Division Between Ancient and Modern Science Essay -- Religion Philosop

Division Between Ancient and Modern Science Introduction Power has played a significant role in the motivation of scientific progress, specifically in comparing modern science and ancient science. Power-seekers have been greatly attracted to scientific pursuits, seeking monetary, life-giving or glory-earning ends. In ancient science "the lure of health, wealth, and eternal life charmed many an alchemist to the poorhouse, madness, or an untimely death" (Coudert 35), while modern society itself has embraced scientific development with a similar fervor. Amidst many similarities, the rift between ancient and modern science is enormous and has frequently left historians puzzled. Although it is clear to historians that the stagnant science of ancient times developed into the modern scientific pursuit in the 17th century, it is not clear what specifically caused this revolution of scientific thought. This essay will discuss differences in motives which have driven ancient and modern science, arguing that 17th century alterations of power structures led to the ultimate division between modern and ancient science and the eruption of modern science as it is today. Comparisons will be drawn regarding knowledge accessibility, prevailing philosophies and ideologies, and the relationship between science and the church. Knowledge Accessibility: ancient secrets vs. modern community knowledge To begin, a major shift in scientific thinking arrived with the dawn of the printing press and the new-found accessibility of knowledge. "Alchemy was from its origins a secret art;" (Roberts 66) secrecy was an absolute necessity in early science when a powerful recipe or method had been discovered, as such knowledge was a valuable commodit... ... Read, John. Through Alchemy to Chemistry: A Procession of Ideas & Personalities. London: G. Bell, 1957. Roberts, Gareth. The Mirror of Alchemy: Alchemical Ideas and Images in Manuscripts and Books: From Antiquity to the Seventeenth Century. Buffalo: U. of Toronto, 1994. Yearly, Steven. Science, Technology, and Social Change. Boston: Unwin Hyman, 1988. Works Consulted: Sazlberg, Hugh W. From Caveman to Chemist: Circumstances and Achievements. Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society, 1991. Sirvin, Nathan. Chinese Alchemy: Preliminary Studies. Cambridge: Harvard, 1968. Thorndike, Lynn. History of Magic & Experimental Science. Vol. 1 New York: Colombia, 1964. Waite, Arthur E. Alchemists Through the Ages. Blauvelt, N.Y.: Rudolf Steiner, 1970. Wilson, David A. Alchemy: Creating Gold From Base Metal. Black Mountain, N.C.: Lorien House, 1988. Division Between Ancient and Modern Science Essay -- Religion Philosop Division Between Ancient and Modern Science Introduction Power has played a significant role in the motivation of scientific progress, specifically in comparing modern science and ancient science. Power-seekers have been greatly attracted to scientific pursuits, seeking monetary, life-giving or glory-earning ends. In ancient science "the lure of health, wealth, and eternal life charmed many an alchemist to the poorhouse, madness, or an untimely death" (Coudert 35), while modern society itself has embraced scientific development with a similar fervor. Amidst many similarities, the rift between ancient and modern science is enormous and has frequently left historians puzzled. Although it is clear to historians that the stagnant science of ancient times developed into the modern scientific pursuit in the 17th century, it is not clear what specifically caused this revolution of scientific thought. This essay will discuss differences in motives which have driven ancient and modern science, arguing that 17th century alterations of power structures led to the ultimate division between modern and ancient science and the eruption of modern science as it is today. Comparisons will be drawn regarding knowledge accessibility, prevailing philosophies and ideologies, and the relationship between science and the church. Knowledge Accessibility: ancient secrets vs. modern community knowledge To begin, a major shift in scientific thinking arrived with the dawn of the printing press and the new-found accessibility of knowledge. "Alchemy was from its origins a secret art;" (Roberts 66) secrecy was an absolute necessity in early science when a powerful recipe or method had been discovered, as such knowledge was a valuable commodit... ... Read, John. Through Alchemy to Chemistry: A Procession of Ideas & Personalities. London: G. Bell, 1957. Roberts, Gareth. The Mirror of Alchemy: Alchemical Ideas and Images in Manuscripts and Books: From Antiquity to the Seventeenth Century. Buffalo: U. of Toronto, 1994. Yearly, Steven. Science, Technology, and Social Change. Boston: Unwin Hyman, 1988. Works Consulted: Sazlberg, Hugh W. From Caveman to Chemist: Circumstances and Achievements. Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society, 1991. Sirvin, Nathan. Chinese Alchemy: Preliminary Studies. Cambridge: Harvard, 1968. Thorndike, Lynn. History of Magic & Experimental Science. Vol. 1 New York: Colombia, 1964. Waite, Arthur E. Alchemists Through the Ages. Blauvelt, N.Y.: Rudolf Steiner, 1970. Wilson, David A. Alchemy: Creating Gold From Base Metal. Black Mountain, N.C.: Lorien House, 1988.

Moldova’s Relations with European Union

In 1538, the principality became a tributary to the Ottoman Empire, but it retained internal and partial external autonomy. In 1600, inhabitants of the Romanian provinces saw for the first time their dream of reunification as reality. Michael the Brave leaded simultaneously the Romanian principalities of Wallachia, Moldova and Transilvania for one year. In 1812, despite numerous protests by Moldavan nobles on behalf of their autonomous status, the Ottoman Empire ceded to the Russian Empire the eastern half of the territory of the Principality of Moldavia along with Hotin and Budgeac.The next 106 years, Romanians from Basarabia were under continues Russification and Romanian language was gradually removed from official and religious use. Basarabia proclaimed independence from Russia on February 6, 1918, and on April 9, 1918 united with the Kingdom of Romania. In August 1939, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and its secret additional protocol were signed, by which Nazi Germany recognized Ba sarabia as being within the Soviet sphere of influence, which led the latter to actively revive its claim to the region.On June 28, 1940, the Soviet Union, with the acknowledgement of the Nazi Germany, issued an ultimatum to Romania requesting the cession of Basarabia and northern Bucovina, with which Romania complied the following day. The Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic was established and Moldova became a tiny part of the â€Å"Evil Empire†. During the Soviet period, deportations of locals to the northern Urals, to Siberia, and northern Kazakhstan occurred regularly. Other forms of Soviet persecution of the population included 32,433 political arrests, followed by Gulag (in 8,360 cases) or execution and collectivization.In 1944-53, there were several anti-Soviet resistance groups in Moldova; however the NKVD and later MGB managed to eventually arrest, execute or deport their members. Official Soviet policy asserted that the language spoken by Moldovans was distinct from the Romanian language (â€Å"Moldovenism†). To distinguish the two, during the Soviet period, Moldovan was written in the Cyrillic alphabet, in contrast with Romanian, which was written in the Latin alphabet.On August 27, 1989, the Popular Front of Moldova organized a mass demonstration in Chisinau, that became known as the Grand National Assembly, which pressured the authorities of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic to adopt a language law on August 31, 1989 that proclaimed the Moldovan language written in the Latin script to be the state language. Its identity with the Romanian language was also established. 2. From RSSM to Republic of Moldova The third richest colony of Soviet Union, Moldova, obtained its independence in 1991 and in just 20 years managed to become the poorest country in Europe.After the breakup of Soviet Union in 1991, Moldova found itself in a new reality. In 1990, 5 Moldovan districts with less than 1 million inhabitants, located on the left side o f river Nistru, declared their independence. Tensions between the Moldovan government and the breakaway Transnistria Republic escalated into a military conflict that started in March 1992 and was concluded by a ceasefire in July 1992. Transnistria's sovereignty is not recognized by any member of the United Nations and it has no official diplomatic relations with any of those states.Nevertheless, Russia is great supporter of Transnistria and other self-declared independent territories of the former Soviet Union countries (Abhazia, South Osetia). Transnistria accounts for 40% of Moldovan GDP, the main part of the Moldovan industry is located on the left side of the Nistru, and therefore it is a strategic region for Moldova. Transnistria is still under the control of Russian 14th Army, which constitutes a serious violation of International Public Law and of the 1999 Istanbul Agreements.On July 8, 2004, the European Court of Human Rights stated in a ruling that the Russian army â€Å"s tationed in Moldovan territory [is] in breach of the undertakings to withdraw them completely given by Russia at the OSCE summits in 1999 and 2001. † Even with domestic conflicts and tensions, Moldova had to establish its state institutions and undertake a complex process of social and economic reforms. Moldova established its diplomatic relations with other countries and organizations, including European Union (EU). Despite the relative short period of cooperation between Moldova and EU, these relations were marked by striking â€Å"ups and downs†. . Moldova’s relations with EU For the purpose of this paper, I would like to distinguish between following stages of Moldova- EU relations: 1. 1991-1998 – â€Å"wait and see† period 2. 1998-2008 – â€Å"two steps forward and one back†, 3. 2009-2010 – â€Å"twitter revolution†- turning point in Moldova – EU relations 4. November, 28th 2010 in Moldova will be held the Par liamentary elections which are crucial for Moldova’s European future. 3. 1. 1991-1998 – â€Å"wait and see† period The first framework for EU-Moldova relations was provided by TACIS (Technical Assistance for Commonwealth of Independent States).TACIS was established in 1991 and provided grant-financed technical assistance to 12 former USSR countries, except Baltic countries, to help in their transition to democratic, market-oriented economies. TACIS was not a bilateral agreement between Moldova and EU, it was drawn by EU as a common tool for 12 former USSR colonies aimed at enhancing the transition process. In 1994 Moldova and EU signed first bilateral Agreement, the so-called Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA), which entered into force in 1998. While this ramework agreement was passing through a cumbersome ratification procedure by the EU member states, Moldovan President P. Lucinschi expressed, by successive official letters addressed to the President of European Commission and to all EU heads of states and governments, the aspiration of Moldova to become an associate member of the EU. Though no formal answer followed, through different channels it was suggested that before passing to the associate stage a full implementation of the EU-Moldova PCA was necessary. 3. 2. 1998-2008 – â€Å"two steps forward and one back†During this period Moldova-EU relations gained more consistency, but the relations were marked by changing of the power in Chisinau. The communist Party won the Parliamentary elections in 2001 with 50, 07 % and in 2005 with 45, 98 %. From 2001 to 2008 the Communist Government promoted the so-called ‘facade Europeanization’. Moldova had double standard messages for Brussels and Moscow, the promotion of European values and democracy were done just to gain more voters. No wonder all the actions which aimed to bring Moldova closer to EU were undertaken at the end of the first Communist mandate ( 2005).In March, 2003 – EU and USA introduced a visa ban against self-declared Transnistria leaders. After the Eastern enlargement of EU in 2004, EU launched the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP). The objective of the ENP is to share the benefits of the EU enlargement with neighboring countries. ENP was intended to offer a privileged relationship to EU’s neighbors, which will build on mutual commitment the common values principally within the fields of the rule of law, the respect for human rights, the principles of market economy and sustainable development.ENP was intended to be an incentive for Europe’s neighbors to pursue reforms and to import the EU’s values and practice as the candidates states do. In February, 2005, in the framework of ENP, Moldova and EU signed the Action Plan, which initially was intended to be for 3 years, but eventually it was extended by one year more. Among the objectives of the Action Plan, I would like to mention: the stren gthen of the institutions guaranteeing democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights, promoting economic reform, improving living conditions, etc.The Action Plan supported efforts to achieve a lasting resolution of the Transnistria problem. In October 2005, the EU has been invited to join the mediation process as observers in the so-called 5+2 format. Moldova, Transnistria, OSCE, Russia and Ukraine are mediators, while USA and EU are observers. In my opinion this format is not functional and needs to be changed. There is a big question mark whether all of the mediators are engaged in a fair process of mediation and can ensure a resolution of Transnistria conflict and in the same time the territorial integrity of Moldova.The format 5+2 is not balanced, because Russia and Ukraine (officially and/or non-officially) support Transnistria, OSCE is mainly controlled by Russia, EU and US having the status of observers, cannot intervene in the mediation process and at the end of the da y, Moldova does not have the necessary levers to sustain its points during the mediation. This question was recently raised by Kalman Mizsei, the European Union Special Representative for Moldova at the OSCE Summit in Vienna on 16-18 October, 2010.Helping Moldova to ensure full control over its borders and customs territory, the EU has deployed since December 2005 an EU Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) on the Moldova – Ukraine state border (including the Transnistria sector). Other priorities of EU-Moldova relations include reforming the judiciary system, ensuring respect for freedom of expression and media, cooperating on issues such as migration, fight against trafficking, organized crime, corruption and money laundering, thereby contributing to the long-term objective of sustainable development.Even if the Action Plan provided certain actions that should be fulfilled by Moldovan Government, it did not have a particular and lasting approach from Moldovan side. Governmentâ €™s actions often achieve good results at project level, but have less impact at sector and national policy level partly due to a lack of continuity and coherent long-term sector planning. In spite of all the advantages and benefits of ENP, the 2006 spring (when Russia established embargo for the Moldovan wines) pointed out that ENP cannot be compared with political and economic pressure of Russia in Moldova.In the ENP framework, EU offers immediate and limited benefits and cannot cancel the effects of Russian economic blockade. This is one of reason why EU decided to double financial assistance in Moldova for the period 2007-2010, thus Moldova became the second beneficiary per capita of the EU assistance, after the Palestinian Authority. EU has provided about 210 million euro of assistance to Moldova through European Neighborhood and Partnership Instrument. The ENP and Action Plan brought new dynamics in the relations etween Moldova and EU; extended their cooperation opportunit ies; specified and detailed co-operation process between parties; updated the areas of dialogue [†¦] However, this is not say that everything went smooth in the implementation process of EU-Moldova Action Plan. While performing quite well on the economic dimensions of the document, Moldovan authorities proved an obvious lack of administrative capacities and unwillingness to promote fully-fledged reforms in crucial areas, such as respect of human rights, freedom of the media, the rule of law, fight against corruption and business environment. . 3. 2009-2010 – â€Å"twitter revolution†- turning point in Moldova – EU relations The next period of Moldova-EU relations is directly linked to the events of April 2009 and the so-called â€Å"twitter revolution†. On April 5th, 2010 in Moldova were held the Parliamentary elections. For the 3rd time in a row the Communist Party won the elections with 49, 48 %. The opposition parties and civil society organizatio n accused the Communist Party that they rigged the elections.On 6th and 7th of April, 2009, around 30000 people went into streets to protest against the results of the elections, the number quickly increased due in large part to new technologies and social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Odnoklasniki, etc. A large group of protesters stormed the Parliament and the Presidential Palace vandalizing both buildings and leaving the Parliament in flame.The Government reaction to the storms was severe, thousands of students were arrested and there were credible reports about mistreatment and torture of detainees, three fatalities were reported in connections with demonstrations and detentions. However, the Communist Party lacked one vote to elect the President and in July 2009 new Parliamentary elections were held. A new government formed by a fragile alliance of liberals and centrist was established after the elections. There was no coincidence in naming the coalition the Alliance for Eur opean Integration.These events brought Moldova back on the EU agenda; the new government started a diplomatic offensive to charm EU capitals and created high expectation in Moldova, especially for the educated, young electorate which tends to see the EU as an opportunity to bypass isolation and poverty. The events in Moldova coincided with the launching of EU Eastern Partnership – an institutionalized forum for discussing visa agreements, free trade deals and strategic partnership agreements with the EU's Eastern neighbors, while avoiding the controversial topic of accession to EU.Among the main provisions of the Eastern Partnership: new association agreements including deep and comprehensive free trade agreements, for those willing and ready to take on the far-reaching commitments with the EU that these entail; a conclusion of â€Å"mobility and security pacts†, allowing for easier legitimate travel to the EU while at the same time stepping up efforts to combat corrup tion, organized crime and illegal migration. These pacts would also cover the upgrading asylum systems to EU standards and the establishment of integrated border management structures, etc.The ultimate long term goal would be full visa liberalization, on a case by case basis, provided that conditions for well-managed and secure mobility are in place; the Commission will study possibilities for labor mobility with aim of further opening of the EU labor market; enhanced energy security in the partner countries themselves and with the European Union, including through support to investment in infrastructure, better regulation, energy efficiency and more efficient early warning systems to prevent disruption of supply; enhanced cooperation on environment and climate issues, etc.The new Government quickly engaged the country on the pro-European way. The Government gathered support for a new and very ambitious project, called â€Å"Rethink Moldova†. The EU, USA, IMF, WB and various EU member states took part in this action and in total $ 2,6 billion are scheduled to help Moldova for 2011-2013. In 2010, the financial assistance from the international organization increased 4 times. The table below describes the EU member’s states position versus Moldova: Table 1: EU Member states position versus Moldova Category| Member states| Description|Unconditional and active supporter | Romania | Romania traditionally supported a membership perspective, even when Bucharest had cold relations with former Moldovan Communist Government. Bilateral agreement were signed for agriculture, environment, education, in which Romania will offer assistance to fulfill EU criteria | Supporters | Poland, Sweden, Hungary, Baltic States, Bulgaria | Countries that offer support for Moldova’s EU ambitions, although fully aware that this is not a short-term option | Reluctant supporters | Czech Republic, UK | Open for discussing for EU embership if some other MSs would put the i ssue on the table. Both reluctant on visa. | Good willing skeptics| Germany | High level contact between Chisinau and Berlin brought encouragements, but Germany expects substantial reforms before any discussion on membership | Indifferent skeptics | France, Spain, Italy, Netherland | No clear position on Moldova. It seems not to be on their agenda. Italy is positive on visas. Netherland seems to focus on human rights and minorities treatment | Indifferent but visa skeptics | Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg | No position on membership, opposing visa liberalization |The unconditional supporter of Moldova â€Å"Europeanization† is Romania. On November 13th, 2009, Moldova signed the Agreement on Small-Scale border traffic with Romania, which went into effect on February, 25th, 2010. The Agreement permits people who have been residents in the border area of either country for at least a year, to travel in the neighboring state’s border zone without a visa, for 3 months. Anothe r achievement of the pro-European Government from Chisinau is the beginning of negotiations for the Association Agreement and Deep and Comprehensive Trade Agreement with EU.There were four rounds of negotiations in 2010. Currently, Moldova and EU negotiations focus on four working groups addressing issues that relate to foreign policy, security, justice and economic cooperation. Regarding the â€Å"economic cooperation† were closed already 18 of the 22 chapters which have been negotiated. After the last negotiations held in October 2010, Gunnar Wiegand, the head of EU delegation, Director for Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia, mentioned that:†This year [2010] has been enormous progress in EU-Moldova relations†.The European official said that after the conclusion of the fourth round of negotiations, the EU will provide some key recommendations for Moldova, concerning the creation of free trade area. After Russia imposed the second embargo on Moldovan wine i n 2010, which had catastrophically consequences for Moldovan wine industry (which constitutes 25 % of Moldovan GDP), EU doubled the quota for Moldovan wine. In March, 2010 Moldova joined European Energy Community, which will contribute to the diversification of the energy sources in Moldova.In just one year, Moldova became a champion in negotiations with EU. Since November 2009 to November 2010 there have been 5 EU Commissioner Visits in Moldova (from 1991 to 2008 just 4 visits). During September – October 2010 Moldova hosted 16 high EU missions. 3. 4. November, 28th 2010 in Moldova will be held the Parliamentary elections. These elections are crucial for Moldova’s future. Moldovans have to choose between continuing the course toward European economic integration or live with the past and the shadow of Soviet Union. 4. Current issues of Moldova – EU relations Watch out, Moldova joins EU through the back door†. During the summer of 2010, many Europeans news papers as Der Spiegel, The Daily Telegraph, Daily Express, Il Giornale, Le Figaro expressed their concerns about Romania giving â€Å"too many† citizenships to Moldova’s inhabitants. I would like to address this issue from Moldovan perspective. In 1940, when USSR by force occupied Moldova, they changed the nationality of the Moldova’s inhabitants from Romanian to â€Å"Moldovan† and none of them were asked if they wanted to become Soviet Moldovans.The political decision of Moscow to create a new identity – â€Å"Moldovan†, a new language with Cyrillic alphabet – †Moldovan† was a continuation of the process of Russification that was started in 1812. But what Soviet Union did not take into account is that, they could not erase a memory of a nation. After the 1991 independence, a lot of Moldovans refused the â€Å"Moldovan† identity (written in their ID) as their nationality and sued the Moldovan Government for admitti ng of the false information in the documents.All in all, the Romanian citizenship offered by Romania comes as a rehabilitation of historical injustice made to Romanians from Moldova. The process is named re-gain of the citizenship, which means that once, because of the historical circumstances the citizenship was lost but without their will. More than 70 % of the Moldova’s inhabitants could be eligible for Romanian citizenship. There is no statistical data, but unofficially around 300 000 Moldovans have double citizenship: Romanian and Moldovan and there are around other 1 million applications for Romanian citizenship.The procedure of re-gaining the Romanian citizenship is tough and time consuming (more than 4 years), there is a list of around 20 documents that the applicant has to provide, including certificate of birth of grand-parents, certificate of marriage, criminal records from Moldova and Romania, etc. The applicant has to prove that his grand-parents were born Romani ans and he is their descendent.Moreover, Soviet Union Rusificated the Moldovan’s name by adding the Russian endings like† –va† and â€Å"- vici† to the Romanian names and in order to be eligible for Romanian citizenship, the applicant should embrace a bureaucratic and costly process of correcting his name and his parents’ name. A lot of concerns were raised to the number of Romanian citizenships offered to Moldovans, but as we can see in the following table, Romania offers much less citizenships than other EU member states: Table 2: Citizenships offered by selected countries of the EU in 2008:Another key issue in Moldova – EU negotiations is liberalization of visa regime with EU. I would like to point out that Moldova almost fulfilled the technical requirements for liberalization of visa regime without being asked to (Ukraine did it in 3 years). There were a lot of fears concerning the liberalization of EU-Moldova visa regime, most of t hem related to illegal immigration. But, a logic exercise of the Moldova reality would show that these fears are not realistic. Moldova has around 4 million inhabitants (including Transnistria).According to migration studies, the potential migrants are between 20 to 49 years old. In 2009, in Moldova there were 1,677,616 inhabitants between 20 to 49 years old. Therefore, if there was free visa regime between Moldova and EU 1,677,616 of Moldovans would become potential immigrants. Taking into account that around 30 % of Moldovans (~1 mln) already left the country for EU, US, Russia, etc. , the fears of illegal immigration disappear. Moldovans are already in EU, a big majority of them working for 2, 5 and even 8 years without getting a chance to visit their families.An interesting fact is that just 14 % of Moldovan immigrants plan to settle abroad. The free visa regime between Moldova and EU will improve and legalize the situation of Moldovans who work in EU and also would decrease the illegal immigration (some Moldovans pay 4000 Euro to get to EU). 5. Which way further? An actual question is which way further will Moldova go? Will it stick to its past or it will try to build a European future? It is certainly a question which answer we will found after November elections.One issue is obvious, the changing of the power in Chisinau brought Moldova back on EU agenda and the international circumstances are very favorable for solving the Transnistria conflict. On 4-5 June, Russia and Germany signed the Meseberg Memorandum. The document proposes creating an EU-Russia Political and Security Policy Committee, to be chaired by the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Policy Catherine Ashton and Russia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov, for high-level consultations and decisions.The committee’s mandate would include â€Å"setting ground rules for joint civilian and military crisis management operations by the EU and NATO,† as well as â⠂¬Å"working out recommendations on various conflicts and crisis situations, to the resolution of which the European Union and Russia may contribute within appropriate multilateral forums. † On these definitions, the EU-Russia Committee would be vested with greater powers than those of the NATO-Russia Council. It would also institute an EU-Russia policy coordination mechanism, such as the EU does not have with the United States or with NATO.The German government has identified the conflict in Moldova’s Transnistria region as the issue most likely to demonstrate that the EU can work one-on-one with Russia on European security. In Berlin’s view, Russia should ultimately withdraw its troops from Moldova’s territory and allow Moldova to reunify with Transnistria. In return for cooperating to settle this conflict, Russia could receive a major role in European security affairs, with access to EU decision-making processes via the proposed committee. The German ini tiative can generate a positive dynamic in the negotiations on Transnistria.It can also help raise this conflict high on the EU-Russia agenda. After the French-Russian-German summit in Deauville on 18-21 October, 2010, the Russian President, Dmitri Medvedev, for the first time in last 20 years, talked about including Romania in Transnistria negotiation process. Some analysts would argue that this propose is related to the invitation of Romania to participate in South Stream project, instead of Nabucco project. On October 21, 2010, the EU Parliament adopted a Resolution concerning EU-Moldova relations.The resolution stresses the substantial progress in EU-Moldova relations over the last year and calls on the Commission to swiftly adopt a visa liberalization plan for Moldovan citizens. Parliament also approved the recent initiative launched by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Dimitri Medvedev to create an EU-Russia Security Committee to discuss regional issues suc h as a settlement of the Transnistria conflict. In addition to German support, Moldova also received positive signals from Central East European countries and Baltic countries, as Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Estonia, etc.In September 2010, Moldovan Prime-Minister had a bilateral meeting in Budapest with Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban. The next month, the Hungarian Prime-Minister visited Moldova and reiterated the Hungarian support for Moldova’s cause. At the beginning of November, the Polish economist Leszek Balcerowicz, famous for his â€Å"Shock Therapy† (a method for rapidly transitioning from a communist economy, based on state ownership and central planning, to a capitalist market economy), visited Moldova at the invitation of Moldovan Prime-Minister and expressed his will to share with Moldova Poland’s experience concerning economic transformations.In conclusion, one issue is evident, the so-called Moldova twitter revolution had changed the Eu ropean agenda concerning Moldova. Not so long ago, Moldova was seen as a lost country, â€Å"black hole of Europe†, â€Å"the poorest European country†, â€Å"a grey zone under Russian influence† and no one expected the quick change that would bring Moldova in the headlines. The change came from inside the country, from young Moldovans and students, from the so called â€Å"twitter generation†, who does not accept a totalitarian regime and wish for a better country to live in.

Building Construction

The collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi River had done major damages in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Many assumptions and speculations about the causes of the collapse of the bridge system had appeared in the public. The public was seemingly confused about the real cause of the incidents and it is their right to be informed about the state of the investigation. The closest and very logical of the causes indicated in some of the investigations are stress or fatigue failure and lack of redundancy.Environment, Design, and Description of the I-35W bridge The I-35W bridge supports a total of eight lanes (four lanes on each direction). The average daily traffic (ADT) is given as 15,000 in each direction , with ten percent trucks. Constructed in 1967, the 581 meter long bridge has 14 spans. The main span is consist of a steel deck truss. The south approach spans are steel multi-beam. The north approach spans include both steel multieam and concrete slab span. There are two steel deck trusses. Builtup plates mostly composed the truss members.Rolled I-beams comprised the diagonal and vertical members. The truss members undergo poor welding details with the connections as mainly riveted and bolted. According to recent evaluation and inspection before the collapse of the bridge, corrosion at the floorbeam exists and rust are forming between connection plates. The two main trussses have an 11. 6-meter cantilever at the north and south ends. Twenty-seven floor trusses spaced at 11. 6 meters are also present. These floor trusses were framed into the vertical members of the main truss.The floor trusses consist of WF-shape members and have a 4. 97- meter cantilever at each end. The design specifications used in the bridge was the 1961 American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHTO) Specifications. During that time, most of the design uses unconservative fatigue design provisions. According to the fatigue evaluation report provided by the University o f Minnesota's Center for Transportation Studies in 2001, the approach spans had exhibited several fatigue problems promarily due to the distortion of the girders.The bridge truss and the floor truss system also exhibited poor fatigue details. Lack of redundancy in the main truss system was also present in the design. It is stated in the evaluation report of the University of Minnesota that cracking due to fatigue cause by a future increase in loading will first appear on the floor truss. According to them this future cracks is detectable since the floor truss are easy to inspect. In the incidence that cracks are not detected, the bridge could still hold the bridge system without the entire collapse of the system.In the report, the failure of the two main trusses of the bridge will definitely take much effect to the bridge system. Fatigue Resistance The Standard Specification and the Load and Resistance Factor Design provided by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AA SHTO) contain similar provisions for the fatigue design of welded details on steel ridges. These details are designed ased on the nominal stress which can be calculated using standard design equations and does not include the effects of welds and attachments.Since fatigue is usually present during sevice load application, the design parameters is only applied during service load conditions. Cracks due to fatigue have insignificant effect on the structures in compression but have tremendous effect on structures that experience tension. With this idea, the assessment on the cracks that propagate on such a bridge as the I-35W should only be consider to elements in tension. Structural Redundancy In all the design criteria of any structural system, loads existed in variety of paths should be significantly consider.The strength and reliability of the system can be ensure by the existence of the redundant paths or elements. Without the existence of this redundant system of elements, the fa ilure of the entire system is much possible. Past survey of the Committee on Redundancy of Flexural System on steel highway ad railroad bridges. The report summarized that a total of 96 structures were suffering some distress. It was also take into account that most of the failures were related to connections which were mainly welded.The report had also collected data which indicates that few steel bridges collapse if redundancy is present. Bridge systems with no redundancy was reported to have large number. In another research conducted by Ressler and Daniels, they found that the number of fatiguesensitive details present in the structure significantly affected the bridges with no redundant elements. Theoritical and Actual Bridge Response Many studies have shown that the simplified calculations used to predict the stresses provide a much higher value compare to the actual service stresses.Though the design calculations and load models provide appropriate results, it has great uncer tainty in the maximum life of a bridge system. However, it is still beneficial to have an accurate estimate of the typical everyday stress ranges. In a large bridge, 20 Mpa is the typical value of the service live-load stress ranges. The stress ranges are typically governed by dead loads and strength design specifications. This is the reason why the stress ranges are small. Since the strength design must account for a single case loading scenario over the life of the bridge, conservative load models are used.In addition to load conservative models, the assumptions provided in the analysis of the design can also be the cause of the large difference of the predicted stress and actual stress. A great example of the effect of the assumptions is the case of the US Highway 69 in Oklahoma. Fatigue damage was said to be present upon the welding that had been used in the widening of the bridge. The design computations of the bridge illustrated that the allowable stress ranges could be exceed ed at over 100 locations on the bridge.However, when the bridge was inspected, it appeared that the measure stress ranges was only 27 percent of the allowable stress ranges. This only shows the great effect of the assumptions used in the design of a certain structural system. Moreover, another study that indicates fatigue failure to be caused by the considerable amount of corrosion takes into account. This is the case of the Bridge 4654 in Minnesota where measured stress ranges ranged from 65 to 85 percent of the calculated analysis.These differences are to be point out to the fact that analytical methods provide assumptions that neglect ways in which the structure resists loads. For example, the study conducted y Brudette et al. , more than 50 years of bridge test data were collected and examined to determine specific load-resisiting mechanisms that are ignored in the design of the system. The study concluded that lower stress ranges in a structure can be due to unintended composit e action, contribution from non-structural elements, unintended partial fixity at abutments and direct transfer of load through the slab to the supports.In another study of the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario, they conducted a program of bridge testing that included more than 225 bridges over a period of 15 years. The study noted that much of the bridges can sustain much larger loads than their estimated capacities. Observations were also made regarding the behavior of the steel truss bridge. The observations are as follows: 1) the stringer of the floor system share a large tensile force thus reducing the strains experienced by the chord in contact with the floor system and 2) Composite action in non-composite system was shown to exist.

Going for the Look Essay

Going for the Look Times continue to change and today people tend to judge a person on how they look. Companies are becoming more competitive and are looking for ways to attract customers. More retailers and companies are using the approach to hire based on appearance rather than work capability. Hiring should be based on work ethic, rather than appearance which can be discriminating. Companies all over the United States are denying people employment based on their physical appearance. In the United States people are told that everyone is given equal opportunity; which is untrue because there are people being denied employment due to how they are dressed, piercings or tattoos they have, and even weight. It is not our choice to decide what we look like. We do not decide to be tall, short, have small or big eyes, or what skin we are. People should not base hiring on physical appearance. Most retailers are now looking to hire people that look like models, characteristics being tall, slim, pretty face, & y oung. Retailers such as Abercrombie & Fitch, whose approach is to have an attractive sales force. Being a customer of Abercrombie, I have not seen an employee at Abercrombie being overweight. There employees look like beach models walking around the store. According to Mr. Serrano a former manager assistant at Abercrombie employees are told to approach and offer a job to someone who fits their store look. If someone walked into their store and they have a pretty face; employees are supposed to approach them and offer them a job even if they don’t have any retail experience. I believe that is wrong because if an older lady with retail experience were to apply for a job at Abercrombie she wouldn’t be the one hired. Statistics show that people who look better get paid more. More and more companies are using the approach to hire on appearance because they believe it attracts more customers. So many people are unemployed and looking for a job, yet retailers decide to hire on looks rather than work ethic. It’s understandable for a modeling agency to hire on appearance and looks, but a retail store like Abercrombie should not have that hiring strategy. How are older people supposed to have hope of being hired and retail stores when retailers are looking to hire young attractive people. Not everyone is born to be beautiful. Some people have better features than others. People should not be compared. Humans should be given equal employment opportunities and not be judged on how they look. AÂ  person can be beautiful on the outside and yet have an ugly personality. What is the point on hiring a pretty looking person when they can have bad customer service. I personally believe that a person should not be judged based on looks. Hiring based on physical appearance is discriminating and should stop. People around the United States are not having an equal employment opportunity. Hiring is not being based on job qualifications it is now being based on appearance. People deserve to be hired based work ethic. It is important for retailers and companies to realize everyone deserves an equal opportunity no matter how a person looks.

RESEARCH METHODS FOR BUSINESS Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

RESEARCH METHODS FOR BUSINESS - Assignment Example There is evidence that the average customer satisfaction score is age-dependent. These are questions number 2 and number 7 in the questionnaire that the customers of the gymnasium during the weeks filled. The relatively younger customers tend to have been more satisfied by the services of the gymnasium as compared to the older ones. Those in the age groups 16-24 and 25-44 scored highly in the level of customer satisfaction in the ranges of 4 and 5 as opposed to the older ones in the age groups of 45-64 and above 65 who had lower scores of customer satisfactions in the ranges of 1 and 2 on average. The data establishes that indeed the mean willingness-to-pay for membership of the upgraded Gymnasium is at least  £75. This is question number 6 in the questionnaire that the customers of the gymnasium during the weeks filled. More than half of the people from whom data was collected concurred the maximum amount they would be willing to pay for monthly membership to the upgraded Gymnasium is more than  £75. This makes it a fact that the members of the gym are willing to pay a minimum of  £75 monthly for the services of the gymnasium. The gymnasium has way much more males than females. However, on average, there is a slight difference between the willingness-to-pay for membership of the upgraded Gymnasium of male and female customers. The females are slightly more willing to pay a higher amount on average of the fee than the willingness of the males on average. In accordance to a two-variable linear regression that describes the relationship between household weekly net income and willingness-to-pay for membership of the upgraded Gymnasium there is indeed a relationship between the household weekly net income and willingness-to-pay for membership of the upgraded Gymnasium. According to this regression, the estimated willingness-to-pay of a customer with a household weekly net

The United Nations Mission In Sierra Leone Essay

The United Nations Mission In Sierra Leone - Essay Example   At the beginning of 1995, the UN Secretary General appointed Mr. Berhanu Dinka, an Ethiopian national to help broker a peaceful settlement in Sierra Leone.   Dinka worked with the help of the Organization of African Union (OAU) and Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) to resolve this conflict and bring the country back to civilian rule. Mr. Dinka’s effort, together with ECOWAS and OAU, seemed to bear fruit as of February 1996, just a year after the war. Parliamentary and presidential elections were held, and the army ceded power to the winner, Alhaji Dr. Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. However, RUF refused to take part in the elections and declined to recognize Mr. Kabbah’s win. Their refusal to participate or accept the presidential and parliamentary election fuelled the war further.   In November 1996, Mr. Dinka, with the help of OAU and ECOWAS, assisted in the negotiation of the peace agreement between the government and RUF, commonly known as the Abidjan Ac cord.   However, the accord was not implemented immediately as it was derailed by another coup d’à ©tat 6 months later. At this time, the army also joined RUF and formed a ruling junta, forcing the president and his government to seek asylum in Guinea.   A new Special Envoy tried to persuade the military junta to cede power, but he failed. This forced the United Nations Council to impose sanctions on the rulers and allowed ECOWAS to implement the embargo using its military wing. 7 On October 23, 1997, a sub-committee of ECOWAS dealing with Sierra Leone met a delegation of the junta and held talks in Conakry, which led to the signing of a peace deal. This deal called for a ceasefire that was to be monitored by ECOMOG together with the UN military observers. On November 5, 1997, President Kabbah provided a communique accepting the new deal and said his government would work with ECOWAS, ECOMOG, UN, and the UNHCR to implement the new deal. However, although the junta said i t was committed to the agreement, it criticized some provisions of the agreement. This brought many questions than answers and as a result, the agreement was not implemented. 8 Due to continued conflict between the rebels and the government, the UN Security Council gave nod for the establishment UNAMSIL (United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone). The mandate of the mission was to help the government and the rebels to honor the Lome Peace Agreement. On February 7, 2000, the Security Council revised the mandate of UNAMSIL by adding more tasks. The military component was increased

Separation of power in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Separation of power in the UK - Essay Example The principle of separation of powers had leveraged many constitution makers, philosophers like Montesquieu whom all had intense thinking to this maxim. Even though the United Kingdom constitution is unwritten, it is a golden doctrine of separation of powers for other countries to follow. Back in 1748, Montesquieu- a French jurist- put forward his hypothesis that â€Å"there can be no freedom† and thought, â€Å"Everything would terminate if the judicial, legislative and executive powers of the government were to be involved by the same individual or authority. In the United Kingdom, the law is separated into three powers; judicial, executive and legislative. The judiciary plays an important role in United Kingdom politics. The judiciary comprises of, the royal court, Supreme Court, crown court and the magistrate courts. It should be apolitical, and any rulings made, for instance on government legislation, must be in a free and fair manner without any element of political bias (Lovell, 2003; p 54). Nevertheless, different aspects about Judiciary raise a string of questions lately: judicial supremacy, judicial independence and judicial neutrality. The courts of England are Crown Court’s jurisdiction is strong because of the power of the Crown. The executive oversees the function of the Crown with relevance to Royal prerogative. The executive has no right to delay the process of common justice. It is a law that goes back down the memory lane over a century ago. Moreover, the executive has no mandate to pressure judges. Especially into acting in ways other than impartiality. In the Act of settlement in 1701, judges in higher courts had the privilege of remaining judges as long as they had shown â€Å"good behavior†. If they were guilty of bad behavior then a legal approach to have them fired was an option. For the large number of judges, there is no such thing. Thus, it guarantees them a security of tenure within their