Altai

A few months ago Altai Region was basking in a heat wave, suffering shortages of water for crops.

A 15 million rouble subsidy has been granted to airline S7 to operate flights on the Moscow to Gorno-Altaisk route during the rest of  2012.

Archeological evidence from the Altai region makes clear the arrival of Homo erectus from Africa can be dated at between 800,000 and one million years ago.

DNA of a fossil tooth found in the Altai Mountains shows early man and his best friend were together 19,000 years earlier than previously understood.

A man became infected from a cow, and only called for medical help a week after contracting the deadly disease - by then it was too late. 

Surely not a unicorn but scientists are as yet unsure about the owner of this intriguing horn fragment which is perhaps 18,000 years old.

There are 30 beds in Altai Regional Clinical Children Hospital in Western Siberia, which are never empty.

The fatality occurred after the unnamed man handled the carcass of an infected cow in the Tselinniy district of Altai territory.