Yesterday, the School program passed its equator. There are only three days left until the final. But what's encouraging, despite the heavy workload, all ten teams are on schedule.
On most projects, the fieldwork stage has already been completed, and participants have moved on to processing the collected materials. We cannot cover all the projects here but we will give a few examples. Thus, the team behind the project "Study of the Lakes in the Village of Chapaevo”, for example, surveyed the surrounding water bodies and collected invertebrate samples—they are now using these to assess the water quality in the lakes. Meanwhile, participants of the project "The Soul of the Soil" have taken soil samples from different biotopes and are comparing how they differ from one another.
Special mention should be made of the anthropology project “Through Museum’s Glass”. The researchers visited nearby villages and spoke with local residents—about traditions, customs, and everyday life. The collected material will form the basis of an ethnographic exhibition to be presented at the final defense.
There was also a truly remarkable find. During one of the field trips, the group from the project "Echoes of the Pleistocene" discovered bone remains of prehistoric animals—including a large fragment of a woolly rhinoceros’s skeleton. According to preliminary data, it inhabited this area about 10,000 years ago.
The final presentation of all projects will take place on July 8, when the teams will present the final results of their work.