Abstract: Annotation The subject of study in this article is the period at the beginning of the development of manual automatic weapons in Russia (the turn of the 19th–20th centuries). The overall supervision of such works on new weapons was carried out by the Main Artillery Administration (GAU), albeit in a rather general manner, which meant that the level of sophistication of the created models depended on the talent of the inventor. This article analyzes a project that demonstrates a high degree of originality and expressiveness of engineering thought, as well as a considerable potential of domestic inventor-weapons designers. The focus is on the projects of a modified automatic rifle and a machine rifle developed by engineer B.E. Sosinski. This project was considered by the Russian military authorities in the 1900s. It is an undeniable fact that B.E. Sosinski was a skilled and talented engineer who had a deep understanding of and passion for weaponry and possessed significant potential as a weapon designer. However, these traits of his personality were not adequately utilized due to the peculiarities of the weaponry era in Russia. The following research methods were used in this material: historical-scientific analysis of specialized research literature, comparative-historical method, and processing of archival data. In conclusion, it is necessary to characterize Sosinski's machine gun project from the perspective of contemporary knowledge about automatic small arms. Despite the existing shortcomings, as of the date of submission (1906), it was one of the most thought-out and adequately looking proposals. In terms of the quality of technical solutions incorporated into the project, it surpassed by two orders of magnitude the primitive automatic weapon projects being developed at the same time by other Russian inventor-weapons designers. This consideration allows us to put forward the thesis that at the beginning of the 20th century, there were talented inventors in Russia with significant creative potential who, with proper organization of the design process and refinement of weaponry, were capable of creating modern samples.

Keywords: light machine gun, machine gun, GAU, Main Artillery Directorate, experimental weapons, weapons design, automatic weapons, automatic rifle, three-line rifle, Bronislav Sosinsky

Abstract: The article highlights the historical role of Russian science in the study of the northern and Arctic territories. The object of the study is the process of developing the mineral resource potential of the European North of the USSR in the context of the implementation of the tasks of industrialization in the 1920s and 1930s. This period is characterized by the intensification of research in these territories, when the Soviet government embarked on a course to intensify the industrial development of the Far North and the Arctic, with the aim of quickly involving their rich resource potential in the country's economy. The subject of the research is the historical role of science in the field of prospecting and studying the mineral resources of the European North of the USSR and the importance of the results obtained for scientific and technical support for the development of the mining industry in the region. Based on archival and published sources, the author analyzes the key research results of the USSR Academy of Sciences, the Leningrad Geological Exploration Trust, the All-Union Arctic Institute, the structures of the Main Directorate of Correctional Labor Camps in the territories of the Kola Peninsula, Karelia, the Pechora River basin, the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago, and the Vaigach Island. The methodological basis of the work is based on the basic principles of modern historical science: historicism and scientific objectivity. The research is based on a systematic approach, which made it possible to create an objective historical reconstruction of events related to the discovery and exploration of the mineral resources of the European North during the designated time period.   It is determined that the solution of large-scale state tasks for the scientific and technological development of the country during the period of industrialization necessitated the widespread use of the rich mineral resources of this territory in the development of the USSR economy, which determined the increase in the pace of scientific research activities. As a result, scientists studied a significant part of the European North of the USSR, discovered and explored a large number of mineral deposits of industrial importance (pegmatites, apatite-nepheline ores, coal, oil, etc.). It was concluded that by the end of the 1930s. the identified deposits and detailed geological exploration provided a powerful raw material base for the development of mining industrial development in the territory of the European North of the USSR, which formed one of the foundations of the country's industrial development.

Keywords: Academy of Sciences of the USSR, national economic planning, industrial development, Geological Committee, industrialization, scientific research, the European North of the USSR, Leningrad Geological Exploration Trust, mineral resources, All-Union Arctic Institute

Abstract: The subject of this article is the development of manual automatic weapons in Russia (the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries) – the selection and refinement of design and compositional solutions. The level of sophistication of the arm's designs of this period did not allow for their mass production and operation. This situation had several objective reasons. Firstly, there was a lack of specialized design bureaus and experienced designers with experience in working with automatic weapons in the 1900s to 1910s. Nevertheless, efforts by the Main Artillery Administration led to a series of initiatives aimed at providing the army with modern weaponry. Foreign inventors were engaged, and factories, including the Sestroretsk Arms Factory, became centers for creating new types of firearms. Overall supervision of the work on new weapons was carried out by the GAU (in a rather general manner), so the level of sophistication of the created sample depended on the talent of the inventor. The following research methods were used: historical-scientific analysis of special literature, comparative-historical method, processing of archival data from the funds of state and departmental archives (Central State Historical Archive of St. Petersburg, Scientific Archive of the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia). To study the sample of the "machine gun-rifle" – a construction characteristic was compiled through disassembly, examination of the structure and functioning of parts and mechanisms. The scientific novelty is due to the generalization of previously unpublished documentary materials, introducing into scientific circulation one of the few surviving experimental samples from the specified period – the "machine gun-rifle" designed in 1900-1901. The identification of such items in itself is a challenging task due to the absence of a unified established terminology in sources from the 1900s. Thus, based on newly discovered archival materials and the study of the preserved sample, it is concluded that the experience of developing A. Odkolek's machine gun in Russia with the participation of specialists from the Sestroretsk Arms Factory could have had a positive impact on the development of domestic engineering personnel for arms manufacturers, particularly in the context of designing automatic rifles in the 1900s to 1910s. During this period, Russia began to form its own, original, and independent design school for automatic weapons, free from direct foreign involvement.

Keywords: Sestroretsk Arms Factory, archival research, light machine gun, Adolf Odkolek, attribution, machine gun, weapons design, Main Artillery Directorate, automatic weapons, weapons

Abstract: The subject of the research is the process of development of the national scientific and technical thought of fire fighting in Russia in the XVIII – early XX centuries.The scientific article highlights in detail the issue of the development of both theoretical and scientific and practical aspects of the research activities of Russian and foreign scientists and inventors who aimed to develop fire extinguishing technologies and rescue people in extinguishing fires and eliminating both natural and man-made disasters. The issue of historical experience in the practical application and approbation of the received samples of fire equipment in practical conditions and the introduction of these samples into the activities of fire brigades is considered. The issue of studying the experience of foreign colleagues by domestic inventors in the study, design and production of samples of fire equipment is considered. The research methodology includes a concrete historical approach (M.V. Astakhov, I.D. Kovalchenko, V.F. Kolomiytsev, A.P. Pronstein, etc.), as well as generalization, comparison, synthesis, classification, concretization; analysis of scientific literature; retrospective analysis; method of historical analogies. During the scientific research, the factors that influenced the formation and development of Russian scientific and technical thought were identified and analyzed. The issues of historical and technological evolution in the technologies of fire fighting in Russia in the XVIII – early XX centuries are considered. This aspect entirely became the basis for the formation of technological independence of the young Soviet state, in matters of invention and production of domestic fire equipment, during its formation and development, as well as in later periods of the 1930s – 1940s. The conducted research is of interest to a wide range of readers, since the development of scientific and technical thought of fire fighting in Russia was the basis for the development of not only fire fighting in general, but also was the basis for the development of departmental education of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR, the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation in the modern period.

Keywords: technology development, fire fighting equipment, the practical aspect, the theoretical aspect, scientific thought, scientific research, scientific technologies, historical experience, Equipment level, historical research

Abstract: The subject of the research is the initial stage of the formation of the national school of automatic weapons design (1904–1926). This period of history is one of the most important in the domestic arms industry. At this time, Russia began the formation of its own, original and independent from direct foreign participation school of automatic weapons design, which flourished during the Soviet period of the country's history and is developing to the present day. This plot is considered on the example of one of the activities of this kind – the work on the creation of early domestic automatic rifles after their official launch in 1908, which are considered as the basis for the subsequent development of the Russian and Soviet schools of design and engineering activities. The complex of methods used included the processing of archival materials, historical and scientific analysis of the fundamental works on the topic and the comparative historical method. The analysis of the place of the initial period of the development of the school of design of automatic weapons has not received any significant coverage in domestic weapons studies. The reason for this state of affairs is the significant fragmentation of archival documentation on this topic and samples of early Russian automatic rifles preserved in various collections, combined with their very approximate, often incorrect attribution. Based on the newly revealed information, the article makes a number of clarifications concerning the activities of the commission for the development of an automatic rifle sample and the GAU as a management body for the creation of new models of small arms. The role of the Sestroretsk Arms Factory as the leading center for the creation of automatic weapons in Russia before 1917 is revealed. For the first time in Russian historiography, the stages of designing automatic rifles are revealed.

Keywords: russian design school, Konovalov V. P., Ancus I. K., Roshhepej Ja. U., Fedorov V. G., Sestroretsk Arms Plant, GAU, history of weapons, automatic rifle, rifle

Abstract: The subject of the study is the activity of scientists from the Institute of Biology of the Komi Science Centre of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the area of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident. In 1986–1992, researchers from the Institute of Biology worked in the Chernobyl accident zone. The foundation for scientists to conduct scientific research in the area of the accident was laid by the long-term scientific activity of radioecologists of the Institute of Biology in the Komi ASSR. The methodological basis of the work was based on the principles of historicism, scientific objectivity, and an interdisciplinary approach that made it possible to explain phenomena and events using the knowledge of several scientific disciplines. The novelty of the work lies in the fact that it shows for the first time the connection between radioecological research and environmental history. Based on archival documents and published sources, the importance of radioecological research in the context of ecohistory was revealed for the first time. It is shown that the research of scientists from the Institute of Biology of the Komi Science Centre of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences was carried out within the framework of scientific research aimed at a comprehensive study of the consequences of a radiation accident. The scientific staff of the Institute of Biology prepared recommendations for the elimination of its consequences and obtained results that contributed to the development of radioecology. It was found that the radioecological studies conducted in the accident zone were closely related to the environmental history, and their results make it possible to protect ecosystems from the effects of radiation.

Keywords: environmental history, history of science, The USSR Academy of Sciences, Komi Science Centre, ionizing radiation, radioactivity, radiation accident, Chernobyl accident, radioecology, interdisciplinarity

Abstract: The purpose of the article is to determine the main ways of organization of the activity of the USSR Academy of Sciences in Yakutia during 1947-1991. The initial chronological boundary is connected with the creation of the Yakut branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The final boundary is due to the reorganization of the USSR Academy of Sciences in The Russian Academy of Sciences, accompanied by profound changes in the management and functioning of domestic science. The research is based on the analysis of scattered documentary evidence identified in the archival collections of Moscow, Novosibirsk and Yakutsk, as well as data from the scientific literature relevant to the issue under consideration. In this regard, the history of the formation of a network of institutions subordinate to the USSR Academy of Sciences in Yakutia is considered, the main mechanisms of the organization of academic institutions and the key drivers of this process are traced. When processing the accumulated materials, special historical methods of scientific cognition were used (the principle of historicism, historical-typological, historical-comparative and historical-genetic methods, etc.) As a result of the work carried out, for the first time in historiography, it was established that the organization of institutes of the USSR Academy of Sciences in Yakutia during the period under review took place in three ways: transition to the Academy a research institute that already existed in Yakutia; the creation of institutes based on existing departments, as well as outside it; the formation of a functioning academic institute on the basis of the department. At the same time, the expansion of the network of institutes, in addition to the natural, geographical and ethnocultural specifics of Yakutia, was caused by a significant deepening of the specialization of scientists' research and was based on an increase in the number of employees, as well as the number of internal structural units. Such a development, as shown, was impossible without changes in the ways of recruiting personnel and strengthening the role of specialists trained directly in the region, who by the end of the period under review managed to take a leading position in the management of academic science in Yakutia.

Keywords: The history of science, recruitment of personnel, science management, Yakut branch, The Soviet period, academic institutions, organization of science, scientific research, The USSR Academy of Sciences, Yakutia

Abstract: The author dwells in detail on the search in the medical literature of the nineteenth - twenty-first centuries for various options for describing the anatomy, physiology and pathological physiology of the appendix, as well as its acute inflammation, complicated course, the spectrum of principles of its treatment, as well as their outcomes from antiquity to the present day. At the same time, the emphasis is placed on the study of foreign literature reviews and the search for primary sources of priority works to identify historical facts described in previously unquoted works and unknown to domestic specialists, in order to familiarize domestic specialists in the history of medical science with important details of the formation of general surgery.There is a two-hundred-year period between the anatomical description of the appendix and the recognition that it is the appendix that is the focus of acute inflammatory disease in the lower right quadrant of the abdomen. This truth was not widely recognized until the publication of R. Fitz's work 120 years later. The disease of acute appendicitis has a social character and, apparently, influenced the course of history. A comparative analysis of the possibilities of treatment of acute appendicitis and their results allowed us to establish five stages in the history of the study of acute appendicitis.

Keywords: opening of the abscess, conservative treatment, principles of treatment, treatment outcomes, domestic surgeons, foreign surgeons, nomenclature of the disease, formation of treatment tactics, acute appendicitis, history of anatomy

Abstract: The study of Soviet-American scientific relationships during the Cold War is an actual scientific task. In the article for the first time is published letters from the personal foundation of Professor Michael Sjuzjumov (Ural University, Sverdlovsk), which he received from Lois Hassler-Smith and Merlin Packard, librarians of the Center for Byzantine Studies at Harvard University in Dumbarton Oaks, 1960s and 1970s. In addition, the author of the article is considered the issue of official ways to exchange scientific literature with capitalist countries, which were regulated by special legislative acts. However, the contacts that scientists of the USSR and the United States independently established among themselves made it possible, avoiding unnecessary formalities, to quickly receive the latest scientific literature. The letters published in the article indicate that the correspondence of M.Ja. Sjuzjumov with the staff of the Dumbarton Oaks library lasted more than 10 years. The American side received scientific periodicals published in Sverdlovsk and teaching aids on special courses, and M.Ja. Sjuzjumov – novelties of American scientific literature and classical editions, which were previously available to him only in the capital’s libraries. The authors of the article also managed to identify an error made by the compilers of the Who Was Who at Dumbarton Oaks index, 1940–2015. This edition indicates that the library employed female employees Lois Smith and Lois Hassler. Meanwhile, the analysis of correspondence with M.Ja. Sjuzjumov and the data of the American periodical press prove presented one person – Lois Hassler-Smith.

Keywords: USSR, Sverdlovsk, Harvard University, Ural University, Dumbarton Oaks, Merlin Packard, Lois Hassler-Smith, source study, Sjuzjumov, historiography

Abstract: The subject of the study is the results of the study by domestic researchers of the history of the formation and development of the objects of the shipbuilding base of the Baltic Fleet during the Peter the Great era. The aim of the work is to analyze the works of Russian scientists-historians of the pre-revolutionary, Soviet and post-Soviet periods on this problem and to form on this basis a holistic view of the formation and development at the initial stage of one of the most important branches of the domestic military industry. In the course of the study, the main attention will be paid to the consistent consideration of the history of the origin, the specifics of the organization and maintenance of activities, as well as the results of the activities of all shipyards that worked in the interests of the Baltic Fleet during the designated period. The research methodology is based on a combination of general philosophical, general scientific historical and special historical methods, such as analysis and synthesis, modeling, problem-chronological and perspective analysis method. The novelty of the conducted research lies in the fact that such an approach to the study of the initial stage of the history of the shipbuilding industry in the interests of the Baltic Fleet has not been applied in Russian historiography. According to the results of the study, a generalized picture of all shipbuilding enterprises established in the Peter the Great era in the north-western region of Russia and in the territories of the Baltic States and Finland conquered during the Northern War is presented. The results of the study allowed us to assess the nature of the formation of the industry as mainly spontaneous, although not devoid of a certain logic in the specific historical conditions of the Northern War. Certain patterns of placement of certain objects of shipbuilding infrastructure, the influence of geographical, hydrographic, production-logical and other features on their specialization are shown. A problematic issue requiring further study is formulated.

Keywords: sailing ships, military industry, the era of Peter the Great, Baltic fleet, shipyard, Admiralty, shipbuilding industry, shipbuilding, shipbuilding infrastructure, History of shipbuilding

Abstract: The historical analysis of the research conducted during the 1980s - early 1990s by the staff of the USSR Academy of Sciences / Russian Academy of Sciences in relation to the problems of industrial development of the Arctic regions of Yakutia is presented. At the same time, the main attention is paid to those materials that allow the most representative to show the changes that have occurred in the assessment by scientists of the practices and consequences of intensive industrial development of the region during the Soviet period, as well as the prospects for industrial development in new socio-economic realities. The source basis for the development of the topic was the materials identified by the author in the archives of Yakutsk, published documents and data from scientific literature. The work carried out made it possible for the first time in Russian historiography to show that during the period under review, there was actually a profound shift in the paradigm and the problems of studying the issues of industrial development of the Arctic regions of Yakutia. If at its initial stage industry was viewed through the prism of its contribution to the positive development of the region, then at the turn of the late 1980s - early 1990s, the focus of research shifted to assessing the negative consequences of forced industrial development of the Arctic regions of Yakutia during the Soviet period. Radical changes in the socio-economic situation and socio-political attitudes in the country have led to the emergence of new research issues related to the cessation of the development of a significant part of mineral deposits and the liquidation of a number of industrial settlements in this regard.

Keywords: liquidation of industrial settlements, socio-economic crisis, perestroika, industry, development projects, industrial development, The USSR Academy of Sciences, scientific research, Yakutia, The Arctic

Abstract: This article describes the finds (glass pieces, byproducts, fragments of items) discovered on the site of former Lava factories, which were initially owned by V. Elmsel (1730), and in 1738 passed to the public coffers. Factories on the Lava River manufactured window glass by casting on a metal plate, as well as hot-glass items and window glass using lunar method. The glass composition and color varied: ash matter (“Cherkass glass”) was green; and potash glass was pale blue or grayish hue, discolored with cobalt and manganese. The factory also produced blue glass painted with cobalt. The analysis is conducted on the document that contains the order of the Palace Chancellery for manufacturing glass items on the Lava factories. The scientific novelty consists in the following: establishment of the location of glass factories on the Lava River; systematization of the finds and conclusion on hot and cold glass manufacturing techniques; description of the discovered fragments of glassware, mirror and window glass in comparison with similar items preserved in the museum collections and found during the archaeological excavations in Moscow; description of cooperation of Lava factories with the Saint Petersburg glass factory in execution of the Palace. The conducted research allows attributing certain items stored in the private and museum collections to the items manufactures by Lava factories. The author concludes on the need for archaeological excavations on the site of Lava factories.

Keywords: glass blowing, glass vessels, coloured glass, Lava glass factory, glass production, russian glass, history of glassmaking, glass goblet, brocken glass, window glass

Abstract: The problematic area of this research is the evolution of organizational forms of statistical science in the Russian Empire. The author analyzes the establishment of statistical studies in the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences. The article relies on the basic methods of historical science: problem-chronological, historical-genetic, and historical-comparative. Modern methodology allowed determining the role of the Academy of Sciences in the process of institutionalization of statistics in Russia, as well as highlighting the objective and subjective factors affecting the trajectory of its development. Special attention is given to analysis of the fundamental principles of political science – the early vector of statistical science, which define the form of statistical descriptions during the period under review. In the course of this research, it is deemed that alongside Russian scholars, an important role in the advancement of statistical knowledge was played by the invited into the Academy European professors. They contributed to proliferation of the German model and principles of political science in Russia. It is noted that at the initial stage the development of statistics was based merely on personal enthusiasm of certain academicians, as prior to adoption of the Regulations of 1803 this discipline fell outside the academic curriculum. The article analyzes various forms of support of statistical studies by the Academy – assistance to scholars in overcoming administrative barriers in acquisition of materials from state departments; publishing activity; distribution of statistical knowledge via periodicals. The conclusion is made that the emergence of new scientific centers in the early XIX century led to gradual loss of leading position of the Academy in the area of statistical studies. This was substantiated by the specificity of organizational form, limitation of material and human resources of the historically first scientific organization in the country.

Keywords: Konstantin Ivanovich Arseniev, Carl Theodor Неrmann, Mikhail Vasilievich Lomonosov, Ivan Kirillovich Kirilov, Statistical Description of Russia, History of the Imperial Academy of Sciences, History of statistics, August Ludwig von Schlözer, Peter Ivanovich Keppen, Statistical journal

Abstract: The object of this research is the history of scientific development of the European North of Russia in the late XIX – early XX century. The subject of this research is the historical role of the Geological Committee in exploration of this territory. The chronological framework covers the period from 1882 to 1918, since the establishment of scientific institution until its reorganization as a result of revolutionary events of 1917. Based on the archival and published sources, the author analyzes expedition activity of the Geological Committee in Northern Ural, Timman, Novaya Zemlya, and the Kola Peninsula in the late XIX – early XX centuries, the results of which became the first systematic integrated explorations on regional geology of the European North of Russia. The indicated problematic has not previously become the subject of separate research. It is proven that research of the European North of Russia was one of the priority vectors of the Geological Committee at the time. The following expedition results are highlighted:  a substantial territory of the European North of Russia is explored; thorough geological surveying is conducted; extensive paleontological collection is amassed; mineral deposits are discovered that gave science conceptually new data on geological development of this region. Research conducted by the Geological Committee demonstrated the resource potential of northern territories and raised the question on the need for their inclusion into economic development of the country, which became an important factor for further development of the European North of Russia.

Keywords: European North of Russia, scientific development, mineral raw material resources, Geological committee, geology, science history, Arctic, Timman, Northern Urals, Kola Peninsula

Abstract: The subject of this article is the work of the Italian airship designer Umberto Nobile in the Soviet Union in 1931-1935. Upon writing this article, the author used the memoirs of Umberto Nobile published in Italy, as well as numerous archival sources from Italian archives: the Documentation Center of Umberto Nobile in Vigna di Vale and the Central State Archives of Rome. The author attempts to demonstrate the importance of further studying this topic in light of today's newly available sources, including those from Italian archives. The methodology of this research is based on the principles of historicism, objectivity, and systematics. The author places particular focus on the interdisciplinary approach in the examination of Soviet-Italian relations in the field of aviation. In order to achieve this, the study uses the historical-genetic and comparative-historical methods, which allow to reveal the general and particular in the developmental patterns of Soviet-Italian relations in the field of aviation during the period under study. The figure of Umberto Nobile has been studied by Russian scholars for a long time, but the scientific novelty of this work comes from its novel composition of the source base. In addition to published sources (the memoirs of Umberto Nobile), the author draws archival documents in Italian from the Documentation Center "Umberto Nobile" and the Central State Archives of Rome, which have not been previously studied by Russian historians. At the end of the article, the author comes to the conclusion that during the period under review the ideological antagonism had no decisive influence on the development of cooperation between the two named countries, including in the sphere of airship construction. The arrival of Umberto Nobile and Felice Trojani in the USSR made possible the rapid development of this industry in Russia.

Keywords: Soviet airship construction, Italian airship construction, Felice Trojani, Umberto Nobile, airship construction, USSR, Italy, airship V-6, aviation, international relations

Abstract: The subject of this article is the development of the scientific direction on the introduction of new fodder plants in the Komi Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences during the Soviet era and within the context of the interaction between government and science. The research object of this study is the scientific biography of the scientist-agrobiologist Konstantin Alekseevich Moiseev (1904-1984). On the basis of archival documents, the article analyzes the scientific biography of the scholar and his contribution to the development of a new scientific direction - the introduction of fodder plants in the North. The research is based on the principle of historicism in the analysis of events and phenomena. Additionally, the author uses the methodology of scientific biography, which allows the examination of the scientist's personality in the general historical context. The study's scientific novelty consists in its examination of the scientific biographies of specific scholars who worked during the Soviet era, since through the lens of "scientific" and "personal" biography one can trace the historical background and conditions, socio-cultural orientations and values of the time. These questions are covered in the article on the example of the scientific biography of K. A. Moiseyev, whose life and activity is closely tied to the history of the foundation and development of scientific studies in the North in general and in Komi Scientific Center of the Ural Branch of the Academy of Sciences in particular. The analysis of the scientific biography of this scholar has allowed to trace not only the vicissitudes of the becoming and the professional growth of a specific person, but also gave the possibility to demonstrate the most general processes of interaction between science, the Soviet state, the official ideology and the personality of the scholar during various periods of time: from the fall and accusations at the end of the 1940s to the universal recognition and fame in the 1970s-1980s.

Keywords: Komi branch, scientific biography, introduction, fodder plants, ideology, Soviet state, Heracléum sosnówskyi, Soviet scientist, popularization, Konstantin Alekseevich Moiseev

Abstract: The subject of this article is the historical role of the scientific community in the study and development of the northern territories of Russia. The object of this research is the scientific biography of the first Soviet woman-geologist – doctor of geological-mineralogical sciences V.A. Varsanofyeva. The author examines in detail such aspects as the role of V. A. Varsanofyeva in the history of the geological exploration of this vast, remote and poorly known territory in the south of the Timan-Pechora oil and gas province, in the study of the geological structure and mineral resources of the Komi ASSR. Particular attention is paid to the scientific, pedagogical, social and popularization activities of V. A. Varsanofyeva during her years of work in the Komi branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1954-1970, to the analysis of the documents preserved in her personal files at the Scientific Archive of the Komi Science Center of the Ural Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences; to the contribution of this scientist to the development of the topic of the study of the Komi ASSR productive forces. The methodological base of the study comprises the basic principles of modern historical sciences: historicism and scientific objectivity, and also general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis, description and construction of similarities. The scientific biography of the scholar-geologist V. A. Varsanofyeva is considered in the context of the contribution of the scientific community to the study and development of the northern territories of Russia. The author conducts an analysis of the vast document corpus from the scientist's private archive, which reflects her scientific, educational and social activity. The main conclusions of the study are the following: V. A. Varsanofyeva’s scientific activity, which lasted more than 60 years, is a milestone in the history of the geological exploration of this vast, remote and little-known territory; she laid the foundation for the research of the geological structure of the south of the Timan-Pechora oil and gas province. The industrial development of the Republic of Komi is largely due to the success of geologists' work, among them that of V. A. Varsanofyeva rightfully occupies one of the first places. The materials from V. A.Varsanofyeva's personal archive are of great interest, as they allow us to learn not only the versatile activity of this scientist, her social circle and personal traits, but also the scientific community as a whole – the tireless workers of science, inspired by the great aims of understanding the surrounding environment and gaining new knowledge.

Keywords: Varsanofyeva Vera Aleksandrovna, geologist, scientific community, geomorphology and tectonics, minerals, Pechora-Ilych Nature Reserve, Timan-Pechora province, personal archive, Pavlov Aleksei Petrovich, Chernov Aleksandr Aleksandrovich

Abstract: The article focuses on the historical role of the USSR Academy of Sciences in the advancement of scientific knowledge and development of the Northern territories of Russia, The article’s research object is the activity of the Polar Commission of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The author examines in detail such aspects of the topic as the work of the commission in studying the sub-Polar territories, its participation in the perspective economic planning and creation of permanent scientific institutions in the North of Russia. Particular attention is given to the commission’s complex expedition to the Northern Krai in 1933 – the Pechora brigade of the Polar Commission of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The research’s methodology is based on the main principles of modern historical sciences: historicism and scientific objectivity, as well as the general scientific methods: source study, analysis and synthesis, description, analogy construction. The author’s main conclusions are: the Polar Commission of the USSR Academy of Sciences carried out a large-scale project with regard to the North – a project focused on the study of a particular region, rich in energy resources, which in a certain sense determined the development direction of the region and country for the next century, and which linked the future of fundamental sciences with global national objectives.

Keywords: European North of Russia, development of academic research, creating of scientific institutions, national objectives, Pechora brigade, A.P.Karpinsky, sub-Polar territories, archival documents, Polar Commission, USSR Academy of Sciences

Abstract: By engaging new and relatively early (1745–1757) sources, the article addresses the remaining unresolved questions regarding the history of the Saxon mineralogist and chemist J. F. Henckel’s mineralogical collection, donated to the Moscow university by the brothers Prokofi, Grigoriy and Nikita Demidov, and that laid the foundation for the university’s museum. The discussion includes: where the collection was originally located (detailing the writing of the name and the location in the city); when and by whom it was acquired (by A. N. Demidov probably in 1742–1743); how many similar collections the Demidovs possessed (no fewer than two acquired, as well as their own collection to supplement the others); when and why these collections “travelled” around Russia (this question has not received a firm answer); in which cities and houses during this time they were located; under which circumstances was the official donation to the university formalised. The author presents a new explanation for the reason why the collection entered the university without a description, asserting that such a description had in fact existed and reveals its documental traces. The article notes that M. V. Lomonosov was familiar with this collection and puts forward the supposition of its possible use during his work on “Russian mineralogy”. As well, the article examines what pieces linked with the Demidov mineralogical collections could have had ties with the Henckel collection, including being its remnants. The author also touches upon the question of the connection between the mineralogical collections of Henckel bought by the Demidovs and by the Academy of sciences.

Keywords: I. I. Shuvalov, M. V. Lomonosov, Demidovs, J. F. Henckel, philanthropy, Moscow university museum, mineralogical collections, Freiberg, Saint Petersburg, Moscow

Abstract: This article examines the history and development of the intracity river transport (“river trams”) in Moscow. The author provides information on the types of vessels used in both city and suburban passengers transportation, brief overview of their creators and shipyards, drawing attention to 1930s, when Moscow river passenger transport, tourism and recreation culture started to form.

Keywords: history, Moscow, Moskva river, transport, river tram, motor ship, vessel, motor boat, navigation, tourism.

Abstract: the article is devoted to the topic of development of specialization at the Natural Science Department of the Physical and Mathematical faculties of the universities of the Russian Empire (since the moment of its creation until the beginning of XX century.) in context of history of biological education in pre-revolutionary Russia – from studying the full range of natural and physical sciences to formation of the separated groups of specialization on the basis of natural science departments. The problem of increased specialization is relevant at the present time.

Keywords: history, biology, Russia, universities, regulations, departments, natural sciences, specialization, division, Faculties of Physics and Mathematics.

Abstract: the article deals with an ancient theorem of the incommensurability of side and diagonal of a square, particular attention is drawn to the axiom of the indivisibility of units (μονάς), that plays a key role in the ancient Pythagorean theory of evidence of disparate segments. Subsequent development of this theory led to the formation of the theory of irrational numbers and the theory of infinite sets of Cantor. However, in modern mathematics the continuous decimal fractions are used, which were not used in Pythagorean arithmetic. The operation of the infinite division of a unit, through which the continuous use of decimal fractions was introduced, is contrary to the axiom of indivisible units. Consequently, there is an axiomatic contradiction in the grounds of the standard of mathematics, which recognizes the validity of the Pythagorean theory of incommensurability, which led to three crises in the foundations of mathematics: ancient, associated with the discovery of incommensurable line segments, the new European associated with infinitesimal greatness, modern, getting out of which, as proved by Godel, is impossible within the framework of the standard mathematics.

Keywords: history of mathematics, the Pythagorean axiom of arithmetic, irrational numbers, Brouwer L., second problem of Hilbert.