Orthodox Maslenitsa begins every year at a different time, since its date is tied to the celebration of Easter. Easter in 2020 falls on April 19. Accordingly, the 8th week before Easter is Maslenitsa week will begin on February 23, 2020, and end on March 1, 2020, on the first calendar day of Spring.
That is, Maslenitsa in 2020:
* Starts - March 23, 2020
*Ends - March 1, 2020
The first day of Maslenitsa (Monday - “Meeting”) in the 20th year coincides with the Russian public holiday- Defender of the Fatherland Day, and therefore will be a day off.
It is symbolic that the final day of Maslenitsa Week (in 2020 - March 1, 2020) falls on the first day of Spring. After all, it is on the seventh day of the celebration, on Sunday, at sunset that the straw effigy of Maslenitsa is burned, which folk tradition symbolizes the transformation of an outdated winter into a beautiful Spring.
International Women's Day on March 8 is a UN observance, and the organization includes 193 states. The memorial dates announced by the General Assembly are designed to encourage UN members to show increased interest in these events. However, at the moment, not all member states of the United Nations have approved the celebration of Women's Day in their territories on the specified date.
Below is a list of countries that celebrate International Women's Day. Countries are grouped into groups: in a number of states the holiday is an official non-working day (day off) for all citizens, on March 8th only women rest, and there are states where they work on March 8th.
In which countries is the holiday March 8 a day off (for everyone):
* In Russia- March 8 is one of the most favorite holidays, when men congratulate all women without exception.
* In Ukraine- International Women's Day continues to remain an additional holiday, despite regular proposals to exclude the event from the list of non-working days and replace it, for example, with Shevchenko Day, which will be celebrated on March 9.
* In Abkhazia.
* In Azerbaijan.
* In Algeria.
* In Angola.
* In Armenia.
* In Afghanistan.
* In Belarus.
* To Burkina Faso.
* In Vietnam.
* In Guinea-Bissau.
* In Georgia.
* In Zambia.
* In Kazakhstan.
* In Cambodia.
* In Kenya.
* In Kyrgyzstan.
* IN DPRK.
* In Cuba.
* In Laos.
* In Latvia.
* In Madagascar.
* In Moldova.
* In Mongolia.
* In Nepal.
* In Tajikistan- since 2009, the holiday was renamed Mother's Day.
* In Turkmenistan.
* In Uganda.
* In Uzbekistan.
* In Eritrea.
* In South Ossetia.
Countries where March 8 is a women's-only day off:
There are countries where only women are exempt from work on International Women's Day. This rule has been approved:
* In China.
* In Madagascar.
Which countries celebrate March 8, but it is a working day:
In some countries, International Women's Day is widely celebrated, but is a working day. This:
* Austria.
* Bulgaria.
* Bosnia and Herzegovina.
* Germany- in Berlin, since 2019, March 8 is a day off, in the country as a whole it is a working day.
* Denmark.
* Italy.
* Cameroon.
* Romania.
* Croatia.
* Chile.
* Switzerland.
In which countries is March 8 NOT celebrated?
* In Brazil, the majority of whose residents have not even heard of the “international” holiday of March 8th. The main event of the end of February - beginning of March for Brazilians and Brazilian women is not Women's Day at all, but the largest in the world according to the Guinness Book of Records, the Brazilian Festival, also called the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. In honor of the festival, Brazilians rest for several days in a row, from Friday until noon on Catholic Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent (which for Catholics has a flexible date and begins 40 days before Catholic Easter).* In the USA, the holiday is not an official holiday. In 1994, an attempt by activists to get the celebration approved by Congress failed.
* In Czechoslovakia, most of the country's population views the holiday as a relic of the communist past and the main symbol of the old regime.
Traditions and customs of Maslenitsa:
The essence of the Maslenitsa holiday in the Christian understanding is as follows:Forgiveness of offenders, restoration of good relations with loved ones, sincere and friendly communication with loved ones and relatives, as well as charity- that’s what’s important this Cheese Week.
You can no longer eat on Maslenitsa meat dishes, and this is also the first step to fasting. But pancakes are baked and eaten with great pleasure. They are baked unleavened and leavened, with eggs and milk, served with caviar, sour cream, butter or honey.
In general, during Maslenitsa week you should have fun and attend festive events (skating, skiing, snow tubing, slides, horseback riding). Also, you need to devote time to your family - have fun with your family and friends: go somewhere together, the “young” should visit their parents, and the parents, in turn, should come to visit their children.
Date of Maslenitsa (Orthodox and pagan):
In church tradition Maslenitsa is celebrated for 7 days (weeks) from Monday to Sunday, before the main event. Orthodox fasting, which is why the event is also called “Maslenitsa Week”.
The timing of Maslenitsa week depends on the beginning of Lent, which marks Easter, and shifts every year in accordance with the Orthodox church calendar.
So, in 2019, Orthodox Maslenitsa takes place from March 4, 2019 to March 10, 2019, and in 2020 - from February 24, 2020 to March 1, 2020.
Regarding the pagan date of Maslenitsa, then d jealous Slavs celebrated the holiday according to solar calendar- at the moment of the onset of astronomical spring, which occurs in . The ancient Russian celebration lasted for 14 days: it began a week before the vernal equinox and ended a week later.
In the northern hemisphere, the date of the vernal equinox is 20th of March. Accordingly, according to ancient Slavic traditions, Pagan Maslenitsa should be celebrated annually from March 14 to March 27.
Description of Maslenitsa celebration:
The tradition of celebrating Maslenitsa with a cheerful festivities has still been preserved.Most Russian cities hold events called "Wide Maslenitsa". In the capital of Russia, Moscow, the central platform for festive festivities is traditionally Vasilyevsky Spusk on Red Square. They also conduct abroad "Russian Maslenitsa" to popularize Russian traditions.
It is customary, especially on the last Sunday, when workers and students can relax, to organize mass holidays as in the old days, with songs, games, farewells and the burning of an effigy of Maslenitsa. In Maslenitsa towns there are stages for performances, places for selling food (pancakes are a must), and souvenirs, and attractions for children. Masquerades with mummers and carnival processions are held.
What are the days of Maslenitsa week, what are they called (name and description):
Each day of Maslenitsa has its own name and has its own traditions. Below is the name and description for each day.Monday - Meeting. Since the first day is a working day, in the evening father-in-law and mother-in-law come to visit daughter-in-law's parents. The first pancakes are being baked, which can be given to the poor to commemorate the dead. On Monday, a straw effigy is dressed up and displayed on a hill at the site of the festivities. In dances and games, stylized wall-to-wall fist fights are held. The “first pancake” is baked and solemnly eaten to commemorate the soul.
Tuesday - Flirting. The second day is traditionally the day of the young. Youth festivities, skiing from the mountains ("pokatushki"), matchmaking are signs of this day. It should be noted that the church prohibits weddings on Maslenitsa, as well as during Lent. Therefore, on Maslenitsa Tuesday, they woo the bride to have a wedding after Easter on Krasnaya Gorka.
Wednesday - Lakomka. On the third day the son-in-law comes to my mother-in-law for pancakes.
On Thursday - Razguly, Razgulay. On the fourth day, folk festivities become widespread. Wide Maslenitsa- this is the name of the days from Thursday to the end of the week, and the day of generous treats itself is called “Rampant Thursday”.
Friday - Mother-in-law's party. On the fifth day of Maslenitsa week mother-in-law with friends or relatives comes to visit her son-in-law for pancakes. Of course, her daughter should bake the pancakes, and her son-in-law should show hospitality. In addition to the mother-in-law, all relatives are invited to visit.
Saturday - Sister-in-law's gatherings. On the sixth day husband's sisters come to visit(You can also invite the rest of your husband’s relatives). It is considered good form not only to feed guests abundantly and tasty, but also to give gifts to sisters-in-law.
Sunday - Farewell, Forgiveness Sunday. On the last (seventh) day, before Lent, one should repent and show mercy. All relatives and friends ask each other for forgiveness. Carnival processions are held in places of public celebrations. The effigy of Maslenitsa is solemnly burned, thus turning into a beautiful Spring. As darkness falls, festive fireworks are set off.
In churches, also on Sunday, at the evening service, the rite of forgiveness is performed, when the priest asks for forgiveness from church servants and parishioners. All believers, in turn, ask for forgiveness and bow to each other. In response to a request for forgiveness they say “God will forgive.”
According to Nobel himself, the honor of being awarded the Peace Prize should be to the person who made the “most significant contribution” to the abolition of slavery, the unification of nations, “the promotion of peace congresses” and the reduction of the number of world armies.
The Nobel Committee, based in Oslo, awards the prize by selecting the laureate from among nominees proposed by members of the committee itself - current and former governments various states, the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the Institute of International Law, other peace prize laureates, professors from reputable universities. The selection process takes more than a year, and the potential winner of the award is not aware of his status, and information about candidates for the award is not disclosed for another half a century.
Special nomination
Nobel Prize World Peace Prize is the only award for which not only an individual, but also a public organization can become a contender.
The maximum number of awards to date awarded to one laureate was given in the “peace prize” category - the achievements of the International Committee of the Red Cross were noted three times.
The largest number of female laureates is represented in the field of peacekeeping and legal activities.
Fifteen times the Peace Prize was not awarded to any of the nominees, because the Nobel Committee did not see truly worthy candidates among them.
Peace Prize Laureates
The first award in this category in 1901 was shared between two figures. The first is Henri Dunant - a philanthropist, the actual founder of the International Committee of the Red Cross, opposed to slavery, defending the rights of prisoners of war - “for his contribution to the peaceful cooperation of peoples.” The second is Frédéric Passy, a political economist who opposes any armed conflicts due to their economic inefficiency, calling for the resolution of international contradictions through arbitration - “for many years of peacekeeping efforts.”
Nobel Peace Prize in different years received Martin Luther King, Andrei Sakharov, Mother Teresa, Henry Kissinger, Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nelson Mandela, Kofi Annan, Yasser Arafat, Jimmy Carter, Al Gore, Barack Obama. Among the organizations whose activities were recognized with this award are UNICEF, IAEA, Doctors Without Borders, UN Peacekeeping Forces, EU, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
Promotion scientific activity It has venerable history. Monarchs and wealthy patrons periodically rewarded natural scientists with valuable gifts or lifelong pensions for their discoveries, which allowed them to continue work at a new level. However, such encouragement acquired a systematic character with the establishment of prizes awarded by scientific academies for solving special problems. The leadership here belongs to the British Royal Society. In 1709, Sir Godfrey Copley, a wealthy baronet landowner and public figure, before his death bequeathed the establishment of a fund from which one hundred pounds would be transferred annually to the society to finance experiments or other activities aimed at “the development of the knowledge of nature.” After lengthy discussion, members of the society decided to use the funds for a prize that would be awarded for outstanding scientific achievement. The winner received not only one hundred pounds, but also the original Copley medal. The first recipient of the medal was determined in 1731: it was Stephen Gray for the discovery of the transmission of electricity over a distance. A year later, he also “took” the second prize - for fundamental experiments with electricity, which made it possible to divide all substances into conductors and insulators. The Copley Medal is still awarded today, and the prize money has increased to £5,000. Among its laureates were Russian scientists: Dmitry Mendeleev, Ilya Mechnikov and Ivan Pavlov.
Another famous prize emerged from the will. Her story is no less interesting.
Death Dealer is dead
Alfred Bernhard Nobel was born in 1833 into the family of engineer Emmanuel Nobel. In 1842, the family moved from Stockholm to St. Petersburg, where Emmanuel began developing sea mines. It was in Russia that young Alfred first showed an inventive spirit and enlisted the support of authoritative scientists: on the advice of chemist Nikolai Zinin, his father sent him to study in France. The prosperity of the Nobel family was facilitated by the outbreak of the Crimean War in 1853; she also prompted Alfred to take up explosives. In the early 1860s, returning to St. Petersburg, he created explosives based on nitroglycerin and opened a plant for its production in Sweden. In 1865 he invented and patented a metal capsule for a cartridge, in 1867 - dynamite, called “Nobel’s safe explosive powder”. The business turned out to be profitable. Although Nobel later became involved in the transportation and production of iron, in the eyes of the public he remained a military-industrial magnate, because at that time he owned 93 enterprises in Europe and the United States, which were exclusively engaged in the production of explosives.
In 1888, an unpleasant incident occurred. The inventor's brother Ludwig died, but by mistake European newspapers published an obituary for Alfred. After reading a note in a French newspaper entitled “The Merchant of Death is Dead,” Nobel thought about what kind of glory he would leave behind and decided to change his will. It was drawn up on November 27, 1895, and announced in January 1897 (the inventor himself died on December 10, 1896). The will says:
All my movable and immovable property must be converted by my executors into liquid assets, and the capital thus collected must be placed in a reliable bank. The income from the investments should belong to a fund, which will distribute them annually in the form of bonuses to those who, during the previous year, have brought the greatest benefit to humanity... Specified percentages must be divided into five equal parts, which are intended: one part - to the one who will make the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics; the other - to the one who makes the most important discovery or improvement in the field of chemistry; the third - to the one who makes the most important discovery in the field of physiology or medicine; fourth - to the one who creates the most outstanding literary work idealistic direction; fifth, to the one who has made the most substantial contribution to the unity of nations, the abolition of slavery, or the reduction of existing armies, and the promotion of peace congresses... It is my particular wish that the nationality of the candidates shall not be taken into account in the awarding of prizes.
Although numerous relatives of the inventor tried to challenge the will, it came into force. The first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901. Their laureates were Wilhelm Roentgen (physics), Jacob Hendrik van't Hoff (chemistry), Emil von Behring (physiology and medicine), René Sully-Prudhomme (literature), Jean Dunant and Frederic Passy (promoting world peace). The cash content of the awards in those years was 150,000 Swedish kronor, but has grown steadily, reaching today an amount of over a million in dollar equivalent. The laureates are also awarded a corresponding diploma and a medal with the image of Alfred Nobel. In 1969, on the initiative of the Swedish Bank, a nomination for achievements in the field of economic science was established, but the prize was not expanded further. The board of the Nobel Foundation decided not to increase the number of nominations.
Why are the awards given?
Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the procedure and ceremony for awarding the prize have become more complex until they have reached a certain perfection. Every year, the Nobel Committee sends out over three thousand requests for nominations to specialists working in the relevant field, professors, rectors and former committee members. Based on the answers, a list of three hundred candidates is formed, which remains secret for fifty years. The final selection of laureates is carried out with the participation of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy and the Nobel Assembly of the Karolinska Institute. The names of the laureates are announced in advance in October, and the award ceremony is held on December 10 in the capitals of two countries - Sweden and Norway. In Stockholm, prizes are awarded in scientific and literary categories, in Oslo - a prize in the field of peace protection. In addition to the ceremony, lectures by the laureates, a banquet and a concert are held.
Photo: Pi Frisk / Nobel Media AB 2015
The 2016 Nobel Prize, as is customary, is awarded on December 10. The names of the laureates are traditionally announced in advance. I must say that every year it becomes more and more difficult to explain ordinary people, why does this or that discovery awarded a prize have great importance for world science, because the specialization of research is growing, and many achievements have a very specific meaning. For example, in the “Physics” category, three British scientists became laureates: David Thouless, Duncan Haldane and John Kosterlitz - with the wording “for the theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter.” What does it mean? The question takes us back to the 1970s, when a series of papers written by the laureates stimulated the development of a new direction in the study of condensed matter. Such media are called collections of particles of the same type connected by strong interaction: liquids, crystals, amorphous bodies, etc. Their study showed that with the external simplicity of the structure, many dynamic effects can be identified that arise as a result of the “collective existence” of particles. The laureates' contribution was the development of a model of phase transitions (from crystal to liquid, from liquid to gas) inside condensed matter, and the occurrence of the transition, as they suggested, is determined by the geometry of the medium at the level of the relative position of individual particles. The model turned out to be convenient for describing the physics of very exotic processes: helium superfluidity in thin films, magnetism in layered materials, integer quantum Hall effect and many others. It was recently implemented in a direct experiment, which became the reason for the award.
Three scientists also became laureates in the Chemistry category: Frenchman Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Scotsman Sir James Stoddard and Dutchman Bernard Feringa. The prize was awarded "for the design and synthesis of molecular machines." We are talking here about molecules that are created from scratch to solve specific problems, without trying to imitate nature. Moreover, the current laureates have come up with several schemes that can be used to “assemble” arbitrarily complex molecular “constructions” in the future. For example, Sauvage and Stoddard made mechanically linked molecules: catenanes (rings rotating relative to each other) and rotaxanes (ring moving along a straight base). Based on these schemes, a “molecular elevator”, “molecular muscles” and even an artificial ribosome capable of synthesizing proteins were built. Feringa proposed a “molecular motor” in which two spinning parts of a molecule interact through a carbon-carbon covalent bond. The most spectacular use of a “motor” has been demonstrated in a “nanomachine” that is capable of driving independently on a gold substrate, carrying a complex molecule as a load.
Picture: Niklas Elmehed / Nobel Media AB 2016
The prize in the “Physiology and Medicine” category was received by the Japanese Yoshinori Ohsumi for the discovery and deciphering of the mechanism of autophagy (from the ancient Greek “eating oneself”) - the process of lysosomal processing of organelles and protein complexes inside a living cell. Having begun to study the phenomenon back in the 1980s, the scientist was able to reveal its biochemical and genetic nature, as well as prove the universality of the mechanism for any organisms. After his work, we can say that we now know how the process of recycling “spoiled” cell elements develops, and we can even control this process, which in the future may help in the fight against aging diseases.
Picture: Niklas Elmehed / Nobel Media AB 2016
In the “Economics” category, the award was “taken” by the American Oliver Hart and the Swede Bengt Holmström with the wording “for their contribution to the theory of contracts.” The works of these economists are widely practical use; on their basis, for example, modern European bankruptcy legislation was formed.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Calderon received the Nobel Peace Prize, ending a campaign that lasted more than half a century. civil war In your country. Probably, only this award does not raise questions.
In the Literature category, the famous American rock musician Bob Dylan (Robert Zimmerman) unexpectedly became the laureate. And here no long explanation is required: just listen to his wonderful composition Things Have Changed.
Picture: Niklas Elmehed / Nobel Media AB 2016
Since 1991, the Nobel Prize has had an evil twin - the “Ig Nobel Prize” for dubious achievements, which tabloids love to publish in the “” section. In 2016, among the laureates were Thomas Thwaites, who studied animal behavior and imitated them himself (grazing for three days with mountain goats), and the Volkswagen automobile company received the chemistry prize for its method of faking exhaust emissions tests. Despite this, the Nobel Prize still remains the most authoritative, recognizable and important scientific prize in the world - and all its winners will sooner or later influence our lives.
There are many myths associated with the Nobel Prize, which we will try to debunk here. It is generally accepted that Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established this prize to clear his conscience, which was heavily soiled by mental tossing about the number of people killed by that same dynamite.
It is believed that Nobel hated mathematics, and therefore the mathematics prize was never established. He is considered to have supported the cause of peace and is why the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded every year. How was it really?
Where does the money for the Nobel Prize come from?
But in fact, Alfred Nobel, born in 1833, became the 4th son of Immanuel Nobel, who by the time Alfred was born was a famous industrialist, manufacturer explosives and gunpowder. What is much less known is that Alfred Nobel’s father was the inventor of such a banal thing as plywood, which brought him some of his income (IKEA appeared later, but wooden building materials have always been popular in Sweden).
In 1837, Immanuel Nobel moved to St. Petersburg, and in 1842 he moved his family there. School education Alfred Nobel received it together with the famous Russian chemist Nikolai Zinin, after which Alfred Nobel was sent to study in France and then to America. Meanwhile, the Nobel family enterprise produced weapons and ammunition for the Russian army - the Crimean War was going on. And when Russia lost Crimean War, the company went bankrupt. The Nobel family returned to Stockholm, the remains of production came under the control of the second son, Ludwig. Alfred Nobel began working for his older brother. It was for him that he invented safe methods work with nitroglycerin, the ever-memorable dynamite and the first versions of smokeless powder.
In 1888, the French press buried Alfred Nobel in absentia, confusing him with his older brother Ludwig. It is believed that it was then that Alfred began to think about how he would be remembered after his death, which ultimately led to the establishment of the Nobel Prize. Alfred Nobel took over the family businesses, and in 1894 acquired the Bofors group of companies, which brought him a fair share of income.
In those days, Bofors was primarily a steel production site. Under the management of Alfred Nobel, these enterprises quickly became one of the largest artillery manufacturers in the world. Bofors anti-aircraft guns were used during World War II by all parties involved with consistent success. The company was later sold, but this already happened after the establishment of the Nobel Prize. But interestingly, Bofors is still one of the key arms manufacturers in the world.
Alfred Nobel died in 1896 in San Remo (Italy) from complications of tonsillitis. A year before his death, Nobel wrote a will at the Norwegian-Swedish Club in Paris, in which he ordered 94% of his capital to be used as a fund for the establishment of the prize. At that time this amounted to 31 million Swedish kronor, which corresponds to approximately 150 million euros at today's price levels.
The heirs could not like such a will. Ragnar Solman, the manager of that same Bofors, was appointed Alfred Nobel's executor. Capitalism triumphed over family ties - Solman later became chairman of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce. It took Solman 6 years to create the Nobel Foundation. At the same time, a fair portion of the time was taken by the withdrawal of Alfred Nobel’s funds from Azerbaijan, where they were invested by his brothers in the oil production business.
First Nobel Prize
In 1901, the first prizes in physics, chemistry, medicine and literature were awarded in Stockholm. The winner of the first Nobel Prize in physics was Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen, in chemistry the first Nobel Prize was awarded to Jacob Van't Hoff for his work in the field of chemical dynamics, and in medicine - Emil Adolf von Behring for the discovery of blood serums.
The first Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to René François Armand Prudhomme, and the first scandal in the history of the Nobel Prizes was associated with this prize. Many writers believed that the literature prize should have gone to Leo Tolstoy, and Prudhomme’s candidacy was received extremely negatively. A group of 42 Swedish writers, including Selma Lagerlöf and August Strindberg, issued an open letter protesting the Nobel Committee's decision. But the decision remained unchanged, and Leo Tolstoy never received the Nobel Prize.
The Nobel Peace Prize is getting more complicated. Unlike the other four prizes in the “Nobel package,” Alfred Nobel gave the right to award it not to the Swedish scientific community, but to the Norwegian parliament, or more precisely to 5 elected members of it. Thus, the Nobel Peace Prize has only an indirect relation to Stockholm and Sweden, and since 1901 it has been awarded in Oslo.
The first Nobel Peace Prize laureates were Jean Henry Dunant, the ideological inspirer of the creation of the International Red Cross, and Frédéric Passy, the founder of the International Peace League.
In 1968, the Swedish Central Bank, in honor of its 300th anniversary, allocated a significant amount of money to the Nobel Committee to maintain the tradition of awarding prizes. IN next year The Nobel Committee, apparently as a sign of gratitude, established the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences. The Prize in Economics has nothing to do with Alfred Nobel's will, and is officially called the Swedish Prize state bank in economic sciences in memory of Alfred Nobel. Despite this, it is sometimes mistakenly called the Nobel Prize in Economics.
So, currently, Nobel Prizes are awarded annually in Stockholm in four fields: physics, chemistry, medicine and physiology, and literature. The Swedish Central Bank Prize is not officially a Nobel Prize, but is awarded there, in Stockholm, and nominees are nominated according to similar rules. All 5 prizes are awarded on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death. The ceremony takes place in the Stockholm Concert Hall, and the subsequent banquet with the participation of the royal family and other officials takes place in one of the halls of the Stockholm City Hall (the choice of hall may change from year to year, but since 1974 the choice has invariably fallen on the Blue Hall). Until 1930, the banquet was held in the hall of the Stockholm Grand Hotel opposite
Vladimir Dergachev
The Nobel Prizes are awarded by four Swedish Nobel Committees, which are special bodies of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Karolinska Institute (medical university) and the Swedish Academy (of writers). The Nobel Prize in Economics or more precisely the "Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel" is awarded by the Bank of Sweden. In Stockholm, Nobel Prizes are awarded in physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature, and economics.
The Fifth Nobel Peace Prize Committee is located in the Norwegian Parliament (Storting) and is a division of the Norwegian Nobel Institute. The size of the award fluctuates depending on the income of the Nobel Foundation and was reduced to $1.1 million in 2012.
The Swedish Academy is located in the Old Town in the former Stockholm Stock Exchange building. Here decisions are made on awarding Nobel Prizes in literature. This miniature Academy has only 18 life members. The building houses a museum dedicated to the inventor of dynamite, Alfred Nobel, who established the most prestigious prize in the world. Nobel spent his childhood in Russia and knew five languages. 
A fragment of the main entrance to the Stockholm Concert Hall, where the Nobel Prize award ceremony is taking place. Sculptural composition of Carl Milles "Orpheus". 
Photo by Vladimir Dergachev
In this hall, in 2000, the last laureate from Russia, physicist academician Zhores Alferov, now a deputy, received the Nobel Prize State Duma by the list Communist Party Russian Federation. 
Photo: EPA
Hotel where Nobel laureates stay 
Photo by Anton Dergachev
After the Nobel Prize ceremony, a banquet is held in the Blue Hall of Stockholm City Hall, attended by the royal family and a thousand guests. If you were not invited to the banquet, do not be upset. You can order the “Nobel menu” at the town hall restaurant at a time convenient for you, for only about 200 euros.
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The Nobel Peace Prizes are awarded and presented in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The first Nobel Peace Prize in the twenty-first century was awarded to the United Nations and its Secretary General, accompanied by American missiles and bombs exploding on Afghan soil. If in the West this event was regarded as a triumph of democracy, then in the Muslim world the assessments were diametrically opposite. Even in the Christian East (Moscow) the words were heard: “Peace Prize, posthumously.” An organization created to maintain international security, in last years withdrew from performing the main functions. The UN often appears on the Eurasian continent as an extra in American geopolitics.
The award ceremony takes place in the Oslo City Hall. On normal days, anyone can enter the town hall. It is only in the “city halls” of corrupt countries that you have to protect power from the people.
Here before the breakup Soviet Union in 1990, the “petrel of universal human values” Mikhail Gorbachev received the Nobel Peace Prize. 
Photo by Vladimir Dergachev
The Nobel Prizes are awarded in the West and primarily reflect the preferences of Western Christian civilization. Therefore, the frequent indignation of the “brothers of the Slavs” that the Nobel Peace Prizes are awarded to the wrong people is groundless. In the Soviet Union there was an International Lenin Prize. In democratic Russia there are hardly enough funds and resources to support home-grown oligarchs and show business, so there is no similar international peace prize. Perhaps an alternative to the Nobel Prize in the near future will be the Chinese Confucius Peace Prize. The award was established in 2010 on the initiative of a Chinese businessman, and is awarded to peace fighters according to the East. In 2011, the prize was awarded to Vladimir Putin. Thus, both the West and the East noted the shirking of the Russian leaders (Gorbachev and Putin) between the West and the East.
