Strange examines the post-industrial transformation and transnational legacy of planned single-industry towns that emerged as a distinctive sociopolitical project of urbanization in the Soviet Union during the 1920s.

In Putin's Labor Dilemma, Stephen Crowley investigates how the fear of labor protest has inhibited substantial economic transformation in Russia. Putin boasts he has the backing of workers in the country's industrial heartland, but as economic growth slows in Russia, reviving the economy will require restructuring the country's industrial landscape. At the same time, doing so threatens to generate protest and instability from a key regime constituency. However, continuing to prop up Russia's Soviet-era workplaces, writes Crowley, could lead to declining wages and economic stagnation, threatening protest and instability. Crowley explores the dynamics of a Russian labor market that generally avoids mass unemployment, the potentially explosive role of Russia's monotowns, conflicts generated by massive downsizing in "Russia's Detroit" (Tol'yatti), and the rapid politicization of the truck drivers movement. Labor protests currently show little sign of threatening Putin's hold on power, but the manner in which they are being conducted point to substantial chronic problems that will be difficult to resolve. Putin's Labor Dilemma demonstrates that the Russian economy must either find new sources of economic growth or face stagnation. Either scenario—market reforms or economic stagnation—raises the possibility, even probability, of destabilizing social unrest.

This book discusses Kazakhstan’s transitioning trajectory to a market economy since it declared its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.. It analyses the evolution of key policy areas and sectors through the lens of policy development and implementation, and evaluates their suitability in pursuing the country’s strategic objectives. Topics include policy initiatives for economic development, new policy paradigms in public service delivery and infrastructure improvement, and water-energy-food (WEF) nexus thinking in governing the WEF sectors. The book argues that policies developed in the 1990s and 2000s have so far served the nation’s needs. Nevertheless, as Kazakhstan seeks to achieve a competitive edge worldwide, many of these policies would require adjustment, or a paradigm shift. Providing a unique outlook on policy and governance, this book will appeal to scholars, students, and practitioners involved with Kazakhstan and Central Asia and interested in the transformation of ex-Soviet nations, their policy, and sustainable development.

This two-volume set constitutes the proceedings of the Third Conference on Creativity in Intellectual Technologies and Data Science, CIT&DS 2019, held in Volgograd, Russia, in September 2019. The 67 full papers, 1 short paper and 3 keynote papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 231 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections in the two volumes. Part I: cyber-physical systems and Big Data-driven world. Part II: artificial intelligence and deep learning technologies for creative tasks; intelligent technologies in social engineering.

Пособие разработано на основе ФГОС 3++ для программ бакалавриата направления 41.03.02. «Регионоведение России» и направлено на получение иностранными студентами общих сведений о Российской Федерации на основе комплексного развития общепрофессиональных навыков и коммуникативных компетенций в рамках предложенного курса. Пособие рассчитано на средний уровень владения английским языком (В1) и выше. Следует учитывать также, что в связи с особенностями программы «Регионоведение России» пособие в большей степени ориентировано на обучение иностранных студентов из КНР. Текстовые задания и видеоматериалы пособия призваны сформировать общее представление о Российской Федерации: ее географических, политических, экономических и социально-культурных составляющих. Тренировочные упражнения позволяют обучающимся осваивать новую информацию за счет формирования навыков критического мышления и письма, использования сравнительного подхода к изучению, групповых дискуссий. Грамматическая составляющая пособия позволяет получить и закрепить основные проблемные аспекты при изучении английского языка иностранным студентами, среди них: временные формы, неправильные глаголы, согласование времен.

This report provides a comprehensive assessment of Kazakhstan’s urban policies in terms of economic, social and environmental impact.