About St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg was the former capital of imperial Russia and the home of its czars. The city has many splendid architectural treasures, theatres and art museums and of course the world famous Hermitage. Saint Petersburg is the second largest Russian city with a population of almost five million people. It is the largest northern city on the planet. Saint Petersburg is often called the Venice of the North, because it lies on 44 islands which are divided by a web of 86 rivers and canals.

Over 100 palaces of the Russian nobility and a great many cathedrals and unique churches built by the greatest architects of the time still remain in Saint Petersburg. Most of them are open to the public now. Saint Petersburg is famous for its "white nights" - a period when there is as much light during night time as during the day time and many bridges are raised, so that numerous strolling romantics can enjoy the sight of ships passing down the Neva river city waterway all night long. The city has recently undergone an extensive renovation in celebration of its 300th anniversary in 2003. More than 80 museums and 40 theatres of St. Petersburg ensure that art, ballet, music, and theatre lovers will find the metropolis an endless source of cultural enjoyment.

Climate

Overview. To put it in just one word, St. Petersburg weather is variable. In this Northern city the weather is the topmost source of surprises. That is why even in the heat of summer many wise locals still carry their umbrellas with them. It does not rain all the time, but you never know when it will. It might get quite windy too. At any rate, weather forecasts on TV and radio always get the highest ratings. St. Petersburg's climate is mild compared to that of the more inland areas of Russia. The city is on the Baltic Sea, which makes winters relatively mild, but summers are not particularly hot either. It is humid all year round. Autumns start with reasonably warm days in mid-September, but by mid-October it is often chilly. The average September temperature is 12 C, and the average October temperature is 4.9 C. In November it might start to snow, but sometimes it does not snow until mid-December.

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SCIENTIFIC ENVIRONMENT

St Petersburg is not only a cultural capital of Russia but also a scientific hub with the oldest Russian University and the renowned research institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS).The scientific potential of St. Petersburg attracts many international scientific and scholarly conferences and congresses.St. Petersburg scientific traditions are well routed in the past centuries. St. Petersburg has always been the educational and scientific center of Russia. Today, the city remains a significant contributor to the local and national economy, science and education. The scientific and research potential of St. Petersburg constitutes 15 % of the scientific and research potential of Russia and determines its federal and international importance. Main fields of scientific research in St. Petersburg are medicine, biology, physics, chemistry, software technologies and astronautics. There are over 60 higher educational establishments and 30 private colleges, and more than 1150 scientific and research institutions, including those (50) belonging to RAS, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences (RAMS) and to the Ministry of Health.

At present several research centers and many universities and clinics of our city are involved in brain activity investigations based on the attainments of physiology and psychophysiology: The Institute of the Human Brain, RAS, The Pavlov Institute of Physiology of RAS, The State Medical University named after Ac. I.P. Pavlov, Sechenov Institute of Physiology and Biochemistry of RAS, The Military Medical Academy, The Institute for Experimental Medicine of RAMS, The Institute for Biogerontology of RAMS, The Pediatric Academy, The Mechnikov Medical Academy, The Bechterev Psychoneurological Institute. Several research centers of Moscow and other Russian cities take part in brain research, together with medical universities in the cities of former Soviet Union. Namely: The Brain Institute (Moscow), The Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology (Moscow), Institute of Psychology (Moscow), The Institute of Physiology (Moscow), Scientific Research Centers of Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Yekaterinburg and research institutions of Ukraine, Belaruss, etc.