The bankruptcy of the investment bank Lehman Brothers led to a collapse in quotes on most stock exchanges around the world. In the US, the Dow Jones index fell below 11,000 points, amounting to 10,918 points (-4.42 percent) at the end of the trading session on September 15. Thus, the main indicator of the US stock market showed its lowest value since July 2006. The index's decline was the largest since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Other US indices also fell sharply.

The power supply to Tskhinvali has been completely restored, RIA Novosti reports with reference to the press service of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations, which is conducting restoration work in South Ossetia. The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations also restored the Java-Tskhinvali, Tskhinvali-Znaur and Tskhinvali-Vanat power lines. In addition, the central water supply has been restored and the gas distribution network of Tskhinvali has almost been restored.

American astronomers from the University of Washington managed to prove that stars inside galaxies are capable of migrating over fairly large distances. This was reported in a press release on the university website. Astronomers simulated the formation of a galaxy from a dust cloud 9 billion years ago. In total, scientists spent more than 100 thousand hours of computer time on supercomputers at the University of Washington and the University of Texas.

The MICEX suspended trading for one hour due to the index falling by more than eight percent compared to the opening. reports this RIA Novosti with reference to Mikhail Temnichenko, director of the MICEX stock market department. At the same time, compared to the closing level of trading on September 15, the MICEX has already fallen by more than 15 percent. During the same time, the RTS fell by 10 percent. Trading on this exchange has not yet been suspended.

The daughter of Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, Vitalina Yushchenko, will appear as a model at Milan Fashion Week on Saturday, according to the website of the Segodnya newspaper. 27-year-old Vitalina will present the spring-summer 2009 collection of Ukrainian designer Aina Gase. Gase's clothes are worn, in particular, by the Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko and her daughter Evgenia Carr. Most likely, Yushchenko's daughter will demonstrate light summer dresses in Milan.

The World Boxing Association (WBA) rejected the request of American heavyweight boxer Johnny Ruiz to annul the result of his fight with Nikolai Valuev and deprive the Russian of the champion title. The WBA's official statement says that Ruiz's claims to the refereeing of the fight have no basis, reports the online publication fightnews.com. The American boxer's team announced its intention to protest the result of the fight on September 8.

Vietnam intends to introduce a visa-free regime with Russia, RIA Novosti reports , citing a statement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov . According to Lavrov, Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem informed him about this during negotiations in Moscow.

Russian national football team forward Roman Pavlyuchenko made his debut in London's Tottenham. In his first match for the English club, the former Spartak striker spent the entire 90 minutes on the field. In the debut match, Pavlyuchenko failed to score, and Tottenham lost to Birmingham's Aston Villa with a score of 1:2, writes the Daily Telegraph. For Aston Villa, victory in the match against Tottenham was the first successful result away from home against teams from London in four years.

Thirty-five percent of executives who use a Blackberry and travel a lot would choose their device over their spouse, a survey of 6,500 people commissioned by the Sheraton hotel chain showed, CBS reports. 87 percent of respondents bring a Blackberry into the bedroom. 84 percent of respondents check their email before they go to bed, and 80 percent check their email after they wake up. 62 percent of respondents admitted to loving their communicators.

South Korean Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee said on September 16 that North Korea tested a rocket engine at the new Dongchang-li test site, the South Korean newspaper Chosun reported . South Korean intelligence sources believe that the engine is intended for the Taepodong-2 intercontinental missile. Testing shows that part of the Donchang-Ly test site, the equipment of which should be completed by 2009, is already in operation.

The cost of housing and communal services in the Moscow region in 2009 will reach 80.19 rubles per square meter of total area, Interfax reports , citing a statement made by Acting Minister of Economy Valery Filchenkov at a government meeting on September 16.

Shine on Pink Floyd keyboardist Richard Wright dies Since the 1975 album Wish You Were Here and the subsequent tour, most Pink Floyd concerts have opened with the song "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" - a dedication to the band's founder Syd Barrett, who had already left the group at that time. This fifteen-minute composition begins with a passage on the keyboards, which were always managed by Richard (Rick) Wright in Pink Floyd.

A British citizen was kidnapped in the city of Port Harcourt in southern Nigeria on the night of Monday to Tuesday, AFP reports . The British man was kidnapped by unknown armed men. Sky News clarifies that the abducted man is a former employee of the petrochemical company Indo Rama. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for this crime. Since 2006, approximately 200 foreign nationals have been kidnapped in the Niger Delta.

Rossvyazkomnadzor will conduct its own examination of the presence of signs of extremism in cartoons broadcast by the 2x2 TV channel. As explained by the adviser to the head of the department, Evgeny Strelchik, the examination will be carried out at the proposal of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation, Interfax reports . It is not specified when exactly Rossvyazkomnadzor will check “2x2” for extremism.

American scientists from the University of Texas discovered a new species of ants in the Amazon forests. An article by researchers appeared in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences . The ant found has a pale body color and no eyes. This speaks of an underground lifestyle. In place of the mouth are soft, furry tweezers, which, according to scientists, are intended for chewing small invertebrates. The forelimbs are much more developed than the hind limbs.