... his fourth space flight as one of Russia's most experienced cosmonauts, with 585 days in space and eight spacewalks under his belt, while this is the first trip to space for Revin. In remarks to reporters before the launch, Acaba said he would take a toy bear, Padalka an iPad and iPod, while Revin said he would have with him a toy kangaroo and small gifts for crew members who would celebrate birthdays at the station, RIA-Novosti reported. The crew will carry out experiments in ecology and medicine...

One of my favorite new language toys is Google's Ngram Viewer, which lets you — in highly technical Googlese — "search lots of books" to find the frequency of a word or phrase. This is a helpful tool for translators who are trying...

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev is a well-meaning yet incompetent man. His recently completed term as president was spent, innocuously enough, tweeting, toying with high-tech gadgets and listening to British rock. Yet, his four years in office have done enormous harm to Russia. Sometimes incompetence can be as dangerous as ill intent. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev is a well-meaning...

... brought the artist international recognition. A dozen or so pieces from Murakami's extensive body of work are on show, including both paintings and sculptural works. "Polyrhythm" features an unpainted sheet of fiber-reinforced plastic with toy soldiers on a desperate march against gravity. "Untitled" and "And Then and Then and Then and Then" both depict DOB, a cartoon character created by Murakami, and combine classic techniques from the Rimpa school of painting with...

... Atrium, MEGA and Tsvetnoi Central Market in Moscow, as well as Nevsky and Leto in St. Petersburg. Re:Store Retail Group, which operates more than 60 Apple stores in Russia, also runs chains of single-branded stores for Nokia, Sony and Samsung, as well as toy maker LEGO. But Smykov said the company has no intention to focus primarily on selling electronic goods. "For historical reasons most of our portfolio is represented by the chains for electronics. [But] we're considering any brands that are leaders...

... an environment where a mix of different people can just have fun together," Nistratova said. At the end of the afternoon, popular Russian performance artist Sasha Frolova will demonstrate her famous "Aquaaerobika," which uses oversized toys and latex costumes. Frolova was chosen to perform despite having no connection to Holland because she holds universal appeal. "Her show is so colorful and unusual that I think everyone will enjoy it," Nistratova explained. To coincide...

... social demands from the movement's main platform, even though that those are the very issues capable of uniting large masses of people. If the democracy movement does not move beyond Moscow to the regions, it will eventually fade away. Freedom is not a toy for a chosen few or a reward that should be bestowed on representatives of the Moscow elite. Freedom is the right of the majority to change official policy so that it reflects the interests of the people. Boris Kagarlitsky is the director of the...

..., to Sun. Located at 1/2 Solyanka. M. Kitai-Gorod. Mon. to Thurs. 2 to 10 p.m., Fri. noon to midnight, Sat. and Sun. noon to 10 p.m. 621-5672, solgallery.ru/exhibitions NB Gallery: New Soviet Kindergarten: paintings, graphics, photographs, posters, toys, children’s books and other items, Fri. to June 30. Located at 6/2 Sivtsev Vrazhek, entrance 1, 2nd floor, Apt. 2, code 002. M. Arbatskaya. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sun. noon to 6 p.m., closed Mon. Free admission. 697-4006, 737-5298, www.nbgallery...

... Albom): early 20th-century drawings from the Prague collection, to Wed. Located at 6/7 Ul. Lenivka. M. Kropotkinskaya. Noon to 8 p.m., closed Mon. 495-691-1160, www.nalenivke.com NB Gallery: Soviet Kindergarten: paintings, graphics, photographs, posters, toys, children’s books and other items, to June 30. Located at 6/2 Sivtsev Vrazhek, entrance 1, 2nd floor, Apt. 2, code 002. M. Arbatskaya. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sun. noon to 6 p.m., closed Mon. Free admission. 697-4006, 737-5298, www.nbgallery.ru/en...