[OT] Russia Anything!

[Djeta Thernadier]

Hmmm. I suppose he probably doesn't want another Romanovs / Rasputin paper either, no?

How about the beautiful Russian architechture (I can't spell, I know!) ? The place has some of the coolest buildings on the planet.

Or you could write about the wonder that IS Ill Mitch :

www.IllMitch.com

But that may give your professor nightmares

~Sheri

 

[Tarrasque Wrangler]

The Russian Mob/Thieves World.

I watched a documentary on this on History Channel (Best "I'm bored, flipping through channels looking for something cool" Channel). Very intriguing stuff. How they were peasant heroes of sorts during the Tsarist era, how Stalin and WWII changed their structure, how they continued to do business during communism and exploited perestroika during the Gorbachev years, and how they basically run the country now. Chilling history.

BTW, this would make for an awesome D20 Modern campaign.

 

[der_kluge]

Two things come to mind, that are far more interesting than the rest -

Tesla, the physicist. I'm 99% certain he was Russian. Fascinating individual.

The other would be what I would do the paper on - Dmitri Shostakovich. Probably one of the greatest composers to come out of the 20th century. Heavily influenced by Lenin, and was oppressed into writing nationalist music, which he despised. Start by listening to his Symphony No. 7. One of the greatest pieces of music ever.

 

[Barcode]

How about what would happen if Baba Yaga was one of the participants on Changing Rooms?

 

[Moulin Rogue]

The Russian art scene in the immediate wake of the 1917 Revolution was pretty interesting. The enthusiastic artists had all kinds of adventurous ideas to herald a bold new society, like Vladimir Tatlin's proposal for a 1300-foot spiraling tower of glass and iron. Some were demanding that all art had to be political like the quote I never forget made to Marc Chagall asking "Why is the cow green and why is the horse flying in the sky? What does it have to do with Marx and Lenin?" By the mid-1920s Stalin cracked down on the avant-garde so much that this outburst of Russian creativity and optimism was left unrealized, a lost snapshot in time.

Russian rock might be interesting too, like underground Beatlemania, Autograph at Live Aid, and heavy metal bands, a few of whom have been around since before the Iron Curtain fell.

 

[Samnell]

How about the fate of the Soviet nuclear arsenal with the fall of Communism?

More politically, how about comparing Communism as practiced in Russia with the model laid out by Marx and Engels? Lots of places to go here with that.

Verging closer to the WWII stuff you'd like to avoid, compare the practices of the the Stalinist regime with its ostensible ideological opposites in Hitler's Germany.

How about Communism and Islam as they interacted in Central Asia?

What about that island where they did all the nuclear tests? Nova Zemylata or something like that.

 

[Sir Whiskers]

The Soviet space program, focusing on their own "race to the moon" and why it failed, especially given their initial lead in rocketry.

The Soviet reaction to the Hungarian revolt in 1956. I did a couple papers during college on this from the Hungarian perspective. I never considered doing it from the Soviet side - I think that might be interesting.

The religious revival happening in Russia since the break up of the old Soviet state (for instance, how have religious observances changed since it ceased to be illegal).

Soviet-German cooperation between the world wars.

The Cuban Missile Crisis from the Soviet Union's perspective.

The assasination of Trotsky.

The ecological devastation which occurred since during Soviet rule, especially in the last 50 years.

 

[johnsemlak]

Lots of intertesting stuff already suggested.

If you do Russian Rock Music, my advice is to not do TATU (or however they spell it), but that's just my opinion. Some much better Russian singers/groups include: DDT, Kino/Victor Tsoi, Bravo, Alla Pugachova, Zemphera, Nautilus Pompilus.

The art scene of the 20's/30's is also a cool topic. THe Film directer Eisenstein, the photographer/artist Rodchenko, or the poet Mayakovsky are just some examples of the period. A good book to read is a novel called Children of the Arbat.

gotta go, I'll check this thread again later.

 

[mmu1]

Tesla, the physicist. I'm 99% certain he was Russian. Fascinating individual.

Tesla was Serbian.

 

[MeepoTheMighty]

Did you see the thread a couple weeks ago about the hidden tunnels under Moscow? I think that would be a fascinating topic for a paper.