In Karachay-Cherkessia, one tourist was killed and another was injured while riding down a mountain in an inflatable ball. This was reported on January 8 on the website of the republican department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. According to the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, the deceased tourist’s name was Denis Burakov, he was originally from Pyatigorsk. The victim's name is Vladimir Shcherbakov.

4.5 million rubles were stolen from the Russian Post office located in the village of Nes, Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Interfax reports . According to the agency, on the night of January 7, the attackers entered the branch, opened the safe and took money from there. A criminal case has not yet been initiated, Interfax notes. What the stolen money was intended for is not specified. The village of Nes is located on the banks of the river of the same name beyond the Arctic Circle.

The director of "The Shawshank Redemption" and the television series "The Walking Dead" Frank Darabont will write the final draft of the script for the new Godzilla film, Deadline reports . The first version of the story for Legendary Pictures was written by Max Borenstein, who had previously worked on the story for “The Seventh Son” by Sergei Bodrov Sr.

Pop art leader Andy Warhol turned out to be the most profitable artist for auction houses at the end of 2012. As Bloomberg reports, citing the Artnet (ART) database, in just 12 months, $380.3 million worth of his works were sold. Thus, Warhol ousted Zhang Daqian from the first position, who at the end of 2011 took the leadership from Picasso.

The opening of the new Berlin Willy Brandt Airport has been postponed for the fifth time, as a result of which Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit was forced to resign as chairman of the company's supervisory board. reported this on Monday Reuters . Wowereit gave up his position as head of the supervisory board to the head of the Brandenburg government. At the same time, the Berlin mayor emphasized that he does not intend to resign from the post of mayor, as his opponents from the Green Party demand.

In the United States, a bill is planned to be introduced in Congress that would prohibit the Treasury Department from minting coins in denominations of one trillion dollars. This was reported on the website of Republican Congressman Greg Walden. According to him, plans to mint such coins are “absurd and dangerous.” "The idea would be ridiculous if the proponents weren't so serious about proposing this [coinage] as a solution," the congressman said.

Gerard Depardieu did not appear on Tuesday, January 8, in a Paris court, where the case of the actor driving while drunk is being heard. This was reported by Agence France-Presse . Depardieu fell from his moped in November 2012 in Paris. Police then discovered that the actor's blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit. Now he faces a fine of 4.5 thousand euros and two years in prison.

An American sued a Vietnamese casino for winnings of $55.5 million. reported this on January 8 Agence France-Presse . A 60-year-old tourist from the United States, Ly Sam, hit the jackpot in October 2009 on a “one-armed bandit” machine installed in the casino of a five-star hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. He placed a bet of $300. As the Vietnamese newspaper Thanh Nien news clarifies, the man took a photo of the machine's screen and asked other players to witness his winnings.

On January 8, President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov ordered the creation of a rating system for the country's universities, RIA Novosti reports citing the press service of the head of state. According to the plan, the corresponding system should appear this year. A specialized government agency will determine the teaching quality level index, the qualification index of students and graduates, the scientific potential of the university, and more.

Brad Pitt may play the role of Pontius Pilate in the film of the same name, writes Deadline, citing its own sources. Whether Pitt is in talks with the studio and, if so, at what stage they are, is still unknown. The Warner Bros. film Pontius Pilate does not yet have a director and a release date is unknown. The studio acquired the script for the film in the summer of 2012; it was written by Vera Blasi, who previously worked on such films as “The Woman on Top” (2000) and “The Emperor” (2012).

About a thousand experts surveyed by the World Economic Forum (the foundation responsible for organizing the annual event of the same name in Davos, Switzerland) named the widening income gap between rich and poor, as well as widening budget deficits, as the main risks for the global economy in the next decade. This was reported in the forum report .

The motorized rifle brigade of the Russian Ground Forces, stationed in Alabino near Moscow, received a new Combat simulator, thanks to which it will be able to conduct virtual battles. This as reported by Interfax was stated by the representative of the Russian Ministry of Defense for the Ground Forces, Lieutenant Colonel Nikolai Donyushkin, . According to him, the simulator allows training of one motorized rifle company.

Actor Brad Pitt opened an account on the Chinese microblogging service Sina Weibo. According to Tech In Asia, the actor’s page on the site has been verified. Pitt published one entry on the microblog on January 7: “It is the truth. Yup, I’m coming...”, which can be translated as: “It’s true. Yes, I will appear...”. In the first two hours, eight thousand comments were left on the actor’s post, and the post itself was published by 20 thousand users.

The Swedish news channel TV4 News accidentally aired footage from a porn film. The Local reports this. A fragment from a porn film was captured on camera at about 10 am on Monday, January 7. Intimate scenes were broadcast on one of the monitors behind the TV channel presenter as she spoke with a TV4 News correspondent in Moscow. The presenter discussed with him the situation in Syria and the support of the Bashar al-Assad regime by the Russian authorities.

Hunt for a hunter The Prosecutor General of Moldova was accused of murder Valery Zubko. Photo: tribuna.md The New Year in Moldova began with a loud scandal. The country's Prosecutor General Valery Zubko was accused of allegedly shooting a man while hunting and trying to hide it from the public. The opposition has already demanded that Zubko resign; he himself claims that he was slandered. Meanwhile, the scandal caused some friction in the power structures.