The SRAS Newsletter
A Resource for Students, Educators, and Anyone Curious about Russia  Welcome from SRAS!
September 1st in Russia is День знаний (The Day of Knowledge), a holiday that marks the beginning of the new school year and celebrates Russia's long-lived passion for science and education. We at SRAS wish you success and joy in your academic endeavors this year!
This month's back-to-school newsletter, with an expanded format and more material than ever before, is geared jump-start your Russia-related studies! It also marks what will become something of a political focus for us this year. With the elections in Russia and the US ramping up for 2008, now is a fabulous time to be studying Russian, and especially to be studying in Russia, submersed in what will be affecting international politics and economies for years to come! If you have views or material you would like to contribute to the newsletter, please contact us. To subscribe to this free newsletter, send an email with "Subscribe SRAS" in the subject field to jwilson@sras.org. News and Announcements Russia Plants Flag on Arctic Seabed. In what we expect to be developing story for several months, Russia has planted a flag on the Arctic seabed in an attempt to further its claims that it owns the "land." Also vying for control of the resource-rich area are the US, Canada, Denmark, and Norway. Read more Starbucks Opens in Moscow. After a long legal battle to win its name back from a "squatter" - a person who registered trademarks in the "Wild-West" days of Russian capitalism, just after the fall when Russia completely lacked the laws to govern its new market economy, a Starbucks has opened at one of Moscow's major shopping centers. Another location is planned for the historic Old Arbat District as well. Read more Free Video on the "Good" in Russia. Access to Ideas is a charity that delivers books to rural Russian libraries. Their founders have produced a video detailing what they think is wrong with American and Russian foreign policies - that these policies have overlooked the common people and the good they harbor. Watch the trailer Order a copy KGB documents now online. Historians from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are now publishing documents from the former KGB headquarters in those states online. The site is still growing, but is already very interesting! Read more Russia to Host Winter Olympics - 2014. Read more How was this story reported in Russia? Where's the Obzori? SRAS's news obzori were on vacation for the summer. The obzori, which report the month's news in format that reveals how modern Russians live, how they are governed, how their news is reported to them, and more will return next month! For more information on recent headline events see Johnson's Russia List! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
What's the Library?
The Library is a popular, free, and now enormous resource for students and researchers of subjects related to Russia and the FSU. It has just received a face-lift, an audit to eliminate dead or obsolete links, and a substantial expansion of its material. The new entries are listed below. Central Asia
SRAS has been striving for a couple of years now to become a major Internet depot for information on Central Asia. This broadly-based entry adds to the articles and many resources we've already placed online, as well as acts a central portal page for those resources and articles. It also covers the politics, economies, cultures, and more for the states of Central Asia and those of the Caucasus Mountains. Language Resources for Students of Russian
This is a concise listing of some of the Internet's best resources for students and teachers of the Russian language. This includes not only online lessons, but also resources to find local news in Russian and to network with Russian immigrants who may be living near you! There's more out there than you think! Finance and Financial Markets in Russia
This is a concise listing of Russia's major financial markets institutions, regulatory agencies, and internal and external sources for business capital. This section is part of The Library's new "Special Focus: The Russian Economy and Markets" section. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Featured Program: Politics and Int'l Relations
The Visiting Scholar "Politics and International Relations" Program at MGIMO is designed for advanced students of international relations and economics. It gives a unique opportunity to be immersed the domestic and international politics of the 2008 presidential elections occurring in Russia and America, while studying with some of Russia's future leaders. Sign up by October 16th! Featured Program: Language as a Career
Language as a Career is a practical course designed to turn the language skills of intermediate and advanced speakers of Russian into marketable, professional tools. Students study the language and translation, pedagogy, or journalism and apply those language skills. Students will also be given the chance to experience working in Russia! Sign up by October 16th! Charles Braver Language Exploration Grant
The Language Exploration Grant for the spring semester of 2008 will be $1500. The deadline to apply is October 16th! SRAS Work-Study
SRAS Work-Study offers $300 per month to students who want to gain experience researching and publishing in Russia. The deadline is October 16th! Scholarships and Grants for Students and Scholars of Russian Studies
An updated list of all deadlines for current Russia-related scholarship cycles. SRAS has many more programs. Click here! 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Heidi McCormack of General Motors
Heidi McCormack turned a degree in International Studies and a masters degree earned abroad into a successful 10-year career with General Motors in one of GM's fastest growing markets - Russia. Why Study Russian? Click here for quotes from experts! Terah Yaroch from the UN
Many of our students dream of one day working for the UN. We asked Terah Yaroch, an SRAS graduate who is now actually working there, how she came land in that position. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Short Term Apt. Rental and Hotel Reservations
In partnership with AllRussiaHotels.ru and VisaToRussia.com, SRAS is proud to announce new services available in its Travel Services, which has been updated with more helpful travel info.
Borovsk: Painted in its own History
Borovsk, a small town in central Russia hadn't changed much in a couple centuries. Then, a local artist began painting the walls. The sleepy town is now a darling of the Internet and tourists alike. Astana: A Modern Wonder
Long-time friend of SRAS Daniel Satinsky shares his thoughts on the young history of Astana, the new capital of Kazakhstan, where he has traveled and conducted business. Murals, Folklore, and Meeting Locals
Borovsk, (whose history is described in the article above) is also becoming a darling of professor led tours to Russia, which SRAS helps plan. This article details the experiences of a group from HWS colleges who toured the town during the summer of 2006. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Who's Who in Kyrgyz Politics
SRAS graduate Michael Coffey studied at American University – Central Asia during the 2006-7 school year, where he followed the complex political developments in Kyrgyzstan closely. He authored this resource to give a quick but thorough overview of the political atmosphere and machinations in Kyrgyzstan.
Russia's Shrunken Air Defence Perimeter
A brief history of US and Russia's BMD systems. Lavrov's Speech to MGIMO Students
As they returned to classes, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs spoke to the students of SRAS partner university MGIMO, touching on Russia's current and prospective relations with many states. The Rediscovery of the "Russian World"
The Russian language, despite significant retreats in recent years, still claims some 274 million language users worldwide and a long and rich literary and scientific heritage. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Heritage Language Reading in the University
This paper examines the reading experiences, strategies, and curriculum preferences of university-level heritage language students. As published in Heritage Language Journal.
Vocabulary-Building Interactive Flash Card Programs
Free or inexpensive ways to build vocabulary lists for students to review on their computers! Election Year Programs in Russia!
Most professors who subscribe to this newsletter will be receiving a free poster detailing SRAS programs that can immerse students in the 2008 Russian election year. If you have been forwarded this email, or do not receive this poster, contact us to get on our list! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Olga's Blog: The Return of Olga
Due to a severe illness, Olga was unable to help us produce blogs for several months. Now she's back, with new entry of annotated, conversational Russian that details her medical experiences in Russia. Image of the Month: говорим по-русский... в Греции!
As Russians are now earning more, they are travelling more to places all over the world. In an attempt to gain the business of these Russians abroad, several establishments in Greece are now advertising their language abilities! Mini Lesson: Визит к врачу - Visiting a doctor
Hopefully, students coming abroad will not often face sudden проблемы со здоровьем (health problems), but occasionally this might happen, and they may have to лечиться (undergo medical treatment). In this case, they need записаться на прием к врачу (to make an appointment with a doctor) and сходить к врачу (to go to see the doctor). Often, a first visit to the doctor starts with seeing a терапевт (general practitioner). In a кабинет врача (doctor's office) the пациент (patient) is usually first posed with the question "На что жалуетесь?" ("What is bothering you?") The patient can say "Я плохо себя чувствую," ("I am not feeling well"), and then elaborate – "У меня болит голова/живот/зуб/горло" ("I have a headache/stomachache/toothache/sore throat,") or "У меня сильная простуда" ("I have a bad cold") or perhaps the patient will have something that often affects people who have just traveled long distances and arrived in a new country and say, "У меня расстройство желудка и диарея" ("I have an upset stomach and diarrhea.") Other ailment that affect travelers can include depression and insomnia. The patient can then say "У меня депрессия/бессоница" ("I have depression/insomnia"). The doctor will осмотрит больного (examine the sick person) and will usually выпишет лекарства/терапию (prescribe some medicine/treatment). От головной боли (for headaches), the doctor can prescribe анальгетики (painkillers). Сбить температуру (to bring down a temperature), аспирин (aspirin) is often prescribed. Russian doctors often treat depression with антидепрессанты (antidepressants), but sometimes транквилизаторы (tranquilizers) and/or витамины (vitamins) too. Medicine often has to be taken до еды (before meals) or после еды (after meals). Most medicine is regimented as well, for example, по одной таблетке три раза в день (one tablet three times a day). If a person has грипп (the flu), he/she can be recommended to try продаваемые без рецепта (over-the-counter medications) such as парацетамол (Paracetamol) and other противопростудные препараты (anti cold medications), such as колдрекс (Coldrex). Russian people have elaborated many народные средства (folk remedies) for different diseases. For example, to treat insomnia and depression, пустырник (motherwort) is boiled and drank (one teaspoonful in a glass of water) to give the patient a deep and restful sleep. Motherwort can be отмерять меньшую дозу (measured in a smaller dose to calm people before exams or other important events. It has no побочные явления (side effects). All doctors are aware of such natural успокоительные средства (sedatives), such as мед (honey), молоко (milk), бананы (bananas), and тыква (pumpkin). Also, some пряности (spices) such as гвоздика (cloves), тмин (caraway), имбирь (ginger), and шалфей (sage) act as снотворные (soporifics, or drugs that induce sleep). One has to either add them to one's dinner or to prepare отвары (medicinal teas) from them. For treating a sore throat, Russians often make a полоскание (gargle). The simplest of these contains 1 teaspoonful of salt per glass of water and two drops of iodine. One can also boil herbs – sage or ромашка (chamomile) – and gargle every 30 minutes. Other sore throat remedies include vodka, vodka with pepper, and hot milk with honey (two tablespoons of honey per glass of milk). To treat a headache, folk wisdom says that you may crumple a fresh капустный лист (cabbage leaf) and affix it to your forehead or temples with a bandage. Cabbage is rich in calcium ions that will normalize the blood vessels under the skin, causing many types of headaches to be alleviated. For treating diarrhea, one can dissolve two or three small crystals of марганцовка (potassium permanganate) in a half liter of water to produce a dark pink, but not violet, solution. One glass is drank in the morning and another at night. After taking the solution one or two times, the patient is usually cured. | 
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