My nephew Priyank wants to know whether Russians eat fish, and, if so, what kind?

– Sameer Tungare, Versova, Bombay, India.

Russians certainly eat fish. The king of our fish is the sturgeon, which gives us our black caviar, though today both are very expensive. We also have salmon, sprats, herring, carp, sevruga, which is a kind of sturgeon; cod, pike and navaga. That, I think, gives you an idea.

What are some of the benefits of a market economy for your country?

– George Simons, San Francisco, California.

So far, the biggest benefits are freedom of speech – though less so in the provinces – freedom of movement, freedom to leave the country, a multi-party system, an elected parliament, and an elected president. We do have a free market economy, but so far our standards of living have fallen. You must remember this is a transition period. We have achieved stability and in a few years we'll start getting on our feet and things will improve. The system of a free market economy has given all developed, civilized countries a decent standard of living. We have the know-how, we have talented people, we have the resources. We're bound to make it.

Have any stamps been issued in Russia to mark the Voice of Russia?

– John Wallace, London, Great Britain.

In 1979, we marked the 50th anniversary of our foreign radio service, then called Radio Moscow. A 32-kopek stamp was issued depicting the beautiful Radio Tower, built in the early 1920s and now used for TV. It's a metal structure, like a long drawn-out cone. The stamp had hoops depicting radiating radio waves in blue and red, and the words "This is Radio Moscow," in eight languages. The words "Radio Moscow" were printed in Russian and German at the top of the stamp.

Some information, please, on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in your country.

–William Kerr, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

There are 16 World Heritage Sites in Russia, including the Moscow Kremlin, Red Square, Kizhi cemetery and historical center, the Palace Park architecture in the suburbs of St. Petersburg; Lake Baikal, the Kamchatka volcanoes, the Golden Mountains of Altai and other sites such as the Kazan Kremlin.

Tell me about the botanical gardens in Russia.

– Ronald Simon Fernandes, Mangalore, India.

There are 80 botanical gardens in the country. In the Kuznetsk Basin a garden has been started with voluntary donations from citizens, companies and firms. The first seedlings have been sown; each plant, tree, walk or hectare of the forest will have a label naming its sponsor. About 25 hectares will be taken up by a dendrarium, where new plants are sown and tested. In this region of the Kuznetsk Basin about 500 species of plants need protection. Moscow has five botanical gardens; the first opened in the time of Peter the Great; the second was established in 1895, and the third in 1945 by the Academy of Sciences on Poklonnaya Gora, which is used to grow medicinal plants for our medical institutes. The fifth botanical garden belongs to Moscow University. The garden on Botanical Street attracts most visitors. We want to unite the gardens of the world into a single international informational system, through a computer network.

Is awareness of health risks associated with smoking keeping more of your people from smoking?

– Robert Neill, Coleraine, Northern Ireland

I'm afraid not. Statistics show that two-thirds of our men and one-third of our women smoke. More than 38 percent of high school boys and 28 percent of the girls smoke. If this goes on, in 20-40 years one person will die every three seconds due to smoking-related illnesses. Only one in a hundred can quit smoking. The main danger is not nicotine, but the harmful cancer-causing and irritating effect of tar. In Russia, cigarettes are responsible for 300,000 deaths annually. It has taken on the form of an epidemic. Because of the growth of smoking, lung cancer in the past 10 years has increased by 63 percent. We do not advertise cigarettes on television, but in the streets huge posters offer imported and home brands, with a tiny notice at the bottom saying that the Ministry of Health considers smoking injurious to your health.

Was the near-miss asteroid a few weeks ago reported in your press?

– Len Morris, Birmingham, U.K.

Our papers did report about the asteroid that came close to Earth. It was 80-100 meters in diameter, about the size of a football field. It flew in space at a speed of 37,000 km per hour. Had it hit the Earth, there would have been no global catastrophe. To cause a catastrophe it would have to be several kilometers in diameter. This is the sixth time that an asteroid has come closer than the distance to the Moon. It was hardly noticed because it approached us from the direction of the Sun. That is why it could not be seen. through a telescope.

(E-mail Joe Adamov at editor@russiajournal.com.)