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Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the largest country in the world by area, extending across eleven time zones and sharing land borders with fourteen countries. It is the world's ninth-most populous country and Europe's most populous country. Russia is a highly urbanised country, with 16 of its population centres having more than 1 million inhabitants. Its capital and largest city is Moscow. Saint Petersburg is Russia's second-largest city and its cultural capital.

The East Slavs emerged as a recognised group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries CE. The first East Slavic state, Kievan Rus', arose in the 9th century, and in 988, it adopted Orthodox Christianity from the Byzantine Empire. Kievan Rus' ultimately disintegrated; the Grand Duchy of Moscow led the unification of Russian lands, leading to the proclamation of the Tsardom of Russia in 1547. By the early 18th century, Russia had vastly expanded through conquest, annexation, and the efforts of Russian explorers, developing into the Russian Empire, which remains the third-largest empire in history. However, with the Russian Revolution in 1917, Russia's monarchic rule was abolished and eventually replaced by the Russian SFSR—the world's first constitutionally socialist state. Following the Russian Civil War, the Russian SFSR established the Soviet Union with three other Soviet republics, within which it was the largest and principal constituent. At the expense of millions of lives, the Soviet Union underwent rapid industrialisation in the 1930s and later played a decisive role for the Allies in World War II by leading large-scale efforts on the Eastern Front. With the onset of the Cold War, it competed with the United States for ideological dominance and international influence. The Soviet era of the 20th century saw some of the most significant Russian technological achievements, including the first human-made satellite and the first human expedition into outer space. (Full article...)

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Portrait of Ivan IV by Viktor Vasnetsov, 1897

Udmurt cuisine consists of the cuisine of Udmurtia and the Udmurt people, and is characterized by the rich use of local foods. Old traditions include foods made from grains and flour, especially milled rye, barley, wheat, and buckwheat. Meat, vegetables and black bread are staple foods in Udmurt cuisine. Additional foods include pelmeni, pancakes, pastries and small tarts. Milk is a scarce commodity, and that which exists is often made into ayran, a type of sour milk.

The Udmurt people have historically been involved in cattle breeding, agricultural production and hunting. Beekeeping is a common practice among the Udmurts and other groups in the area, and pig farming also exists. Potatoes, vegetables and flax are produced in significant quantities in Udmurtia. For total agricultural production in Russia, Udmurtia was ranked as 33rd. (Full article...)

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Portrait by Jakob Emanuel Handmann, 1753

Leonhard Euler (/ˈɔɪlər/ OY-lər; German: [ˈleːɔnhaʁt ˈʔɔʏlɐ] , Swiss Standard German: [ˈleɔnhard ˈɔʏlər]; 15 April 1707 – 18 September 1783) was a Swiss mathematician, physicist, astronomer, geographer, logician, and engineer who founded the studies of graph theory and topology and made pioneering and influential discoveries in many other branches of mathematics such as analytic number theory, complex analysis, and infinitesimal calculus. He introduced much of modern mathematical terminology and notation, including the notion of a mathematical function. He is also known for his work in mechanics, fluid dynamics, optics, astronomy, and music theory.

Euler is regarded as one of the greatest, most prolific mathematicians in history and the greatest of the 18th century. Several great mathematicians who produced their work after Euler's death have recognised his importance in the field as shown by quotes attributed to many of them: Pierre-Simon Laplace expressed Euler's influence on mathematics by stating, "Read Euler, read Euler, he is the master of us all." Carl Friedrich Gauss wrote: "The study of Euler's works will remain the best school for the different fields of mathematics, and nothing else can replace it." His 866 publications and his correspondence are being collected in the Opera Omnia Leonhard Euler which, when completed, will consist of 81 quartos. He spent most of his adult life in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and in Berlin, then the capital of Prussia. (Full article...)

In the news

8 December 2024 – Syrian civil war
Russian state media reports that Assad is in Moscow, and that he and his family have been granted asylum by Russia. (Euronews) (Sky News)
The Syrian opposition has taken control of Manbij in the Aleppo countryside and Jableh near the Russian Khmeimim Air Base in Latakia Governorate. (Al Jazeera)
8 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
Casualties of the Russo-Ukrainian War
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that the country lost 43,000 soldiers killed in action and 370,000 wounded, while estimating Russian casualties at 198,000 killed and over 550,000 wounded. (Politico)
8 December 2024 – Syrian Air Flight 9218
A Syrian Air Ilyushin Il-76T disappears from radar near Homs, Syria, after departing from Damascus International Airport. Initial rumors speculated that the plane was carrying the now overthrown former President of Syria Bashar al-Assad fleeing the country due to the fall of his regime after the Syrian opposition captured Damascus, though Russia has confirmed that al-Assad and his family are in Moscow. (Tampa Free Press) (iNews.co.uk)
7 December 2024 – Syrian civil war
Syrian security officials and Arab officials say that First Lady of Syria Asma al-Assad fled with her three children to Russia last week. However, amid conflicting reports, Syrian state television says that President Bashar al-Assad remains in Damascus. (The Telegraph via Yahoo! News) (BBC News)

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We don't appreciate what we have until it's gone. Freedom is like that. It's like air. When you have it, you don't notice it.
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