Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio.

I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

Over centuries, Istanbul's stunning Hagia Sophia shifted from cathedral to mosque to a proud

symbol of modern Turkey's secularism.

Now the president has turned it back into a mosque, a distraction tactic that isn't playing

well at home or abroad.

And today production will end for the Segway, a two-wheeled self-balancing gizmo that

was in its way ahead of its time.

It was supposed to be a transport revolution, but in the end it only revolutionized how

tourists and mall cops get around.

Just up though.

Unrest has taken hold in Russia's far east.

Over the past several days, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in towns

across Habarovsk, a region that borders China.

Demonstrators chanted slogans such as Putin Resign and demanded the release of the region's

governor, Sergei Fragal.

Sergei Fragal was arrested last Thursday on suspicion of multiple murders that took place

in the early 2000s.

In the eyes of the protesters, his sudden arrest was politically motivated, coming just after

a rigged referendum on changes to Russia's constitution.

Earlier this month, President Vladimir Putin thanked voters for endorsing amendments that

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