The coastal image is widely manifested in various aspects of human activity, which is expressed in terms of aesthetic perception, cognition and preservation of natural and cultural heritage. “White Coast” is the figurative name of a wide strip of the right bank of the Volga River from the village of Zolotoye to Mount Durman in the southern part of the Saratov region, a unique natural and historical landscape. Such a perception of the landscape is primarily due to the predominance of upper Cretaceous and Paleocene sediments in the section (primarily the Turonian-Coniacian rhythmic strata composed of light carbonate rocks), exposed throughout the entire length of the Volga coastal ledge. The accumulation of significant geological, paleontological, archaeological and other objects in this area makes it possible to consider the territory as an interdisciplinary scientific and educational polygon, as well as an effective geoecotouristic cluster.

The key principle of the Arctic development should be nature-saving nature management. The agro-landscape-ecological zoning of the Far North fodder ecosystems developed at the V.R. Williams Federal Research Centre for Forage Production and Agroecology is aimed at this very goal. About 90 % of Murmansk District is occupied by reindeer pastures, in some places disturbed as a result of their irrational use by reindeer herders, mining, construction, and transport; the ecological state of the territory is tense. In Yamal District, reindeer pastures occupy 65 % of the area; the ecological state of the ecosystems is tense or even critical in some places. The area of lichen tundras has decreased by 3,5–4 times, total fodder reserves in lichen-moss tundras, in those areas where they are still preserved, have decreased by 3–10 times. The total reserves of green grass fodder and shrubs has decreased by 1.5–2 and 2–8 times, respectively. Desertification of highlands (bare sands occupied about 6 %) and waterlogging of lowland areas is going on. Technogenic impact on tundra ecosystems disturbs soil and vegetation cover, hydrological regime. Waterlogging of lowlands due to thermoerosion is starting. It is necessary to find compromises between economy, ecology, social and national interests.

The article talks about the important role played by the rectilinear-directing mechanism in the history of world science and technology. Using the example of pantograph, an early mathematical instrument, we will trace the development of this design, unique in its simplicity, over time and show rare examples of these devices from the collection of the Museum of Bauman Moscow State Technical University. The widespread use of pantographs dates back to the 18th–19th centuries, which allows us to reveal the relationship between natural sciences (the body of knowledge about the Earth, natural objects, phenomena and processes) and engineering, purely technical disciplines, using the example of the use of these scientific instruments in the activities of naturalists and scientists and inventors. Until recently, in mechanical engineering, the use of pantograph mechanisms made it possible to solve the problems of producing parts with complex shaped surfaces on copying machines without the use of CNC systems. Nowadays, copying machines with pantographs continue to be produced, but rather for hobbies, leisure, and artistic processing of materials. The authors’ choice of the topic is dictated by the infrequent mention of such tools and mechanisms in modern Russian publications and sources.

The article analyzes geotourism perspectives based on natural history museums. Significant trends for the integrated development of geotourism and natural history museums are formulated. These trends allow revealing prospective views on the tourist potential of the territory. In order to clarify the geotourism development potential at the place of the Earth’s geochronological key stages, several museums were analyzed in conjunction with the geotoponyms of geological systems in the world. A geoheritage interpretation model, correlating ex situ museums and in situ objects, is developed. It includes territorial aspects and substantive formats of interpretation, depending on the target audience and the format of interaction with geoheritage. Geoheritage evaluation includes three groups of criteria (scientific, educational and geotourism), each being estimated to summarize approaches for the museum representation. The criteria are ranged according to the comparison purpose of in situ and ex situ forms. The variety of geoheritage interpretation forms allows suggesting recommendations for geotourism development. One symbolically significant way is the museumification of in situ and ex situ objects to correlate the museum network and the network of protected areas as a complex tourist infrastructure. For the Perm Region as a historically significant place of the Permian geological system discovery, the priority is to develop a complex plan to integrate the possibilities of geoheritage representation through museum forms and in the natural environment. In view of the objective scientific data, the Perm Region has no GSSP of the Permian system; therefore the role of the “symbolic stratotype” should have the Permian Period Museum as the basic object of the geotourism infrastructure and the starting point of tourist routes. The supportive role in the Permian geoheritage preservation and representation belongs to the network of municipal and university museums.

The thermal evolution of the permafrost in the sedimentary section of the Tyumen superdeep SG-6 well has been numerically reconstructed using the ICE2020 software package, which is part of the GALO flat basin modeling system. The thermal evolution of the sedimentary strata in the last 3.5 My is considered as the final stage of the basin modeling, whose formation began with continental rifting in the Late Permian. Abrupt climate changes in the late Pliocene–Holocene led to a decrease in the rock temperature by 15–20°C in the upper 1–1.5 km of the SG-6 sedimentary section. The maximum thickness of the permafrost in the study area was about 711 m, reached 2.6 Mya. The maximum thickness of the permafrost for the last ice age (23–18 thous and years ago) was 412 m, reached about 14.5 thousand years ago. According to our modeling, the modern base of the permafrost is at the depth of 311 m and is degrading with the rate about 13 m/1000 y. The results of our calculations with a database of climatic data limited to the last 50 and 100 thousand years differ markedly from the modeling results with the complete database for the last 3.5 My.

In the northwestern part of the Saratov Volga region, an unusually large (more than
4 m) for the region erratic boulder of an irregularly rounded polygonal shape was found, composed of Shoksha quartzite with sandstone and gravelstone interlayers. Its locality was investigated by a special expedition, the sample was removed from the parent substrate, moved more than 220 km and installed on the territory of the Saratov State Technical University named after Yu.A. Gagarin. The experience of exhibiting it on the university campus showed the effectiveness of implanting the object into the system of landscape design of the territory, turning it into one of the symbols of the university and an element of cultural space, as well as the rationality of positioning it as an original museum exhibit in the format of the Natural History Museum of the SSTU. Today, the specimen is a key element of the “ice age micropark” being developed in the open air and is thematically associated with a part of the exposition of the central hall of the Museum of Natural History of the SSTU, reflecting the Quaternary stage of the development of nature and man. In addition to excursion activities, the exhibit is used to deliver field lectures and conduct specially designed practical classes on the «foundations of geology», «historical geology», «Earth science», and other disciplines. All accompanying materials collected by the expedition are arranged in the form of a special collection of the museum’s scientific funds. Assessment of the object from the standpoint of geo-heritage allows us to propose giving it the status of a natural monument of local importance.

The reason for writing this article was the off-site meeting of the museology section of the Moscow Society of Naturalists on December 22, 2022, to get acquainted with the exhibition «Past and Present of the Fauna of the Vladimir Region» permanently operating in the House of Culture in Strunino. The initial task of the paper was to analyze the situation with the moving to a new location of the well-known scientific, educational and entertainment museum «Ice Age» in Moscow. The museum was established in 2004 on the basis of the richest paleontological specimens collected by F.K. Shidlovsky National Alliance during multiple expeditions to the northeast of Yakutia, Chukotka, Altai and the Southern Urals. In 2004–2014, the museum functioned as a scientific and exposition center in pavilion No. 71 at the All-Russian Exhibition Center, which not only popularized knowledge about the animals of the Ice Age, but also provided unique exhibits for research by paleontologists. After several years of searching, the creator of the museum finally found a suitable place to accommodate large exhibits. It was necessary to decide how, by continuing the comprehensive educational and research activities, to ensure a wide attendance of the museum in a place remote from Moscow. Thorough studying of the information showed how much the task is broader and more serious than it seemed at first glance. The activity of an outstanding energetic person, devoted to a significant social goal, turned out to be connected with roots deeply rooted in the historical past of the country. Support for a specific undertaking has become important for the implementation of a comprehensive project of the museum, cultural, scientific and educational nature, up to the prospects for the development of the region. And at the same time, the identified problem can be considered as an example of a person’s involvement in the history of the country and responsibility for his/her actions.

Professor N.E. Zhukovsky placed strong emphasis on visual clarity in writing and explaining his scientific works, repeatedly addressing the importance of geometric representation in theoretical mechanics. Drawing on archival materials from the Museum of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, the authors demonstrate that the “Russian Method of Craft Training” was built on the accumulated theoretical scientific foundation of the mid 19th century, gradually enriched by systematic collections of tools and teaching aids for each subject, and further developed through the practical work of students and their teachers. Examples of mechanisms created by Professor N.E. Zhukovsky can be found in the writings of his students and followers, in the works of Soviet scientists, and in museums of foreign universities–all of which hold high cultural value as part of our society’s scientific and pedagogical heritage. Through the case study of creating the museum replica “Hess’ Loxodromic Pendulum” based on Zhukovsky’s calculations, the article illustrates the substantial cultural potential embedded in the papers and designs of the Russian scholar. It shows how much inspiration and new scientific ideas contemporary educators and students can still draw from the now classic works of Professor Zhukovsky and his disciples. The reader will become acquainted with the principles of this scholar’s scientific and pedagogical activity—vivid examples of genuine scientific dedication by a scholar and patriot of our country.

Our previous publication in “Life on the Earth” [7] was concerned with neuroactive substances in the capacity of new-generation pollutants exemplified by neurotransmitters such as acetylcholine and biogenic amines. At low concentrations, these substances exert a growth-promoting effect on microalgae. The present work deals with the mode of action of extremely low concentrations (“trace amounts”) of neurotransmitters that comprises their antioxidant effects and the influence on the dynamics and rhythms of microalgal cultures’ development, i.e. on the succession of their age-related stages. Such neurotransmitters that can enter natural ecosystems with the wastewater of food, drug, and cosmetic industry, can be grouped into (1) substances that increase the unsaturated fatty acid (UFA) content in microalgal membranes, elevate the photosynthetic pigment concentration in the cells, and prolong the “youth” of microalgal cultures; and (2) substances that decrease the UFA content, reduce the photosynthetic pigment concentration, and, accordingly, accelerate the “aging” of microalgal cultures.

Based on our previously performed calculations of the intensity of Earth’ irradiation at the top of the atmosphere with high spatial and temporal resolution, it has been confirmed that the sea level rise over at least the last 130,000 years (during the Eemian / Mikulino interglacial and the late Pleistocene – Holocene) is associated with warm phases of climate precession. Based on our calculations of summer/winter irradiation intensity extremes during climate precession phases in the Northern Hemisphere, the formation dates of dropstones (Heinrich layers ) have been refined. These dropstones are correlated with climate precession extremes and are recorded in ocean sediments during both interglacial and glacial periods. Sea level evolution and ocean sedimentation over the past 130,000 years are primarily determined by glacioeustatic fluctuations associated with temperature changes, which are primarily controlled by variations in the intensity of Northern Hemisphere irradiation within the climatic precession cycle. At the same time, the weak presence of a precessional cycle is noted in the benthic δ18 O stack of the orbitally tuned LR04 scheme/model, which currently forms the basis of geochronology and climatostratigraphy of Late Pleistocene and Holocene. The beginning of the next warm phase of climate precession is expected around 5,500 years AD. This phase will peak around 11.5 kyr AD, when the next significant sea level rise is expected.

At present, it is possible to identify a number of new directions for the development of biogeochemical research, at the junction of fundamental and applied studies. A novel field of research is being formed, namely, engineering biogeochemistry, within the framework of which innovative biogeochemical technologies and technological processes based on modeling and management of ecosystematic biogeochemical cycles are being developed. The application of these innovative technologies for the restoration of disturbed and polluted impact ecosystems, in particular, polar ecosystems in the zones of operation of gas-producing enterprises, is considered. Technological examples of calculations of geoecological risks, as well as microbial contamination risks are given. A pool of the developed biogeochemical technologies and their connection with other innovative technologies within the framework of gas-producing companies is shown.

Based on V.I. Vernadsky’s teaching of the biosphere and modern scientific data, an attempt was made to analyze the mechanisms of the dynamics of modern global processes using the example of climate changes. Possible causes of the warming, both natural and anthropogenic, observed in the last century are considered. It is shown that it is the increase in temperature that causes the increase in the concentrations of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere, and not vice versa, as follows from the greenhouse effect hypothesis. This seems to be the main cause for the low effectiveness of any international efforts to stabilize the climate. The course of natural processes, as well as the evolution of the biosphere as a whole, has an unstable, cyclical nature, running according to its own laws. Particular attention is paid to V.I. Vernadsky’s doctrine of the biosphere, his views on the role of reason and scientific research in solving problems inevitably arisen in the course of evolution on Earth, caused by the rapidly developing, from a historical standpoint, humanity. Scientific research is a reliable defender of both the interests of mankind and the biosphere as a whole. This was V.I. Vernadsky’s basis of his positive outlook on the future of our civilization and the biosphere.

Having started his biogeochemical studies in 1916, V.I. Vernadsky revealed that the generally accepted opinion about the origin of life from inert matter had no scientific sources. But all data of biology and paleontology indicate that all life comes from life (Francesco Redi’s principle). Vernadsky found convincing evidence of biogenesis in the state of biological space–time, which allowed him to describe the biosphere as a planetary shell, actually forming other geospheres. Vernadsky’s concept of the planetary role of living matter is currently gaining overriding and fundamental importance for all Earth sciences.

The article analyzes a collection of minerals and rocks compiled in 1911 in Yekaterinburg city in the mineralogical workshop of the Commission for the Dissemination of Natural Science Knowledge of the Ural Society of Natural Science Lovers, stored in the Museum of Scientific Heritage (Ulan-Ude city). It includes both material (stone samples) and written sources (handwritten and printed). It contains information on the history of science, education and museum work in our country in the first decades of the 20th century. The collection was compiled according to J.D. Dana’s mineralogical systematics, typical for museum practice of that period. Its geography covers mainly the Southern Urals, but individual samples were collected in other regions of the Russian Empire.
The collection box contains its catalog, as well as scraps of the newspaper “Russkoye Slovo” and a fragment of a note of 1911, confirming the dating of the collection. The autograph on the catalogue belongs to Nadezhda O. Sharakshinova, a famous folklorist, through whose family the collection came to Buryatia. A second autograph was presumably left by the Yekaterinburg merchant Pyotr I. Yarinsky (~1868–?).
The educational mineral collections of the Ural Society of Natural Science Lovers were in demand by educational institutions across the country in the first decades of the 20th century. This activity is presented in sufficient detail in archival documents and research works. However, very few such educational aids have survived in museum collections. For the Museum of Scientific Heritage, the collection is an opportunity to expand the mineral diversity and geography of its collection; a document that stands out for its historical, scientific and memorial value.

The article presents a comparative analysis of the development of the system of protected natural areas (PNA) in China and our country. PNA in China began to form in the middle of the 20th century following the example of the USSR, that is, with the creation of nature reserves with a strict protection regime. In the late 1960s, China saw a suspension in the development of the PNA system and even its partial reorganization, which was also typical for our country a decade earlier. Since the end of the 20th century and to the present, both in Russia and China, the PNA system has been actively developing – the number of protected areas is increasing and they are being restructured in accordance with the categories of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Of fundamental and priority applied importance are new scientific and practical results obtained at the V.R. Williams Federal Research Center of Forage Production & Agroecology for the study of natural food resources in Russia, based on modern knowledge, materials and technologies. For all 11 natural and economic regions of Russia (Northern, Northwestern, Volga-Vyatka, Central, Central Chernozem, Volga, North Caucasian, Ural, West Siberian, East Siberian, and Far Eastern), agro-landscape and ecological zoning of land and forage ecosystems has been developed. The following materials were obtained for each area: a map M 1:2,500,000, a legend, a database on land, a database on forage lands, a database on negative processes, a classification of forage lands, a classification of deer pastures (where available), recommendations for forage production and environmental management in agriculture. The research used the Map of the Soil and Ecological Zoning of Russia from the Faculty of Soil Science of Lomonosov Moscow State University, as well as other numerous sources. When creating and developing new highly productive and resistant plant varieties and nature-like technologies based on zoning, science and industry will be able to use local natural and climatic resources with the greatest efficiency and minimize the development of negative processes.

The astronomical theory of climate changes (oscillations), created more than 100 years ago by the Serbian mathematician Milutin Milanković, in its current form does not explain global fluctuations of the natural environment in the Late Pleistocene, and therefore requires further refinement and development. And this theory has been modernized. Our revision is based on the results of calculations of the Earth’s insolation, performed with a high spatiotemporal resolution. The irradiation of the entire Northern Hemisphere was taken as the basis for determining the causes of the glaciations in Late Pleistocene. Variations in incoming solar radiation, calculated within the astronomical theory of climate, were supplemented by calculations of variations in the characteristics of radiative heat transfer. Based on the improved astronomical theory, the causes of global climate changes in the Late Pleistocene were found. The effect of dividing seasonal irradiation by phases of annual irradiation of the hemispheres was determined, and on this basis 7 warm and 9 cold solar epochs are distinguished in the solar climate of the Late Pleistocene. It has been determined that the glacial epochs in the Late Pleistocene of Northern Eurasia are associated with periods of positive average anomaly of winter meridional heat and moisture transfer and negative average anomaly of summer irradiation intensity in the Northern Hemisphere. Also, positive average anomalies of radiative heat transfer from the summer Southern Hemisphere to the winter Northern Hemisphere, as well as negative average anomalies of insolation seasonality in the Northern Hemisphere, correspond to glacial periods in the Late Pleistocene.

Interglacial epochs are associated with periods of positive average anomalies of summer radiation intensity and negative average anomalies of winter meridional transfer, and interhemispheric transfer of heat and moisture from the summer Southern Hemisphere to the winter Northern Hemisphere. Also, interglacial periods in the Late Pleistocene correspond to negative average anomalies of radiative heat transfer from the summer Southern Hemisphere to the winter Northern Hemisphere, as well as positive average anomalies of insolation seasonality in the Northern Hemisphere. The difference in the intensity of summer irradiation of warm and cold climate epochs in 100-thousand-year cycles averages 4.91 W/m2 (or 1.151% of the average Late Pleistocene value of summer irradiation intensity for the Northern Hemisphere). Therefore, the change of paleoclimatic epochs is associated mainly with the dynamics of the characteristics of summer radiation, and with the winter transfer of radiative heat and moisture determined by astronomical factors.

May of 2025 marks the 180th anniversary of the Siberian researcher, geologist and geo­grapher Jan Stanislaw Franciszek Czerski (1845–1892). However, he worked not only in the field of geology and geography. An important part in Czerski’s researches was works on paleontology and zoology; he is also known as an archaeologist. In 1871–1879, Czerski worked at the museum of the Siberian (Eastern Siberian) Branch of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society in Irkutsk. He studied, catalogued and significantly expanded the zoological and paleontological collections of the museum. The article provides brief information from Jan Czerski’s life. His main works on the study of modern and quaternary Siberian mammals, which laid the foundation for further research in this area, are analyzed. Czerski’s paleontological research ranks him among the outstanding palaeontologists of the second half of the 19th century.

80 years ago, two biologists in the USSR, simultaneously and independently, began researching the mechanisms of hormone production by nerve cells, i.e., the processes of neurosecretion. These were L.B. Levinson from Moscow State University, who was engaged in cytochemical studies of neurosecretion in insects and amphibians, and N.L. Gerbilsky from Leningrad State University (LSU), who studied the structure of two parts of the fish brain (hypothalamus and pituitary gland), and the functions of their hormones (neurohormones) to regulate the processes of vital activity of the body and its adaptation to changing environmental conditions. This fundamental research area worked alongside major foreign scientific schools of neuroendocrinology, E. and B. Sharer, R. Collin, R. Gauppa, B. Hanstra, G. Russi, and M. Mosinger. The work was also of applied importance, in particular, under the leadership of N.L. Gerbilsky, the role of hypothalamic and pituitary hormones in migration and spawning processes in bony and sturgeon fish, who were threatened with extinction due to the start of the construction of hydroelectric power plants in the 1920–1930s. This scientific field has revealed the relationship between the morphofunctional organization of the nervous, endocrine and reproductive systems in animals and ecological features of their species and was called “ecological histophysiology”. The result of N.L. Gerbilsky’s research was the development of a technique for obtaining hormones produced in the fish brain and then injecting them to other individuals to stimulate their reproductive processes in the practice of fish farming. The purpose of this article is to show the contribution of N.L. Gerbilsky and his students to the development of biotechnical methods for managing migration behavior and spawning in bony and sturgeon fish species.

In this paper, we discuss questions of the common origin of the disciplines of soil science and landscape geochemistry. Their closeness lies in their common objects of study — soils and landscapes — and a common methodological approach based on systemic analysis, the evolutionary-historical principle, and the priority of the scientific approach in solving practical problems, as laid down by V.V. Dokuchaev. The prominent naturalists A.E. Fersman and V.I. Vernadsky emphasized the genetic connection and mutual enrichment of these sciences through theoretical concepts and experimental data. When considering common problems of these two disciplines, particular importance is given to the biological cycle as a fundamental law governing the functioning of ecosystems. In the classification of soils and soil-geochemical catenae, their position within the system of geographic landscapes is especially significant. Currently, priority issues include anthropogenic impacts and environmental monitoring, which involve studies of element migration over the biosphere, as well as efforts towards mathematical modeling.

The article presents a retrospective analysis of the development of educational and enlightenment activities in the Earth Science Museum of Moscow State University named after Lomonosov from the moment of its foundation to the present. The following trends are highlighted: expansion of the forms and methods of museum pedagogy over time, introduction of interactive methods in the practice of the educational and enlightenment activities, work with various age visitor groups (from younger pupils and students to adults), as well as the use of digital methods in the educational process.

The article presents an analysis of the results of the All-Russian competition of creative projects “Youth and Museum” organized by the Earth Science Museum of Lomonosov Moscow State University and the V.I. Vernadsky Non-Governmental Ecological Founda­tion within the framework of the MSU Development Program in 2024. Our methodology for holding such competition events, its content and results are described. The results of a survey of the visitors of the All-Russian Festival “Science 0+” on the works of the compe­tition winners are presented. Recommendations are given for organizing and holding of competitions aimed at attracting young people to the study of natural science topics through the museum sphere. The possibility of using competitions to stimulate interest in museum activities and the further development of a modern museum is discussed.

Based on various archival sources from the funds of the Russian State Historical Archives, including the 1897 contract for the supply of museum glass cabinets and display cases between the Arthur Koppel Joint-Stock Company and the Supremely Approved Commission for Managing Work on the Internal Arrangement of the Zoological Museum of the Imperial Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, the article addresses the issue of exposition equipment in the context of preserving cultural heritage. The contract and the documents preceding its signing fit into a broad historical context. The described purchase probably illustrates the first experience of mass use in Russia of museum cabinets and display cases made of metal, rather than wood, as before. The choice of the manufacturer and supplier was interesting, where, for obvious reasons, preference was given to a foreign rather than a Russian company. As a result, the author concludes that the new experience of using iron museum cabinets and display cases was considered successful for Russia and marked the transition of Russian museums to a new type of exhibition equipment both for better preservation of museum exhibits and for providing the possibility of a better visual overview of the collections of public museums, which were becoming more and more numerous in Russia at the end of the 19th century.

Statistical characteristics of changes in the intensity of annual and seasonal irradiation at the upper boundary of the atmosphere of 5-degree latitude zones of the Arctic region in the Late Pleistocene were obtained. No relationship was found between the intensity of annual and seasonal irradiation of 5-degree latitude zones and the eccentricity of the Earth's orbit, but a positive noticeable relationship was found between the intensity of summer irradiation and a negative relationship between the intensity of winter irradiation and a change in the tilt of the axis and the longitude of the perihelion. The maximum range of variations in winter irradiation intensity in the Arctic with geographic latitude in the Late Pleistocene noticeably (by 10,211 W/ m2) decreases, while the maximum range of variations in summer irradiation intensity with geographic latitude slightly (by 4.3 W/m2) increases. The correlation coefficient of summer irradiation intensity and perihelion longitude in the Late Pleistocene decreases with geographic latitude, and increases with the tilt of the rotation axis. The modulus of the correlation coefficient of winter irradiation intensity with perihelion longitude decreases, and increases with the tilt of the rotation axis. The maximum range of changes in the intensity of annual and seasonal irradiation of 5-degree latitudinal zones by 1–2 orders of magnitude in the Late Pleistocene exceeds the maximum variations in the δ18 O isotope-oxygen analysis of benthic foraminifera, which shows the groundlessness of using its values to solve problems of Late Pleistocene geochronology and climatostratigraphy.

The gallery of artistic portraits of outstanding Russian and foreign naturalists, consisting of sculptures and paintings, occupies an important place in the exposition of the Earth Science Museum at Moscow State University. The 270th anniversary of the Moscow State University named after Lomonosov and 75th anniversary of its Earth Science Museum is an occasion to turn to the activities of scientists directly related to Moscow University. The portraits of paleontologists of the 19th – first half of the 20th century, which were at the beginning of the science of fossil organisms at Moscow University, are shown in the museum halls. They have contributed to the development of this science, as well as museology at the university, and laid the foundation for modern research and teaching paleontological courses. Among them are the learners of Johann Gotthelf Fischer von Waldheim (1771–1853) – Charles Roulier (1814–1858) and Grigory E. Shchurovsky (1803–1884), Vladimir O. Kovalevsky (1842–1883), Aleksei Petrovich (1854–1929) and Maria Vasilievna (1854–1938) Pavlovs, and Aleksei Alekseevich Borisyak (1872–1944). Brief biographical information of the scientists is provided. Their contribution to the development and organization of paleontological research at Moscow University is shown.

Features of the prevalence of Cd and Pb dissolved forms in the water of sections of the Oka river and other rivers of the Russian Plain are considered. The influence of anthropogenic wastewater (industrial, municipal and agricultural) containing heavy metals is clearly manifested only in certain sections of the rivers of central Russia (Oka River, Volga River, and Moscow River) against the background of natural landscape and geochemical processes. An attempt is made to develop approaches to assessing the degree of anthropogenic influence on the water composition of various river sections, including those remote from pollution zones. An ecological and geochemical lead–cadmium indicator is proposed, which makes it possible to assess the anthropogenic impact and divide river sections into 3 categories (strong, medium and weak pollution, respectively). The river sections with low anthropogenic pollution have high values of this indicator corresponding to waters with the background (or close to background) concentration. A decrease in the indicator values means an increase in the role of anthropogenic effluents in the water composition, and estimates of the average concentrations of elements are technogenically dependent.

The problem of atmospheric electric field disturbances during geomagnetic field variations still has no clear solution. The article analyzes available data from magnetometers and atmospheric electricity stations during the supersubstorm of April 5, 2010, which developed against the background of a moderate magnetic storm (/Dst/ ~ 80 nT). Comparison of fluxmeter and magnetometer data has shown unexpectedly strong variations in the vertical electric field Ez with a range of up to several hundred V/m (“electric storm”) during intense magnetic disturbances. Although the Ez disturbance observed worldwide roughly coincided with the magnetic storm, the coherence between the geomagnetic and electrical variations and the electrical variations between themselves was low. This event does not fit into modern concepts of atmospheric electric field disturbances by ionospheric currents.

The article discusses the applicability of the Industry 4.0 concept to agriculture in general and fertilizer usage in particular. The possibilities of integrating IT and communication technologies with agricultural production are shown, when “smart” network systems combining various types of data from several sources help to increase productivity and efficiency. Examples are given of increasing the efficiency of fertilizer usage, primarily nitrogen ones, using electronic twins of agronomic and agrochemical technologies to reduce their environmental impacts. It is noted that the introduction of Industry 4.0 technologies increases the efficiency of precision farming as a combination of the best practices of sustainable agriculture (BPSA). Examples of assessing the life cycle of fertilizers considering the risk of eutrophication of natural waters are given. This allows achieving economic and environmental optimization of agriculture.

The article presents the main stages of the scientific path of Ivan A. Heim (Bernhard Andreas von Heim, 1758–1821), a representative of the German academic society, who moved to Russia in 1779 and held the position of the rector of Moscow University from 1808 to 1819. I.A. Heim’s scientific heritage in the field of linguistics, geography and statistics is considered. The great merits of I.A. Heim in the organization of evacuation of Moscow University during the Patriotic War of 1812 and its subsequent restoration are shown.

The exposition of the department "Natural Zones" in the Earth Science Museum of Moscow State University (25th floor, halls Nos 18–20) presents 15 full-scale exhibits of dry 3D fragments of biogeocenoses, namely: spotted tundra; forest tundra; swamps: flat-hummocky tundra, oligotrophic upland and mesotrophic lowland sedge; spruce-green grass; grass-grass and tipchak-grass steppes; subtropical mountain forest; alpine meadows; semi-deserts; deserts – clay, wormwood-solyanka and ilak belosaksaulnik on ridge sands; and savannas. These exhibits demonstrate the interaction of the main natural components characteristic of the respective climatic conditions (soils, flora, and fauna). The article gives a description of the animal species represented in the exposition based on a visual examination of zoological exhibits and a study of their nomenclature and taxonomic changes.

The article presents the results of studies of a number of sections of Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) deposits in the Saratov Right Bank region (settlements Krasnyi Oktyabr’, Doktorovka, Kurdyum and Shirokoe), confined to the Yelshano-Kurdyum uplift. Oryctocenosis combines autochthonous (ichnofossils), subautochthonous (bivalves and gastropods) and allochthonous (ammonites, wood fragments) elements. Sedimentological and mineralogical indicators (ripple marks, desiccation cracks, wedge-shaped structures, cross-bedding, glauconite, and calcite veinlets), as well as fossil remains and features of their taphonomy, allow us to diagnose the coastal ecosystem of the epicontinental sea basin. In the ecosystem format, we see a variety of physico-geographical situations: areas of the bottom which are periodically actively bioturbated and hydrodynamically transformed into mature hardground; zones of active hydrodynamics with the formation of cross-bedding; and zones of subaerial surfaces with the possible development of stick soils. Reconstruction of the paleoecosystem is complicated by the presence of a number of natural facts that have not been unambiguously interpreted, images of which are given in the article. The studied sections are of interest from the standpoint of geoheritage. Selected natural facts are actively involved in the development of a number of geoscientific university museums.

The old hypothesis by Academician V.I. Vernadsky of the biosphere being a geological force to build the surface and immediate interior of our planet is indirectly supported based on statistical data. According to occurrence data on findings of all known animal specimens and according to some characteristics of the tectonic activity of the Earth, the presence of several previously unknown cycles shortening from cycle to cycle (approx. By a factor of 1.51) over about a billion years, is substantiated. This leads to an idea of a cause-and-effect relationship between these two different categories of cycles. The influence of tectonics on biota, to one degree or another, has long been known. However, due to the mentioned cycles being rather accelerated, it is difficult to imagine that such strong acceleration in the tectonic cycles could arise due to some intra-tectonic causes, whereas the accelerated nature of biotic evolution due to some intrabiotic causes is quite possible. So, a conclusion arises of the mentioned contracting tectonic cycles being modulated by biota. Possible mechanisms of such influence are hypothesized, their clarification requiring additional research. This conclusion is revolutionary for geology and reveals biotic evolution’s previously unknown role as an active creator of global tectonic (cyclic) processes at a new, quantitative level, which is also revolutionary for evolutionary biology. But, regardless of these conclusions, the mentioned decreasing cyclicity is of interest itself, for the first time (statistically) speaking about the accelerated nature of evolution over such vast time periods.

The article examines the problem of energy efficiency in the chain from the production of fertilizers to their logistics, application, and waste production and disposal based on the huge amount of data accumulated in recent years on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (primarily CO₂ and methane). Carbon dioxide emissions are shown to occur primarily from fuel combustion, as well as from the use of methane and CO₂ as precursors for nitrogen fertilizers. GHG emissions can be considered as a measure of energy efficiency when assessing the life cycle of mineral fertilizers. Relevant examples are given.

The problem of global climate warming and attempts to solve it, including using low-carbon power engineering, are analyzed. The success of solving this problem depends on the degree of understanding of the processes which cause it. As more and more data speak about natural causes of climate fluctuations, and of anthropogenic factors the greatest contribution to the warming is made by thermal pollution rather than the anthropogenic growth of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, low-carbon power, with all its positive qualities, is unable to solve the problem of climate warming.

The public perception of global natural processes in the climate change context plays an important role in modern political decision-making; and the country’s future depends on the younger generation. This survey was aimed at revealing public attitude to changes in global natural processes among the participants and organizers of the Thirteenth All-Russia Competition of children’s environmental projects “Man on Earth”. An online questionnaire “Biospheric processes, their understanding and consideration in your own research and environmental activities” was offered for completion in February–March 2023. We received 1173 voluntarily completed questionnaires from the respondents aged 6 to 60 and older. More than 70 % of respondents consider human activity to be the cause of global climate changes, with the majority of respondents having a negative attitude to climate warming. However, be there a possibility of climate management, the majority of respondents would like climate warning at a local level. With age, the number of those wishing for climate stabilization (return to the climatic norm) increases. Approximately 50 % of the respondents consider that global natural processes directly affect the status of the environment. At the same time, only 10 % attribute the unfavorable state of the environment to global factors. People aged over 60 are most concerned about global environmental problems.

The groundlessness of the Paris Agreement (2015) is proven, which asserts the culpability of carbon energy in the sharp increase of the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere. The carbon energy’s share of this gas in the atmosphere is shown not to exceed 1 %. The influence of the Earth's albedo and the energy used by mankind on the increase in atmospheric temperature is compared. The thermal “pollution” of the atmosphere from carbon energy is shown to be much less than that from hydrogen, solar or wind energy. The absence of a deserving alternative to carbon energy is proven. Processes affecting the state of the atmosphere and its corresponding climate are analyzed on the basis of general laws of the evolution of nonequilibrium thermodynamic systems. The causes of the alternation of glacial and interglacial periods with different time durations in the history of the Earth are explained. The transitions between these periods are shown to proceed through chaotically changing states and demonstrate hysteresis. It is noted that the currently observed chaotic climate change corresponds to chaotic transitions of any nonequilibrium thermodynamic system from one quasi-stationary state to another.

The paleoclimate evolution curve of the South Kara Sea basin over the past 250 Myr, which is necessary for numerical reconstruction of its thermal history, was plotted using data from a large number of works devoted to studying of the paleoclimate of the Arctic sector of the West Siberian Basin. For the period from 260 to 65 Mya, the construction of the paleoclimate curve was based on a series of paleotectonic reconstructions of the studied area. The reconstruction of the climatic history of the Cenozoic was based on a detailed study of climate variations in Eurasia over the past 65 Myr. The history of sharp climate fluctuations in the last 3.5 Myr was based on information from a large number of works devoted to studying of the regional paleoclimate in the Pliocene-Quaternary. Studies published in the literature speak in favor of the limited size of the glacial covers formed within the South Kara basin. This makes it possible to neglect the effect of the porosity of sedimentary rocks from the glacial cover load in comparison with the similar effect of the load of sediments removed by erosion in the Miocene. Any correction to the paleoclimatic data due to the thermal influence of the ice sheet with its limited thickness should not exceed the error in determining the data themselves. Peculiarities in the change in temperature and the salinity of pore waters with depth determine the existence of various forms of permafrost in the shelf areas of the Arctic seas.

A popular science film “Brotherhood of Scientific Creativity. Floating University named after Vladimir Vernadsky” was shot to the 160^th anniversary of the birth of Academician V.I. Vernadsky. Work on the film was carried out during 2022–2023 as part of the activities of the scientific and educational expedition «Floating Universities Flotilla» (the field work regions being the Middle and Lower Volga river, Don river, Caspian sea). It includes the original projects “Academician Vernadsky’s Floating University” and “Floating mobile-network museum center”. The concept of the project basically provides for interdisciplinary research on a wide range of problems of the interaction of geospheres and the evolution of geoecosystems, which is being implemented by creative teams of scientists from various fields and students with the active involvement of the local population in interactive museum practices. According to the main message of the film, it is in such an environment of “scientific creativity”, in the format of field natural sciences, that the development of the ideological heritage of V.I. Vernadsky on the principles of the “Priyutinsky Brotherhood” and maturation of the “new Vernadskies” from novice researchers. The original system of scenario and producer’s decisions included the contrast of images «academician–student», a series of episodes of actual field research (the study of geological sections, the phenomenon of lithophagy, natural and anthropogenic objects) with the implicit inclusion of the “young Vernadsky” in the process (the character is an actor) and subsequent the culminating meeting of the “two Vernadskies” (montage) against the background of the Volga river – a symbolic handover of the baton of “scientific creativity” to a new generation.