Could you give me some information on the number of murders that take place in Russia? On a different subject, approximately how many conscripts are inducted into the military annually, and what forms of alternative service are being considered? – William Kerr, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

William, you're beginning with a rather bloody question. Russia holds second place in the world in premeditated murders per 100,000 of population. First place is held by South Africa. Most murders take place in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Omsk in Siberia and other big cities.

As for military service – there are two call-ups: one in the spring and the other in the fall. In each, we enlist about 194,000 people; that's only 12 percent of the people of conscription age. Double the figure and you'll get a yearly call-up of less than 400,000. Eighty-eight percent are deferred from service in the age bracket between 18 and 27. If we cannot enlist enough people, we would have to start drafting students.

Today on television we see a lot of young men in some parts of the country performing alternative service. They are given the dirtiest work in hospitals: scrubbing floors, taking out bedpans, cleaning toilets. At present, if you choose this form of alternative service, you have to serve double the usual term.

What is Russia's national sport? – Muhammad Shamim, Kerala, India.

In winter, it is skiing and ice hockey. In summer, it's volleyball, soccer and basketball. In winter, you see whole families skiing through the woods and fields around Moscow. In summer, most kids play volleyball and soccer.

There are some traditional Russian national games, like "lapta." The idea is to hit a ball with a stick and run – a distant relative of baseball and cricket. Then there is a game called "gorodky," which means "townships." Each square is a township. Within each of the five "gorodky," a certain number of cylindrical figures are set up. The winner is the person who knocks down more figures with fewer bats. It's a distant relative of bowling.

(e-mail: editor@russiajournal.com.)