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Belarus vs North Korea

On research quality in 2022-now, Belarus ranks #135 in the world and North Korea #183, of 189 countries. Belarus stands higher in 15 of the 15 fields both publish in, North Korea in 0.

Research profiles alike: 0.55similar shapes of research, whatever their size. How it is measured

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Belarus

World rank, 2022-now
#135
#132 all time
Works, 2022-now
15k
fractional
Top-10% rate
3.4%
share of its work among the world's most cited
Open access
46%
of its works free to read

Strongest relative focus: Nuclear Energy and Engineering, General Materials Science, Discrete Mathematics and Combinatorics.

North Korea

World rank, 2022-now
#183
#191 all time
Works, 2022-now
841
fractional
Top-10% rate
4.4%
share of its work among the world's most cited
Open access
54%
of its works free to read

Strongest relative focus: Fluid Flow and Transfer Processes, Condensed Matter Physics, Geometry and Topology.

Who leads, measure by measure?

North Korea leads on 6 of 9 measures: excellence for its fields, top-10% rate, citations per work, open access, international co-authorship and growth. Belarus leads on 2 of 9 measures: research quality and output. The two are level on institutions in the world top 100.

Belarus 21 level6 North Korea
  1. #135Research qualityworld rank of 189 countries, 2022-now#183
  2. 0.33×Excellence for its fieldsits top-10% rate against what its topics predict; 1.00× is as expected0.81×
  3. 15kOutputfractional works, 2022-now841
  4. 3.4%Top-10% rateshare of its works among the world's most cited4.4%
  5. 6.3Citations per workall time, per fractional work8.1
  6. 0World top 100institutions it holds among the world's best 1000
  7. 46%Open accessof its works free to read, all time54%
  8. 26%Internationalof its works written with co-authors abroad, all time48%
  9. +0%Growthworks in 2022-25 against 2018-21; half a bar is no change+168%

A rank is drawn as its standing: the longer the bar, the nearer the top. Anything else is drawn against the larger of the two, and two values a hair apart are called level. Quality, excellence and the top-10% rate are explained in the methodology.

Who leads in each field?

Belarus stands higher in 15 of 15 fields, North Korea in 0. Belarus leads most in Engineering (#90 against #120). Each bar is that side's standing among all countries ranked in the field: the full bar is first place.

Belarus 150 North Korea
  1. #118Agricultural and Biological Sciences-
  2. #97Arts and Humanities-
  3. #85Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology-
  4. #109Business, Management and Accounting-
  5. #61Chemistry-
  6. #95Computer Science-
  7. #103Economics, Econometrics and Finance-
  8. #90Engineering#120
  9. #111Environmental Science-
  10. #64Materials Science-
  11. #73Mathematics-
  12. #125Medicine-
  13. #70Physics and Astronomy-
  14. #100Psychology-
  15. #129Social Sciences-

Standing is the percentile of world rank within each field, 2022-now; the printed number is the rank itself. A dash means the field is too small there to rank. How sides are compared.

The numbers behind each field

Click a heading to sort. The side that does better in a pair of columns is shaded: a lower rank, a higher rate, more works.

Field Belarus rankNorth Korea rank Belarus top 10%North Korea top 10% Belarus worksNorth Korea works
Agricultural and Biological Sciences #118 - 3.7% - 925 -
Arts and Humanities #97 - 6.5% - 334 -
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology #85 - 3.3% - 680 -
Business, Management and Accounting #109 - 4.3% - 427 -
Chemistry #61 - 1.9% - 347 -
Computer Science #95 - 3.3% - 900 -
Economics, Econometrics and Finance #103 - 2.9% - 351 -
Engineering #90 #120 2.7% 3.1% 2.8k 262
Environmental Science #111 - 3.6% - 624 -
Materials Science #64 - 2.7% - 1k -
Mathematics #73 - 3.1% - 374 -
Medicine #125 - 3.2% - 2.4k -
Physics and Astronomy #70 - 2.1% - 504 -
Psychology #100 - 4.4% - 214 -
Social Sciences #129 - 5.0% - 1.8k -

What is each known for?

The keywords that describe each side's research, by fractional works in 2022-now and weighted toward what it does more of than the world.

Belarus

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's
All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Sustainable Development948▲ 3.6×91 topics
  2. Climate Change760▲ 1.65×112 topics
  3. Artificial Intelligence586▲ 2.4×61 topics
  4. Epidemiology525▼ 0.78×133 topics
  5. Innovation508▲ 2.9×67 topics
  6. Digital Transformation494▲ 5.4×25 topics
  7. Globalization482▲ 1.45×111 topics
  8. Energy Efficiency418▲ 2.7×41 topics
  9. Oxidative Stress414▲ 1.49×63 topics
  10. Food Security410▲ 4.5×24 topics
  11. Sustainability404◆ 0.98×102 topics
  12. Mechanical Properties374▲ 2.2×39 topics
  13. Digital Economy369▲ 11×19 topics
  14. Regional Development359▲ 6.2×19 topics
  15. Renewable Energy331▲ 1.35×55 topics
  16. Economic Development331▲ 2.4×43 topics
  17. Nanoparticles313▲ 1.47×44 topics
  18. Legal Regulation294▲ 7.7×8 topics
  19. Digitalization253▲ 7.3×14 topics
  20. Economic Security232▲ 6.5×7 topics
  21. Agricultural Development225▲ 8.7×7 topics
  22. Metal Nanoparticles220▲ 8.2×6 topics
  23. Nutrition215▲ 2.9×14 topics
  24. Ethnicity207▲ 3.3×18 topics
  25. Synthesis202▲ 3.2×35 topics
  26. Language193▲ 4.6×12 topics
  27. Global Economy189▲ 8.7×7 topics
  28. Industry 4.0167▲ 19×3 topics
  29. Aerospace Applications150▲ 9.2×3 topics
  30. Industrial Policy149▲ 8.2×4 topics
  31. Geopolitics144▲ 5.6×10 topics
  32. Foresight144▲ 6.5×2 topics
  33. Transition140▲ 9.4×6 topics
  34. Structural Properties138▲ 18×2 topics
  35. Cultural History136▲ 6.7×9 topics
  36. Adhesive Joints134▲ 12×2 topics
  37. Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics132▲ 24×1 topic
  38. Polymer Composite Materials132▲ 24×1 topic
  39. Information Security130▲ 7.8×4 topics
  40. Geographical Analysis126▲ 18×2 topics

North Korea

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's
All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Machine Learning45▲ 1.25×70 topics
  2. Deep Learning42◆ 1.15×65 topics
  3. Climate Change30◆ 1.02×66 topics
  4. Neural Networks30▲ 1.77×33 topics
  5. Mechanical Properties24▲ 2.3×28 topics
  6. Biomedical Applications24▲ 1.86×30 topics
  7. Nanoparticles23▲ 1.72×37 topics
  8. Environmental Impact20◆ 1.10×38 topics
  9. Nanomaterials20▲ 1.78×17 topics
  10. Nanocomposites20▲ 2.3×21 topics
  11. Renewable Energy19▲ 1.24×31 topics
  12. Oxidative Stress18◆ 1.05×47 topics
  13. Energy Efficiency18▲ 1.76×22 topics
  14. Remote Sensing17▲ 1.32×31 topics
  15. Graphene16▲ 2.3×11 topics
  16. Vibration Analysis15▲ 5.3×9 topics
  17. Catalysis15▲ 2.1×22 topics
  18. Nonlinear Systems14▲ 6.1×8 topics
  19. Microstructure13▲ 2.3×19 topics
  20. Biosensors12▲ 2.4×11 topics
  21. Metal Recovery12▲ 5.5×3 topics
  22. Numerical Simulation11▲ 3.6×12 topics
  23. Artificial Neural Networks11▲ 2.2×9 topics
  24. Buckling Behavior11▲ 14×2 topics
  25. Nonlinear Dynamics10▲ 4.4×6 topics
  26. Finite Element Method10▲ 9.8×6 topics
  27. Stability Analysis10▲ 5.7×6 topics
  28. Molecular Dynamics9▲ 4.8×7 topics
  29. Fluid-Structure Interaction9▲ 5.6×6 topics
  30. Materials9▲ 3.5×6 topics
  31. Rare Earth Elements8▲ 5.1×4 topics
  32. Superconductivity8▲ 4.4×9 topics
  33. Entanglement8▲ 4.9×4 topics
  34. Metamaterials8▲ 4.9×5 topics
  35. Microstructural Evolution8▲ 4.8×4 topics
  36. Optical Modulators7▲ 4.8×3 topics
  37. Composite Plates7▲ 21×1 topic
  38. Functionally Graded Materials7▲ 21×1 topic
  39. Battery Recycling6▲ 7.2×1 topic
  40. Hydrometallurgical Processes6▲ 7.2×1 topic

Size is fractional works in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of the side's work against its share of the world's. Each word links to the topic it comes from most.

How has their output grown?

Belarus has out-published North Korea every year since 1981.

still counting2k4k6kBelarus3,603 in 2025North Korea408 in 20251990200020102020

Fractional works per year.

Their share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share, because all of science grows. Each line is a side as a percentage of every work published that year.

still counting0.050%0.10%Belarus0.061% in 2025North Korea0.0069% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

The share of each side's works, year by year, that reached the world's 10% most cited for their field and year. The average of all institutions is 10.0% (why not 10%).

still counting5%10%15%Belarus4.8% in 2025North Korea3.6% in 2025200020102020

A year with under 1% of the side's peak output is left out: a rate over a handful of papers says nothing. The latest years are still being cited.

Who holds more of the world's best institutions?

A country's average quality and the number of institutions it holds at the very top can disagree, and both are worth knowing. The counts are nested: an institution in the top 50 is also in the top 100.

Belarus 05 level0 North Korea
  1. 0In the world top 500
  2. 0In the top 1000
  3. 0In the top 5000
  4. 0In the top 1,0000
  5. #51Elite capacityrank among 204 countries#51

Institutions ranked on research quality, 2022-now. Elite capacity counts a country's institutions by their worldwide rank, weighted so a place at #1 counts for more than one at #480.

Which publishes more research, Belarus or North Korea?

Belarus publishes 17.7× as much research as North Korea in 2022-now (15k against 841 fractional works).

Whose research has more impact, Belarus or North Korea?

4.4% of North Korea's research reaches the world's top 10% most cited, against 3.4% for Belarus.

Is Belarus or North Korea growing faster?

Output in 2022-25 was +168% against 2018-21 for North Korea, and +0% for Belarus.

Which has more open access research, Belarus or North Korea?

54% of North Korea's research is free to read, against 46% of Belarus's.

Which has more world-class institutions, Belarus or North Korea?

Belarus holds 0 of the world's top 100 research institutions and North Korea 0; in the top 1,000 it is 0 against 0.

Which institutions lead in each country?

The highest-ranked institutions on each side on research quality, 2022-now. The percentage is each institution's own top-10% rate: the share of its works that are among the world's 10% most cited for their field and year. Every figure stands alone, so they do not add up to 100%.

Belarus

  1. 1National Academy of Sciences of Belarus5.2% top 10% · 4.7k works
  2. 2Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University2.4% top 10% · 452 works
  3. 3Belarusian National Technical University2.9% top 10% · 900 works
  4. 4Vitebsk State Medical University1.8% top 10% · 335 works
  5. 5Yanka Kupala State University of Grodno3.8% top 10% · 323 works
  6. 6Belarusian State Technological University1.8% top 10% · 472 works

North Korea

  1. 1Kim Il-sung University2.5% top 10% · 173 works
  2. 2Kim Chaek University of Technology1.4% top 10% · 232 works
  3. 3Institute of Natural Science9.3% top 10% · 287 works
  4. 4Pyongyang University of Science and Technology1.7% top 10% · 104 works

The number is the rank inside the country. The track on each row is the top-10% rate; the tick is the average of all institutions, 10.0% (how it is set): teal above it, red below. The ranking is the quality score, which compares the rate with what each institution's own topics predict and adds a small reward for size, so the rates do not fall in order.

Who are the top researchers on each side?

The most cited researchers on each side, among those ranked.

Belarus

  1. 1 Alena Skrahina #47,327 worldwide 8.7k citations · 157 works
  2. 2 Andrey Litvin #129,746 worldwide 8.9k citations · 233 works
  3. 3 Dzmitry Mukha #487,907 worldwide 1k citations · 23 works
  4. 4 Varvara Solodovnikova #491,374 worldwide 2k citations · 46 works
  5. 5 Svetlana N. Samovich #706,105 worldwide 992 citations · 41 works

North Korea

  1. 1 Un-Gi Jong #589,064 worldwide 2k citations · 71 works
  2. 2 Yun-Hyok Kye #951,780 worldwide 1.1k citations · 38 works
  3. 3 Chol‐Jun Yu #1,569,436 worldwide 2.7k citations · 144 works
  4. 4 Sunghyok Kim #1,881,333 worldwide 656 citations · 15 works
  5. 5 O Hyong-Chol #2,399,720 worldwide 182 citations · 44 works