News You Can Bruise for 2003 May 9

Some Russian scientists are working on a floating polar station called North Pole-32 (the previous 31 were built during the Soviet era, and must have been where scientists were sent if they kept making trouble even in Siberia). The floating is not being done by some fancy tricked-out icebreaker ship or something; the camp is set up on an old-fashioned ice floe.

The best part, in that "'the best part' that's not actually the best part" sort of way, is that the expedition leader is named Artur Chilingarov, and his penchant for firing his pistol into the air could signal his future metamorphosis into a Bond villain. Unfortunately, his goal is insufficiently sinister:

"Let people dream not only of being managers, let's have as many people as possible becoming polar explorers," he said.

PS: for the "triumph of capitalism" file: not only has Pravda found its true calling as a Sun-type tabloid, but it now has a Cafepress store.

PPS: bonus links I was unable to fit in here anywhere: Polar Philately, a collection of postmarks from the north and south poles; and The Antarctican, a newsletter from Antarctica.