scholarly journals Astronomy and World Heritage

2008 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-87
Author(s):  
Jarita Holbrook

This article introduces the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) new thematic initiative ‘Astronomy & World Heritage’ to the broader cultural astronomy community. UNESCO recognized two features of the World Heritage List (WHL) that this new initiative seeks to address: 1) very few sites have a connection to science, and 2) most of the sites are located in Europe. This new initiative specifically focuses on cultural sites related to astronomy. Four new sub-criteria were established for the Initiative in addition to the established traditional criteria leading to ‘natural’ or ‘cultural’ property designations. The first part of this paper describes this new initiative and the new sub-criteria. With these multiple layers of criteria, I address whether the goal of diversifying the WHL can be met under this new initiative by looking at the possibility of identifying sites on the African continent where most astronomy is foundamong local people rather than astronomers. The stakeholders in this initiative are 1) UNESCO, 2) nation states and their representatives called States Parties, 3) astronomers, 4) social scientists, and 5) people living in or near potential properties. I conclude that African sites do exist that appear to fit all the criteria, however identifying sites is only the first step in the long process that ends with entry on the World Heritage List. Surprisingly, very little has been done for United States sites. The initiative appears to be hampered in the USA because of 1) the many USA specific steps to nomination, 2) the concern among astronomers that heritage preservation will interfere with cutting edge science, and because 3) preservation projects of more importance to astronomers have been given priority. This UNESCO Initiative will continue into the future, however, the goal of having the first properties inscribed by 2009 for the International Year of Astronomy proved to be unlikely for either Africa or the United States.

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 32-54
Author(s):  
Silvia Spitta

Sandra Ramos (b. 1969) is one of the few artists to reflect critically on both sides of the Cuban di-lemma, fully embodying the etymological origins of the word in ancient Greek: di-, meaning twice, and lemma, denoting a form of argument involving a choice between equally unfavorable alternatives. Throughout her works she shines a light on the dilemmas faced by Cubans whether in Cuba or the United States, underlining the bad personal and political choices people face in both countries. During the hard 1990s, while still in Havana, the artist focused on the traumatic one-way journey into exile by thousands, as well as the experience of profound abandonment experienced by those who were left behind on the island. Today she lives in Miami and operates a studio there as well as one in Havana. Her initial disorientation in the USA has morphed into an acerbic representation and critique of the current administration and a deep concern with the environmental collapse we face. A buffoonlike Trumpito has joined el Bobo de Abela and Liborio in her gallery of comic characters derived from the rich Cuban graphic arts tradition where she was formed. While Cuba is now represented as a rotten cake with menacing flies hovering over it ready to pounce, a bombastic Trumpito marches across the world stage, trampling everything underfoot, a dollar sign for a face.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (10) ◽  
pp. 149-166
Author(s):  
Dmitry V. Gordienko ◽  

The paper examines the interests of Russia, the United States and China in the regions of the world and identifies the priorities of Russia's activities in Europe, Central Asia and the Caucasus, the Asia-Pacific region, the Arctic, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, their comparative assessment with the interests of the United States and China. An approach to assessing the impact of possible consequences of the activities of the United States and China on the realization of Russia's interests is proposed. This makes it possible to identify the priorities of the policy of the Russian Federation in various regions of the world. The results of the analysis can be used to substantiate recommendations to the military-political leadership of our country. It is concluded that the discrepancy between the interests of the United States and China is important for the implementation of the current economic and military policy of the Russian Federation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 36-49
Author(s):  
Mahdi FAWAZ ◽  
Jean BELIN ◽  
Hélène MASSON

This article presents the first results of a statistical analysis of the ownership links between the major European and American defence contractors. This approach, centred on the shareholders and subsidiaries of these companies, enables us to explore the depth of the national links (company and country of origin) and the density of the ownership cooperation that exists within Europe, as well as with the rest of the world, particularly the United States. Information about defence contractors’ ownership links is difficult to obtain and precautions must be taken in the interpretation of the results.  In terms of defence contractor shareholders, it would appear first that the national link is strong for Sweden, Spain and France, less so for Germany and Italy, and particularly weak for the United Kingdom. Next, in European terms the links are concentrated on Airbus, MBDA and KNDS and are little developed in other companies. Finally, we observe asymmetrical links with the USA and a significant presence of American investment funds.


Author(s):  
Aneta Ejsmont

Building own business is a long-term and laborious process. A person who leads a startup tries to start with building own business by taking first steps toward financial independence. Analyzing conditions in Poland, on average every second startup sells its services abroad, admittedly it is good news, although half of them do not export at all. Half of the startups which export their services and goods generates more than 50% of their revenues outside Poland. Very interesting is the fact that 60% of exporters have conducted their foreign sale since the moment of establishing their business. On which markets do they sell their services? It turns out that the most popular are markets in the European Union (54%), including the United Kingdom 14% and Germany 9%. Only about 25% of Polish startups exports their products and services to the United States. Taking the United States into consideration, in 2008 the USA lost their leading position in the number of startups which are newly created and achieving success in business. Currently in terms of the number of new startups the USA is on a quite distant place after Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, New Zealand, Israel or Italy. In short, more companies were closed than created, so it was, as a matter of fact, like in Poland. Therefore, the condition to improve the development of startups both from Poland and other countries all the world is to increase cooperation and coopetition.


2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sérgio de Oliveira Birchal ◽  
Âmara Fuccio de Fraga e Silva

European direct investment in Brazil dates back to the discovery of the country and has been since then either hegemonic or more important than a superficial observation can grasp, as this work aims at showing. During the 20th century, the United States has replaced Britain as the worlds economic superpower and the largest direct investor. US dominance in the world economy and geographical proximity to Brazil would suggest that US investments were by far the largest in the country during that century. Furthermore, as Japan had become the second largest economy in the world in the 1980s, we would expect that this would be reflected in the data of the largest multinationals in Brazil. However, as our investigation suggests, Western European direct investment has been as large (and in many occasions even larger) as that of the USA and Japanese firms have never had a prominent presence among the largest firms in Brazil, at least until the late 1990s.


Author(s):  
Przemysław Potocki

The article is based on an analysis of certain aspects of how the public opinion of selected nations in years 2001–2016 perceived the American foreign policy and the images of two Presidents of the United States (George W. Bush, Barack Obama). In order to achieve these research goals some polling indicators were constructed. They are linked with empirical assessments related to the foreign policy of the U.S. and the political activity of two Presidents of the United States of America which are constructed by nations in three segments of the world system. Results of the analysis confirmed the research hypotheses. The position of a given nation in the structure of the world system influenced the dynamics of perception and the directions of empirical assessments (positive/negative) of that nation’s public opinion about the USA.


2013 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce P. Montgomery

AbstractShortly following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, an American mobile exploitation team was diverted from its mission in hunting for weapons for mass destruction to search for an ancient Talmud in the basement of Saddam Hussein's secret police (Mukhabarat) headquarters in Baghdad. Instead of finding the ancient holy book, the soldiers rescued from the basement flooded with several feet of fetid water an invaluable archive of disparate individual and communal documents and books relating to one of the most ancient Jewish communities in the world. The seizure of Jewish cultural materials by the Mukhabarat recalled similar looting by the Nazis during World War II. The materials were spirited out of Iraq to the United States with a vague assurance of their return after being restored. Several years after their arrival in the United States for conservation, the Iraqi Jewish archive has become contested cultural property between Jewish groups and the Iraqi Jewish diaspora on the one hand and Iraqi cultural officials on the other. This article argues that the archive comprises the cultural property and heritage of the Iraqi Jewish diaspora.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 235-245
Author(s):  
AbdulHafiz Henry James AbdulHafiz ◽  
Talal Alsaif

This study looks at the economic, political, environmental, cultural, technological, legal, and ethical macro-environmental forces which impact globalization Pre-2018.  Key events are examined as indicators of the state of globalization around the world.  The examination of globalization centers on these key events in the United States and Saudi Arabia.  The issues that rose out these events are used to interpret whether the state of globalization is influenced.  The issues of economic class, unemployment, CEO compensation, The Kyoto Protocol, the rise of social media, and Saudi Arabia’s joining the WTO are examined based on their influence on the state of globalization.  The study concludes that convergence of cultures, based on nation-states’ responses to the arbitrage of information in the areas of economies, politics, environment, law, culture, and ethics has is a real influence on the state of globalization.  The negative or positive effects of globalization are irrelevant in comparison to the actions taking by nation-states in response to key events.


2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-14
Author(s):  
K. K. Dey ◽  
L. Hassell ◽  
C. Li ◽  
M. Elliott ◽  
X. Sun

Arachis pintoi is one of the many perennial peanuts grown in many tropical and subtropical countries around the world. Although Peanut mottle virus (PeMoV) was reported in Arachis glabrata from Georgia in 2007, there are no reports of PeMoV infecting A. pintoi in the United States. In June 2017, samples of A. pintoi that originated from Hardee County, FL, plants showed a variety of symptoms ranging from yellowing to dark islands, green vein banding, and mild mottling. They tested positive initially with broad-spectrum lateral flow antibody immunoassay and later were confirmed by sequencing the reverse-transcription PCR products. Detection of PeMoV in A. pintoi is significant because it is transmitted by aphids in a nonpersistent manner and is seed-borne in A. hypogea. It is not known if PeMoV is seed-borne in A. pintoi. However, A. pintoi is commonly vegetatively propagated using stolon cuttings. It is possible that PeMoV can spread to A. pintoi in Florida by all these means, making maintenance of virus-free propagation stock plants important. To our knowledge, this is the first report of PeMoV in A. pintoi the United States.


2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chinh H. Pham ◽  
Ross Spencer Garsson

AbstractThe America Invents Act (AIA) presents new challenges and strategy considerations for nanotechnology inventors and companies that seek to protect their intellectual property in the United States. Among the many notable changes, the AIA expands the “prior user rights” defense to infringement and broadens the classes of patents that are eligible for the new limited prior user rights defense. While this defense is limited in some instances, such as against universities, it could be invaluable in others, such as when a competitor independently discovers and patents the trade secret. In the world of nanotechnology, where inventions and products are increasingly complex, this protection can prove to be vitally important.


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