In Russia, 157 houses remain without district heating, in which 8,240 people live. As Interfax was informed on Monday by the Information Department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation, the most difficult situation remains in the northwestern region. "In the Arkhangelsk, Leningrad regions and Karelia, there are 102 houses without heating, where a little more than 4,000 people live," the Ministry of Emergency Situations said.

On Monday, an agreement on new international certificates for the technical inspection of heavy vehicles (buses, road trains and trailers weighing over 3.5 tons) comes into force, reminds RIA Novosti. From January 27, Russian road carriers entering Finland, Estonia, Holland, Romania and Hungary will have to present a new international vehicle inspection certificate, in accordance with an agreement adopted in 2000.

The US is secretly preparing to use nuclear weapons in Iraq, according to the Los Angeles Times, citing military analysts. The Pentagon does not consider this a necessity, but does not rule out such a possibility for the time being - these strikes will be carried out in response to Iraq's use of chemical or biological weapons of mass destruction. Nuclear warheads will be used against bunkers and other deep-seated military installations that cannot be destroyed by other bombs.

US Representative to the UN John Negroponte commented on today's speeches to the Security Council by the chief of inspectors in Iraq, Hans Blix, and the head of the IAEA, Mohammed ElBaradei. According to Negroponte, nothing was said at the meeting that "would give us hope that Iraq will disarm" voluntarily and thus remove the need for US military action. Negroponte, according to AP, also called on the UN not to ease pressure on Baghdad.

Scientists from New Zealand have managed to breed cloned cows that give a special milk that speeds up and simplifies cheese making. The chemical composition of milk fortified with additional proteins has been published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, BBC News reports . In the laboratory, cells responsible for increasing milk proteins called K-scene were obtained, then they were introduced into cow eggs. Embryos were transplanted into recipient cows, and 11 transgenic calves were born.

The authorities of Athens and the Organizing Committee for the 2004 Olympic Games decided to send the capital's taxi drivers to the so-called "school of charm, respect and courtesy." According to RIA Novosti, Greek parliamentarians also passed a law according to which 1,500 taxi drivers who will transport guests of the capital are required to pass a "good behavior seminar", where they will gain skills in dealing with foreigners.

Timur Shapovalov, an eleventh-grader from Norilsk, became an academician, Ekho Moskvy reports. This honorary title was awarded to him by the Academic Council of the Physical-Technical Academy. Timur has been participating in an international conference held by the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology for the second year in a row. In 2001, he took 3rd place, and in 2002, the computer program compiled by him was recognized as the best.

Russian and Belarusian scientists, within the framework of the Union State's program in the field of transgenic technologies, have obtained goat's milk, which is more useful than cow's milk, RIA Novosti reports with reference to Belteleradiocompany.

An indefinite protest action against the sect of Scientologists was started by representatives of the organization "Walking Together" in the center of St. Petersburg on Vosstaniya Square. This was reported to Interfax by the head of the "Going" Vasily Yakimenko. "For five days, activists of the organization live in a tent at the entrance to the sect. A huge sign informs the city authorities and all passers-by about the location of the sect.

On January 27, UN arms inspectors will present to the Security Council a report on the results of their work in Iraq. According to Ekho Moskvy, the speech will be held in open mode at the request of the Non-Aligned Movement, after which the Security Council will begin closed consultations. The Americans consider the continuation of the inspection useless and have repeatedly stated that they are ready to disarm Baghdad alone.

American geneticists have found the first gene responsible for calmness and complacency, according to the Air Force. People who do not have this gene in their genome are very aggressive and restless. We are talking about the PET-1 gene. It is responsible for the formation of brain cells in the embryo that secrete serotonin. Geneticists at Case Western Reserve University developed a genetically modified breed of mice that lacked these genes.

The British embassy in Moscow told RIA Novosti that the publication was published by the Russian office of the British Charitable Aid Fund and the Russian publishing house ROSMEN, which owns the copyright to publish this book in Russian. The presentation of the audiobook will take place on February 4 at the British Embassy. Pupils of Moscow specialized schools for blind and visually impaired children are invited to the ceremony, who will be presented with this book.

One child died and two more were seriously burned during a fire at a residential building in Rostov-on-Don on Sunday. According to Natalia Vlasenko, the press secretary of the Rostov Regional State Fire Service, the fire started at 4:30 pm in a two-story house down 7 February Street. As it turned out, the tenants of the apartment in which the fire started were in a state of extreme intoxication.

Pakistani intelligence agencies have not yet solved the case of the murder of Wall Street Journal correspondent Daniel Pearl. Pakistani police sources told Time magazine that there was a witness who saw Pearl being killed. According to him, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, a Kuwaiti citizen of Pakistani origin, who now controls all al-Qaeda attacks, killed the journalist. He was betrayed by one of the suspects - Fazal Karim, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan.

Mikhail Margelov, head of the Committee of the Federation Council of Russia on International Affairs, has been elected Vice-President of PACE. It is reported by "Echo of Moscow".