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13 Incredible Now-You-Know Facts About Russia

Some countries go to any lengths and depths to stake their claim.

13 Incredible Now-You-Know Facts About Russia

June 17, 2021

Some vast empires have wasted their time trying to rearrange the calendar. Russia just said “there are no weekends, that's all you need to know. Now get back to work!”

And nothing bad or weird ever happened in Russia ever again.

13

The Russian Military

Russia's military makes. its arsenal look more imposing with inflatable weapons. It's literally a bunch of tanks, radar stations, and everything between that look real from a distance but are inflatable -- they're very cheap and reasonably convincing. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: BBC

12

The USSR

Russian prisoners tattooed images of Lenin and Stalin as protective amulets. While the USSR existed, some prisoners believed guards weren't allowed to shoot Lenin's and Stalin's faces, so they got those tattooed on their chests. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: BBC

11

At one point, the government in one part of Siberia paid teachers with vodka. HAS CABRHCHAR dis NYTNHY NACTORILAS CrAHDAPT PUTINK 000 LOCb MOTORISE The government ran out of money, so it gave teachers 15 bottles each. They were happy with that, since they could resell it in local markets. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: BBC

10

During the 1930s, weekends were abolished in Russia (and the whole USSR). The new calendar had days of rest scattered kind of randomly, and those days were different for different groups of workers. The scheme was nixed in 1940. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: History.com

9

Let's try it

You could completely fit Pluto within Russia's borders (but Pluto's area is greater). Russia is about 6,000 kilometers wide and 3,000 kilometers high, and Pluto has a diameter of 370 kilometers so, in 2D, it could fit inside Russia. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: RBTH

8

One time, the Russian Air Force bombed a river to break the ice that blocked its flow. Ice on the Sukhona River created a dam which could have made the river overflow, endangering thousands - so it was bombed every hour until it broke. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: Popular Mechanics

7

Until 2011, beer was officially considered a soft drink in the Russian Federation. Before that, anything with less than 10% alcohol was classified as foodstuff, and classifying beer as alcoholic gave the government more control over it. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: BBC

6

Russia has a massive military-themed park nicknamed military Disneyland. the 13 14 15 Its 4,000 hectares are mostly occupied by military vehicles, including 268 USSR-era aircraft and about 350 tanks from both Russia and other countries. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: Atlas Obscura

5

Diamonds

Deep beneath a Siberian impact crater, there are trillions of carats of diamonds. The Popigai crater, about 100 kilometers wide, lies above enough diamonds to supply all the world's diamond needs for the next three millennia. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: WIRED

4

Russia put up a monument to lab mice sacrificed in the name of scientific progress. It was put up in 2013 at Novosibirsk's Institute of Cytology and Genetics, and it honors the vital contributions that mice have made to science. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: Smithsonian Magazine

3

Moscow's metro dogs, actually use the subway system to travel through the city. Some of them just live in the subway, but some use it to take short trips through city, and some take long trips and work the subway crowds for treats. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: The New Yorker

2

Russia

In 2007, Russia planted. its flag two miles beneath the sea near the North Pole. It was an attempt to strengthen Russia's claim to the ocean floor there, Source: and it involved two submarines that carried members of Russia's parliament. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: NY Times

1

Who let the Dutch out

The Russian flag was heavily inspired by the Dutch flag (thanks to the Tsar). When Russia started to develop shipbuilding in the 1600s, they invited Dutch shipbuilders over, who suggested a flag like theirs. The Tsar agreed. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source: RBTH

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