Abstract: Forming a cultural image of the two Russian capitals is a recent and important challenge. Historical collisions that resulted in Moscow and St. Petersburg being brought apart were the basis for the forming of two major paradigms in history, which reflected the complexity and ambiguity of Russia's path in history. This is why we see a dichotomy in the image of the two capitals in A.I. Solzhenitsyn’s creative work, as well as its emerging depth and dialectic nature. Nostalgic images of pre-Revolution Moscow, as evident on the pages of the "Red Wheel" are replaced by political metaphor which became the main stylistic technique of works devoted to Stalin-era Russia. The main method of this research is the analysis of text meaning from the perspective of social and cultural context. The author explores an area that few ever touched upon, as far as A.I. Solzhenitsyn’s work is concerned, as he analyzes the cities not as mere historical setting, but rather as full actors on the stage of the great author's books. A city is presented as a collective actor, an animate being which actively impacts the lives of the main characters.

Keywords: City, dichtomy, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Solzhenitsyn, political symbols, prison toponimy, "The Red Wheel", Stalin era, Foreign land

Abstract: This study examines the phenomenon of "Freetown Christiania", the emergence of which in the middle of the Danish capital is one of the most interesting social experiments of our time. An attempt to create a society from scratch, forming a new social and economic life, political structure, at the very center of one of the European capitals - not on a remote island. This work aims to define a new study object and the limits for research within different scientific disciplines and interdisciplinary research. The method of this study is theoretical analysis of Russian and foreign scientific literature and other sources on the subject of "Freetown Christiania." The novelty of the research lies in the fact that "Freetown Christiania" represents an intriguing social experiment, and was not properly researched. In this paper, the author makes an attempt to define a new object of interdisciplinary research. This article contains an overview of major events since the beginning up to the present moment.

Keywords: Microstate, Utopian communities, Counter-economics, Hippie, Copenhagen, Freetown Christiania, Christiania, City block, autonomy, self-government

Abstract: The challenges that Russia faces in the modern globalizing world present the issues of forming a long-standing social and demographic policy. Currently, our country's population constututes less than half of an optimal value for a territory as big as 17th of habitable land. At the same time, developing neighbouring countries like China, India and Pakistan experience a constant growth in poopulation. The experts suggest that Earth's population numbers area approaching critical values, which correlates with economic data. The authors use social and demographic projections by S.M. Shirokogorov, N.A. Vasilyev and P.A. Sorokin in their research. In order to solve Russia's demographic crisis, we must take into account the state of education and healthcare, not just raw population numbers. It is not possible to overcome this challenge in urban environment, and thus, we must focus our effort on developing and supporting the rural parts of Russia. Competent government policies for improving demographics must be long-term oriented, keeping in mind that depopulation problems cannot be solved in one swipe.

Keywords: active population, fertility, depopulation, unevenness, Russia, limits to growth, city, demography, migration, comfortable habitat

Abstract: Public utilities are an integral part of everyday lives of the urban population, involving anything from street cleaning to convenient payment for utilities. The interaction between local authorities and the citizens often becomes an intense confrontation, especially in situations when municipal authorities demonstrate incompetence. The issue of high-quality utilities in residential areas goes hand in hand with the price tag, and this dilemma is an evident link in the chain of unsolved problems of modern urban life. The civil society is instrumental in creating a comfortable habitat. In this work, we employed the study of a case building, and its close examination. The author has also conducted a content-analysis of publications in municipal periodics. This article analyzes the state of affairs in Public utilities in Myrishi, Aprelevka and Naro-Fominsk. Despite the rapid development of infrastructure, this area is inseparable from regional processes. The escalation of Public utilities costs for the population continues, and this fact gives ground to possible conflict between residents and executive authorities.

Keywords: contradictions, dialogue, costs, rates, Moscow region, Moscow, Public utilities, urban life, penalty, authorities

Abstract: First and foremost, the authors link the relevance of this study with the aggravation of environment, ecological, social, climatic and other issues which are specific to urban areas in the beginning of the XXI century. Not only large cities, but the whole area affected by the devastating impact of technological expansion. Under these conditions, the cooperation of the city authorities with environmentalists to create a comfortable environment is an important factor in solving these problems. However, there are some obstacles associated with the intervention of interest groups that use these problems to solve their short-term political goals. The study used hydrological monitoring data gathered in the regional centers of Moscow region, analyzing media sources, primarily regional newspapers and magazines. The novelty of the method proposed by the authors is based upon the connection of the social and natural aspects of urban area problems analysis. It's possible that the research conducted in the article will become a stepping stone for further research in this new field of social cognition - Social Hydroecology. Creating a comfortable environment is definitely possible with the cooperation between urban authorities and civil society, as far as architectural and planning are concerned.

Keywords: Moscow, Moscow region, beautification, initiative groups, recreational areas, urban environment, ecology, comfort, pollution, hydroecology