September 15, 2016

Siberia's natural wonders meet the Duma elections


Siberia's natural wonders meet the Duma elections

Sink your tusks in

Amos Chapple, rferl.org

1. There’s a treasure hunt on in Yakutia, and X marks the fossilized woolly mammoth. In the hunt for ancient ivory, illegal tuskers spend their summers carving, spraying, and finagling excavations of Siberian permafrost, avoiding police patrols and having some casual drunken fights amid the labor of looking for priceless white gold. Follow Amos Chapple on a powerful photo journey documenting the hunt.

Sergey Karpukhin, dailymail.co.uk

2. Is that a backdrop from an old Star Trek set? Nope—it’s the natural world’s latest wonder: towering granite formations in a part of Russia so remote they’re believed never to have been spotted before. The formations spout from the ground in almost inaccessible part of northern Yakutia (a few thousand miles north of the tuskers). After they were spotted by air, wildlife photographer Sergey Karpukhin crowdfunded a snowmobile journey to the site and returned with the first pics of Russia’s answer to Stonehenge.

youtube.com

3. Elections for Russia's parliament, known as the Duma, take place tomorrow. It may be predictable that United Russia will score pretty high, given the state’s low tolerance for opposition candidates and continued popularity, but the elections will be legitimate, analysts say. Some Russians don’t need to read the analysis: they’ve voted for the same candidates for years. So where’s the excitement? In the campaign ads, which add a spark (and some sweet scything) to this electoral party.

In Odder News

dailymail.co.uk

Quote of the Week

“I know it's bad, but what can I do? No work, lots of kids.”

—A man who spends his summers in the difficult, often futile labor of hunting mammoth tusks in the hopes of striking it rich. Only 20-30% of tuskers find enough to make a profit.

RosKultLit
Russian Cultural Literacy

What do this year’s Duma elections really mean for Russian politics and Russian society at large? Sure, the ruling party’s win is predictable, but with post-Crimea patriotism, a tighter focus on traditional values, and the aftermath of the 2012 protests shaping political change of recent years, this round of elections may have more to it than meets the eye. But don’t take our word for it: get down-and-dirty on the Duma with this in-depth analysis.

Want more where this comes from? Give your inbox the gift of TWERF, our Thursday newsletter on the quirkiest, obscurest, and Russianest of Russian happenings of the week.

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals
[INVALID]
[INVALID]

Some of our Books

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

Life Stories
September 01, 2009

Life Stories

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.

Bears in the Caviar
May 01, 2015

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.

Woe From Wit (bilingual)
June 20, 2017

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

93 Untranslatable Russian Words
December 01, 2008

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955