Not something you get to see every day.
Russia on the brink of HIV crisis as AIDS denial runs rampant through the country
The country might be on the verge of a health crisis.
Facebook turns over 3,000 Russian-bought ads featuring rifles, anti-immigrant messages
They even weaponized puppies.
NASA and Russia to work on new Lunar Space Station
It’s good to see two old rivals work together.
Russian space agency finally admits it’s afraid of SpaceX and reveals how it plans to fight back
Can the Russians take on SpaceX?
Putin also said that emissions aren’t causing global warming
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, just said that climate change is unstoppable and not caused by human activity.
Russia plans to ban all tobacco sales in 2033
No smoking here. Only vodka.
Russian police arrested a robot and here’s why I’m not Ok with that
Witnesses say the robot complied peacefully.
Google Translate names Russia “Mordor” without an orc in sight
In a rather hilarious turn of events, Google translate has been making some conversions that most people would find a tad inaccurate. When going from Ukrainian to Russian, the word “Russia” would show “Mordor,” “Russians” translated to “occupiers,” and Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov became “sad little horse.”
Russian military ‘Daft Punk’ biker parades in circles riding a quad – Putin is visibly not impressed
A popular staple in science fiction is the idea of a robot or robots in general designed to be the ultimate warrior. It’s a frightening thought – a robot doesn’t bleed, it follows orders to the very last line of code and bears no mercy. Luckily, judging from a recent video footage released by Russia Today this won’t happen for a long, long time. The report shows an embarrassing looking human-shaped robot that seems like a cross between a storm trooper and a Daft Punk. The autonomous bot rides a quad at low velocity through a training ground, but even the fires in the background doesn’t help the robot look any more menacing.
New bug species discovered in world’s deepest cave
A new species of ground beetle perfectly adapted to extreme environments has been discovered in the world’s deepest cave system, the Krubera-Voronja, in Russia. The insect is about a quarter of an inch long and blind. In fact, given there isn’t light whatsoever reaching it, the bug has evolved extended antennae and a body that has no pigment. The cave, known
NASA cuts ties with Russia; ISS cooperation still to continue
A few weeks ago, following Russia’s invasion of Crimea that caused worldwide turmoil, I wrote a piece about the potentially dangerous consequences to manned space flight. In the article, I argue that seeing how the US space program, like many other in the rest of the world for that matter, is heavily reliant on Russian space tech, NASA is placed
US space flight and ISS missions are dependent on Russia. What happens if the country pulls a squeeze?
Following Russia’s invasion of Crimea, the world political scene has been suddenly turned upside down. Many were surprised by this move, and harsh words and threats from the west were thrown down Putin’s alley. Talks of economic sanctions for Russia, in hope its military presence in Ukraine might be withdrawn, have been publically made. ZME Science has often chosen to
Ride the Moscow subway for free – just do 30 squats
As part of a great campaign to make the people from Moscow healthier, riders who buy the ticket at Vystavochnaya station in western Moscow now have the option to pay in squats. Get ready to drop down and give me 30 – if you want to ride the subway for free, that is. In an effort to promote both physical
Meteoroid that caused massive damage in Russia fully described
At the beginning of the year the most powerful meteoroid strike since the infamous Tunguska event took place in Russia, over Chelyabinsk. The meteor exploded many kilometers above ground, however the event released so much energy that it appeared much brighter than the sun and the ensuing shock wave caused billions of rubles worth of damage and sent over 1,200 people to
Russian ICBM missile test in space catches ISS astronauts by surprise
Right after World Space Week ended just last week – an event that celebrates the anniversary of the signing of the Outer Space Treaty that prohibits the militarization of space – Russia made a test launch for one of its new types of intercontinental ballistic missiles; missiles capable of launching their nuclear warhead payload from outer space. The launch apparently caught
Russia slates probe launch for the moon in 2015
Russia hasn’t had quite the most successful run with lunar probes, despite being the first nation to touch down on the moon in 1959, ten years before Neil Armstrong. It’s most ambitious probe mission, actually, the $160 million Fobos-Grunt mission destined for Mars failed miserably after it got stuck in Earth low-orbit in 2011. Now, the Russian space agency is
Rare and elusive Amur leopard captured on photo for first time in China
The Amur leopard is a beautiful leopard subspecies native to the region of the Russian far east, which since 1996 has been classified as critically endangered. Only a handful of specimens remain today, however a photo which surprised an Amur leopard in China suggests that the species’ numbers are steadily increasing, and conservation efforts are beginning to show signs of
Russia announces re-birth of manned lunar program, on eve of Feb 7 full moon
The Russian space agency recently announced that they’ll be soon launching a campaign to recruit cosmonauts for upcoming missions to the Moon, slated for the next ten years. Interestingly enough, the announcement comes just one day before the much expected February full moon, called Snow Moon – yes there’s actually snow on the moon this time of year. Don’t miss it tomorrow!
Russia’s Phobos probe is alive! Contact established with the failed Russian craft
Two weeks ago, panic engulfed the Russian space agency after one of its dearest project, the $170 million Phobos-Grunt mission, which was set to land on Mars’ moon Phobos, collect samples and then return to moon, got stranded in orbit, completely blocked off from any kind of communication. Valiant efforts were made to restore the craft, but in vain. However, just