐃𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐒𝐜
𝘋𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘚𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴
𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘦