Abstract: The subject of the study is a cultural code that gives the key to deciphering the cultural text of technical design. The object of the study is the language of technical design. The research uses methods of analyzing visual symbols used in technical design, the method of analyzing previous studies, the method of synthesis in conclusions regarding the concept of cultural code. The authors consider the following aspects of the topic: semiotic approach to the theory of culture and the definition of cultural code in visual semiosis; morphology and semantics of technical symbols in engineering design; syntax and pragmatics of cultural text in engineering design. Special attention is paid to the theory of complex analysis of a technical scheme as an example of a holistic cultural text.   The main conclusions of the study are: 1. The semiotic approach to the definition of culture involves considering the sign system from the point of view of the diversity of meanings of its elements (symbols), and identifying three categories of symbols: semantics, pragmatics and syntax. The cultural text of technical design (device diagrams) is (in comparison with the text of art) a stricter, invariant system; however, as in any language, the genesis associated with changes in syntactics can be traced in it. 2. The syntax of the cultural text of technical design can be analyzed only if there is a cultural code of this technical language. This code includes the "alphabet" of symbol elements, their semantics (variety of meanings), pragmatics (scope of application) and syntax (relationships that form a unique schema text). A special contribution of the author to the study of the topic is the systematization of the morphology of pictorial symbols in engineering design from the point of view of cultural studies. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the culturological reading of the technical text.

Keywords: electrical circuit, invariant language of technology, electrical diagram, technical text, engineering design, cultural text, cultural code, technical sciences, culture, electric motor

Abstract: Based on documents from the archives of the French Foreign Ministry and the Russian State Archive of Modern History, the article analyzes Soviet-Algerian relations through the prism of the rivalry between Moscow and Paris in the period from Algeria's independence in 1962 to the nationalization in 1971 by the Algerian leadership of oil transportation facilities and 51% of the shares of French oil companies operating in the Arab state. In the first years after the signing of the Evian Agreements of 1962, loans provided by the USSR, supplies of Soviet equipment, the start of a program to train national personnel, as well as assistance from other socialist countries helped Algeria to stabilize the socio-economic situation in the country. Up until 1968, Moscow's actions in Algeria did not affect strategically important areas for France.     However, the aggravation of French-Algerian relations due to Paris' non-compliance with the Algerian wine purchase agreement and, more importantly, the Algerian leadership's desire for independence from France in the oil sector and, at the same time, the beginning of supplies of Algerian wine to the USSR in 1968 and Moscow's assistance in the exploration and exploitation of oil fields in Algeria led to the beginning of the Soviet-French rivalry for the Algerian market. As a result, France and other Western countries were able to impose serious competition on the USSR, significantly reducing Moscow's capabilities in the Algerian direction. The USSR promoted Algeria's independence from France in the oil sector, but failed to make Algeria part of the socialist bloc. The main beneficiary of the Soviet-French rivalry was Algeria itself, which received significant support from the USSR in creating modern industry, agriculture and in the field of training qualified personnel, while retaining ample opportunities to enter Western markets.

Keywords: Evian Accords, Socialist Bloc, Non-Aligned Movement, Third World, cold war, France, Fifth Republic, Algeria, USSR, petrol

Abstract: The purpose of the presented research is to highlight the results of the social policy of the Soviet state in the ethno-cultural development of the indigenous population of the Arctic regions of Yakutia. It is revealed that the new socio-cultural environment that emerged as a result of the industrialization of the Arctic region, as a whole, contributed to the improvement of the general cultural and educational level of the indigenous population and revealed new opportunities for the realization of its aspirations. During this period, conditions began to develop for the formation of the intelligentsia of the northern aboriginal ethnic groups, some representatives of which became prominent figures of culture, science and literature. Their fates are an interesting example of the implementation of the life strategies of the ethnic elite, which subsequently played a major role in the socio-political history of the region. The methodological basis of the article was the historical method of analysis of archival data, periodicals and scientific literature related to the research topic. The use of historical-comparative, historical-systemic and biographical methods made it possible to analyze socio-economic and cultural processes in the Yakut ASSR. The result of the study was the identification of the main factors that contributed to the formation of the intelligentsia of the small peoples of the North in the 1960s and 1980s, which played an important role in their social development. It is noted that the expansion of the education and training network in the republic has allowed for the mass education of young generations of Northerners, and the growth in the number of people with incomplete and completed secondary education has opened up opportunities for professionalization. Access to vocational education against the background of the processes of urbanization of the Arctic territories, their integration into the common cultural and educational space of the country had a decisive influence on the formation of the intelligentsia of the indigenous peoples of the North. For the first time, based on the materials of Yakutia, the assessment of the state policy on the formation of "national cadres" from northern national minorities was undertaken through the prism of real personal biographies.

Keywords: cultural environment, ethnic intelligentsia, social mobility, indigenous peoples of the North, national policy, urbanization, rural human resources, Yakutia, Arctic, educational policy

Abstract: The article examines the history of the study of the ritual pillars of the Yakut ''serge'' in the XIX–XXI centuries. The purpose of the work is to evaluate the source base and generalize data on the history of the study of hitching posts of the Yakutia ''serge'' from the XIX to the XXI centuries. The research is based on the analysis of the materials of researchers of the XIX – XXI centuries. On the basis of sources (archival, literary, scientific), information about the ritual pillars of the Yakutia serge is analyzed. When preparing the article, the author relied on documentary sources of the National Library of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), the Russian State Library, the National Archive of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The methodological basis of the research is the principle of historicism, as well as the problem-chronological method. In the article, for the first time, the subject of a special scientific study is the history of the study of hitching posts of the serge of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Based on the analysis of sources, the article summarizes the historical experience of studying the Yakut pillars of the serge. In the history of the study of the serge, three main periods of the study of the Yakut serge are identified, and the available sources and materials are analyzed. The first period is represented by the works of researchers of the XIX – early XX centuries. Research conducted during this period, which did not have a purposeful nature, made a great contribution to the accumulation of sources and data for their further study. Second period – 1920 – 1990- s., associated with the Soviet period. This period is characterized by an active, purposeful research of the ritual pillars of serge has begun. The third period – the 1990s - XXI century, includes the modern stage of research. This period is characterized by purposeful studies of the pillars of the Yakutia serge, in various aspects. The functions, meaning and images of serge pillars in the Yakut culture have been studied in more depth.

Keywords: peoples of Siberia, material culture, cultural heritage, cult monuments, ritual pillars, serge, hitching posts, yakuts, Yakutia, The Arctic

Abstract: Based on the methodology of the activity approach, the article examines the processes of material incentives for workers in the early years of the NEP. It deals in detail with the issues of material incentives for workers in the conditions of the NEP economy on the example of a large industrial enterprise - the Tula Cartridge Factory. How did the gradual tightening of rationing took place at this time? How did this process affected different groups of workers? What practices at the workshop level were used to regulate earnings? The purpose of the article is to clarify these and other interrelated issues affecting the stimulation of labor. In his research, the author proceeded from the principle of historicism and the methodology of the activity approach, according to which attention is focused on the practical activities of people, the mechanisms of their interaction.      The scientific novelty of the study is determined by the fact that it comprehensively highlights the process of organizing financial incentives for employees at a large military enterprise in the early period of the NEP, which is of particular relevance in the context of modern challenges. In the initial period of the NEP, the Tula Cartridge Factory underwent a general improvement of production processes. An important part of this work was to restore the effectiveness of material incentives in relation to labor productivity, primarily by increasing production standards. As it appears on the example of the TPZ, within the historical context of the early NEP, a relatively acceptable level of material incentives for industrial labor was achieved in Soviet industry.

Keywords: cartridge production, nep, rationing, motivation of work, financial incentives, wages, military production, labor productivity, Tula Cartridge Factory, labor efficiency

Abstract: The subject of the study is the impact of the Ukrainian crisis on foreign and defense policy V4. The statements and actions of the Visegrad Group on the Ukrainian issue, which were ahead of the European Union's activity in their efficiency, are being investigated. However, the consolidation of the "quartet" countries has already been seriously tested in the first months and even weeks of the crisis, which will subsequently allow us to talk about the existence of a significant split between the participants. In addition, V4's activities regarding the Ukrainian crisis were mostly in the nature of a reaction to the events taking place, which did not offer any constructive strategies for resolving the process. The novelty of the scientific research in the framework of this article is expressed in the analysis of normative legal acts, statements of the Visegrad Group, demonstrating the different degree of response of V4 to various stages of the Ukrainian crisis, as well as the change in approaches to the defense policy of the "quartet" countries in the specified period of time. Also, the previously unexplored Action Plan of the Visegrad Group Defense Cooperation will be presented in the 2020 edition, which will indicate a wide range of challenges and threats, some of which do not directly relate to the security of the "quartet" countries, which indicates the actual disappearance of a purely regional component in the defense policy of the Visegrad Group.

Keywords: security challenges, aggressive actions of Russia, Visegrad Group, Eastern Partnership, Euroassociation Agreement, associate member status, NATO, sanctions against Russia, Russian-Ukrainian relations, The Ukrainian crisis

Abstract: The object of the study is the adoption of Islam by the population of the Southern Ural. The subject of the study is the question of the time of the adoption of Islam in the territory of modern Bashkortostan – the largest region of the Southern Urals. The author examines in detail such aspects of the topic as the historiography of the issue, the spread of Islam among Bashkirs according to narrative sources – information from foreign travelers and Bashkir legends, archaeological sites with a Muslim funeral rite. In historiography, the question of the time of the adoption of Islam by Bashkirs has been repeatedly revised in the direction of antiquity. Narrative sources link the Islamization of Bashkirs with the activities of missionaries from Volga Bulgaria and the Golden Horde. In archeology, the spread of Islam on the territory of Bashkortostan is associated with the Chiyalik culture of the XII-XIV centuries. Special attention is paid to the funerary monuments of the nomadic population of steppe origin, dated XIII-XV centuries. Having settled in the land of Bashkirs, the nomads converted to Islam. A special contribution of the author to the study of the topic is a comparative analysis of the "pagan" and Muslim burials of the XIII-XV centuries, identified within the republic. A total of 84 burials were recorded. Of these, 31 burials were performed according to the "pagan" rite, dated XIII-XIV centuries., 53 burials were performed according to the Muslim rite, dated XIV-XV centuries. It is concluded that the archaeological data correspond to written sources reporting the adoption of Islam in Bashkiria in the XIV century. The novelty of the study lies in clarifying the dating of the three main stages of Islamization of the region's population. The penetration of Islam into the Bashkir environment occurs in the pre–Mongol period, the spread of Islam – in the Golden Horde period, the establishment of Islam - after the XV century. The process of Islamization ends with the disappearance of the burial burial rite and the transition to the modern Muslim funeral rite. Voluntary entry into Russia guaranteed Bashkirs freedom of religion.

Keywords: funerary rite, archaeological sites, narrative sources, Golden Horde, Volga Bulgaria, Bashkirs, Bashkortostan, Southern Urals, Islam, historiography

Abstract: The research subject is the trip of judges of the peace to the districts in the Yakutsk region in their communicative space in the late 19th - early 20th centuries. The object is the communication practice related to the development of judicial proceedings in the Yakutsk region in the period specified. The trips to the sections in the communicative space of justices of the peace are analyzed. The research follows the methodological principles of the frontier modernization approach of I. V. Poberezhnikov, the one commonly used for the analysis of the peripheral regions of the Russian Empire. The comparative-historical method, revealing cause-and-effect relationships and patterns of the historical process, is used as a cognitive tool. The scholarly novelty of the study is that for the first time in the national historiography, the magistrates’ court proceedings are studied specifically in the context of communication space in the North-East of the Russian Empire in the late 19th − early 20th century. Based on the results of the study, a conclusion is made that, during the period under review, overland communications and summonses for magistrates of the Yakutia region served as the main communication channel in the judicial proceedings. In Yakutia, given that overland communications were seasonal, magistrates rarely traveled to certain inaccessible areas. In addition, frequent trips to vast areas of judges of the peace led to the fact that they practically did not have time to hide all the mail received during their absence, which became one of the reasons for the slowdown in legal proceedings. During their trips, magistrates could use any suitable premises for court proceedings as a temporary chamber.

Keywords: Yakut Oblast, appellate court, district court, post house, trip, volost administration, overland communications, postroad, communicative space, magistrate's court

Abstract: The purpose of the article is to study and systematize previously unpublished materials of the newspapers of Western Siberia by A.A. Dunin–Gorkavich concerning the ethnography of the North of the Tobolsk province. The object of the article is the scientific heritage of A.A. Dunin-Gorkavich, dedicated to the composition, settlement, cultural and everyday features, material and spiritual culture of the indigenous population of the Tobolsk North at the beginning of the XX century. The relevance of the work lies in the choice of the source base – materials of the famous scientist and local historian A.A. Dunin-Gorkavich, published in local periodicals of Western Siberia. The basis of the work is the principle of historicism, integrity, objectivity, comprehensiveness.   Both general scientific and traditional methods are used: systemic, historical-comparative, problem-historical, structural-functional. The fundamental work "Tobolsk North" is still one of the valuable sources for studying the life of the peoples of Siberia. Residents of Berezovsky and Surgut counties were at a low stage of cultural and economic development. To solve this problem, drastic changes proposed by A.A. Dunin-Gorkavich were required. For more mass circulation and readership, the scientist published many of his innovative ideas on the pages of the Siberian Leaflet, the Siberian Trade Newspaper and the Tobolsk Provincial Gazette. Publication in newspapers with the help of feedback (criticism, reviews, responses) allowed to build a constructive dialogue with progressive public figures, intellectuals, representatives of the bureaucracy. Such a return contributed to the development of a single set of measures and a partial solution to some of the difficulties of foreigners.

Keywords: aliens, researcher, ethnography, newspapers, periodical printing, Tobolsk North, material culture, autochthonous population, samoyeds, zyryane

Abstract: The article is devoted to the analysis of the dynamics of fertility and mortality of the Turkic-speaking population of the Tobolsk province. The analysis of the materials was preceded by research work in the state archives of Tobolsk (National Archive of the Republic of Bashkortostan) and Tobolsk (State Budgetary Institution of the Tyumen region "State Archive in Tobolsk") to identify the necessary sources, as well as systematization of the received materials, transliteration and translation into Russian. The material of our research is the metric records of the Komarov mosque of the Bukhara parish of the Tobolsk district of the Tobolsk province from 1835 to 1862 (with the exception of 1853). The novelty of the work is seen in the use of unexplored materials in the Old Tatar language – Muslim metric books "on the note of those born, on marriages, divorces and death" written on Arabic graphics. The study of the dynamics of fertility and mortality based on the material of mosque books will reveal the main demographic trends in the XIX century among the Turkic-speaking population of the Tobolsk province. The author comes to the conclusion that the observed: 1) excess of fertility over mortality, 2) excess of infant mortality over adult mortality, 3) a tendency to decrease the mortality rate by the end of the calendar year, 4) excess mortality (in some years) from epidemiological diseases (measles, smallpox, dysentery, rubella, etc.).

Keywords: demography, Old Tatar language, metric records, Tobolsk province, quitrents, Siberian Bukharians, old-yasak Tatars, Turkic-speaking population, mortality, birth rate