A Republic@@ an strategy to counter the re-@@ election of Obama Republic@@ an leaders justified their policy by the need to combat electoral fraud . However , the Brenn@@ an Centre considers this a my@@ th , stating that electoral fraud is rar@@ er in the United States than the number of people killed by ligh@@ tn@@ ing . Indeed , Republic@@ an lawyers identified only 300 cases of electoral fraud in the United States in a decade . One thing is certain : these new provisions will have a negative impact on vot@@ er tur@@ n-@@ out . In this sense , the measures will partially undermine the American democratic system . Unlike in Canada , the American States are responsible for the organisation of federal elections in the United States . It is in this spirit that a majority of American governments have passed new laws since 2009 making the registration or voting process more difficult . This phenomenon gained momentum following the November 2010 elections , which saw 6@@ 75 new Republic@@ an representatives added in 26 States . As a result , 180 b@@ ills restric@@ ting the exercise of the right to vote in 41 States were introduced in 2011 alone . The new election laws require voters to show a photo ID card and proof of US citizenship . Furthermore , these laws also reduce early voting periods , invali@@ date the right to register as a vot@@ er on election day and withdraw the right to vote of citizens with a criminal record . Before the 2006 elections , no US State required voters to show a photo ID card . Indi@@ ana was the first State to impose such a requirement . In 2008 , the Supreme Court of the United States uph@@ eld the constitu@@ tionality of the Indi@@ ana law . The Republic@@ an authorities were quick to extend this practice to other States . Over the past two years , they sponsor@@ ed b@@ ills in 34 States to force voters to show a photo ID card . It is important to note that , unlike Qu@@ eb@@ ec , American citizens do not have a universal ID card such as the health insurance card . In fact , 11 % of American citizens , i.e. 21 million people of voting age , do not possess a photo ID card issued by a government agency of their State . In addition , five million new voters in 2012 do not have such identification . And it often costs over a hundred dollars to obtain the required identity card . The new restrictions dis@@ proportion@@ ately affect young people , minorities and people with low incomes . In fact , 25 % of African Americans , 15 % of those earning less than $ 35@@ ,000 ; 18 % of citizens over 65 and 20 % of voters 18 to 29 years old do not have the required photo ID card . And that 's not all . Stu@@ dents , voters considered to be voting more for Democratic candidates , are not allowed in several States to use the photo ID card issued by their institution . On the other hand , these same States allow fishing or hunting club members , who vote more Republic@@ an , to use the cards issued by these clubs when they vote . Pri@@ or to 2004 , no State required proof of citizenship to vote . Ari@@ zona was the first to introduce such a requirement . Since 2011 , a do@@ zen States have adopted laws requiring voters to prove they are American citizens . These measures are clearly intended to limit the His@@ pan@@ ic vote . However , it appears that two out of three His@@ pan@@ ic voters favour the Democratic party . What is more , in 2011 Republic@@ an legislat@@ ors sponsor@@ ed laws abo@@ lish@@ ing the registration of voters on election day in eight States . In addition , they limited the right of individuals and groups to provide assistance to voters wishing to register . These restrictions are not without consequence . For example , during the 2004 general election , vot@@ er registration campaigns contributed to regi@@ stering around 10 million citizens . However , the measures adopted since 2009 have led to a 17 % drop in the registration rate of new voters in 2010 compared to 2006 . In addition , Republic@@ an legislat@@ ors have en@@ acted laws in five other States aimed at reducing the early voting period . For example , during the 2008 general election in Florida , 33 % of early voters were Afri@@ can@@ -@@ Americans , who accoun@@ ted however for only 13 % of voters in the State . The same applied to His@@ pan@@ ics . These represented only 11 % of voters , but 24 % of citizens who voted early . On the other hand , 76 % of voters were white but these represented only 46 % of early voters . Of course , Democratic legislat@@ ors and their supporters vigor@@ ously opposed the adoption of laws restric@@ ting vot@@ er registration . Several b@@ ills were blocked by v@@ et@@ oes of Democratic govern@@ ors . The United States Att@@ or@@ ney General interven@@ ed to suspend the most controversial laws . They were able to partially limit the damage . For example , only 16 out of 34 States have adopted laws requiring the presentation of a photo ID card . However , the new rules put in place will undoubtedly make it more difficult to exercise the right to vote in 2012 . Democratic critics den@@ ounce the parti@@ san character of the laws that have been passed and they see a clear objective of influ@@ encing the 2012 results in key States . A 2011 Brenn@@ an Centre report shows that the States that have adopted these laws represent 17@@ 1 of the 2@@ 70 votes needed in the electoral college to win the Presidency . It is too early to say with certainty that these legislative changes in the electoral system will have significant imp@@ acts on the outcome of the 2012 presidential elections . But one thing is certain : these new provisions will have a negative impact on the tur@@ n-@@ out . In this sense , the measures will partially undermine the American democratic system . Pro@@ state cancer screening : take the test or not ? Indeed , the PS@@ A test sometimes shows er@@ ron@@ e@@ ous results with false negative or even false positive results , which involve unnecessary medical interventions . En@@ ough to make already reluc@@ tant men hesitate to take screening tests . Take the test or not ? We asked two specialists for their opinion . In studies conducted in the United States , there was a lot of contamination between control groups , so it is difficult to interpret the data and make firm recommendations . Another study , this time a European one , concluded that there was a difference in mort@@ ality between patients who were scre@@ ened and those who were not . This study also showed , with a follow-up after 12 years , that it is between 30 and 40 % more likely for met@@ ast@@ ases to occur in the absence of screening . I therefore recommend the test from age 50 , or 40 if you have a direct relative who previously had pro@@ state cancer . Afri@@ can@@ -@@ American men are also more at risk . The key is to make the right decision once cancer has been detected . There are aggressive canc@@ ers and others that are ind@@ ol@@ ent . The patient really needs to be made to understand the degree of risk of his cancer , by offering him the options available , not necessarily treating pro@@ state canc@@ ers that are not long-term life threatening , and op@@ ting instead , in such cases , for active monitoring of the disease . Today , many men in whom cancer has been detected will not be treated because their cancer is not aggressive and is not life threatening . Active monitoring will be suggested , and if the disease progres@@ ses , they will be offered treatment . More and more , specific criteria are being determined in order to decide who should or should not be treated . Therefore I recommend taking the test . But the important thing is to have a discussion with your doctor to determine whether or not to take it . In collaboration with the Soci@@ été internationale d '@@ ur@@ ologie [ SI@@ U ] , Mo@@ v@@ ember has created a tool that makes it possible to evaluate the pro@@ s and cons of the PS@@ A test . You can download the document ( in English for the time being , a [ French ] translation will be available shortly ) at this address : http : / / ca@@ .@@ mo@@ v@@ ember@@ .com / fr / m@@ ens@@ -@@ health / pro@@ state-@@ can@@ cer@@ -@@ screening Pre@@ v@@ enting the disease Unfortunately , there is no mi@@ racle recip@@ e for preventing cancer . Despite the progress in research , the adoption of healthy living hab@@ its remains the best way to reduce the risk of suffering from it . It is estimated that if everyone ate well and exerc@@ ised enough , 30 % of canc@@ ers could be prevented . " If no more people smo@@ ked , this rate would increase to at least 50 % , " says Andr@@ é Beau@@ li@@ eu , spo@@ kes@@ man for the Canadian Canc@@ er Society . On the other hand , it is estimated that roughly 10 % of canc@@ ers are her@@ edi@@ t@@ ary . Some are also completely un@@ explained . For the Canadian Canc@@ er Society , the fight against tobacco remains a priority , despite the decrease in the number of smo@@ kers . C@@ igar@@ ettes are linked to 85 % of lung cancer cases . It is also a risk factor for a number of others . This massi@@ vely damages people 's health . " Even today , there are 1.5 million smo@@ kers in Qu@@ eb@@ ec " depl@@ ores spo@@ kes@@ person Andr@@ é Beau@@ li@@ eu . En@@ cour@@ aging data : 10 years after giving up smoking , the risk of dying from cancer dro@@ ps by half . Wei@@ ght Over@@ weight and o@@ bes@@ ity are also con@@ du@@ ci@@ ve to the on@@ set of the disease , according to the SC@@ C . They can increase the risks of cancer of the breast , col@@ on and rec@@ tum , o@@ es@@ op@@ ha@@ g@@ us , pan@@ cre@@ as and uter@@ us . " Research shows that the regular practice of physical activity throughout your life protects against col@@ on cancer " it is also said . Di@@ et The organisation also recommends limiting your consumption of red meat . In large amounts , it increases the risks of developing col@@ o-@@ rec@@ tal cancer . Likewise , so do cur@@ ed meat products , and these should be avoided . The conservation of meat by smoking , dr@@ ying or cur@@ ing can cause the formation of car@@ cin@@ o@@ gens . " They can damage cells in the body and lead to the development of cancer " it is explained . Vit@@ am@@ ins In recent years , a number of scientists have studied the links between vit@@ amin suppl@@ ements and cancer . For the time being however their research is in@@ conclu@@ sive . Studies on vit@@ amin E are contradictory , according to the SC@@ C . While one study noted a decrease in the risk of pro@@ state cancer , another noted an increase . Also the effect of vit@@ amin D on cancer is not clear . In addition , Mr Beau@@ li@@ eu emphasises the importance of discussing your concerns and family history with your doctor . " Taking a screening test doesn 't give you cancer . " The H@@ ig@@ gs bo@@ son revealed The announcement of the prob@@ able discovery of the H@@ ig@@ gs bo@@ son created quite a sti@@ r last summer , and with good reason . Indeed , it is believed that this bo@@ son is part of the mechanism responsible for the mass of everything in the Uni@@ verse , no less . Also it is the last partic@@ le whose existence is predic@@ ted by the Standard Model - our best or " less worse " explanation of the nature and behaviour of matter - but which has not yet been observed emp@@ i@@ ri@@ cally . But for physi@@ ci@@ sts , it is still not completely sure that it really is the H@@ ig@@ gs . We know without a shadow of a doubt that it is a new authentic partic@@ le , and greatly res@@ emb@@ les the H@@ ig@@ gs bo@@ son predic@@ ted by the Standard Model . In addition , new data un@@ vei@@ led this week at a large physi@@ cs Congress in Kyoto seem to confirm this , but there are still insufficient data to be perfectly sure . But let 's sup@@ pose that it really is the H@@ ig@@ gs , since the chances of being mist@@ aken seem sli@@ m , and see what it is . In our world , there is a fat@@ ally un@@ avo@@ idable law which states that two things cannot meet at the same place at the same time . There 's no way to break this rule - and don 't try too hard , you 'll go mad . However , even though partic@@ le physi@@ cs is a very strange world , it turns out that it also has a law of the same kind : the Pau@@ li exclusion principle , which states that two partic@@ les cannot occup@@ y the same space at the same time if they are in the same " qu@@ ant@@ um state " - this " state " consisting roughly of certain of their characteristics . Based on this , physi@@ ci@@ sts classi@@ fy partic@@ les into two categories . In one corner we have good citizens called fer@@ mi@@ ons , who wis@@ ely o@@ bey the Pau@@ li principle . While l@@ ur@@ king in the other are the bo@@ sons , a n@@ asty band of an@@ arch@@ ists who respect nothing - at all events , not this principle , which means that they can indeed be found in the same place at the same time . These bo@@ sons are then divided into two groups , according to the Ber@@ kel@@ ey Lab@@ s Par@@ ticle Adv@@ enture site ( absolutely extraordinary , by the way ) : mes@@ ons , which we will not discuss here , and " force partic@@ les " by which the great forces of nature are propag@@ ated and to which the H@@ ig@@ gs bo@@ son may be somehow related . These bo@@ sons , it must be stressed here , are not all such exotic bugs as you might think . In fact , if you can read this article , it is thanks to an extra@@ ordin@@ arily ban@@ al bo@@ son : the phot@@ on , or the " light partic@@ le " which is the " mess@@ enger " of the electro@@ magnetic force . When , in fact , a partic@@ le having an electric charge acceler@@ ates or changes direction , this " distur@@ bs " the electro@@ magnetic field in this specific place , rather like a p@@ eb@@ ble thrown in a p@@ ond . This " distur@@ b@@ ance " produces an electro@@ magnetic wave ( of light , infr@@ ared , ul@@ tra@@ viol@@ et etc . ) , and this wave is nothing other than a phot@@ on - and thus one of the " force carrier " bo@@ sons . More stable field The same applies to the H@@ ig@@ gs bo@@ son , with the difference that it is another field , the H@@ ig@@ gs field , which must be " distur@@ bed " for the bo@@ son to appear . Now , this H@@ ig@@ gs field is much , much more stable than the electro@@ magnetic field ; to exc@@ ite it , it is necessary to achieve very , very high energy levels , rather like a frozen p@@ ond which would need a very large rock to w@@ rin@@ k@@ le the surface . Which is why a huge partic@@ le acceler@@ ator like the one at C@@ ER@@ N - the Large H@@ ad@@ ron Col@@ li@@ der is a ring with a 27@@ km circum@@ ference ! - is needed to achieve such energy levels . The an@@ alog@@ y with the electro@@ magnetic field is again useful for expl@@ aining the relationship between the H@@ ig@@ gs and mass . In fact not all partic@@ les , or all materials , inter@@ act with the electro@@ magnetic field . Some , such as magn@@ ets , do so , but others don 't - a piece of paper , for example , will never stick to a fridge . And likewise , not all partic@@ les inter@@ act with the H@@ ig@@ gs field : those that do so have mass , while the others ( such as the phot@@ on ) do not . Now , what is it that all this research " can bring " ? asks Ms Pl@@ am@@ ond@@ on . For science , it serves to check the validity of the Standard Model ( SM ) , and also allows physi@@ cians to examine any discre@@ pan@@ cies between the observations and predic@@ tions of the SM . A number of people , moreover , fer@@ v@@ ently hope that some will be found , because the sligh@@ test difference could open a door to a " new physi@@ cs " and plug certain holes in the Model . This , it must be said , still has huge shortcomings , offering no explanation for grav@@ ity ( o@@ ops ! ) or dark matter , which forms approximately 80 % of the matter in the Uni@@ verse ( re-@@ o@@ ops ! ) . But to date no such discre@@ pan@@ cies have been found at C@@ ER@@ N . Re@@ percussions The repercussions of this research on the daily life of the man in the street are more difficult to predic@@ t , but it would be wrong to assume that there won 't be any . Rem@@ ember : in the very early 6@@ 0s , the pione@@ ers of the laser at B@@ ell Labor@@ atories did not suspect the revolution that would be trig@@ gered by their work . They had an in@@ kl@@ ing of the scientific applications , but nothing as to the rest . In fact , the late Will@@ ard Bo@@ yle - a physi@@ c@@ ist who worked at B@@ ell Lab@@ s , where the laser was invented in 1960 , and who himself developed the first continuous laser ( the first were pul@@ sed ) in 1962 - told us that initially the laser was rather seen as a " l@@ ab g@@ ad@@ get . " Just imagine ... And then , applications can also come from all the instru@@ mentation that surround@@ s research . For example , the same Will@@ ard Bo@@ yle developed a small light sensor in 1969 , during his work in op@@ tics . This sensor , although this was not at all the original intention , now serves as an " eye " to all digital cameras worldwide , and earned him the Nobel physi@@ cs prize in 2009 . This does not of course mean that the activities of the L@@ H@@ C will necessarily transform our lives , but it does mean that , actually , you never know ... Pal@@ li@@ ative care - The best way to die ... | Le Dev@@ o@@ ir With its D@@ ying with D@@ ign@@ ity Commission , Qu@@ eb@@ ec recently discussed the delicate issue of the end of life . The debate is due to resume shortly as a bill is being prepared . However , in this vital area , much remains to be done . Le Dev@@ o@@ ir attempted to look more closely . Just a few weeks ago Mr L. lived alone in his Mont@@ é@@ ré@@ g@@ ie apartment . The fes@@ tering pro@@ state cancer had allowed him a two-@@ year resp@@ ite . " They gave me five years to live , I 've made it to seven , " he says , with mixed emotions , lying in his bed at the Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is p@@ alli@@ ative care home in Bel@@ o@@ eil , where he arrived the previous day . " But it 's still a shock , you can never be prepared for it " he adds . The disease is doing its work : huge weakness which prevents him going to the toilet alone , and even eating alone . S@@ itting in front of an ap@@ peti@@ sing lunch , he cons@@ ents to being helped to eat , resign@@ ed . Cour@@ age@@ ous , he even manages to s@@ mile , talks to the stran@@ gers bust@@ ling around him , bringing him his medic@@ ation , offering him a bath . The courage of ordinary death . " What I want most is to be cur@@ ed of my diar@@ r@@ ho@@ ea , it 's hum@@ ili@@ ating " he confi@@ ded . A few hours later , the team found a cure for this illness . " During our lives , we learn that a man pis@@ ses standing up , " says Pierre Bro@@ de@@ ur , psych@@ ologist at the Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is home . Reg@@ res@@ sing to the stage of a child , for some people , is an unacceptable hum@@ ili@@ ation . " It depends on the person 's ability " to accept the reg@@ ression , he says . Because , in the opinion of a number of people working in p@@ alli@@ ative care , great moments occur at the very heart of such reg@@ ression . Pati@@ ents at the Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is p@@ alli@@ ative care home all suffer from cancer . They have a maximum life expect@@ ancy of three months . At this stage , the team of doctors and nur@@ ses surrounding them no longer provides so-called " cur@@ ative " care . For Mrs A. , 89 years old , the worst fear is to die " conscious and suff@@ oc@@ ating . " But the disease has made me discover my children . " I have fine children " she adds . " I don 't wish for anything more in life " she says , before accepting having a mask put on to help her brea@@ the . She looks forward nevertheless , in the next few days , to a last visit by her son coming from Italy . At Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is , a group of volunte@@ ers provides bo@@ di@@ ly care and help with feeding . This is p@@ alli@@ ative care , given when there is nothing else that can be done . To make death more comfortable . In Qu@@ eb@@ ec , there are p@@ alli@@ ative care beds for 1@@ 1,@@ 700 inhabitants . This is very few when we know that we will all die one day . Here , life continues under the best possible conditions , explains Dr Christi@@ ane Mar@@ tel , one of the doctors at the home . Whether at a physical comfort , emotional or spiritual level . A person who is dying will accept being helped to drink brand@@ y or Pep@@ si , whatever is their ti@@ pp@@ le . Di@@ ab@@ e@@ tics no longer need to control their blood sugar . And death is part of everyday life . Yesterday evening , a beer was served to Mr X , who died during the night . This morning , it is his son who will finish the beer at the feet of the dec@@ e@@ ased . " We help relatives as much as patients " says N@@ ath@@ al@@ ie Sav@@ ard , Director of Care . At the Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is home , one day follows another but no two are alike . Along with a 9@@ 3-@@ year-old man who is sav@@ our@@ ing his last meeting with his family , sitting firmly wed@@ ged in his pil@@ lows while to@@ asts are dr@@ unk in his honour , a 3@@ 6-@@ year-@@ young man is dying trag@@ ically , surrounded by his parents , his wife and his two young children , after having tried everything to survive . " For six months , there have always been three to five beds which are occupied by cancer patients less than 45 years old " says a concerned Dr Christi@@ ane Mar@@ tel . 53 % of patients admitted to the Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is home come from their homes , 47 % from hospital . L@@ ack of access to p@@ alli@@ ative care It is said that 77 % of Canadi@@ ans simply have no access to p@@ alli@@ ative care , which is care designed to ease the pain when a patient has reached the terminal stage of life , be it at home , in hospital or in a care home . And a number of organisations , such as the Vic@@ tor@@ -@@ G@@ ad@@ bo@@ is home and the Pal@@ li@@ ative Care Society in Gre@@ ater Montreal , speci@@ alise more or less exclusively in care provided to cancer patients . It is precisely this large gap in Qu@@ eb@@ ec health care which has made a number of p@@ alli@@ ative care physi@@ cians fear the adoption of a law on eu@@ than@@ asi@@ a and assisted suicide . Since October , a mani@@ fes@@ to , signed by p@@ alli@@ ative care l@@ umin@@ aries including Dr Bal@@ four Mount and Dr Bern@@ ard La@@ poin@@ te , has been circul@@ ating to demonstrate their opposition to such an initiative . According to Dr Christi@@ ane Mar@@ tel , the Qu@@ eb@@ ec health system is not effective enough to ensure that everyone will be entitled to quality p@@ alli@@ ative care before it is accepted to proceed to eu@@ than@@ asi@@ a . Recently , she says , I saw a patient spend 14 days in emergency , in great pain , without anything being done to ease her suffering . I 'm afraid that patients ask to die because they don 't receive adequate care . And at the same time , some on@@ col@@ o@@ gi@@ sts work rel@@ ent@@ lessly on their patients until the last day , despite the worst progno@@ ses . H@@ é@@ l@@ è@@ ne Richard 's survival hopes were already minimal when she ended her gru@@ elling chem@@ o@@ therapy . When I announced to my on@@ c@@ ologist that I was st@@ opping the treatment , she told me she reg@@ ret@@ ted that I had given up fighting , she said . However , she had told me I was finished ! No all-@@ powerful care Dr Mar@@ tel believes that 90 % of patients asking to die thank care@@ -@@ gi@@ vers for not having acc@@ eded to their request after they have been rel@@ iev@@ ed of their pain by a p@@ alli@@ ative care team . But it must be said that p@@ alli@@ ative care is not absolutely all-@@ powerful in the treatment of pain . According to El@@ sie Mon@@ er@@ eau , Pal@@ li@@ ative Care Director with the Pal@@ li@@ ative Care Society in Gre@@ ater Montreal , patients are resistant to treatment against pain in 8 % of cases . At the very end of life , physi@@ cians then often resort to p@@ alli@@ ative sed@@ ation , which is equivalent to putting the patient to sleep until the time of death , either spor@@ a@@ dic@@ ally or permanently . We can no longer pre@@ tend not to understand this part of their suffering . Incre@@ as@@ ingly , an un@@ rel@@ iev@@ ed patient will have the option of having such p@@ alli@@ ative sed@@ ation . Pati@@ ents who are not rel@@ iev@@ ed always say the same thing : " I want to die . " But this does not necessarily mean " I want you to eu@@ than@@ ise me , " it means " I want to be rel@@ iev@@ ed . " This report was made possible thanks to a journ@@ alism award from the Canada health research institutes . Wi@@ des@@ pread real estate sc@@ and@@ als in Qu@@ eb@@ ec Day after day highway officials , building contrac@@ tors , political party fund@@ -@@ ra@@ is@@ ers and Italian ma@@ fia specialists tell what they know of a form@@ idable " system , " combining the building industry , government officials , politicians , trade uni@@ on@@ ists and organised crime . An " industry " which has cost Qu@@ eb@@ ec taxpayers de@@ arly , especially in the 1990s and 200@@ 0s . " It is cur@@ ious how the system is cru@@ m@@ bling since we took dr@@ astic measures " says Jacques Du@@ ch@@ es@@ ne@@ au ir@@ on@@ ically , a Qu@@ eb@@ ec politi@@ cian and former Montreal Chief of Police . It was through him that the scandal broke in 2011 , in an in-depth investigation into corruption related to road construction contracts in Qu@@ eb@@ ec , to which the liberal Prime Minister at the time , Jean Char@@ est , had cons@@ ented only reluc@@ t@@ antly . The " Du@@ ch@@ es@@ ne@@ au report " established a direct link between industry , under-@@ the-@@ table financing of parties and bri@@ ber@@ y of officials . " Since the inquiry opened in 2010 , he says , the Ministry of Transport alone report@@ edly saved a billion dollars on contracts , " with certain people cur@@ bing their inst@@ inc@@ ts to get a share ! The Char@@ bon@@ ne@@ au Commission " has already brought down two may@@ ors " he adds , hoping that it will succeed in " reve@@ aling the schemes behind the individuals . " A permanent anti-@@ corruption unit , created in 2011 The Per@@ man@@ ent Anti-@@ Cor@@ ruption Unit , created in 2011 , is also coupled with its army of government an@@ alyst@@ s , investig@@ ators , and audi@@ tors . Plus the " Mar@@ te@@ au squ@@ ad " polic@@ emen who , since 2009 , have apparently led the Montreal " se@@ wer car@@ tel " to soft ped@@ al on the inflation of contracts ... In recent weeks , it has conducted a series of se@@ arches and brought charges of fraud and corruption against municipal politicians , such as Frank Z@@ amp@@ ino and Richard Mar@@ cot@@ te , Mayor of a sub@@ urban town . Next on the list is apparently Gil@@ les V@@ ail@@ lan@@ court , who has just resign@@ ed from his post as Mayor of Lav@@ al , third largest city in Qu@@ eb@@ ec . He is susp@@ ected of po@@ ck@@ eting repeated bri@@ bes in exchange for public contracts . O@@ thers formally accused are Montreal highway engineers and Italian entrepreneurs , including Tony Ac@@ cur@@ so and Lin@@ o Z@@ ambi@@ to . The latter caused a sens@@ ation by expl@@ aining the mechan@@ ics of the public contracts " system " to the commission . He himself paid 3 % of the value of the contracts obtained in Montreal to an intermedi@@ ary linked to the ma@@ fia who in turn paid the money to Union Mon@@ tr@@ é@@ al , Mayor G@@ ér@@ ald Tre@@ mb@@ lay 's party . Mr Z@@ ambi@@ to has handed money out freely in the 200@@ 0s , giving over 88@@ ,000 Canadian dollars ( roughly 68@@ ,000 euros ) to provin@@ cial parties , especially the Liberals then in power . He also admitted having organised an illegal fund@@ ra@@ iser for former Liberal Dep@@ ut@@ y-@@ Prime Minister , N@@ ath@@ al@@ ie Nor@@ man@@ de@@ au . Se@@ wer contracts with infl@@ ated costs In Montreal , the corruption " system " ran smoothly . Gil@@ les Sur@@ p@@ ren@@ ant , former public works engineer , described it in detail in front of the commission : in ten years , he received from construction companies gifts , inv@@ itations to trips , golf tournaments , restaurants , ho@@ ck@@ ey matches and bri@@ bes tot@@ alling 7@@ 36@@ ,000 dollars , in exchange for se@@ wer contracts of which he infl@@ ated the costs . Other highway officials admitted having their pal@@ ms gre@@ ased by infl@@ ating invo@@ ices by 30 to 40 % , and by false add@@ -@@ ons . Then an organis@@ er of the Mayor 's party , Martin D@@ um@@ ont , accused Mr Tre@@ mb@@ lay of having deliberately closed his eyes to a parallel budget feeding his coff@@ ers with dirty money . Following these re@@ vel@@ ations , Mr Tre@@ mb@@ lay resign@@ ed in early November , pl@@ ung@@ ing Montreal into a major crisis . Ch@@ ant@@ al Rou@@ le@@ au was one of the first women in Montreal to raise the alarm . Mayor of the bor@@ ough of Ri@@ vi@@ è@@ re-@@ des@@ -@@ Pra@@ i@@ ries , to the East of the island , she prot@@ ested in 2010 against the sale of municipal land bought for 5 million dollars and res@@ old for ... 1.@@ 6 million to developers , at the height of the real estate boom . 70 % dirty money in election campaigns On the investigation which will eventually be implemented , she says she " is following a thread in order to find out how the system - in@@ fil@@ tr@@ ated by ants - works , to put a stop to the gan@@ gr@@ ene and catch the cul@@ pr@@ its . " The process , she says , is " painful but positive . " The wo@@ und is being cleaned , but Montreal would need its own investig@@ ative unit with ongoing monitoring , to avoid the return of these question@@ able practices . How to clean house . Proper@@ ly . Jacques Du@@ ch@@ es@@ ne@@ au notes for his part that " officials st@@ ole hundreds of millions of dollars , " but he is especially concerned about the role of " elected people aware of the scheme , " when they were not up to their nec@@ ks in the sc@@ am ! E@@ stim@@ ating the share of dirty money in the financing of election campaigns in Qu@@ eb@@ ec at 70 % , he says dr@@ y@@ ly : " I was told that it was only a p@@ ale reflection of reality . " The Qu@@ eb@@ ec government proposes to limit donations to parties to 100 dollars , but this will not change the situation , he says : " Until election expenses are strictly limited , there will be dirty money in politics . " He advocates a complete over@@ hau@@ l of the system for granting public contracts and party funding : " We can 't go any lower ; getting to the bottom of things , with courage , will help to re@@ build the house on more solid foundations , with more controls and laws . " Although this story tar@@ nis@@ hes the international image of Qu@@ eb@@ ec and Montreal , Mr Du@@ ch@@ es@@ ne@@ au invites anyone lau@@ gh@@ ing to look in their own back@@ yard ... " PS@@ G is not FC Barcelona ! " This season , you have taken on a new stat@@ ure with PS@@ G . How do you explain this progres@@ sion ? It can be explained by individual awareness but also by the new dimension of PS@@ G . Some great players have arrived . Every day I 'm making progress alongside them . The technical staff has also brought me a lot . Day by day , all these things help me raise my level of play . And , in a match , it 's easier . Everything moves very fast in football . But I don 't get worked up . From my de@@ but at the C@@ la@@ i@@ ref@@ on@@ taine IN@@ F pre-@@ training centre to my transfer to Saint-@@ E@@ ti@@ enne , I 've always moved step by step . So you benefit from the competition brought in by Carlo An@@ cel@@ otti ... This summer 's recru@@ its are used to playing matches at a high level . They also know that every training session is crucial . Which is what makes a player like me want to face up and give my best . On the other hand , Carlo An@@ cel@@ otti gives me a lot as regards my position . He 's supported by dep@@ u@@ ties like Claude Mak@@ el@@ ele , who played in the same position as me . Is An@@ cel@@ otti the man for the job ? Defin@@ itely . An@@ cel@@ otti insp@@ ires respect among all the experts . Today he has no equal in Lig@@ ue 1 , and he 's one of the best co@@ aches in Europe . He has mass@@ es of experience and has won many titles with top clubs . He 's worked with great players . I think he will bring more titles to Paris . In January , I had an encouraging discussion with him . I was just coming back from a series of in@@ jur@@ ies . The confidence he gives me also explains my performance . What importance do you attach to the first part of the season for PS@@ G ? In Lig@@ ue 1 , Lyon over@@ took us at the top . But we 're waiting on the si@@ delines . One of our main goals is the Champ@@ ions League : we qualified for the last 16 in the right way . What is the club 's goal in this competition ? We 'll try to go as far as possible . From now on , anything can happen . But we 'll have something to say against some very good European teams . First of all , we want to finish top in our pool , ahead of Porto , to have home advantage in the last 16 match . Can PS@@ G become a top European club in the short term ? It already has the budget ... To become a top European club , Paris needs to win titles and keep it up over time . Today , this isn 't the case . Finan@@ cially , PS@@ G has the means to make it happen . In Lig@@ ue 1 , would not winning the title , like last season , be a big failure ? Defin@@ itely , it would be a major disappointment . This year , we 're really committed to winning the champ@@ ionship . We weren 't far away last season . In May , there was great disappointment because we were good enough to finish first . It was a ter@@ rif@@ ic season . We finished with 79 points . Norm@@ ally , 79 points is good enough to be top ... But another team , Mont@@ p@@ elli@@ er , had an even more fantastic season . I think this is the year . Even if big teams like Mar@@ sei@@ lle , Lyon and Bor@@ deaux are competing for the title , I think we have the weapons to win . Do you think the media expect too much of PS@@ G ? It 's normal for them to expect a lot from us given what 's been invested and the players we have . We totally accept it . After we won 4-@@ 0 at home against Tro@@ yes and they still found things to blame us for , that 's definitely a bit frustr@@ ating . You wonder what more people expect . You 're never going to win 4-@@ 0 every weekend . We 're not FC Barcelona ! We 're trying to implement a game project . It takes time to build a team . The Champ@@ ions League proved we could hold our own . Look at Manchester City who , for two seasons , have failed to qualify for the last 16 , despite also having spent huge amounts ! Based on the amounts invested , you should be 15 points ahead at the winter break ! That would be to ignore our opponents and the French Championship . Lyon and Mar@@ sei@@ lle , who were no good last season , were " boo@@ sted " by the new PS@@ G . This shows that Lig@@ ue 1 is exciting . I hope that in May we will be able to s@@ mile in saying that , despite all the difficulties , we finally did it . PS@@ G seem totally dependent on the explo@@ its of Z@@ lat@@ an I@@ bra@@ hi@@ mo@@ vic . So much so that people say there is a " Z@@ lat@@ an dependence . " This means I@@ bra@@ hi@@ mo@@ vic is very successful and scores a lot of goals . That 's why he came , and he 's pro@@ ving he 's the star of Lig@@ ue 1 . He 's demonstrated everywhere he went that he was a great player , a world star . Within the group , we respect the man and the player . And also he respects the men he has around him . What he has done is truly exceptional . It pus@@ hes others to raise their level of play . Th@@ i@@ ago Sil@@ va , who is one of the best defen@@ ders in the world , also helps everyone else progress . How did you get on in Euro 2012 with the France team ? A disappointment . I really wanted to play in this Euro . Unfortunately , my injury prevented me from getting any game time . I saw some things there and came out stronger . Today , I 'm playing well in selection matches . Which is what I 've been hoping for since my b@@ ap@@ tism with the Blu@@ es . I 've learned the lessons from what happened in the Ukraine and I now owe it to myself to have exemplary behaviour . What do think about Di@@ di@@ er Des@@ champ@@ s 's first few months in charge of the Blu@@ es ? He has the results he wanted . We 're well placed in the World quali@@ fying group . The coach is tough , close to the players , and insp@@ ires them to win . Like Laur@@ ent Blan@@ c was . But I don 't want to make any compar@@ isons . Blan@@ c had achieved his goal when we qualified for the Euro . I hope Di@@ di@@ er Des@@ champ@@ s will take the Blu@@ es to Brazil . Did the good draw ( 1-@@ 1 ) s@@ nat@@ ched in Spain , on 16 October , represent a founding match ? That match gave us confidence . Every@@ body fought for everybody . Before that shock in Spain , I 'd never experienced such a match in my career . With Bit@@ coin , pay and sell without banks The opposite of current monetary exchanges , based on central banks , identified transactions and processing fees among the parties involved . In addition , as often in these technologies , a political vision is pal@@ p@@ able : the belief that the current monetary system , made up of banking monopolies , leads to financial crises . In fact , Bit@@ coin , invented by Sat@@ o@@ shi N@@ ak@@ am@@ o@@ to ( a p@@ seu@@ don@@ ym ) , is both a virtual currency ( but con@@ verti@@ ble into dollars , euros ) and a secure exchange protocol like Bit@@ Tor@@ rent , which allows pe@@ er-@@ to-@@ pe@@ er file exchange . Around 200@@ ,000 transactions have already been recorded via 15@@ ,000 computers on the network . Close to a thousand web sites accept bit@@ coins as donations or means of payment . The bit@@ coin exchange rate , after reaching a peak of 30 dollars ( 23 euros ) in June 2011 , fell to 2 dollars five months later , returning today to around a do@@ zen dollars ( rates are listed on the bit@@ co@@ in@@ char@@ ts@@ .com site ) . Nothing very impressive , compared to global transactions in real currency or financial products . However , the European Central Bank ( ECB ) took an interest in it in a report on virtual currencies published in October . It describes bit@@ coin as " the most successful virtual currency , " " in competition with the dollar or the euro " and " similar to conventional currencies . " Bit@@ coin diff@@ ers from other types of virtual currency such as ' credits ' , used to progress in a video game which you win by playing or which you can buy ( and sometimes exchange in return ) . The social network Facebook has also developed this kind of system . But , on each occasion , a central authority controls and hand@@ les the exchanges . With Bit@@ coin , all no@@ des in the network are both cust@@ odi@@ ans of the book of accounts , audi@@ tors , currency issu@@ ers , and bu@@ yers and s@@ ellers . How does the network operate ? Each transaction between two users is actually carried out between two electronic addresses like with an e-mail . Exc@@ ept that a user can choose a different address for each payment , thereby ensuring an@@ onym@@ ity . A set of information associated with this transaction is signed electron@@ ically by a du@@ al-@@ key encryption system . So the network can verify the authentic@@ ity of the transaction . Using the contents of the file , it is also possible to ensure that the ex@@ changed bit@@ coins exist in the public book of accounts , broadcast across the entire network . The key step is entering the new transaction in the book . It passes through the resolution of a mathemati@@ cal challenge issued to the computers , and the winner , a kind of interim central ban@@ ker , will have the privilege of adding this extra line . This is a file h@@ ash@@ ing phase , i.e. the transformation of a large file into a shorter and unique digital im@@ print . Computers " take " the new transaction and add a number to it , then " h@@ ash " it all up . The goal being to find the number that gives a special im@@ print ( lots of zer@@ os at the beginning ) . Once this number has been found , the other no@@ des can easily check that it is the right one . The transaction is then in@@ destruc@@ ti@@ bly linked to the chain of all the other transactions ; any modification would alter the im@@ print . If a user wanted to de@@ fraud by paying twice with the same money very quickly ( less than ten minutes ) , only one of the two transactions would be vali@@ dated by the network - the other would remain an orph@@ an because the two have different im@@ prints . The computer that resol@@ ves the challenge wins 50 bit@@ coins . To avoid inflation , this award is regularly divided by two , probably by the end of 2012 . The number of bit@@ coins in circulation is therefore limited to 21 million , but they are di@@ visible down to the hundred milli@@ on@@ th , which leaves some margin ... The difficulty of the challenge is also raised with each increase in comp@@ uting power . The life of the network has had its ups and down@@ s . Websites providing services for Bit@@ coin have been attacked and bit@@ coins in deposits st@@ olen . " The lo@@ op@@ hole used is not the protocol itself " says Pierre No@@ iz@@ at re@@ ass@@ ur@@ ingly , who has just launched Pay@@ mium , a real currency payment company that uses the Bit@@ coin network . The ECB also highlights the possibilities of money la@@ undering using this anonymous service . But cash also has this weakness . Major players like Wiki@@ pedia refuse donations of this nature . O@@ thers , such as the WordPress blog platform , accept them . Recently , A@@ di Sh@@ am@@ ir and Dor@@ it R@@ on , from the Wei@@ z@@ mann Institute in Israel , analy@@ sed the accounting books and showed that almost 80 % of bit@@ coins do not circul@@ ate . In November , " huge s@@ ell@@ -@@ off@@ s " were launched . " Thir@@ ty thousand dollars were ex@@ changed " welcomes J@@ on Hol@@ m@@ qu@@ ist , who works for Co@@ in@@ ab@@ ul , which conver@@ ts bit@@ coins to gold . Pierre No@@ iz@@ at , also author of an educational book on this currency , has a lot of faith in the potential of this technology as a transaction network . His system , Pay@@ t@@ uni@@ a , is equivalent to a credit card ( in real money ) or a cont@@ act@@ less payment by mobile , but it uses Bit@@ coin to vali@@ date transactions , which are thus cheaper . Also the user manages his identity and can therefore be anonymous . The system is easy to implement by merchan@@ ts , who do not need to install new terminals or software . They just need to provide an address that a phone can " phot@@ ograph and recognise " says Pierre No@@ iz@@ at , who confirms he has thousands of users . There is a general movement to re@@ app@@ raise hierarch@@ ical systems for more horizontal systems . " It will take time for Bit@@ coin to become firmly established , but 2013 could be a turning point , " he predic@@ ts . The ECB , in its report , says it will re@@ assess the various risks , currently regarded as high , in the event of the currency 's success . We got out of Afghanistan . What now ? French troops have left their area of responsibility in Afghanistan ( Kap@@ is@@ a and Sur@@ o@@ bi ) . NATO and the Americans are due to follow in late 2014 . It is time for the Afghan army to resume possession of its territory and the Afghan people to choose their future , without expecting us to do everything . It is mainly Afghan pe@@ as@@ ants that we have punished by regarding them as terrorists . And ourselves , with our 88 soldiers killed , plus the wo@@ unded , the ma@@ im@@ ed . The Taliban is composed of foreign extrem@@ ists , former leaders in refuge in Pakistan , but often pe@@ as@@ ants who refuse the presence of foreign armed forces , like in the time of the Sovi@@ ets . They want to defend their traditions , both ancient and arch@@ a@@ ic , even though they have been joined by Ji@@ ha@@ di@@ sts , Pakist@@ an@@ is , Arab@@ s , U@@ z@@ be@@ ks , Ta@@ ji@@ ks . T@@ oler@@ ated , sometimes assisted , by local ins@@ urg@@ ents , the latter will no longer be so when Wes@@ tern@@ ers become more scar@@ ce . The departure of French troops from the Ni@@ j@@ r@@ ab base , which I observed from the top of hills of al@@ mond trees plan@@ ted with French funding , was carried out in an or@@ derly fashion . Con@@ vo@@ ys of trucks and ar@@ mo@@ ured vehicles reached Kab@@ ul without being attacked , over@@ f@@ lown by helicop@@ ters . There will be no wave of the Taliban in Kab@@ ul by the end of 2014 . Cir@@ cum@@ stances have changed since their ir@@ res@@ isti@@ ble advance between 1994 and 1996 . At that time Kab@@ ul was empty , the country being tor@@ n apart by the stru@@ gg@@ les between different fac@@ tions . Their tak@@ eover of the country had been perceived then as a sort of liber@@ ation , a return to safety . Afghan@@ is paid the price of the obs@@ cur@@ anti@@ sm of these pe@@ as@@ ants by the organisation of Al-@@ Q@@ a@@ eda , but their situation has not improved today . For@@ mer Mu@@ ja@@ hi@@ din , the Afghan Government and the current Taliban are alli@@ ed in the desire to keep women in an inf@@ erior position . The main anti-@@ Soviet war leaders returned to power in 2001 . They became profit@@ e@@ ers , sei@@ zing government land to res@@ ell as building land to refugees returning from Iran and Pakistan , benef@@ iting from huge American out@@ sourcing contracts . They have become dis@@ credited ; what is more , most of them did not fight themselves . The people , as I heard in the countryside , want a Government that is not made up of th@@ iev@@ es . Many young people want to leave , as those who were able to benefit from American lar@@ ges@@ se will leave : the flight of capital is considerable . The young people are tired of war and its ide@@ ologies . They have rub@@ bed shoul@@ ders with the modern world during their ex@@ ile in Iran or Pakistan , and appreciated the benefits . Rou@@ ghly 65 % of the population is less than 25 ; Kab@@ ul now has 5 million people , a fifth of the total population . In towns and cities , the state schools are full , with girls and boys alike . It will be necessary to provide work for those young people who no longer want to return to the obs@@ cur@@ anti@@ sm of the former parties or the corruption of certain leaders . All of them , including the armed opponents , are partial to mobile phones ; television , with its Turkish so@@ ap oper@@ as that show a modern world , is followed everywhere . The army is now present . Will the authorities who command it be considered legitimate ? For@@ mer comm@@ anders of the anti-@@ Soviet struggle are already thinking about restoring provin@@ cial mili@@ ti@@ as , which will escape the central power . Afghanistan , land of mountains , with strong local identi@@ ties , should be able to benefit from a certain decentr@@ alisation , in the image of the Western nations , but the United States wanted to turn it into a centr@@ alised State , with strong presidential power , abo@@ lish@@ ing the post of Prime Minister , which had existed since the 1964 Constitution . President Kar@@ z@@ ai does not want any foreign controls , particularly on the occasion of the elections in April 2014 . But , since the 50@@ s and already well before , his country has been dependent on foreign aid . No industries have been re-@@ established , no dam@@ s are in good condition , no major ir@@ rig@@ ation systems have been re@@ paired . Everything is imported ; nothing is produced , apart from fruit and vegetables . The Pri@@ ority is left to private initiative . In a country ru@@ ined by thirty years of war , government control over the infrastructure would have been necessary . The rum@@ our was spread that Afghanistan had huge mineral wealth . This only added to the feeling that the Wes@@ tern@@ ers were only there to sei@@ ze it . With no energy to process the iron ore or copper on site , or means of transport to export it across the mountains , there is no mining . The Chinese have already almost left the M@@ es A@@ yn@@ ak copper mine , leaving international archae@@ ologists ( funded by the World Bank ) to search the huge Buddh@@ ist site and remain the largest employers in the province . One day it will also be necessary for Afghanistan and Pakistan , on which imports and exports largely depend , to restore normal relations . The departure of French combat troops was completed on 20 November . The new cooperation treaty provides for the continuation of traditional aid : girls ' high school , boys ' high school , French Department at the University , French Institute , cooperation in the military , legal , medical and agricultural fields , support to the archaeological Delegation . Since 2009 , to try to " win hearts and minds " and achieve the impossible task of re@@ conc@@ iling aid and offensive actions , a " ci@@ vil@@ -@@ military actions " service from the Ministry of defence ( C@@ im@@ ic ) , closed in 2012 , has carried out , and continues to carry out successfully , through a small French NG@@ O , many community and agricultural rehabilitation projects in doz@@ ens of mountain villages . These projects , involving large numbers of local labour , have helped to contain the ins@@ urgency : ir@@ rig@@ ation , well@@ s , drinking water , re@@ forest@@ ation , fruit trees , soil protection and increase in cultiv@@ able areas . What will we leave as a sou@@ ven@@ ir , after two billion euros of military spending ? A much more modest budget would contribute to improving local living conditions , which are very hard in these valleys often located over 2@@ ,000 metres above sea level . The Em@@ bass@@ y has received doz@@ ens of written requests for small agricultural projects from local communities in Kap@@ is@@ a province . To be in a position to free themselves from the up@@ rising led by foreign groups , which is what farmers told me they want , a small amount of civil aid should be maintained in their favour , well controlled and directly affecting them . A Constitution by force in Egypt A new gam@@ ble for President Moh@@ amm@@ ed Mor@@ si . While Egypt remains more divided than ever around the constitutional declaration , which temporarily grants him full powers , he has decided to go for broke . Taking everyone by surprise , he announced on Wednesday that the Constitu@@ ent Assembly would vote on its final text the following day . Just a week ago , the head of State had given the Assembly two more months to finish its work . For two years Egypt has reli@@ ed on a pro@@ visi@@ onal text , amended several times and this has weak@@ ened institutional stability and led to legal im@@ bro@@ gli@@ os . This new initiative has only served to enhance the divide in the country . According to his opponents , the President is per@@ sever@@ ing in his " auto@@ c@@ ratic deli@@ ri@@ um , " continuing to " go back on his word " and ' tr@@ ample the law . " His supporters affir@@ m that this is the quick@@ est way to put an end to the institutional and political crisis , by spe@@ eding up the transition process . A referendum is due to be held within the next two weeks . A very short period , which forces the Bro@@ thers to abandon their plan to explain the text , article by article , to the Egyp@@ ti@@ ans . For the President , it is also a way to achieve popular and democratic legitimacy while the dispute ra@@ ges throughout the country . Moh@@ amm@@ ed Mor@@ si seems convinced that Egyp@@ ti@@ ans will vote favour@@ ably , as he stated in an interview with the American weekly Time . Partic@@ ularly since a ha@@ sty vote sm@@ acks of an ultim@@ atum to the Egyptian people : " Ei@@ ther you vote for my text , or I keep full powers , " these powers supposedly exp@@ iring following adoption of the Constitution . It was in a strange atmosphere that 85 members of the Constitu@@ ent Assembly , with a large Islam@@ ist majority , voted on the text yesterday . Most of the liber@@ als were missing . In mid-@@ November , shortly before the constitutional declaration , they had sl@@ amm@@ ed the door , feeling they had failed to asser@@ t their views . Repres@@ ent@@ atives of human rights , religious minorities or civil society had done likewise . In order to obtain a qu@@ or@@ um , 11 members , altern@@ ates , were has@@ ti@@ ly added yesterday morning . Some of them are very close to the Muslim Bro@@ ther@@ hood . Not surpris@@ ingly , the articles were for the most part voted unanimously . Comm@@ ent@@ ators were also am@@ used that one of the only di@@ versions of the day was expressed with regard to ... the hour of pra@@ yer , some Committee members feeling that the Constitu@@ ent Assembly clock was wrong . The text , which was still being voted on yesterday evening , has 23@@ 4 articles . The main focus of attention , article 2 , remains in the final analysis identical to that of the 1971 Constitution , stipul@@ ating that " the principles of sh@@ aria are the main source of law . " The Sal@@ af@@ ist parties , for which the establishment of Islamic law is a major claim , were hoping to replace " the principles " by " the rules , " which would have allowed stricter application . For the Islam@@ ists , the fact that this article was not amended is a guarantee of their good@@ will and their respect for the other elements of Egyptian society . " Hy@@ po@@ cris@@ y " respond the liber@@ als , who see only a communication coup . Because in their opinion Islam@@ isation of the Constitution is done through other articles . They refer in particular to article 220 , which grants Al-@@ Az@@ h@@ ar University an advisory role , with particular reference to veri@@ fying the con@@ formity of the laws with sh@@ aria . According to Egypt specialist S@@ oph@@ ie P@@ omm@@ ier , this is worrying because " the people called upon to advise are not elected and have no democratic legitimacy . This suggests the beginn@@ ings of a the@@ oc@@ racy . " The liber@@ als ' fears are also fu@@ elled by the fact that the next Rec@@ tor of the university will probably be much less moderate than the current one . " For the time being , there is no concrete religious implic@@ ation . With this Constitution , things remain under civil rule . Most of the lawyers who worked on this text are not Islamic law schol@@ ars but academ@@ ics , some trained in the French system " quali@@ fies Alex@@ is Bl@@ ou@@ et , who is writing a thesis on the Egyptian constitutional transition . But he acknowled@@ ges that " there may be some ambigu@@ ity regarding article 220 , because the terms used bor@@ row from the religious voc@@ abul@@ ary . Refer@@ ence is made in particular to " fi@@ q@@ h " [ Islamic juris@@ pru@@ dence , Editor 's note ] . And the question could be asked in future to what extent civil judges are competent to pron@@ ounce on it . " Beyond its religious aspect , the text voted on yesterday is highly criticised due to the extensive powers it grants to the President of the Republic . The Muslim Bro@@ thers argue that they are significantly reduced compared to what they were under the former regime . Another issue : the powers con@@ ferred on the army . In accordance with the wishes of the military , the Defence budget review will be not submitted to Parliament , but to a National Defence Council . Nor will trials of civilians will be banned in military tri@@ bun@@ als , as requested by associations for the defence of human rights . Who also voice their concerns about the text , which they consider repressive . The off@@ ence of blas@@ ph@@ em@@ y is maintained and ins@@ ults are now prohibited , which could have serious consequences on freedom of expression , particularly for the press . In addition , no longer does any of the articles refer to the protection of women , highlights Heb@@ a Mor@@ ay@@ ef , from Human Rights Watch . In her opinion , the only positive point is the prohi@@ bition of torture in article 36 . The word was not included in the previous Constitution . While the Egyptian President was speaking yesterday evening on television , demonstrations are planned for this afternoon . Sup@@ por@@ ters of the Head of State will mar@@ ch on Saturday . In Israel , hol@@ y places await Ukrainian tourists , the omp@@ hal@@ os and a sea of sal@@ ine water The Holy Land combines the sp@@ l@@ end@@ our of bi@@ b@@ lical tru@@ ths , modern comfort and prim@@ eval nature . Ai@@ F [ Argum@@ enti i Fak@@ ti ] newspaper highlighted the five most important reasons why it is a must to visit Israel . Let 's wor@@ ship the hol@@ y places It is worth visiting the River Jordan where Jesus was b@@ ap@@ tiz@@ ed . It is considered that all who enter this b@@ ap@@ tism " bath " are bl@@ essed by God . Galile@@ e is the place where Jesus performed his magic : turned water into wine at a wedding , wal@@ ked on water , cal@@ med a storm , and filled the nets . This is also where Jesus came before his dis@@ ciples and after the res@@ ur@@ rec@@ tion . But the biggest number of hol@@ y places is in Jerusalem . Bel@@ ie@@ vers walk through the Way of Gri@@ ef or Via Dol@@ or@@ o@@ sa . It starts by the Ant@@ onia Fort@@ ress - Pra@@ et@@ orium - where the jud@@ gement took place , and brings us along the streets of the Old Town to the Church of the Holy Sep@@ ul@@ ch@@ re on Gol@@ go@@ tha - the place of the cru@@ ci@@ fix@@ ion , Stone of Un@@ ction and the place of Jesus ' bur@@ ial . This is also the location of the symbolic Christian omp@@ hal@@ os , which symboli@@ zes the sal@@ vation of mankind . The Holy Cross Mon@@ astery in Jerusalem is er@@ ected at the site that , according to Christian legend , yiel@@ ded the tree used to make the cross for Jesus ' cru@@ ci@@ fix@@ ion . Jerusalem has the most hol@@ y places for the Jews as well - the W@@ ailing Wall , which remained from a temple destroyed by the Rom@@ ans in 70 AD . According to tradition , people of different fai@@ ths leave notes here with their wishes , which are then fulfilled . Travel along a vertical Ru@@ ins of the Mass@@ ada Fort@@ ress remain from a secret refuge from enemies , built by Her@@ od in 25 BC for his family . They are located on cli@@ ffs in the mountains at an elev@@ ation of 450 m above sea level . They can be reached on foot only by those who are into mountain climbing . O@@ thers are delivered to this historical moun@@ ta@@ int@@ op by a cab@@ le@@ way . In the north of the country , at an elev@@ ation of 16@@ 00-@@ 20@@ 40 m , there is a famous ski resort called Her@@ mon , which f@@ ills up with tourists in winter months . A shuttle bus brings people to it from the foot of the mountain . The total length of ski pist@@ es is 45 km . According to an ancient legend , pag@@ an go@@ ds used to live on the mountain . Visit unique museums This country has about 300 museums . You won 't be able to visit all of them on one trip But at least the five most interesting ones are worth a visit . Among them - Museum of Israel , located close to K@@ ness@@ et ( Parliament ) . It has ancient Q@@ um@@ ran man@@ us@@ cri@@ pts and De@@ ad Sea sc@@ roll@@ s found in the c@@ aves of the Ju@@ de@@ an desert , along with about 500@@ ,000 archaeological and an@@ throp@@ ological art@@ ef@@ acts . The Museum of Art in Tel@@ -@@ Avi@@ v is also interesting . Its exhi@@ bits include a wide range of impres@@ sion@@ ists and expres@@ sion@@ ists like Mon@@ et , P@@ iss@@ ar@@ ro , Ren@@ o@@ ir , Sis@@ ley , C@@ ez@@ anne , M@@ atis@@ se , Modi@@ gli@@ ani , Cha@@ g@@ all , Pic@@ asso . In Ak@@ ko , you can visit the bath museum Al@@ -B@@ ash@@ a , which consists of several rooms of ancient Turkish baths with models of visitors and bath attend@@ ants of the time . In Ca@@ es@@ area , it is worth visiting the unique private R@@ al@@ li Museum , where you can enjoy the sculp@@ tures of Dal@@ i and Ro@@ din . There are no tour guides or gift shops . En@@ try is free of charge , and contributions are strictly not allowed . The fifth one is the Holoc@@ aust Museum or Y@@ ad V@@ ash@@ em in Tel@@ -@@ Avi@@ v , which tells one of the most dramatic stories in history . The most tragic section is the children 's mem@@ orial , built in memory of 1.5 million children killed in concentration camps and gas cham@@ bers . You go in and find yourself in complete dark@@ ness . Stars are gli@@ m@@ mer@@ ing , and you listen to names of Jewish children and countries where they died . Ukraine is mentioned there too . Wellness There are three resort areas in Israel , located on the co@@ asts of the Mediterranean , Red , and De@@ ad Se@@ as . Each have swimming pools , aqu@@ a parks , dol@@ p@@ hin@@ aria and oc@@ e@@ an@@ aria . It is notable that one can swim in the Red Sea even in winter months , because the water temperature does not drop below 21 degrees and the air war@@ ms to 23 degrees . The De@@ ad Sea is even war@@ mer , and people swim in it all year round . In@@ ci@@ dentally , it is the most unusual sea in the world , located in the lowest point of the planet - 4@@ 17 m below sea level . Its az@@ ure water is sal@@ ine and easily keeps you af@@ lo@@ at , even if you don 't know how to swim . The surrounding landscapes are sur@@ real in their beauty . People come here to under@@ go a course of treatment using salt water - w@@ rap@@ s and medicinal mu@@ ds , and to improve their health if they have der@@ mati@@ tis , all@@ ergies , as@@ th@@ mas , ec@@ z@@ em@@ as , ar@@ thri@@ tis , bron@@ chi@@ tis , or di@@ abetes , or to return emotional balance . Touch the myst@@ eries of anti@@ qu@@ ity They are preserved in the old section of Tel@@ -@@ Avi@@ v - in the town of J@@ aff@@ a on the Mediterranean Sea . The famous sea route connecting Egypt , Syria , An@@ at@@ oli@@ a , and Mes@@ op@@ ot@@ am@@ ia runs through it . The city is mentioned in ancient Greek and ancient Egyptian leg@@ ends . According to leg@@ ends , this is where No@@ ah built his ark and Per@@ se@@ us saved the beauty Andro@@ m@@ eda , with whom he lived a long and happy life . Tour@@ ists really like to w@@ ander the narrow streets named after signs of the zo@@ di@@ ac . They say , if you touch the walls on the street of your sign , fortun@@ e will come to you . In J@@ aff@@ a , you can meet new@@ ly@@ w@@ eds who come from all over Israel and even from other countries for photo sessions . And in Ca@@ es@@ area - the city of King Her@@ od - you can walk around a Roman theatre , " capture " the Crus@@ ader fortress . During the Roman period , Ca@@ es@@ area was the main city of Ju@@ de@@ a and the residence of Roman pre@@ f@@ ects , including Pon@@ ti@@ us Pil@@ ate . The carefully restored theatre is now used for evening concerts and opera performances . A note for the tourist When you go to Israel , don 't worry about your bad English knowledge : approximately 30 % of the country 's population speaks Russian . For the trip , it is better to take dollars , not euros , because they are easily ex@@ changed for sh@@ ek@@ els ( currently 1 dollar = 3.@@ 8 sh@@ ek@@ els ) . City transportation is mainly buses , but Jerusalem has a high-speed tram , and Hai@@ fa has the only subway line in the country , comprising six stops and connecting upper town with lower . In essence , it is an underground cable railway . A ticket for any type of city transportation costs 6 sh@@ ek@@ els , and you can ride for 1.5 hours with transfers . According to the Jewish tradition , Sab@@ bath is celebrated in Israel . Between Friday evening and the sun@@ set on Saturday , markets , stores , and public transportation stop working . The work week starts on Sunday morning . Many cafes , restaurants and hotels have only ko@@ sh@@ er food , with no por@@ k , seaf@@ ood , fish with no sc@@ ales , or dishes that combine milk with meat . There is a wide selection of dishes from lam@@ b and beef , sou@@ ps and des@@ ser@@ ts co@@ oked using co@@ con@@ ut milk , traditional Jewish hum@@ mus pa@@ ste , various sau@@ ces , fal@@ af@@ el ( balls made of ground ch@@ ick@@ pe@@ as ) , fruits and vegetables . The streets of Israel don 't have hom@@ eless dogs . But there are many well-@@ fed c@@ ats , which walk around la@@ zi@@ ly . In the evening , they can even be seen sleeping on roof@@ s of par@@ ked cars . These p@@ uss@@ y@@ c@@ ats like busy places and do not refuse tre@@ ats . Car rental , depending on car type , costs from 37 ( Hy@@ un@@ da@@ i G@@ etz ) to 18@@ 8 ( Au@@ di A@@ 6 , Vol@@ vo S@@ 80 ) dollars a day . Plus insurance of 15 dollars a day . Bike rental costs 15 sh@@ ek@@ els a day . Museum entrance costs 30 sh@@ ek@@ els on average . In numbers In 2012 , over three million tourists from around the world visited Israel . Visit@@ ors and holi@@ day@@ makers arrive mostly from the USA , Russia , France , Germany , Italy , England , and Ukraine . Between January and October 2012 1@@ 18@@ ,@@ 800 Ukrainian tourists visited the Holy Land , which is 51 % more than a similar figure in 2010 , before the removal of the visa regime on February 9 , 2011 . Only the " high and mi@@ ghty " make it to Moscow : migrants save money for language While dep@@ u@@ ties and human rights activists argue about the purpose of the law on mandatory language testing , the country already has sc@@ am artists who sell f@@ ake certificates . Every year , 13 million migrant workers come to Moscow , St. Petersburg and other cities in Russia . Mo@@ stly these are citizens of Central Asia : U@@ z@@ bekistan , Ta@@ j@@ ik@@ istan and Turk@@ men@@ istan . Their only goal is to earn money to support families back home . A new law came into effect on December 1 , which obli@@ ges every migrant worker to pass a Russian language test . For the moment , this law applies only to those who intend to work in services , housing and utility services , household services , and retail . But with time - as promised by the Federal Migration Service - tests will become mandatory for all non-@@ residents . In addition to language , Russian history and basi@@ cs of the legal system will be tested . Language knowledge will have to be confirmed both to receive and to extend the work permit . An exception is in effect only for citizens of countries where Russian is a state language . People who received education certificates and diplom@@ as before the fall of the US@@ S@@ R in 1991 are also exemp@@ t under the law . Pur@@ pose , do@@ omed fate , and the protection of rights Seven testing points will be operating under the au@@ sp@@ ices of the P@@ ush@@ kin Institute of Russian Language , Pe@@ op@@ les ' Fri@@ end@@ ship University of Russia , Moscow State University ( M@@ G@@ U ) , St. Petersburg State University ( SP@@ b@@ G@@ U ) , and other Russian education institutions . Migr@@ ants can take the tests in all cities ; more than 160 such centres have been opened . The initiative to introduce the testing was supported by State D@@ uma members and the Federal Migration Services . But human rights activists , asked the question repeatedly in the press before the law came into force : what will it actually achieve ? What will the obligation to know Russian change for the Russians and for the non-@@ residents ? First of all , according to representatives of the migration service , this will allow to reduce the number of people suffering from labour sla@@ very . Many speak about protection of the rights of work migrants , explains the Head of the representative office of the Federal Migration Services of Russia , Vi@@ ktor Seb@@ elev . Rights protection should begin before their departure . Only the system of organized selection will enable us to solve 90 % of the problems of foreign workers . Migr@@ ants without profession , education , who do not know Russian , who do not have a medical certificate start to have problems . If a migrant does not understand the language , says Seb@@ elev with certainty , he is do@@ omed to come across un@@ consci@@ enti@@ ous people , who , pret@@ ending to help , will force upon him a " ticket " to terrible , cr@@ amp@@ ed bar@@ ra@@ cks where many others like him will suffer without food and documents , sla@@ ving away 12-@@ 14 hours a day . We receive many complaints from our migrants . " They are promised one thing at home , but when they arrive , they are lied to , their pas@@ sports are taken , they are not paid what they were promised , " confirms the Head of the Main Migr@@ ant Labour Administration of the Migration Service of Ta@@ j@@ ik@@ istan To@@ li@@ b Sh@@ ari@@ po@@ v . Not be an@@ gr@@ y , bo@@ ss ! Nonetheless , many citizens of Central Asian countries , who plan to go to work in Russia , admit that not only their understanding of the language of the country where they are going is not good , but they can barely write in their own language . Naturally , this is not so much their fault , but due to poverty : very few Tur@@ ks , U@@ z@@ be@@ ks , and Ta@@ ji@@ ks can afford even a basic education . Their families don 't even have food to feed their children , not to mention decent clothing , shoes , and supplies . After reaching ad@@ ol@@ esc@@ ence , these kids go to work at the first opportunity . It is hard , if language knowledge is bad , they admit . " You feel hum@@ ili@@ ated and inf@@ erior . " But human rights activists note one important point about the law on language . Test@@ ing will be conducted only for those migrants who have legal status . If they have no status , there will be no testing , nor any official work in the future . In the meantime , most of the migrant workers continue to live in Russia illegally . " Welcome , or No Un@@ authorized En@@ try " Many of the foreigners asser@@ t that receiving official status in our country is not that easy . The reason lies in bureaucratic hur@@ d@@ les and the already mentioned language difficulties . In addition , leg@@ alization costs money : from 12@@ ,000 to 16@@ ,000 rub@@ les . Wher@@ eas a f@@ ake registration is done quickly and costs only one and a half thousand . Offic@@ ers of the Russian Police know that we mainly have f@@ ake papers , without registration , hence the ext@@ or@@ tion . " They ask for a hundred or two for cigar@@ ettes , tea , " Um@@ ed K@@ hus@@ h@@ k@@ ad@@ am@@ ov , a citizen of Ta@@ j@@ ik@@ istan , shared with journalists . " R@@ oll up , don 't be cheap , get your art@@ work " On the first day of the law 's entry into effect it turned out that not only migrant registration documents can be f@@ ake . A few for@@ ged certificates about passing language tests have been sei@@ zed by Federal Migration Services officers already . For@@ ged documents are printed on a standard colour printer . Naturally , they were not free for their owners : each of the migrants , who had hoped to facilitate the task of passing the tests in this way paid seven thousand rub@@ les for them . It is two and a half times more than the process of official testing , which costs three thousand . Government officials and human rights activists agree that the main goal in the near future is to protect the system from corruption , so that the certificates could not just be bought . For the moment , the authorities can promise migrant workers who could not pass the test the first time to give time to complete a basic language course . In addition , those who come without Russian language knowledge will be offered work in areas that do not require active communication with people . The Ministry of the Inter@@ ior does not put arms from the illegal market back into circulation The share of crime involving legal weapons is extremely low The Russian Ministry of the Inter@@ ior is proposing to tou@@ gh@@ en up the law for owners of civil weapons . This is the reaction of authorities to recent incidents : CL@@ IC@@ K shots at wed@@ dings , where there were no cas@@ u@@ alties , and the mass@@ ac@@ re st@@ aged by Moscow lawyer D@@ mit@@ ry Vin@@ ogra@@ do@@ v , resulting in CL@@ IC@@ K the death of seven people . Po@@ lic@@ emen want to prohi@@ bit the carrying of weapons in public places and raise the legal age of weapons licensing from 18 to 21 . The idea was supported by the head of the D@@ uma Committee on Safety and Anti-@@ Cor@@ ruption , I@@ rin@@ a Y@@ aro@@ v@@ aya , who promised that the amendments to the law on weapons will be brought to the State D@@ uma in the near future . Not everyone is happy that the Russian authorities are trying to fight the problem by " tigh@@ tening the scre@@ ws . " An open letter appeared online , whose authors - representatives of different social rif@@ le organizations - demand to abandon the " sen@@ sel@@ ess tou@@ gh@@ ening . " The percentage of crime involving registered weapons is minimal , said criminal lawyer V@@ asi@@ ly Les@@ ni@@ ko@@ v to BBC Russia . According to the Ministry of the Inter@@ ior 's statistics , 142 crimes using fire@@ arms registered with law enforcement agencies have been committed in the six months of 2012 , whereas 1,@@ 16@@ 8@@ ,000 crimes have been recorded in total for this period . Auth@@ ors of the open letter are certain that the tou@@ gh@@ ening of the law in the area of civil weapons will not prevent the criminal from going to the " black " market . According to them , one can find any weapon at a low price right now . Nonetheless , the Ministry of the Inter@@ ior asser@@ ts that the situation of the spread of illegal arms is under control . Supp@@ liers : from plants to officers The " black " market of weapons is re@@ plen@@ ished through several channels . There are five such channels , explains reti@@ red colon@@ el Vi@@ ktor Bar@@ an@@ ets , who has worked in the Ministry of Education and the General Staff for 10 years . Screen@@ shot of the site that accepts orders for weapons . First : " army or military loo@@ t , " i.e. weapons that were st@@ olen during the fighting in the Caucasus . " We@@ ap@@ ons were st@@ olen by Russian officers and by the C@@ auc@@ asi@@ ans , " says Bar@@ an@@ ets . Next are " black weapons , " st@@ olen by criminals from representatives of defence agencies . Bar@@ an@@ ets explains that this covers weapons taken from police wareh@@ ouses and those st@@ olen directly from law enforcement agencies ' employees . Il@@ legal arms are taken to be sold from military wareh@@ ouses . Explo@@ sions have often been heard at military wareh@@ ouses . " There are proven the@@ ories that some of the fires were inten@@ tional , in order to cover the shortage , " says the former military man . Manufac@@ tur@@ ers of weapons make their contribution , according to Bar@@ an@@ ets . " There are so many private weapons factories now , which do not end@@ ure competition on the international market and throw weapons from under the counter to the black market , including in Moscow , " says the expert . Another source of the " black " market is trafficking . An especially high number of g@@ uns and machine g@@ uns come from poor countries like K@@ yr@@ gy@@ z@@ stan . " There 's production there , sometimes hand@@ made ; and a ma@@ fia has formed , which has organized a stream , " explains the former military man . Where do the weapons come from ? Exper@@ ts counted the approxim@@ ate share of each of the sources of supply of illegal weapons to the " black " market . A report about this was prepared by the Centre of Problems Analy@@ sis and Public Management Pl@@ anning in 2011 . Exper@@ ts analy@@ sed the reports of the Department of the Inter@@ ior and Ros@@ stat , crimin@@ ology literature and open data from port@@ als on weapons . The overwhelming majority of illegal weapons , according to the researchers , comes from the military and security forces . Hal@@ f of all arms on the black market are there " because of officials , whose work is connected with weapons , " states the report . According to researchers ' data , 17 % of the time the weapons are received from armed conflict areas , 14 % is th@@ eft during production , 5 % is " black archae@@ ology . " A sales consult@@ ant of one of the weapons stores , who wished to remain anonymous , asser@@ ts that the weapons found by " black " dig@@ gers are not being bought any more , because they 're too old . According to him , dealers go to the military wareh@@ ouse for a new bat@@ ch of goods . One piece , for example a T@@ T gun can be bought from a warrant officer . It is issued to him , and given through the f@@ ence . " He takes it to the city and s@@ ells for 900 euros a piece with two magazines , " he says . " The truth is that police are aware of everything , that is why perio@@ dic@@ ally , when the crime detection rate is low , it conduc@@ ts test purchases from illegal weapons merchan@@ ts , " says the consult@@ ant . " Like in a luxury store " The buyer and seller often find each other through friends . I looked at sites , blo@@ gs , till someone responded , offering me to go to Beg@@ ov@@ aya station , where a man will be waiting for me to take me to the " corner " so we can negotiate . I found out the price of the weapon only there military comm@@ ent@@ ator Vi@@ ktor Bar@@ an@@ ets To get a weapon , I need someone with connections , says the sales consult@@ ant . - I have an acqu@@ a@@ int@@ ance , but I 'm not sure it 's reliable . There are sal@@ es@@ men on labour markets , but one needs to " come " there condi@@ tionally " from John Do@@ e , who asked to tell that his daughter lost a t@@ ooth . " Right now , even if I need a few k@@ nu@@ ck@@ le@@ du@@ sters , I get them through someone I trust . He also supplies them only to me , because he knows that I won 't give him away . Beg@@ inners look for weapons in different ways . For@@ mer military man Vi@@ ktor Bar@@ an@@ ets tried himself as a buyer of illegal weapons in the mid-@@ 1990 's , when he was preparing to publish an article about this . The formul@@ as are still the same , according to him . He was given an album of pictures with " anything and everything . " " I felt like I was in a luxury store , " he rec@@ alls . According to Bar@@ an@@ ets , the buyer is not offered a p@@ ig in a po@@ ke - you can try out everything . I , the potential client , am not just buying ; we go to the forest with the seller and set a target there . " I am given the opportunity to shoot , and when I am certain that the weapon is good , we begin to negotiate , " describes the expert . Store on a sofa Internet se@@ arches lead to sites and " V@@ kontak@@ te " groups , where weapons " for different purposes " are on offer . No documents or personal meetings are needed . " It 's enough to have a certain sum of money , " says the adverti@@ sement heading on the website " Buy a pist@@ ol or rif@@ le . " Users leave their requests and ask questions . Can a minor buy ? " Without a license , of course , " asks user " John " ( name is changed ) . " Want to buy a T@@ T , Moscow , " conc@@ isely requests " F@@ ed@@ or@@ en@@ ko@@ v . " Federal Security Service now spread a big network of f@@ ake sites and there are tons of potential bu@@ yers of military weapons . People come like hung@@ ry fish to ba@@ it , and then mine coal in Si@@ ber@@ ia . military comm@@ ent@@ ator and former military man Vi@@ ktor Bar@@ an@@ ets I heard about this : normally the site is registered outside the area of applic@@ ability of the laws of Russia . People accept orders . The buyer pays at an AT@@ M . " In response , a photo is sent with instructions on where the weapon is hidden , " says Press Secretary of the Rights to We@@ ap@@ ons non-governmental organization D@@ mit@@ ry Kis@@ lov . Vi@@ ktor Bar@@ an@@ ets confirms that after leaving a request on the site you can stay without a weapon and go to j@@ ail . The Federal Security Service now spre@@ ads a big network of f@@ ake sites and there are tons of potential bu@@ yers of military weapons . " People are like hung@@ ry fish after ba@@ it , and end in Si@@ ber@@ ia mining coal , " - he says . Mak@@ aro@@ v for 100 dollars When buying illegal fire@@ arms , 100 to 900 dollars is enough according to experts . According to D@@ mit@@ ry Kis@@ lov from the Rights to We@@ ap@@ ons organization , a Mak@@ aro@@ v gun can be acquired for 10@@ 0-@@ 300 dollars . The wait time is a month to a month and a half . It is shipped from long-term storage wareh@@ ouses by the mid-@@ level management of these wareh@@ ouses . According to official statistics of the authorities , the number of such crimes in Russia on the whole dropped 7 % as compared to Janu@@ ar@@ y-@@ October 2011 , amoun@@ ting to 2@@ 2,@@ 900 , while the number of cases of th@@ eft and ext@@ or@@ tion of weapons , amm@@ uni@@ tion , explo@@ sive substances and explo@@ sive devices dropped by 7.@@ 8 % . F@@ ast-@@ food and super@@ market workers are on strike in the U.@@ S.A. Up to a fourth of all American teen@@ agers have worked the cash register at Mc@@ Donald 's at one time or another In the last few days , there is a wave of protest actions in the U.@@ S.A. against low salaries in super@@ markets of the Wal@@ mar@@ t chain and popular fast food chain restaurants like Mc@@ Donald 's , Bur@@ ger King , T@@ aco B@@ ell , W@@ end@@ y 's and K@@ entu@@ cky Fri@@ ed Chi@@ cken . Right now , nobody is able to predic@@ t whether this wave will turn into the nin@@ th wave or it is dest@@ ined to fi@@ zzle out early . Ac@@ tions are being supported by unions and a series of left-@@ wing organizations . In addition to increasing the low wages received by employees of Wal@@ mar@@ t and fast food chains , the goal of the protes@@ ters is to create unions within them . This sector of the economy is not covered by any union movement yet . 46 c@@ ents a year ? Ac@@ tions began last week after Th@@ an@@ ks@@ giving , on Black Friday , when massive sales drew millions of people in America , sometimes accompanied by c@@ las@@ hes . On this day , some employees of the Wal@@ mar@@ t cor@@ poration , which emplo@@ ys 2.2 million people around the world , left their work@@ places and pick@@ eted together with the unions and left-@@ wing activists from the cor@@ poration stores that sell products to people on low-@@ to-@@ medium incomes . Wal@@ mar@@ t s@@ ells everything imagin@@ able , from di@@ apers , hunting rif@@ les and car batteries , to vacuum clean@@ ers , eggs and milk . Products in its stores are on average 8 % to 27 % cheaper than in major super@@ markets . So many low-@@ paid Wal@@ mar@@ t employees shop only at their workplace . Avail@@ ability and ass@@ ort@@ ment made Wal@@ mar@@ t one of the biggest American corporations . According to critics , Wal@@ mar@@ t can afford to sell the products che@@ ap@@ ly partly because it pays little to its employees . These latter also compl@@ ain about hard work conditions , for example lack of lift trucks and hand-@@ held scann@@ ers . Prot@@ es@@ ters on Black Friday demanded a sal@@ ary increase and compl@@ ained that the cost of medical insurance provided by the cor@@ poration went from 30 to 100 dollars a month . A typical Wal@@ mar@@ t employee , receiving 9.@@ 5 dollars / hour , cannot afford this . Scienti@@ sts from the Ber@@ kel@@ ey University in California argue that if Wal@@ mar@@ t raises the average sal@@ ary to 12 dollars / hour , it will cost the cor@@ poration 3.2 billion dollars . This is about 1.1 % more than it sp@@ ends on salaries right now . If Wal@@ mar@@ t fully shi@@ fts the cost of increasing wages to the shoul@@ ders of consumers , each visit to the store will cost only 46 c@@ ents more . In one year , they will only spend 12.@@ 39 dollars more than now . Wal@@ mar@@ t supporters happ@@ ily note that the protests took place in nine states and did not cause any damage at all to the cor@@ poration . Black Friday continued in its stores from 8 in the evening on Thursday till mid@@ night the next day , and during the period Wal@@ mar@@ t sold about 5000 products a second . In total , its cash regi@@ sters conducted nearly 100 million transactions on Black Friday . Representative of the cor@@ poration , D@@ an Fo@@ gel@@ man , asser@@ ted in an interview with a left-@@ wing site , the Hu@@ ff@@ ington Post , that a total of " less than five " Wal@@ mar@@ t employees left the workplace , and the protest act was just " another PR tri@@ ck " of the union that organized it . " Free cash register ! " Prot@@ ests continued this week in New York , where their object was not Wal@@ mar@@ t ( they 're not so welcome in the progressive city , that is why they don 't exist here yet ) , but Mc@@ Donald 's and other cheap restaurants . Mc@@ Donald 's says that it s@@ ells billions of por@@ tions , and despite this it doesn 't even give you sick days or pay you for honest work ! Ju@@ ma@@ ane Williams , member of the City Council of New York At the moment , the minimum sal@@ ary according to federal and N@@ Y law is 7.@@ 25 dollars an hour . Fast food restaurants increase it with time , but very little . On average their ordinary employees in New York earn 8.@@ 90 dollars / hour . Nob@@ ody ear@@ ns less in this expensive city . I cannot understand how one can survive in New York on this money . Once upon a time , almost a fourth of American teen@@ agers went through Mc@@ Donald 's , working part-@@ time after school , living with parents . Fe@@ w saw this as a source of living or planned to stay there for long . Now I continuously come across interviews with Mc@@ Donald 's employees , who compl@@ ain that they have to survive on this sal@@ ary and sometimes even feed their children . On the other hand , there is a comment on the Wall Street Journal forum , whose author notes that it is irresponsible to have children if you do not know how you will feed them . Particip@@ ants of the protest that began at 6.@@ 30 a.m. on Thursday near the Mc@@ Donald 's on 40@@ th street and Ma@@ dis@@ on Avenue demanded that cas@@ hi@@ ers and coo@@ ks of the fast food chain be paid at least 15 dollars / hour , i.e. more than double their present wages . They also demanded the creation of unions in the fast food industry . American law prohi@@ bits the administration from preventing this or pun@@ ishing activists of the union movement by n@@ ag@@ ging or fir@@ ing . On the other hand , the administration does not often ease their life . But for objective reasons it is hard to cover fast food with a union . One of them is the unusual turnover of employees . Dis@@ agre@@ eing No@@ is@@ y protests began on this day in a number of other cheap restaurants in Manhattan . The highlight of the action was the afternoon meeting near Mc@@ Donald 's by Times Square , where several local democratic politicians spoke out . One of them , Ju@@ ma@@ ane Williams , said : " Mc@@ Donald 's claims it s@@ ells billions of por@@ tions , and despite this it doesn 't even give you sick days or pay you for honest work ! " Demonstr@@ ators were supported by other prominent N@@ Y democ@@ rats , like Bill de Bla@@ si@@ o , a candidate for N@@ Y city may@@ or , who said : " We need to voice our joint support for the fast food employees , so that they can achieve fair wages and economic well@@ being , which every New Yor@@ ker deserves ! . " According to the New York Times , this was the biggest action of this kind in the history of the American fast food industry . But only a few hundred people took part in it , and many of them were not fast food employees , which comp@@ rise tens of thousands of people in New York . It is unclear right now whether this will spar@@ k a mass movement . " At the moment , the mind cannot be dec@@ eived too well " Among modern technology fans a popular topic is au@@ gm@@ ented reality , lat@@ ely seen primarily through the pris@@ m of special gl@@ asses . At first , a functional model was shown by Google in the summer , at its annual conference . Then , in November , it was announced that Microsoft filed an application for patent too . However , according to the conversation with the leader of the group of interactive 3D technologies in the Cambridge laboratory of Microsoft , Sha@@ h@@ ram Iz@@ a@@ di , gl@@ asses are a thing of the past for scientists in this company . They are drawn by the prospect of manipul@@ ating virtual objects in the air with bare hands , creating virtual open spaces . - Please tell us , in simple terms , about the work your research group does . - We work on the interaction of people with machines , at the same time trying to expand the boundaries of this interaction . While people in general are stuck at working with pixels on a flat screen and sometimes pointing f@@ ing@@ ers at them . We want to look 5-@@ 10 years into the future and predic@@ t car@@ din@@ al changes in this interaction . For example , X@@ box and Kin@@ ect sensors are a step forward . Almost no X@@ box is sold without Kin@@ ect today , because everyone likes control by gest@@ ures . - What else awaits us in the future ? - Despite the fact that Kin@@ ect shi@@ fted the interaction to the physical level , much still occurs on a flat screen , sometimes in 3D . Information entry has improved ( the system receives more data ) , but output still needs to get better . We are trying to change this , working on truly three-@@ dimensional display systems based on various technologies , including pro@@ jection technologies . We need to let the computer world into our physical world , make it more tangible . But for this , we need to identify both the user and the space around him . Then we will be able to supplement the real world with virtual objects in a much more convenient form . Above all , get rid of these stup@@ id virtual reality hel@@ m@@ ets ! - What do you think about voice control ? It 's a popular thing , but is it over@@ estimated ? - It clearly cannot be called a cur@@ e-@@ for@@ -@@ all - there 's a question of privacy , because we do not always want to let the others know about our actions and intentions . In reality , all types of interaction with computers are good , but each in their own ni@@ che . For example , we had a project to control devices in public places , in which we thought about movements , not wide movements , but small , reserved ones . Mo@@ vements were not recorded by a camera , but by a hand bra@@ cel@@ et that determined the movement of b@@ ones and mus@@ cles . It 's big right now , but in theory it can be reduced to the size of a hand watch . In general , the future lies in the mixed control , e.g. movement + voice . - What do you mean ? - For example , how would you ask me to give you this bottle of water ? You will talk and show at the same time . - U@@ su@@ ally I just say . - O@@ h , that will be very hard to detect . - So you want to make the users adapt to what the machine can or cannot do at that moment ? - Not necessarily , but it is a mutual approxim@@ ation . I think in the near future , we will mainly work on developing new sensors that will enable more precise determination of a person 's reaction . This could be , e.g. laser sensors . They have a decent depth resolution , which is very important . - If we talk about your work with X@@ box Kin@@ ect sensors , what are your complaints about modern cameras ? Not enough resolution , depth or something else ? - In general , the current generation is what we can base ourselves on in working on three-@@ dimensional recognition . Of course , it would be good to have eight m@@ ega pixels with 1000 k / s speed . It 's not just the m@@ ega pixels , though , but the quality of the mat@@ rix and the depth . From the latter point of view , all current technologies are not good enough for us - this adds work to the algorith@@ m designers . So it 's important to remember about the resolution on the X , Y , but also the Z axis . Speed , the number of images per second , is also very important . Human movements are relatively dynamic , and the current 30 k / s is really not enough , especially for gest@@ ures . St@@ even B@@ ath@@ i@@ che from our Red@@ mond laboratory created a touch sensor with a regulated processing delay from 1 to 100 ms , while modern serial sensors are closer to the latter indicator ( 6@@ 0-@@ 100 ) . Not everyone understands how this affects the interaction between man and machine . In my work , it would be very useful to have a device that does not require tou@@ ching and would have more images per second . - Does the number of cameras need to be increased ? - In Kin@@ ect there are three cameras now , one of which is actually an infr@@ ared em@@ it@@ ter and the second one , the recipient of the signal . The third one is actually a regular sensor of visible range . It is not applied to determine the object 's depth . Pot@@ enti@@ ally , a large number of cameras could solve the problem ... Or make it worse , by increasing the required volume of calculations . It would be nice to create a flexible an@@ alogue Kin@@ ect , play with the f@@ lex@@ ion of camera dis@@ position and see how this will help in three-@@ dimensional determination of the position . - As far as I remember , Microsoft did not present its gl@@ asses to the public , unlike Google . Don 't you think this is one of the most promising platforms from the point of view the everyday use of au@@ gm@@ ented reality technologies ? - Certainly it is not very convenient to walk around with a smart phone in your raised hands all the time , but I think that the cool@@ est option would be " transitional " au@@ gm@@ ented reality , where you could shift from gl@@ asses to smart phone , pro@@ jection display , and everywhere else based on a cl@@ oud platform . Gl@@ asses are a very personal device , that is their strength ( private things are seen only by you ) and , at the same time , their weakness - au@@ gm@@ ented reality based on gl@@ asses will not allow you to work on virtual objects together with other people . - Let us imagine for a minute that manipulation of virtual h@@ olog@@ raphi@@ c objects in the air is available not only to Tony Star@@ k from Iron@@ man , but to a regular person . There is one problem with this idea that the critics often point out : no tac@@ tile feedback ! Hand@@ s feel nothing ! What answers does your group prepare to this challenge ? - In my lec@@ tures I often say that au@@ gm@@ ented reality is the s@@ eventh consec@@ utive attempt at the interaction between man and machine . I think that the eigh@@ th will probably be the addition of tac@@ tile sens@@ ations . For now , one of the interesting tri@@ cks is to use the second hand as a sort of mat@@ rix for the image . It is great at regi@@ stering pus@@ hes ! But there are technologies that are really aimed at giving these " images in the air " a sense of tan@@ gi@@ bility , for example , the interference of several targeted ul@@ tras@@ o@@ und rays in a specific point where the finger is located gives a sens@@ ation , but very weak right now , as if someone ble@@ w on your finger@@ tip . There are also wr@@ ist bra@@ cel@@ ets that affect the ner@@ ve end@@ ings in f@@ ing@@ ers , which is also a promising area . - Have you tried to dec@@ eive the mind ? To force it to think that it feels something that it should be feeling when it sees something ? - This is a good idea and we haven 't tried this yet . It conc@@ eals one challenge that will not be solved so quickly - how to force a person , who is physi@@ cally in a very limited space to believe that he is walking along an open , almost lim@@ it@@ less space ; we are working on the concept of tre@@ ad@@ m@@ ills ( not at all like in clubs ) , moving platforms , and giant bal@@ lo@@ ons . So far dec@@ ei@@ ving the mind has had limited success , there 's work for many years to come . That 's what makes working on virtual reality so attractive to researchers - many things are in their very beginn@@ ings . Ju@@ d@@ gement calls instead of culture - Ros@@ bal@@ t.@@ ru Ros@@ b@@ alt continues the project St. Petersburg Av@@ ant-@@ garde , dedicated to residents who are ahead , in the av@@ ant-@@ garde of culture and art . This top list already includes outstanding figures of the art scene of St. Petersburg , whose achievements reach beyond the scope of the city , often recognized in Europe , b@@ yp@@ ass@@ ing f@@ ame in Russia . The new player in Ros@@ b@@ alt - the bold artist Ki@@ ri@@ ll Mill@@ er . The whole city knows Ki@@ ri@@ ll Mill@@ er , a bear@@ ded man dres@@ sed all in red , who can be seen by the Russian Museum , or by the Summer Garden , or at fashionable parties and shows . Ki@@ ri@@ ll Mill@@ er 's work always brings in crow@@ ds of people , no matter where they are exhi@@ bited . Ki@@ ri@@ ll Mill@@ er is one of the purely St. Petersburg social and philosophi@@ cal stor@@ y@@ t@@ ellers and cre@@ ators of new myth@@ ology . Ki@@ ri@@ ll Mill@@ er is an outstanding man of the St. Petersburg av@@ ant-@@ garde of the late 80 's early 90 's . Moreover , he is a city man , who makes people s@@ mile on the street and lifts up everyone 's spirit . Recently he took up the street organ and became St. Petersburg 's music man , because he was ready for this complex role with all his Boh@@ em@@ ian existence , philosophy and image . - Ki@@ ri@@ ll , why do you walk around the city all in red , not yellow or tur@@ qu@@ o@@ ise , for example ? - I chose the colour red as a fashion designer engaged in look and image . In this world , red is a compromise between artist , ima@@ ge-@@ maker and society . Although in society , everything that is not grey causes aggres@@ sion and ag@@ itation of the bad kind . But my pro@@ voc@@ ations are aimed at starting conversation . The whole history of my pro@@ voc@@ ative actions is an invitation to discussion . - When did you realise that you must be an artist ? - At an exhibition in the Nev@@ sky House of Culture , where my work was displayed . It became clear to me that this is my path . Then , the wave of older free , un@@ official artists was gone , while new , free artists like me were not understood . I became friends with the artists of the new wave , with post-@@ Gaz@@ a-@@ Nev@@ sky style artists ( " post-@@ g@@ az@@ on@@ ev@@ sch@@ ina " ) , which led to P@@ ush@@ kin@@ sk@@ ay@@ a-@@ 10 , and the wave was no longer . I 'm drawn to theatre , clothing , music , all gen@@ res except for literature . - And all this has been united in your Ar@@ t-@@ clin@@ ic ... - It was important for me to find myself in the centre of the culture of St. Petersburg , where all the best creative forces should come together . In 1995 , I occupied the territory on P@@ ush@@ kin@@ sk@@ ay@@ a-@@ 10 , and while the renovation work had not started , there was a musical and creative club , a Boh@@ em@@ ian club , the house of the St. Petersburg Boh@@ emia . Many were born there : NO@@ My , Te@@ qu@@ ila Jazz , I remember when Sh@@ nur was brought there with the Van Go@@ gh 's E@@ ar project . Sh@@ nur and his friends li@@ p s@@ ang easy songs , wearing tight le@@ ot@@ ards , and the now trendy composer I@@ g@@ or V@@ do@@ vin was with them . When the group began to play live , it became Len@@ ingrad . Tra@@ k@@ h@@ ten@@ berg was the present@@ er of many programs before H@@ ali@@ -@@ Gal@@ i times . We gave them Tra@@ k@@ h@@ ten@@ berg , and a great career was on its way , but the basic education and ment@@ oring he received from us . Gallery D 137 , Gri@@ boy@@ ed@@ ov club - all these echo the Ar@@ t-@@ clin@@ ic . That is where our staff and regular customers left for . I am a her@@ o of the last century , when culture meant something . In 2000 , there was a p@@ oll in the press , for the People of Our City prize . I was nominated Arti@@ st of the Year , my cli@@ max came to an end . In the new times , it is un@@ comfortable to work by old rules . I 'm a man of truth , hon@@ esty and culture of the last century . In our time , it is easy to become popular , but culture and popularity are different . You can be popular , but not very cultural . - Your work is marked by a recogni@@ z@@ able style . - Many of my works are hits , with clearly reflected relevance and ac@@ u@@ ity . I will have a programme exhi@@ bit , " Russian museum in c@@ low@@ ns . " C@@ low@@ ns are a tim@@ eless category . I was social before , now it is painful and sc@@ ary to be like that . But everything is bl@@ urred in c@@ low@@ ns , tragedy is removed . I like gro@@ t@@ esque , I have gro@@ t@@ esque ideas . For example , saving the world by totalit@@ arian changing of clothes by order . Nowadays , people are judged by appearance , not their inner qualities . Who knows , maybe you cannot sha@@ ke his hand , and need to sp@@ it in his face . And the lie will go away with the help of changing clothes . - Recently we saw you in the role of music man . - A cultural city should have such a character . Who fits the role better than I ? - Maybe commercial art can also be beautiful ? - Nowadays , commercial art should be ne@@ at , consider@@ ate , sweet . There is a dis@@ integration of cultures . People used to get together in flo@@ cks , Boh@@ emi@@ ans liked one thing , the simple people , something else . Now , everybody is divided into mic@@ ro societies , it 's hard to be liked by everyone . I am not a hundred dollar bill to please all . Now you have to think who you will please . Now , each cul@@ t her@@ o has 100 fans . - But several thousand come to St@@ as Mi@@ k@@ ha@@ i@@ lov ! - The cast@@ -@@ outs go to see him , the sexu@@ al-@@ social sphere is at work there . But 300 people will come for culture , not 10,000 . In the end , there 's less management , money , everything dies out . I have fans ; the main thing is not to betra@@ y them , not to spo@@ il what I have earned . In my youth , I painted such art that one collec@@ tor had it hang@@ ing on the same wall with Fal@@ k and L@@ ari@@ on@@ ov . I started with paintings , which people usually end with . Conc@@ ep@@ ts are often mixed up these days . People say : spiritual culture , consumer culture . There is no culture in consu@@ mer@@ ism , it 's " from another opera . " I am a man of yesterday 's culture . I grew up on examples of artists who lived poor and died in poverty , refused money for the sake of painting . This is the culture I 'm for . - Ki@@ ri@@ ll , what is St. Petersburg missing ? - Good cultural experts . There is such a thing : an official for culture . But not everyone can be engaged in culture . Under the right rul@@ ers everything was different . K@@ ings may not have understood culture very well , but they understood that they needed to stick with the right experts . There are good consultants in Moscow right now . Here in St. Petersburg , there are people who could be experts , but they are pushed to the side , because more advanced experts are needed , who will correctly evaluate these experts and give way to them . Ju@@ d@@ gement calls are what thri@@ ve now . Even Er@@ art , but they 're different because they say hon@@ est@@ ly that we don 't accept all modern art . There are some artists , who need to find other museums for themselves . - What does St. Petersburg mean to you ? - St. Petersburg is not a cultural capital , Moscow has much more culture , there is bed@@ rock there . It 's hard for art to grow on our rocks . We need cultural bed@@ rock , but we now have more writers than readers . This is wrong . In Europe , there are many cur@@ ious people , who go to art exhi@@ bits , concerts . Here , this layer is thin . We need to make art fashionable , as it was in the beginning of last century . The project is supported by the St. Petersburg grant . Gi@@ ve birth in space The earth is in danger . Global warming or an encounter with a k@@ iller ast@@ ero@@ id . Car@@ av@@ ans of co@@ sm@@ ic ships with humans on board leave in search of a replacement planet . To save humanity , the question is how to propag@@ ate our race in conditions of wei@@ ght@@ less@@ ness or on that replacement planet ? I think the choice is small . There are only two actual plan@@ ets that can be expl@@ ored even hypo@@ the@@ tically . " Ven@@ us and Mars , " says Senior Res@@ ear@@ cher of the P.@@ K. Sh@@ tern@@ berg State Astronom@@ y Institute ( GA@@ IS@@ h ) V@@ ladimir Sur@@ din . But while conditions on Mars are more appropriate for life , Ven@@ us has 500@@ -@@ degree temperatures . Life is possible only at a high altitude or on the or@@ bit of Ven@@ us ... in space . The question of reproduction in space began with flora . Hal@@ f a century ago , experiments were run on plants . Four generations of pe@@ as grown in or@@ bit were no different from their earth counter@@ parts . Then , in@@ sec@@ ts were b@@ red in or@@ bit , small fruit fli@@ es . In 1979 , qu@@ ail eggs were sent to space , to check how an em@@ br@@ yo develops in wei@@ ght@@ less@@ ness . We get an absolutely normal ch@@ ick . But then the problem begins . " The problem is related to the fact that this ch@@ ick needs to find support , needs to get on its feet and start moving , " explains head of the laboratory of the Institute of Medical and Bi@@ ological Problems ( IM@@ B@@ P ) RA@@ N V@@ ladimir Sy@@ ch@@ ev . Having found no support , ch@@ ic@@ ks were tum@@ bling around in dis@@ order . After 10 hours , the new@@ bor@@ ns experienced complete atro@@ phy of inst@@ inc@@ ts . Chi@@ cks did not react to light and sound . And the problem was that they simply died after four days . " We b@@ red ch@@ ic@@ ks twice there , and then stopped , because it is impossible to work with them there , " says V@@ ladimir Sy@@ ch@@ ev , confir@@ ming the failure of the experiment with ch@@ ic@@ ks in space . The last biological " mini-@@ ark " with animals fle@@ w into or@@ bit 16 years ago . In spring 2013 , experiments will continue . However , only sam@@ e-@@ sex beings will be on the B@@ ion bi@@ o-@@ satellite . There was an experiment with rats , who were sent to space with fo@@ etus . In principle , there was nothing extraordinary there . " This was on bi@@ o-@@ satelli@@ tes , but again , it was a sing@@ ular experiment and such research needs to be conducted , " says V@@ ladimir Sy@@ ch@@ ev . After landing , the co@@ sm@@ ic rats had bab@@ ies . But it 's hard to solve the problem of reproduction directly in space . It 's not an easy task . Ani@@ mals simply cannot follow their sexual inst@@ inc@@ t , when they 're out of their familiar environment . In principle , people , unlike animals , can . Hom@@ o s@@ ap@@ iens have abstract thinking , and are able to create a fitting emotional background . Such experiments are not conducted for ethical reasons . But women have been flying to space for 50 years . The biggest risk was for Ter@@ esh@@ ko@@ va . The most valuable thing for humanity is the female body . Our " Se@@ ag@@ ull " left and nobody on earth could tell whether she would be OK after flying to space . Whether she will be able to give birth after this flight . " Nob@@ ody answered this question , " says ro@@ cket and space industry veter@@ an , V@@ ak@@ ht@@ ang V@@ ach@@ n@@ ad@@ ze . In June 1964 , only a year after flying to space , the first woman in space Valent@@ ina Ter@@ esh@@ ko@@ va gave birth to a daughter . The child 's father , An@@ dri@@ an Nik@@ ol@@ a@@ ev , was also a cos@@ mon@@ aut . In 1988 , the second woman cos@@ mon@@ aut , Sv@@ et@@ lan@@ a Sav@@ it@@ sk@@ aya , who went into or@@ bit twice and even worked in open space , gave birth to a son . However , the risk remains . We have few , very few cos@@ mon@@ au@@ ts , who were OK and had healthy children after long flights . " What 's more , it is dangerous even for or@@ b@@ ital flights , " adds pilot and cos@@ mon@@ aut , Her@@ o of the US@@ S@@ R , Her@@ o of Russia , Val@@ ery Poli@@ ak@@ ov . And yet , humanity needs to seek out some new aven@@ ues in biotechn@@ ologies , protection from radiation , creation of artificial grav@@ ity . Hydro@@ -@@ laboratory of CP@@ K - mandatory phase of training for a flight . Here , cos@@ mon@@ au@@ ts practice skills of working in open space in zer@@ o-@@ grav@@ ity conditions . Water im@@ it@@ ates wei@@ ght@@ less@@ ness . If for adults water is a foreign medium , although comfortable , for inf@@ ants it is a native element . Small amp@@ hi@@ bi@@ ans seem to confirm that life came to land from the ocean . There is a connection with the fact that an inf@@ ant sp@@ ends about 9 months in am@@ ni@@ otic flu@@ id in the wom@@ b ; it is easier to get used to water after that . In principle , it is logical , because only two weeks pass from birth until the first bathing . " This is very little time to forget something , " says inf@@ ant swimming instruc@@ tor Marina Ak@@ sen@@ ova . In other words , if for a new@@ born wei@@ ght@@ less@@ ness is more natural , a woman needs grav@@ ity , earth 's pull . St@@ om@@ ach and pel@@ vic mus@@ cles usually quickly de@@ generate in wei@@ ght@@ less@@ ness ; the ability to push out the em@@ br@@ yo is reduced . Well , let 's assume that child@@ birth stimul@@ ators will work out . Maybe she will push out the baby in a special room . " Then what ? " - asks Val@@ ery Poli@@ ak@@ ov about this non-@@ tri@@ vi@@ al issue . On the other hand , a baby also needs artificial grav@@ ity . When a body does not feel the earth 's pull , it does not form the sk@@ el@@ etal and mus@@ cular system . It is not possible to dress a new@@ born in or@@ bit into a special loading suit for training , as they do with adults . He will simply not have what he needs to survive . " And this experiment , that we will go for by allowing the birth of a child in a foreign environment , will lead to us bringing a handic@@ apped , completely un@@ adapted human to earth , " predic@@ ts Chairman of the Committee on Bio@@ ethics IM@@ B@@ P RA@@ N I@@ g@@ or P@@ est@@ ov . For the moment , birth of children in space is just a theory . However , with time , it will become reality , when earth@@ lings will go to a far@@ away planet in their ships , and it will become the home for their off@@ spring , who were born in space . N@@ K@@ U Head : S@@ var@@ c System audit has failed because of politicians . The Czech Republic has sound control bodies and a good standard of legislation when it comes to public contracts , but it lags behind in their application . This was said by Mi@@ los@@ la@@ v Kal@@ a , vic@@ e-@@ president of the Supreme Audi@@ t Office ( N@@ K@@ U ) in an interview for Aktu@@ al@@ ne@@ .c@@ z. " The Law will never be perfect , but its application should be just - this is what we are missing , in my opinion , " states Kal@@ a , comm@@ enting on the current situation . Simil@@ ar conclusions are also reached by the joint audit from the Czech and German audi@@ tors . As an example of impro@@ per practice , they c@@ ite Pet@@ r N@@ ec@@ as 's approach to the so-called " S@@ var@@ c System . " The Prime Minister recently claimed that the O@@ DS will not be bur@@ dening business owners with its checks - so is it forbidden or allowed ? " The Law must be set out one way or the other and if it prohi@@ bits something , then even the Government 's head cannot prevent the work of its department , which is dut@@ y-@@ bound to monitor and enforce , " asser@@ ts Kal@@ a . At the audit committee 's session in the House of Dep@@ u@@ ties , you spoke about a joint project between the Czech Republic and Germany , within which legislation relating to public contracts in both countries was compared . What exactly was this about ? This is about parallel audi@@ ting , which we began around two years ago . Simply put , this is about how European legislation govern@@ s the handling of public contracts , followed by individual state legisl@@ ations and then the actual practice itself . We brought all this together , and although the audit is not yet complete , some very interesting differences have become apparent - in general terms , our legislation might be even " more conc@@ ise and complete , " however the actual practice is in certain aspects better in Germany . This confirms that creating more and more conc@@ ise rules is not enough , and that attention must be paid to the actual application of these laws . What does this project actually help you with , and what do you think its outcome will bring ? This kind of joint audit could contribute to cur@@ ta@@ iling these efforts to specify our law , to reduce and perfect boundaries , when it does not have such a positive impact . Economy means acqu@@ iring the required thing at a reasonable ( which does not always mean the lowest ) price , so that profit@@ e@@ ering and possible criminal proceedings may be avoided . However , just because we have reduced the order limits , does not mean something will be proc@@ ured . The system might become over@@ loaded with the amount of pap@@ er@@ work , and those , who wish to look for lo@@ op@@ holes in it , will be able to take advantage far more easily than if the limits had remained higher . These are domestic problems about the practical implementation of legislation relating to public contracts . How does the audit system work in Germany ? Is there an office like the N@@ K@@ U , or is it organised differently ? As far as the office is concerned , the Bundes@@ rech@@ n@@ ung@@ shof functions like our N@@ K@@ U , and it is organised like ours , it also has a committee although it is appointed slightly differently , but basically both offices operate simil@@ arly . Po@@ wers are also similar to a degree , though of course Germany is organised feder@@ ally , so these courts of audi@@ tors are also at the member state levels - in this respect their system slightly diff@@ ers from our own . The BR@@ H can only audit federal money , known to us as state funds . Public funds , which , for us , are administ@@ ered by regional and municipal authorities , are audi@@ ted by the federal courts of audi@@ tors there . When it comes to their legislation , is it more straightforward than ours ? Overall , I would not like to make a comparison without any specific data , nevertheless in certain respects Germany serves as an example , but it certainly cannot be said that it is better in every aspect . Is this because , perhaps , they have better enforcement ? That is certainly not true , but again , I prefer not to make such compar@@ isons . It should be said that even in a country we perc@@ eive as exemplary , they encounter a whole range of problems . If that were not the case , they would gain nothing from working with our office , would they ? Com@@ ing back to domestic legislation , what did the amendment to public contracts legislation mean for your office , is its impact being felt already ? The period since the amendment came into force has been quite short , so it has not manifest@@ ed itself in our audit work yet . Since we carry out our audi@@ ts ex-@@ post , a certain delay has to be taken into account . As yet , we have only observed it within the process of preparing future audi@@ ts - we have launched our new " fiscal failure risk detection " system , with which we have processed almost 14 thousand public contracts , and these have been analy@@ sed - that is where changes will clearly be seen , because of the changed limits , the adjusted conditions governing certain types of selection processes , and so on . So do you see the adoption of this legislation as a benefit , or rather as another burden on the bureaucratic system ? I believe this legislation is a step in the right direction , and I hope this will be confirmed . A problem , which may arise here , is that the law becomes " too constra@@ ined " and will not be enfor@@ ce@@ able . Under the previous rules , parties being audi@@ ted were already bound by their audit provider ( for example , in the case of regional operational programmes , the regional office ) to the fact that every infringement of public contracts law means a breach of budgetary discipline . Is it worth constra@@ ining the law in this way , in that case ? I do not think this is the way . The system should prevent those who want to attack and abuse it , but not pen@@ alise those , who make a mistake on a techni@@ c@@ ality , which does not affect the final decision . This kind of system will only increase pressure on bureaucracy . So how can we get out of this ? Let 's see where this dead@@ -@@ end takes us . The Prime Minister recently said the O@@ DS will not be bur@@ dening business@@ men with audi@@ ts of the so-called " S@@ var@@ c System " - what does this mean ? Is the S@@ var@@ c System prohibited or allowed ? The Law must be set out one way or the other , and if it prohi@@ bits something , then even the Government 's head cannot prevent the work of its department , which is dut@@ y-@@ bound to monitor and enforce . He may say : " Let us change this law and relax it , " but he cannot say we should pre@@ tend it is not there . The law on public contracts has relatively strict rules about the form@@ alities which must be adher@@ ed to - which is the right way to ensure public ten@@ ders are protected . On the other hand , it is a tragedy , when a bi@@ d@@ der with the best offer is excluded on a techni@@ c@@ ality . The Law will never be perfect , but its application should be just - this is what we are missing , in my opinion . Ro@@ ads are ic@@ y in places , but mostly pass@@ able . In several places in the Czech Republic , the main roads are ic@@ y and snow@@ y . However , the majority of roads are pass@@ able , with extra care needed in places . Car@@ ls@@ bad region In the Car@@ ls@@ bad region , the roads have been usable this morning , though in some places they were ic@@ y and snow@@ y . The temperature has dropped to between five and ten degrees below zero , though it is expected to get warm slightly during the day . Snow@@ ing in the region has stopped , and only a thin layer of snow remains in the low@@ lands . However , the ri@@ dges of the Kr@@ us@@ ne Mountains have around 30 cen@@ timet@@ res of snow . In some locations there is limited visibility due to m@@ ist , according to the local highway service . The R@@ 6 high-speed motorway and primary roads in the region are now usable without restriction . Cau@@ tion is , of course , appropriate , for example , on certain bridges , where the surface can be ic@@ y and sli@@ p@@ per@@ y . All secondary and ter@@ ti@@ ary roads are also pass@@ able , including mountain roads . In certain stret@@ ches of these roads there might be remaining frozen and comp@@ acted snow pat@@ ches . Above all , at higher levels , extra care should be taken while driving . Par@@ du@@ bi@@ ce and H@@ ra@@ dec Kr@@ alo@@ ve region On some roads in Eastern Boh@@ emia , there might be a risk of black ice , at higher al@@ ti@@ tudes and in the mountains there might be a layer of comp@@ acted snow , according to the Road and Motor@@ way Direc@@ torate . The highway service is warning the drivers against black ice , which might occur at higher al@@ ti@@ tudes of the Par@@ du@@ bi@@ ce region in particular . Black ice may occur around Lan@@ sk@@ rou@@ n , U@@ sti n@@ ad Or@@ li@@ ci , Poli@@ cky , S@@ vit@@ av@@ y , and V@@ y@@ so@@ ke My@@ to , and particularly on secondary and ter@@ ti@@ ary roads . The I / 43 and I / 34 roads have been chem@@ ically treated around S@@ vit@@ av@@ y . S@@ now is particularly affecting the roads in the Kr@@ kon@@ ose and Or@@ li@@ cke mountains . At higher al@@ ti@@ tudes , there is a comp@@ acted snow layer on the roads around Ry@@ ch@@ no@@ v n@@ ad K@@ ne@@ zn@@ ou and Tr@@ ut@@ no@@ v . In Eastern Boh@@ emia the day will be mostly clear to partly cl@@ ou@@ dy , and dry . Temperat@@ ures will be between min@@ us three and plus one degree Cel@@ si@@ us mostly , with a light wind . Pil@@ sen region The roads in the Pil@@ sen region have been usable this morning , with extra care needed in some places . Dri@@ vers should take the weather conditions into account . The morning will be fro@@ sty , with temperatures ranging between three and nine degrees below zero . Due to the existing snow and subsequent drop in temperature , certain roads may be ic@@ y . Dri@@ vers should expect m@@ ist in places , though visibility will gradually improve . This information was reported by the region 's highway service . The D@@ 5 motorway is dri@@ vable almost without restriction , but the road services recommend extra caution between the 80@@ th and 13@@ 1st kilomet@@ re marks . Most primary road surfaces are dry and fro@@ st-@@ free . Southern areas of the Pil@@ sen and T@@ ach@@ ov regions may have ic@@ y pat@@ ches . Sec@@ on@@ dary and ter@@ ti@@ ary roads are wet , and may therefore also have ic@@ y pat@@ ches . Dri@@ vers should be cau@@ tious especially on less frequ@@ ented roads in the Boh@@ em@@ ian Forest . Ol@@ om@@ ou@@ c region Dri@@ vers should expect snow sl@@ ush on the roads if heading for the higher parts of the Ol@@ om@@ ou@@ c region . It is a result of the chemical treatment carried out at Cer@@ ven@@ oh@@ or@@ k@@ se sed@@ lo and on the way to Vi@@ del@@ sky Kri@@ z . Snow@@ pl@@ ou@@ gh@@ s were brought out by falling snow overnight , the Sum@@ per@@ k region , according to highway maintenance , got around three cen@@ timet@@ res of snow . In other parts of the region , roads are mainly pass@@ able without restrictions . " In the Sum@@ per@@ k region , traces of snow have remained at the highest al@@ ti@@ tudes . Dri@@ vers should expect snow sl@@ ush at Cer@@ ven@@ oh@@ or@@ s@@ ke sed@@ lo in the direction of Jes@@ en@@ ik , " the dispat@@ ch officer for the Sum@@ per@@ k highway service told CT@@ K today . Their Jes@@ en@@ ik counter@@ parts also made an ou@@ ting overnight ; the roads all the way to the highest al@@ ti@@ tudes are now clear and wet following the chemical treatment , according to them . The Ol@@ om@@ ou@@ c region 's roads are usable without restriction , while in the area of Stern@@ ber@@ k drivers should bew@@ are in woo@@ ded areas , where roads have remained wet . U@@ sti n@@ ad Lab@@ em region , Liber@@ ec region Since this morning , the snow@@ pl@@ ou@@ gh@@ s have reported several places , which are difficult to pass in northern Boh@@ emia . Besides certain snow@@ -@@ covered places , or some ic@@ y fro@@ st pat@@ ches , the mountain road from Tel@@ nice to Kn@@ ini@@ ce in the U@@ sti n@@ ad Lab@@ em region is also closed , according to the police database . Temperat@@ ures remain below zero and roads are likely to remain snow@@ y and ic@@ y . In the low@@ lands , however , particularly sou@@ theast of the Central Boh@@ em@@ ian U@@ pl@@ ands , there are no problems and roads are mostly dry . No traffic hol@@ d-@@ ups have so far been reported . I@@ cy fro@@ st pat@@ ches have been reported in particular by road maintenance around Ste@@ ti . According to met@@ e@@ or@@ ologists the conditions for this were perfect - rain and mel@@ ting snow during the day , with a clear night and free@@ zing temperatures . Ad@@ verse conditions are expected on the main sections of the I / 13 road between the U@@ sti n@@ ad Lab@@ em and Liber@@ ec regions . The closure of the Tel@@ nice to Kn@@ ini@@ ce road was caused by b@@ ent tree branches , which were weigh@@ ed down to road level by snow@@ fall . Simon Or@@ n@@ est : At the concerts we want a fusion of positive energy What is your opinion on the end of the world that might come in less than a month ? It is just another star@@ t@@ ler , which we like to lat@@ ch on to . Together with The T@@ ap T@@ ap band , we tend to jo@@ ke about it , saying that we might be the only band on earth that could draw enough positive energy to hold off or aver@@ t the end of the world completely . In December you are even organising a unique series of three concerts against the end of the world . Can you give our readers some details on this ? This is a nation@@ wide fund@@ -@@ raising event , which we have been planning for the past two years . We decided to make use of the marketing potential of the end of the May@@ an calendar , due on the 21st of December at 11 : 10 a.m. On the eve , the 20th of December , at 9@@ pm , 3 concerts will take place in parallel in Prague , Br@@ no , and O@@ stra@@ va . They will end at around the time when Ki@@ ri@@ b@@ ati Island in the Pacific , which is 12 hours ahead of us , reaches the end of the May@@ an calendar . Who came up with this idea ? Initi@@ ally it was probably my idea , later we worked all the details out with our designer , Hon@@ za Augu@@ sta . Apart from the fact that we want to collect enough positive energy to stop the end of the world , we also want to allow ourselves and the public to spare some thoughts for the state of our planet , when we , one day , hand it over to our children . On the occasion of the end of the May@@ an calendar , we have also prepared a range of unique items , shoes , t-@@ shi@@ rts , bags , and original keys against the end of the world , which can be purchased at www.@@ e-@@ tap@@ .c@@ z to support our cause . The T@@ ap T@@ ap band , together with other artists , also recorded the so-called an@@ them against the end of the world , called " The End of the World is cancelled . " It is already well received on YouTube , will it figure at the fund@@ -@@ raising concerts ? Of course , for the grand fin@@ ale , as long as the world does not end be@@ foreh@@ and . It will be sung by all the artists at all the three concerts at the same time . The an@@ them will also be featured in a unique live broadcast on Czech Tel@@ evision . The words were written and the role of Jesus in the video cli@@ p was played by T@@ omas Han@@ ak , X@@ ind@@ l X also s@@ ings in it ... How did you end up working with them ? We collabor@@ ate also with other person@@ alities of the Czech cultural scene , due to organising a lot of fund@@ -@@ raising events and concerts ... We try to really get them involved in these projects . It turns out that most of them are interested and enjoy working with us . What will the proceed@@ s from the concert against the end of the world go to ? Equi@@ pping the whe@@ el@@ chair@@ -@@ accessible educational Stu@@ de@@ o centre , which is already in its sixth year , in collaboration with the citizens association T@@ ap from the Jed@@ li@@ ck@@ a Institute for the disabled . Tut@@ ors come in regularly to spend time with the Jed@@ li@@ ck@@ a Institute 's students and run activities , which they enjoy and interest them . The students themselves do not have the funds to afford tut@@ ors , so we try to provide this for them in this way . Within the construction project at the Jed@@ li@@ ck@@ a Institute , a separate building is planned , which we can move into with this project . Every concert sees the appearance of several bands and artists . How do you select them ? We have tried to comp@@ ile a programme , which speaks for all ages , including children . For example , in Prague , Chin@@ as@@ ki , Support Les@@ bi@@ ens , Illu@@ str@@ ato@@ sphere with D@@ an Bar@@ ta , The T@@ ap T@@ ap , M@@ arian Bang@@ o and Ji@@ ri Such@@ y will appear . Further details can be found at www.@@ k@@ p@@ ks@@ .c@@ z. Are you planning any more " bom@@ b@@ astic events " in the future ? In May , we will be making our first appearance in the Prague Spring , so we will definitely be preparing a good line-@@ up with some interesting guests . Next year , we would like to play at the Czech National House in New York , and I personally - since we will be in the USA - would like to build in appear@@ ances in Washington and Chicago . Your international plans are not modest ; you have already performed , for instance , in Madrid , Brussels , London , and Moscow . The T@@ ap T@@ ap is nonetheless a band composed of handic@@ apped people . How do you cope with these jour@@ neys in terms of logistics and organisation ? It is not as sc@@ ary as it might seem at first . We have five members in electric whe@@ el@@ chairs , which must be transported in the luggage area ; we must also , of course , carry around with us a lot of luggage and instrument cases ... Nevertheless , we have so far managed it without any problems , CS@@ A and British Airways were well prepared for us , so much so that , on occasion , I was quite surprised . Even in Moscow , which we have just returned from , it all went smoothly . Thanks to these international trips , you will have had a chance to compare specific accessibility issues , public attitudes to disability and so on . What have been your experiences so far ? After Madrid , Luxembourg , London and other places , where everything functions better than here , we have just witnessed that in the East everything is still in its beginn@@ ings . Compar@@ ed to Prague , Moscow is rather in@@ accessible ; it still remains unusual there for a person in an electric whe@@ el@@ chair to be travelling around the city centre on his or her own . Ob@@ vious things , such as giving whe@@ el@@ chairs priority in lifts , are not comm@@ on@@ place there . Fortunately , citizens associations are emerging there too that are trying to draw attention to the problems faced by people with disabilities . And on the other hand , where do we still lag behind more advanced countries ? There are a lot of things , which we still lag behind on ... It is important to mention that improvements to the current situation always depend on the efforts of the people who are affected . In London and Madrid it is completely natural for people with serious han@@ di@@ cap@@ s to be independently out in public , and they can use the toil@@ ets , go to the museum , or wherever ... It is less common there for large groups of people with disabilities to actively take part in social life , in this respect with The T@@ ap T@@ ap we are a step ahead ! Public respect or accessibility is one thing , but it is only when we can become famous ath@@ let@@ es , artists , actors , politicians , or lawyers that things will really begin to change . So far there are only exceptional cases , people who are strong@@ -@@ will@@ ed . The T@@ ap T@@ ap band is currently very popular , but let us look back a few years , what promp@@ ted you in 1998 to form it ? I began my job as a tut@@ or at the Jed@@ li@@ ck@@ a Institute , where I was surrounded by a lot of young people , who were interested in doing something . Since I am a musi@@ cian myself - among others I play the sa@@ x@@ oph@@ one - I started a music club with a colleague . With time , as our moder@@ ator Lad@@ ya Angel@@ ovi@@ c says , it has grown a little out of our control ( lau@@ gh ) . Your popularity has only come about in the last few years , or am I mist@@ aken ? It is true that we have been helped by creating ties to famous sing@@ ers and also by our pro@@ active work on promoting the band . We realised that work , which goes on un@@ seen can be like it never existed . Thanks to funds from the European Union we can even afford top quality tut@@ ors , equipment and so on . Was it your goal to take The T@@ ap T@@ ap to such hei@@ ghts ? From the outset , I felt there was potential to do things a little differently . Show business is filled with things , where one im@@ it@@ ates the other . It is logical in its own way ; all new things are taken in hes@@ it@@ antly and take a long time . Th@@ ings , which are unique , are few and far between , but I would dare to claim that T@@ ap T@@ ap is one of those things . A person 's first impression on seeing you is , of course , pity - it is a natural reaction ... But that pity is simply wast@@ ed , because handic@@ apped people are not abandoned and suffering beings , who need to be pi@@ tied . They are people , who can fully live life and b@@ los@@ som , assuming , of course , that they have the right environment for it . I say that when a person with a han@@ di@@ cap succ@@ eed@@ s in something , it is not just progress for them but for society as a whole . Has your success also been helped by your firm hand as a leader , as many people are suggest@@ ing ? If we want to achieve top class work , we must be un@@ com@@ promising in many things and require a certain level of discipline . I think this is to be expected . Some people come to us with a romantic idea and their head in the cl@@ ou@@ ds , and when they find out they have to go to re@@ hear@@ s@@ als twice a week , attend practice sessions and put up with a lot of time travelling to concerts , their enthusiasm quickly dis@@ appears . That is how it works everywhere , with every group that wants to work and wants to achieve something . The T@@ ap T@@ ap band currently has twenty members . How many of those were present at the beginning in 1998 ? Only one , Lad@@ ya Angel@@ ovi@@ c . We are an open group , people come and people go , this is un@@ avo@@ idable . Those who have the interest and the drive will always find our door open . The event takes place the day before the end of the world is expected , on Thursday 20.@@ 12.@@ 2012 from 9@@ pm . The venues will be Pra@@ ha In@@ ch@@ eb@@ a , Br@@ no Fle@@ da , and O@@ stra@@ va Pl@@ y@@ no@@ j@@ em with performances from 12 bands and other musicians from the Czech Republic . All three cities will be joined by a tel@@ ev@@ ised lin@@ k@@ -up at the evening 's close for a united ren@@ dition of The T@@ ap T@@ ap 's an@@ them " The End of the World is cancelled " The concert 's goal is to raise funds to equi@@ p the ST@@ U@@ DE@@ O multi-@@ functional whe@@ el-@@ chair accessible learning centre at the Jed@@ li@@ ck@@ a Institute in Prague in the sum of 25 million Czech crow@@ ns . Ad@@ mission fee to the concert is 400 C@@ Z@@ K , children under 12 years of age go free , tickets on sale from Boh@@ emi@@ ati@@ cket . Poland and the Co@@ smo@@ s . Last week the council of ministers of the European Space Agency admitted Poland as the twen@@ tieth member of the agency , being the second nation from the former Eastern Block ( after the Czech Republic , which became a fully fle@@ dged member of the ESA on the 12th of November 2008 ) . Poland began close cooperation with the ESA in 1994 , and in the following years it has participated in a series of agency projects . Of course , Poland 's path to the space had begun much earlier . Polish b@@ off@@ ins devoted their time to space flight even before the Second World War , but were not always met with understanding . I look back , for instance , to the lec@@ ture of A Stern@@ feld in Warsaw 's astronom@@ y observ@@ atory , who , on the 6th of December 1933 , presented ideas on his pione@@ ering work En@@ try into space . The thoughts of the young engineer ( born 19@@ 05 ) left his audience cold , and years later Stern@@ feld remembered that only Dr. Jan G@@ ad@@ om@@ ski had shown an interest in his work . In 19@@ 34 , for his work En@@ try into space , Stern@@ feld received the Robert E@@ sn@@ aul@@ t-@@ Pel@@ ter@@ ie and Andr@@ e Louis Hir@@ sch prize in France . The above mentioned Dr. Jan G@@ ad@@ om@@ ski ( 18@@ 99 - 1966 ) later became a strong promot@@ er of astronom@@ y and a@@ stron@@ au@@ tics . He published hundreds of articles in Polish journ@@ als , and wrote a series of books on these scientific subjects . G@@ ad@@ om@@ ski became a world-@@ known promot@@ er of a@@ stron@@ au@@ tics and his contribution was , notably , recognised when a cr@@ ater on the far side of the Mo@@ on was named after him . In 19@@ 25 , Poland had already built a hand@@ car which was supposed to be fitted with a ro@@ cket engine . Unfortunately , both the project 's designer , and the project 's details , are unknown . It is not even clear , whether the ro@@ cket was intended to start the hand@@ car or to slow it down . Information about this rail track is only known from press articles of the time . In 1933 the Polish arti@@ ll@@ ery started their engagement in flying bom@@ bs . The research was undertaken by the We@@ ap@@ ons Technology Division in collaboration with Prof. Mi@@ ec@@ z@@ ys@@ law Wolf@@ ke and Prof. Gu@@ sta@@ w Mo@@ kr@@ zy@@ ck@@ i . From the documents , it is clear that the research reached the stage of practical tests . Of course , the advance of the German army interrupted the research . In 19@@ 37 , the concept of a photo@@ electric hom@@ ing ro@@ cket designed by engineer Roh@@ o@@ zin@@ ski appeared in the trade press , and in the following year The Ro@@ cket - air tor@@ ped@@ o and flying rock@@ et-@@ bomb appeared , auth@@ ored by L@@ eli@@ w@@ y-@@ Kr@@ y@@ w@@ ob@@ lock@@ i . Both projects were dest@@ ined for military use of ro@@ cket engines . Im@@ medi@@ ately prior to the War , all projects for military use of ro@@ cket technologies were over@@ seen by the Pro@@ visi@@ onal Scientific Ad@@ visory Board ( T@@ ym@@ cz@@ as@@ ow@@ y Komit@@ et Dor@@ ad@@ c@@ zo@@ -@@ Nau@@ k@@ ow@@ y ) that coordinated all the work . The Board was appointed in 19@@ 37 , but after two years of activity their operations were ended by the start of the War . Further work devoted to a@@ stron@@ au@@ tics appeared in the Polish Press after the War thanks to the Polish A@@ stron@@ au@@ tics Company ( Pol@@ sk@@ ie T@@ ow@@ ar@@ z@@ yst@@ wo A@@ stron@@ aut@@ y@@ cz@@ ne ) . The first reference to the company figures in the November issue of the magazine Problems in 195@@ 4 , in which four in-depth articles are on the subject of a@@ stron@@ au@@ tics . In one of these , by Prof. Sub@@ ot@@ o@@ wi@@ cz , the establishment of a company is proposed , which would dedic@@ ate itself to a@@ stron@@ au@@ tics . At the time , there were already projects under@@ way for artificial satelli@@ tes and it was clear that co@@ sm@@ ic research was an emerging sector . From the beginning of 1956 , the Polish A@@ stron@@ au@@ tics Company ( P@@ TA ) sought entry to the International A@@ stron@@ au@@ tics Federation ( est . 1951 ) and by autumn the P@@ TA was already a full member . In the following year , the P@@ TA 's first chairman , Kaz@@ im@@ ier@@ z Zar@@ ank@@ ie@@ wi@@ cz ( 19@@ 02 - 1959 ) was appointed Dep@@ uty Chairman for the International A@@ stron@@ au@@ tics Federation . He served in this capacity until his death in 1959 . From 1956 , the P@@ TA played a significant role in the successful development of met@@ e@@ or@@ ological ro@@ ckets R@@ M ( Rak@@ i@@ eta Met@@ e@@ or@@ olog@@ ic@@ z@@ na ) , which became the first Polish ro@@ cket to enable scientific research . The first R@@ M-@@ 1 model was completed in 1957 and the first launch took place on the 10th of October 1958 . The ro@@ cket , with a ceiling of 1800 metres , measured around 80 cm in length and weigh@@ ed a little under 5 kg . Later , the improved R@@ M-@@ 1@@ A version was constructed and in the summer of 1959 launch tests were initiated for the two-@@ stage R@@ M-@@ 2 ro@@ cket in the B@@ led@@ ow@@ sky Des@@ ert . The ro@@ cket was 1.4 metres in length and weigh@@ ed approximately 11.@@ 5 kg . A further development model was designed for real scientific work - the R@@ M-@@ 34 ro@@ cket was to reach 14.@@ 5 km and be t@@ asked with monitoring high altitude winds . Of course , in 1962 further research was stopped . The successor to the R@@ M ro@@ cket type was the Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 1 ro@@ cket , developed from 1962 to 1965 . The ro@@ cket was designed as a two-@@ stage ro@@ cket , with a total length of 5@@ 10 cm and a launch weight of 3@@ 2.5 kg . Three models were developed ( designated Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 1@@ A , -@@ 1@@ B , and -@@ 1@@ C ) , which differ@@ ed in the room available for scientific appar@@ atus . In the Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 1@@ A ro@@ cket , a space of 0.@@ 4 li@@ tres was available , Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 1@@ B had 0.@@ 34 li@@ tres , and Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 1@@ C had 0.@@ 62 li@@ tres . The maximum altitude for all three models was 3@@ 7@@ km . Between 1965 and 1968 , the development of Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 2 was under@@ way in the Aer@@ on@@ au@@ tics Institute , with its first launch tests in October 1970 . The Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 2 ro@@ cket had a launch weight of 3@@ 80 kg , and was capable of lifting a useful load of 10 kg to a height of around 60@@ km . Sub@@ sequently built models were the Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 2@@ H and Met@@ e@@ or-@@ 3 . Poland 's admission to CO@@ SP@@ AR ( Committee for Space Research ) in 1960 should be mentioned , as well as the appointment of a national CO@@ SP@@ AR board two years later . Poland also participated in the Inter@@ ko@@ smo@@ s space programme for space research on Soviet artificial satelli@@ tes , and in 1978 , the Polish pilot Mi@@ ro@@ s@@ law Her@@ mas@@ ze@@ w@@ ski became the second inter@@ cos@@ mon@@ aut after V@@ ladimir Rem@@ ko@@ v . Ab@@ o@@ lish@@ ing the legislation on public works is not the solution . Last week the Constitutional Court abolished the law on public works . The resolution caused lively public debate . It will certainly be interesting to look at this issue from a broader perspective . Liber@@ ally oriented financial systems in the EU , just as those in the glob@@ alised world , are based on the principle of an un@@ regulated economic competition . Its effect means that individual financial entities and national economic systems are in a state of permanent conflict among themselves . The cause is the principle of free trade and free , completely un@@ regulated movement of private capital together with un@@ controlled financial speculation . Due to significant labour cost differences ( salaries ) there is pressure on prices . On this basis , it should be understood that when a supplier tries to compete in a commercial tender by import@@ ing cheap goods , " the rug is pul@@ led " from under the competition 's prices to capture a greater market share and , in this way , increase its own profits . On a wider scale , this means most businesses must move production abroad , import che@@ ap@@ ly from abroad , or close down . The result is high unemployment in countries where labour costs are high compared to other economies . Since private capital is not bound by social responsibility , and therefore also not by the unemployment it causes , the social costs born by the state must necessarily increase . The whole situation is bol@@ stered by the business@@ man 's complete un@@ willingness to pay taxes , which would allevi@@ ate the economical and social harm caused in the pursuit of profit . The situation is so well known that there is no need for actual statistical data . The ru@@ th@@ less private capital practices create particular economic situations , where the State in these countries is forced to enter in the mutual competition , aiming to arti@@ fici@@ ally lower the social standard of its own citizens in order to attract foreign investment . In other words , governments stake their own citizens because of private capital while dis@@ regarding the drop in social standards . This occurs chi@@ ef@@ ly in amendments to existing law . The aim is to economically force the domestic population to accept prices dict@@ ated by private capital , especially in terms of salaries . On one hand , this economic system of force , in case of long-term unemployment , on the other , restricted employee rights in the workplace . This yiel@@ ds growing poverty and an increasing void between the poor and the rich . In Germany there are already a host of food hand-@@ out centres for the poor , who are not able to feed themselves on their own wages . The number of these people is already in the millions . In the name of improving the competitiveness of the German economy , it commonly occurs that properly employed people receive such a sal@@ ary that the State needs to top it up to the minimum wage . Just such a scandal was revealed in the case of au@@ x@@ ili@@ ary staff in the Bund@@ est@@ ag . The austerity measures for all the southern EU states will undoubtedly lead to the same situation , where people are pres@@ sur@@ ed by a catastro@@ phi@@ c drop in living standards to emi@@ gr@@ ate as it was in the 19th century , or to e@@ ke out an existence on star@@ vation wages on the edge of society , in the hope that the country will eventually see some foreign investment . At this point we have to ask where this may come from ? If it is to come from other EU states , then poverty is being shi@@ fted from one country to another , or it will not come at all , because Chinese , Indian , Brazilian , Turkish , Moroc@@ can , Egyptian , and African labour is still at a fra@@ ction of European wages . This applies to all of Latin America . Liberal theory and the Media inc@@ ess@@ antly claim that the State may not participate with capital in its own economy , and that a controlled economy leads to economic ru@@ in . Private capital cru@@ el@@ ly insi@@ sts on the view@@ point that the State must not intervene in the economy . Ther@@ eu@@ p@@ on , we should ask ourselves whether private capital has no influence , or whether it actually leads politics and thereby the whole country , for its own sel@@ fish ends . Here , the answer must be yes . The proof is the existence of the almost om@@ ni@@ pot@@ ent , and in all states , om@@ ni@@ present lobby . The result is a desper@@ ate situation manifest@@ ing itself through corruption , through mutual benefits and legislation , where almost everything is criminal , but nothing is pun@@ is@@ hab@@ le . In Germany the situation is such that state minist@@ ries , through lack of financial resources , contract out the drafting of laws to private law firms , who are basically connected with industry . These laws are then approved in the Bund@@ est@@ ag . Real power does not come from the people as the Wes@@ tern@@ -@@ style constitu@@ tions claim , but from strong financial organisations that look after their own interests . It is clear that liber@@ ally-@@ orient@@ ated democracies will now quickly reach a situation , as is described by App@@ ian in his work on the Roman Republic Cris@@ is in the time of Ces@@ ar and P@@ omp@@ ei : " The State was already long in complete de@@ generation and its offices taken by force . With bri@@ ber@@ y , illegal acquisition of benefits , and with stones or s@@ words . Bri@@ ber@@ y and corruption were ri@@ fe and un@@ hin@@ dered , and the people would vote for a result which had been bought " ... " people with principles did not run for office , so on one occasion the whole deb@@ ac@@ le meant the state went eight months without consul@@ s .. " .. " There was actually talk about the only answer to this terrible situation being auto@@ c@@ racy , and an energe@@ tic man should be elected . " App@@ ian had P@@ omp@@ ei in mind , but it was Ces@@ ar who changed democracy for auto@@ c@@ racy permanently . The conclusion , just as in anti@@ qu@@ ity , the current society is built on un@@ sc@@ ru@@ pul@@ ous ten@@ dencies for personal gain without regard to the interests of society as a whole . Private capital in its present state is not able to understand the interests of society as a whole . The outcome is now , as it was then , an unprecedented dec@@ ad@@ ence of the elite with no attempts whatsoever on deeper reaching reforms . The caus@@ ality of the rise of the fasc@@ ist and communist regimes should therefore be sought in the mis@@ guided liberalisation of the economic system in the 19th and 20th centuries . The current state of affairs , when we consider the de@@ mis@@ e of those systems in favour of liber@@ alised democracy as an inter@@ lu@@ de , can expect its next cycle . The particularly catastro@@ phi@@ c reality is that the current elite is completely ign@@ oring the potential lost of hundreds of thousands of lives , humanitarian and social disasters , which we are already witn@@ essing , as well as crimes against humanity , as we are familiar with from ancient and modern history . The abolition of the law on public works is not the answer , at least not in the long term . Under the pressure of economic competition , internationally as well as within Europe , the Government of the Czech Republic will be forced to pursue ways of lower@@ ing the population 's living standards . This pattern is thus system@@ ic . To address this , there are targeted political and social reforms , which strengthen the state 's capital participation in the economy , increase the people 's influence over the state and weak@@ en the monopoly held by private capital over society in favour of the state . Israel : Chaos Lab . " Nothing comes from violence and nothing ever could , " from St@@ ing 's Fra@@ gi@@ le , where one of the main ver@@ ses from the refra@@ in is " L@@ est we forget how fragile we are . " " If my sons did not want war , there would be none , " said the dying Gut@@ le Schn@@ app@@ er , wife of May@@ er Am@@ sch@@ el Roth@@ sch@@ ild in 18@@ 49 . The latest wave of violence between Israel and the Gaza strip , as always , has spark@@ ed a lot of reaction . Some stand by Israel , argu@@ ing it has the right to self-@@ defence , and Palestinians are portra@@ yed as terrorists , while others support the Palestinians , claiming racism by the Israeli state , claiming that genocide is being committed against Palestinian Arab@@ s , and that Israel is a terrorist state . I do not want to d@@ well , in these repeated perio@@ dic waves of killing , on who is the trans@@ gres@@ sor and who is the victim , after all , today 's inhabitants of Israel , including the self-@@ governing territories , were born into the current political situation , and did not live through the start of the violence . I would like to offer the readers a pe@@ ek behind the scenes , a look at whom , most of all , this 9@@ 5-@@ year long tension is serving ( starting from Bal@@ four 's declaration in November 19@@ 17 ) on this small piece of land in the Middle East . Some of my thoughts are supported by available historical facts , while others are derived from my own understanding of who , that is , which group of people is the main source of events in modern history . Human history is in the first instance about the struggle for power . In every era we can find an Alexander the Great or a Napol@@ eon . What is not quite so apparent is whether these were the people , who had chosen their path independently , or whether behind their thr@@ one stood someone who directed their actions towards a pre-@@ calculated goal . We must accept that we live in a time when the world 's wealth is concentrated into the hands of a few individuals , and that this concentration of wealth and the power it ex@@ u@@ des could not happen in one generation 's li@@ fes@@ p@@ an . Among these astronom@@ ically rich families , one stands out , which could be considered the pu@@ pp@@ et master ( whether someone else stands above them , I am un@@ sure , but I would not rule it out ) - the Roth@@ schil@@ ds . Not much is written about them . Under@@ stand@@ ably . The first news agency ( R@@ eu@@ ters ) they bought in the 90 's of the 19th century , in order to prevent their name being connected with acts of high crimin@@ ality , which appeared in their background and which always meant securing power , increasing wealth , or both . They hold majority st@@ akes in almost every central bank in the world , and against the countries , where they do not hold a stake , they are either w@@ aging or preparing for war ( before the ass@@ ault on Afghanistan it was 7 countries , after Iraq it was 5 , after the over@@ throw of K@@ add@@ af@@ i 4 remained , but in the meantime Russia submitted its central bank to the Russian Government ) . W@@ ho@@ ever attempted to def@@ y this family died . Ab@@ ra@@ ham L@@ inc@@ ol@@ n refused to rene@@ w the status of the central bank to the Roth@@ sch@@ ild Bank of America , and during the Civil War he began to issue his own ( that is state-@@ issued ) money and was assass@@ in@@ ated in 18@@ 65 at the theatre . J@@ F@@ K began issuing his own money and wanted to close the Fed ( Federal Reserve ) , and was killed in 1963 , Con@@ gres@@ sman Louis Mc@@ F@@ ad@@ den was po@@ is@@ oned in 19@@ 36 , after he had intended to sue the Fed for causing the Great Depression of 19@@ 29 . Their thir@@ st for global power led in the years of 18@@ 59 - 18@@ 71 to the form@@ ulation of a three-@@ world-@@ war plan by the fre@@ em@@ ason leader of the 3@@ 3rd degree , Albert Pi@@ ke . The first war was to remove the large mon@@ arch@@ ic state bodies in Europe , the second was to remove colonial rule , especially from Great Britain , and the third will reduce the world 's population down to 0.5 - 1 billion people ( this number of sla@@ ves will suff@@ ice for their comfort and luxury , and will not use up so many resources ) , the creation of one universal faith ( ec@@ umen@@ ism is just an ap@@ peti@@ ser for this solution ) , and finally the sei@@ zing of absolute power . The method , which the group of weal@@ thy families with the Roth@@ schil@@ ds leading the way , employ is the ins@@ tig@@ ation of crises , followed by the offering of a solution ( order ab ch@@ ao - order from chaos ) . These solutions are false , however , and always lead to a worse situation ( vi@@ de establishment of the Fed , so that the crisis of 19@@ 07 would not be repeated ) . Thus , having succeeded in assass@@ in@@ ating Fer@@ din@@ and , the Habs@@ burg h@@ eir to the Au@@ stro@@ -@@ Hungarian thr@@ one , in Sar@@ aj@@ evo thereby un@@ le@@ ash@@ ing World War I , they destroyed ts@@ ar@@ ist Russia with the Bol@@ sh@@ evi@@ k revolution . The First World War ended ab@@ rup@@ tly , milit@@ arily and economically un@@ substanti@@ ated , with German capit@@ ulation ( the war was no longer needed to destroy ts@@ ar@@ ist Russia ) and the central European powers of Austri@@ a-@@ Hungary were subsequently dismant@@ led . To facilitate the inc@@ eption of the Second World War , they allowed ban@@ kers and politicians to create a lat@@ ent conflict situation by s@@ add@@ ling Germany with huge war repar@@ ations , thereby making a radic@@ alist example of the im@@ pover@@ ished mass@@ es , it remained only to introduce a sufficiently convincing cul@@ pri@@ t and a leader with a simple solution , while also creating a multi-@@ ra@@ cial Cz@@ ech@@ os@@ lov@@ akia with a strong German minority to play , and indeed did , the role of a fifth col@@ ony , once the war had been ign@@ ited . At the end of the 19th Century , the Roth@@ schil@@ ds ins@@ tig@@ ated the establishment of the Zi@@ on@@ ist movement , one branch of which stro@@ ve to form the Jewish State , seeking out an area of historic Ju@@ de@@ a , Jerusalem , to make its capital ( the Retur@@ n to Z@@ ion ) . The afor@@ ementioned Bal@@ four Declaration formed the basis for the mass immigration of Jews to Palestine , where the first conflicts began with the local Arab population . Terror@@ ist attacks occurred on both sides . World War II broke out , and whether Hitler broke free from the le@@ ash , which international ban@@ kers were holding him on , or whether his actions were all part of the plan , is difficult to determine , nevertheless the suffering of European Jews in the concentration camps created the foundation to the world 's acceptance of the Jewish State . Israel was officially formed in 1948 , and just as the war repar@@ ations for World War II were layed on Germany , the announcement of the State of Israel became the third war 's hot@@ bed . Provi@@ ded the international ban@@ kers succeed , the Jewish Nation , as with the second , will be the victims on the front line , now together with the Arab@@ ic - or more generally , Muslim - population of the Middle East . Israel is like a huge laboratory , a source of dis@@ cor@@ d and chaos not only within the country , but on an international level ( just look at how strongly people are split into supporters and opponents of Israel ) . Who is the wron@@ g-@@ do@@ er and who is the victim in the Palest@@ in@@ e-@@ Israel conflict , where in@@ justice bre@@ eds in@@ justice in an endless cycle of violence , while everything began from the gre@@ ed of a few and their lust for global power ? Here , we must differenti@@ ate between Israel 's general population and their leaders , because , just as it happens here , the international ban@@ kers introduce their own selection of candidates for people to vote for . Israel 's current prime minister , Net@@ any@@ ah@@ u ' the ha@@ w@@ k ' , is a typical example of a fasc@@ ist politi@@ cian , loy@@ al to the international ban@@ kers , who does everything to ins@@ tig@@ ate war with Iran , which would , due to its membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation ( China , India , Russia , Pakistan , ... ) lead to a greater threat of global conflict , and through its control of the Hor@@ mu@@ z Stra@@ it , where 20 % of the world 's oil must sa@@ il ( the channel is only 2 miles wide ) , to the destruction of the world 's economy . In what light stand the words , spoken by David Rock@@ ef@@ eller in 1994 : " All we need is a major crisis and the nations will accept the New World Order . " The New World Order in their eyes is one of master and slave . A world where the rest of the human population serve the luxury of a hand@@ ful of financial ar@@ ist@@ oc@@ rats . A world , where each new@@ -@@ born is impl@@ anted with a chip , which makes their existence completely sub@@ ju@@ g@@ ated . " He also forced everyone , small and great , rich and poor , free and slave , to receive a mark on his right hand or on his foreh@@ ead , so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark , which is the name of the be@@ ast or the number of his name . If anyone has insight , let him calcul@@ ate the number of the be@@ ast , for it is man 's number . His number is six hundred and six@@ ty six . " Ar@@ go : When things are at their worst - call Hollywood . In November 1979 , a mo@@ b of Islamic student demonstr@@ ators took over the American emb@@ ass@@ y in T@@ ehr@@ an and held 52 diplom@@ ats ho@@ stage . They were to be released in exchange for the over@@ thrown Sha@@ h Moh@@ am@@ mad Re@@ za P@@ ah@@ la@@ vi , who fl@@ ed after the revolution to the USA , which had actually supported his regime for several decades . For the American administration the situation did not offer a positive solution - it could not throw the Sha@@ h over@@ board , because this would seriously jeopardi@@ se the trust of other alli@@ ed countries . The release of the host@@ ages in Iran , where the revolution resulted in the establishment of the the@@ oc@@ ratic regime , could not be achieved . This was a blow to the pres@@ tige of the United States , which was later compo@@ unded by the fi@@ as@@ co of attempting to free the host@@ ages by force . The inc@@ ar@@ cer@@ ated diplom@@ ats were finally released after 4@@ 44 days , following negotiations medi@@ ated by the Algeri@@ an government . Their or@@ deal prov@@ oked a wave of solidarity and anti-@@ Iranian feelings at home . The deb@@ ac@@ le in Iran significantly influenced Jim@@ my Car@@ ter 's loss with Ron@@ ald Re@@ ag@@ an in the 1980 presidential elections . The film Ar@@ go , directed by the actor Ben Aff@@ l@@ eck , re@@ counts one episode in this story , which brought America a small victory . Just before the emb@@ ass@@ y was sei@@ zed , six employees escap@@ ed . After some peri@@ pet@@ ei@@ a , they ended up in the Canadian ambass@@ ador 's residence . The CIA , in collaboration with the Canadian authorities , succeeded in getting them out of Iran , helped by an ex@@ trav@@ ag@@ ant cover story - they left on Canadian pas@@ sports as members of a film crew , who were surve@@ ying locations for a sci@@ -@@ fi block@@ bu@@ ster . A combination of gen@@ res The plan , conceived by " ex@@ fil@@ tration " expert , Tony Men@@ dez , required the assistance of Hollywood . For the story to be believed , the film project was reported on in specialist magazines , press conferences were organised , and the fic@@ ti@@ tious production company had a real office . The details of the operation were , for a long time , kept secret ; the film draws on the memories of Tony Men@@ dez . Aff@@ l@@ eck 's film is a pec@@ uli@@ ar mix of gen@@ res . On one hand , there is a realistic inc@@ isi@@ ve political thri@@ ller , and at the same time a " cap@@ er movie , " with small vic@@ tories and double-@@ crossing - another example would be Ocean 's Ele@@ ven . The mood altern@@ ates in the film - on one side , sharp docum@@ ent@@ ar@@ y-@@ style sequ@@ ences in T@@ ehr@@ an ( the title sequence shows i@@ con@@ ic photos from news of the time , relating to the same events portra@@ yed in the film - there are no big differences ) . On the other hand , ligh@@ ter sections from Hollywood , lac@@ ed with ir@@ ony and a little exagger@@ ation . Then there are scenes from the CIA headquarters and other agencies - men in suits debating the situation around meeting tables , in office corri@@ d@@ ors , over the phone ... Ben Aff@@ l@@ eck has managed to rest@@ art his career in extraordinary style . The deri@@ ded actor has become a respected director , and his acting is no longer the target of ir@@ onic comments . Ar@@ go is his third big@@ -@@ screen movie , following his dark crime movie G@@ one Baby G@@ one ( 2007 ) and the thri@@ ller The Town ( 2010 ) . It is also Aff@@ l@@ eck 's first picture , which does not take place in the director 's hom@@ et@@ own of Boston . The atmosp@@ her@@ ic feel in different locations is one of the characteristics , which took his earlier films above Hollywood standards . Aff@@ l@@ eck shows it in Ar@@ go , where T@@ ehr@@ an is " featured " by Canada . The best scenes of the film take place in the streets , in the reconstruction of real events - the opening sequence of the si@@ ege on the emb@@ ass@@ y is impres@@ sively lu@@ ci@@ d , creating at once feelings of confusion and surprise , which come floo@@ ding in , as history suddenly takes a turn . A similar effect is achieved by Aff@@ l@@ eck and his team in the fic@@ ti@@ tious scenes ( the f@@ ake staff at the T@@ ehr@@ an b@@ az@@ aar ) . To@@ o much action in too many places The director had to tackle the issue that the story being told does not offer many n@@ ail@@ -@@ bit@@ ing scenes for the film . What little there is , is worked well , with some occasion@@ al em@@ bel@@ lish@@ ments to reality - these do not all come off so eleg@@ antly ( the scene , where a lo@@ oming crisis is aver@@ ted at T@@ ehr@@ an airport by a phone call in America , followed by a ch@@ ase on the run@@ way seems quite far-@@ f@@ et@@ ched ) . Ar@@ go 's weakness is its diver@@ gence , which comes from the need to show too many events in too many places . Alan Ar@@ kin and John Goo@@ d@@ man play their roles as the Hollywood assist@@ ants with great charm ; their characters deserve more room , and are not by far the only ones in this film . Aff@@ l@@ eck 's film loses the dramatic pull a little , it is a film , which can be wat@@ ched with reasonable interest , its production and retro@@ -@@ style are ev@@ oc@@ ative of thri@@ ll@@ ers from the 70 's . It does not really cap@@ tiv@@ ate . As a remin@@ der of history 's particular ways and a testim@@ ony to how exagger@@ ated the views are on the all-@@ powerful all-@@ controlling secret services , this will do . Rules for b@@ lowing up bal@@ lo@@ ons , for ban@@ anas and a cir@@ cus The www.@@ ban@@ kov@@ ni@@ pop@@ lat@@ k@@ y@@ .com server , which issues a p@@ oll every year on the most absurd bank charge , has now decided to announce a competition for " the most absurd regulation or proposal from the EU . " " We were promp@@ ted by the latest story , where the EU plans to take on a 40 percent quota of women at management level of Europe 's largest companies , " Patri@@ k Nach@@ er , the p@@ oll 's organis@@ er , told Pra@@ vo . Among the latest nominated absur@@ di@@ ties , for instance , is the recent decision by the European Court to uni@@ fy insurance premi@@ ums for men and women . Until now , women were favoured in life insurance prices , because they constitute a lower risk for ins@@ ur@@ ers . " Other un@@ believ@@ able ideas from the EU can be nominated by anyone until the end of the year . The actual voting will then take place until the end of February 2013 , " informed Nach@@ er . Among the controversial EU regulations , we might include the mandatory addition of bi@@ o-@@ ingredients to fuel , which consequently har@@ ms the environment , the ban on reliable mer@@ cury ther@@ mom@@ et@@ ers just because they contain a relatively small quantity of a toxic substance , or the rules on the size of ch@@ icken c@@ ages , which significantly raised egg prices this year . The ban on the use of the term " spre@@ ad@@ able but@@ ter " and the withdrawal of classic light bul@@ bs from sale had previously come under criticism . First rate ban@@ anas are to measure 14 cen@@ timet@@ res The Union 's machine often makes decisions under pressure from this or that commercial or industrial lob@@ b@@ ying group , whose demands in Brussels are usually defended by state or group of states ' interests ( just as the Czech Republic is promoting the demands of its banks under threat of being v@@ et@@ o@@ ed ) . The lobby 's interests were , for example , that ban@@ anas of the highest quality should measure at least 14 cm in the EU , and were not to display and " an@@ om@@ al@@ ous cur@@ v@@ ature . " The European Commission defended itself , saying that it was only harmon@@ ising existing dis@@ jo@@ in@@ ted national standards , which complicated trading . Nor@@ ms relating to fruit and vegetables have already been sof@@ tened by the EU despite opposition from certain states , referring to the food waste caused by the existing directives . One possible pri@@ z@@ e-@@ winner in the p@@ oll may be the last year 's EU regulation according to which inf@@ lat@@ able bal@@ lo@@ ons must be sold with a warning that children under 8 years of age may not infl@@ ate them without par@@ ental supervision . Here , the EU pointed to an American research , which indicated that , among other toys , bal@@ lo@@ ons are one of the main causes of child suff@@ oc@@ ation . A similar restriction now applies to children under 14 years of age using party blo@@ wers . St@@ range ideas are conceived at home too Fair@@ ly absurd is the rule relating to individual European officials - everyone in the EU , who holds an official post , may not use the term Macedonia due to it being a sensitive topic for Greece , and instead the ac@@ ron@@ ym F@@ Y@@ ROM ( For@@ mer Yugosla@@ v Republic of Macedonia ) should be used . The Ban@@ kov@@ ni@@ pop@@ lat@@ k@@ y@@ .com server in collaboration with the Liberal Econom@@ ist Association , La@@ isse@@ z F@@ aire , also nominated , aside from the afor@@ ementioned absur@@ di@@ ties , for example the Union 's regulation on the volume of food provision stocks held in an EU member state . The EU stipul@@ ated the maximum volumes of food provisions , which may be present within the CR on the day of our entry to the Union . The Czech Republic there@@ after exceeded , for instance , the permitted volume of mus@@ h@@ room preser@@ ves , which incurred a high penalty . The p@@ oll 's organis@@ ers were also impressed by the idea of paying certain countries because they do not have a coastline , or the suggestion of al@@ loc@@ ating funding for a request for funding . These ideas did not come from Brussels , however , but from Prague . " We are handic@@ apped because we do not have the sea . We are asking the European Union for a refund , " declared the minister for agriculture , back in autumn 2004 , J@@ aro@@ sla@@ v Pal@@ as ( CS@@ SD ) . His argument was that there had been a good harv@@ est of cer@@ eals , and due to the so-called bu@@ y-@@ out interventions , the state 's wareh@@ ouses were full and were forced to export . The Czech Republic is further away from a port , so according to Pal@@ as the EU should be paying us hundreds of millions of Euros . The European Commission finally met the CR hal@@ f@@ way by organising a tender for the purchase of cer@@ eals from countries that do not have access to the sea . Fund@@ ing to subsidi@@ se funding requests was offered to foreigners by the Ministry for Regional Development 's minister , P@@ av@@ el N@@ em@@ ec ( US-@@ D@@ EU ) , specifically this was meant for making requests for funding from Brussels . EU : B@@ iz@@ ar@@ re legislation is the exception Reg@@ ulations may well become the target of criticism among member states , but the EU 's efforts at regulation , more effective operation , and development of the entire Union deserve recognition , according to a number of experts . A more important issue , according to experts , is the drawing of EU funds on projects , which have hardly anything in common with strengthening the European integration , but which was pushed through by member states during a budget meeting . E@@ motions fl@@ are among Cz@@ ech@@ s when , just as other countries in the Union , the CR must fight in Brussels for the right to particular labelling on its traditional products , in which it does not always succeed . The Cz@@ ech@@ s fought for six years with the Germans and Austri@@ ans to protect the labelling of their Ol@@ om@@ ou@@ cke t@@ var@@ uz@@ ky , however the tu@@ z@@ em@@ sky rum , whose tradition reaches back to the 19th century here , had to be ren@@ amed tu@@ z@@ em@@ ak by the manufacturers . The app@@ ell@@ ation of rum can only be given to products di@@ still@@ ed from cane sugar , and not sugar be@@ et . Car@@ ls@@ bad w@@ af@@ ers , P@@ oh@@ or@@ el@@ ick@@ y and Tre@@ bon@@ sky car@@ p , and Z@@ at@@ ec h@@ ops have been added to the official list of registered products of the EU , alongside the world-@@ renowned f@@ eta cheese and gor@@ gon@@ z@@ ola , German mar@@ zip@@ an from L@@ ub@@ eck , and Par@@ ma ham . The EU 's st@@ amp of protection can also be pro@@ u@@ dly shown on Par@@ du@@ bi@@ ce g@@ inger@@ bread and Hor@@ ick@@ y tu@@ bes . People want me to save the re@@ public , but I am an am@@ ateur , says Ok@@ am@@ ura Sen@@ ator , how does a person decide they want to run for President ? This is not about me being a sen@@ ator or president . If everything in our country worked without problems , then I would not be running for any post . I cannot watch any longer the country having been rob@@ bed over the past twenty years , th@@ iev@@ es ro@@ aming about there and people 's taxes and retirement age increasing . I had no ambition to be a politi@@ cian . When I see something I do not like , though , I try to find a solution to change things . Since I have already turned for@@ ty , and I am an independent non-@@ party man , I have no other choice to influence things but to stand for sen@@ ator or president . You have already reached the Sen@@ ate , but shortly after that you are taking off for the Castle . Are you not turning your back on those who voted for you in doing this ? I have been saying the entire time that I would fight for the Castle based on the results in the Sen@@ ate 's elections . Later , I added that if I were elected as sen@@ ator , I would be standing for president . My goal , though , is not the post , the post is a tool to allow my vision to be realised . Therefore , I need the greatest influence , and the strongest mandate possible . The trouble is not just that as a nation we swe@@ ar in the pub or at the television , but that we tr@@ ample anyone , who wants to try to change things . The Media add to this , misleading the public , and mist@@ aking freedom of speech with freedom to lie . For example , I was alle@@ ge@@ dly bri@@ bing re@@ por@@ ters , or I was alle@@ ge@@ dly an advis@@ or of Ji@@ ri Par@@ ou@@ be@@ k . Let 's talk about your vision . You set out on your castle si@@ ege with a thesis on the material and criminal responsibilities of politics , and a retro@@ active financial dis@@ closure of assets over twenty million . You need to change the law for this . As president , though , you do not have this power , and only the Sen@@ ate as a whole may propose laws . How are you going to solve this ? When I lob@@ bi@@ ed , as a citizen , for tour guide work to be a free trade , it was successfully carried through . The problem is political squ@@ ab@@ bling - when someone comes with a good idea from the left or the right , it will be deliberately rejected , causing delays for the public . As an independent non-@@ party man , I stand a far better chance of gaining support from all parliamentary sides . The advantage I hold is that without the political pi@@ ge@@ on@@ hol@@ ing or do@@ g@@ mas I can take what is best for our country from any side , and apply it . Do you see yourself as a person from the right , or the left ? From the Czech view@@ point , it seems they tend to put me to the left . For me , it just does not matter if it is a little to the left or right . The important part for me is moving forward . It is not about whether someone is from the left or right , I just want to bring people together . I always support any good public solutions , even if they are put forward by the K@@ SC@@ M or the O@@ DS , and , in the same way , I will oppose bad ideas . You get an@@ gr@@ y when someone calls you a populi@@ st . Are you not confir@@ ming this with what you have stated ? When you make a company business plan , you also have some ideal goal and vision . You try to come close to it . Some may call it populi@@ sm , but all the proposals I speak about are already working elsewhere , or they have been put forward by experts . But without the support of the Parliament you will be left with just slo@@ gan@@ s . You will not last long in politics with that . Or do you believe that if you walk among the public and talk with them , that you will succeed , say , in passing criminal and material responsibility ? I have no alternative . I need to convince politicians , re@@ por@@ ters , and the public , and try to get them on my side , so we can put this through . If I were elected president , it would not be a problem to arrange a live television broadcast , where I ask the leaders of the parliamentary parties to pass a law on material and criminal responsibility for politicians , civil servants , judges , and the Att@@ or@@ ney General . And , as the case may be , they would need to explain why they did not want this . When there is a strong figure to point out the issues , it just needs some pressure on the political scene . Take for instance the direct election of the president , it was achieved thanks to public pressure . I will say frank@@ ly that I am an am@@ ateur , I am not a geni@@ us or an intellectual . I am looking for allies to share my opinions and vision . I have just started out in politics , and I am looking for a majority support for my agenda . I will try to make things progress , but it if does not work out , in six years I will finish and return to the private sector . It sounds a little like Ok@@ am@@ ura is trying to save the Czech Republic . I am no sa@@ vi@@ our . I know that alone I will not achieve anything , so I have asked acqu@@ a@@ int@@ ances , whether they would run for the sen@@ ate . I went to Radi@@ m Jan@@ cur@@ a , who dec@@ lined due to his work@@ load . So I , at least , support investig@@ ative journalist , Jan@@ a Lor@@ enco@@ va , who un@@ covered frau@@ dul@@ ent activity with light heating oil . I put myself forward , because people are really dis@@ cont@@ ented , but now I have my doubts . Six@@ ty percent of people did not go to vote , and those who did mostly voted for leaders of the establishment . In the sen@@ ate , there are only two independ@@ ents , including me . People have voted for a sen@@ ate that will make it difficult to enforce changes . Nonetheless , I will fight for my vision , for example , for the direct election of may@@ ors or regional council pres@@ idents . Are you considering having your own party ? I have not considered it yet , because I have neither the time to verify that every party member has a clean background , nor the money to do it . I have no money even for a presidential campaign , my transparent account holds just 20 thousand . You have no money ? You are talking about financial dis@@ clos@@ ures , but what is yours like ? I estimate my private assets to be around 60 million . In Prague , I have land worth around 25 million , an apartment worth ten million , another apartment worth eight million , an art@@ work collection worth around ten million , an A@@ ston Martin worth 3.5 million , a S@@ ko@@ da Super@@ b worth a million , and I have a few million in my account . I have the A@@ ston Martin , by the way , because it was my dream as a boy - I always liked James B@@ ond , who dro@@ ve the car , was gall@@ ant with women and also fought against evil and vil@@ la@@ iny . You drive an A@@ ston Martin , have assets worth 60 million , but you have no money for a campaign ? You say you want to change the Republic , but you are not keen on putting your own money into it . This does not insp@@ ire much confidence . I do not have 15 million for a campaign . Should I take out a loan ? I have already put 2.5 million into the campaign . The fact that I do not have any spons@@ ors is evidence that there is no real interest in my programme . I have no obligation to pay for my own campaign . The expenditure on my campaign is basically covered by the pay I will be receiving as a sen@@ ator . However , I would not be able to live on it , for instance , I could not pay for my son 's English school , which costs 30 thousand a month . If I were only interested in making money , I would not be standing for election . So you will still be in business so that you can make a living ? Did you not say you would be putting this on hold ? This depends on the rate of pay . As I promised , my activities have been partially reduced . For example , my dep@@ uty is taking over as the CEO of the travel agency in spring . People would like me to be a Sam@@ ar@@ it@@ an , who sav@@ es the Republic . But I must also live off something . As a business@@ man , what would you usually make monthly ? Two hundred to 400 thousand , which I still do . And if I became president , then I would end my business activity . The full interview can be read in Saturday 's issue of Pra@@ vo . The M@@ V@@ R@@ D@@ V architects prove that true adv@@ entures are not just in the head - drawing on the example of Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse and the recently er@@ ected Bü@@ cher@@ berg ( literally " book mountain " ) - 2 photos " I think the building is fun , looks futur@@ istic and ultimately provides something interesting to look at , " said Lis@@ ette Ver@@ ha@@ ig , a p@@ asser@@ -@@ by at the ro@@ ad-@@ side . And Stefan Sper@@ mon , IT techni@@ cian in a major firm based nearby comm@@ ented : " It 's definitely a thing of beauty , the building . " However , I do wonder why people would need another library in this day and age . Everyone has the Internet , an i@@ Pad and e@@ Books . No@@ -@@ one goes into one of these ol@@ d-@@ style libraries volunt@@ arily nowadays , or am I wrong ? Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse , a sle@@ ep@@ y town outside the gates of Rotterdam , which barely merits a visit , is a special record@@ -@@ holder . The 8@@ 0,@@ 00@@ 0-@@ resident municipality has the lowest liter@@ acy rate in the whole of the Netherlands . In order to counter@@ act this as@@ in@@ ine situation , the decision was made a number of years ago to make a contribution towards general education and to recre@@ ate the seven fic@@ ti@@ tious bridges that feature on the Euro notes as pretty , painted reinforced concrete mini@@ atures . The success of the education offensive was limited . And so the city fathers acknowledged that there was only one way to become master over the statistics : a library had to be built ! Win@@ y Ma@@ as of the Rotter@@ dam@@ -based architectural firm M@@ V@@ R@@ D@@ V , master of au@@ d@@ ac@@ ious bar charts and producer of hum@@ or@@ ous and often cy@@ ni@@ cal buildings , took the project on with his custom@@ ary compos@@ ure , and turned up at the competitive hearing in 2003 with five books under his arm and a gr@@ in on his face . And with the jud@@ ging panel still looking at him with be@@ wil@@ der@@ ment , shr@@ ug@@ ging their shoul@@ ders , the imper@@ tin@@ ent Ma@@ as st@@ ack@@ ed his chosen pro@@ ps by order of size to form a p@@ yr@@ amid and rounded off his presentation - now su@@ itably backed up with action - with the words : " De@@ ar Mun@@ icip@@ ality ! " So this is my suggestion for the Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse Book Mountain - for the so-called Bo@@ ek@@ enberg ! Nine years later , the 30-@@ milli@@ on-@@ euro mountain has been li@@ fted up . It is part of a re@@ vit@@ alisation project , which also includes an underground car park , a super@@ market , a post office and a small number of adjacent apartment buildings and ter@@ ra@@ ced houses , with a total of 50 d@@ well@@ ings . At the beginning of November , the Bü@@ cher@@ berg was awarded second place in the " Best Library of NL 2012 " competition . In addition , the project is also nominated for the Dutch National W@@ ood Award 2012 . Thus , the fac@@ eless small-@@ town ret@@ ort , that until now had nothing more to offer than a post-@@ modern pedestrian area and a st@@ unn@@ ingly ug@@ ly town hall , behind whose white fac@@ ades one would expect to find a dairy plant , has been bol@@ stered by a piece of contemporary architecture . First and foremost , however , Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse now has its first public cultural building in the history of its existence . The long journey to the book The first impression : the El@@ dor@@ ado of books ben@@ e@@ ath a cheese d@@ ome . There is in fact a lift that clim@@ bs through the centre of the mountain massi@@ f , however , the true jo@@ ys of space and literature are revealed when sc@@ aling the top@@ ography on foot . The interior space , gla@@ zed throughout , is bright and open , the fi@@ red clin@@ ker floors and the elegant street l@@ amps speak the un@@ mist@@ ak@@ able language of a public town square . The urban ambi@@ ance is perfect . You are already on the lo@@ ok@@ out for a park ben@@ ch , a dog , and boys and girls playing football . And everywhere there are books , books , books . " Norm@@ ally book shel@@ ves run along the fac@@ ade , and in the centre there is a large , dark space , which is usually un@@ pleasant and im@@ personal , " says Win@@ y Ma@@ as . We turned the classical spati@@ al configuration on its head and turned the reading area inside out . The interior of the Bü@@ cher@@ berg is cle@@ ver@@ ly used : in the centre there are offices , an Internet library , a ch@@ ess club , an environmental centre and the central technical support room . One particularly special feature are the black book shel@@ ves , which simultaneously act as wall cl@@ adding , par@@ ap@@ ets and rail@@ ings for the sta@@ ir@@ way . The appearance , feel and sc@@ ent are foreign . Even di@@ e-@@ hard architects and construction engineers sha@@ ke their heads at the unknown construction materials . " Here we wanted to work with recy@@ cl@@ able materials , " explained Jo@@ op Tro@@ ub@@ or@@ st , Project Manager for the Mun@@ icip@@ ality of Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse , on request of the Standard . And thus one day we st@@ umb@@ led across a suitable waste product used in agriculture , on a Fris@@ ian farm . For many years , milli@@ met@@ re-@@ thick artificial fabric has been used in gre@@ enh@@ ouses and fields in the Netherlands as a base layer . It is in@@ expensive and sav@@ es time . The thin textile la@@ sts for two seasons and is then dis@@ posed of as bulk waste . For the library , the fabric was - for the first time in these quantities - pressed into four-@@ cen@@ timet@@ re-@@ thick boards . Under heat and pressure , the so-called Land@@ bou@@ w plastic ( KL@@ P ) changes colour to a dark , homo@@ gene@@ ous and robust material , that sm@@ ells like a mixture of new car smell and the smell of train@@ ers . After 105 steps you have reached the summit . At the end of the 500@@ -@@ met@@ er-@@ long journey , you are rewar@@ ded in the Liter@@ ature Café , not only with a fantastic view of the city , but also with Dutch cro@@ qu@@ ettes and pot@@ ted fic@@ us trees . These provide atmosphere , but most importantly , regulate the air hum@@ idity in the literary mountain range . Don@@ ations for the new soul " You would hardly believe it , but this building , in spite of the many glass panels , is a show@@ case project in the area of ec@@ ology , " said Tro@@ ub@@ or@@ st . It is heated and cool@@ ed using geo@@ thermal heat . Although the Bü@@ cher@@ berg has a glass cover , the sun only sh@@ ines only briefly into the interior , even on sunny days . The broad , lam@@ in@@ ated wood glu@@ e be@@ ams positioned at right-@@ ang@@ les to the glass fac@@ ade , provide sha@@ de and absor@@ b the majority of the sun@@ light . The indoor temperature is very pleasant . The rest is taken care of by fully automatic roll@@ er blin@@ ds . Stefan Sper@@ mon , initially a scep@@ tic of the IT sector , has already vent@@ ured into the new library . Lis@@ ette Ver@@ ha@@ ig has also visited already . So too has T@@ C@@ M-@@ teacher , C@@ yn@@ th@@ ia B@@ og@@ ar@@ de , who even refers to the Bo@@ ek@@ enberg as Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse 's " long over@@ due soul . " The reason : At the inau@@ gur@@ ation just a few weeks ago , every citizen was invited to don@@ ate a book from his / her personal collection . This was , for the time being , to fill the optical gaps in the not yet fully sto@@ cked library - currently there are 70@@ ,000 items . The concept has been a success . The shel@@ ves are full to capacity . " Nothing is worse than a half-@@ empty library , " said architect Win@@ y Ma@@ as . " I think that , thanks to our invitation , every resident now has a certain bond with this new building . Everyone knows that their book is part of the building . Even if it 's just for decoration . As such , M@@ V@@ R@@ D@@ V have succeeded in master@@ ing the master discipline that specialist jar@@ gon refers to as the formation of identity . Spi@@ j@@ ken@@ isse has written literary history . However young and un@@ educated it may be . This is ultimately a starting point for identity . Sz@@ ab@@ o : " Germans must play a greater role " In the vote on the incorpor@@ ation of Palestine , Germany abstained from voting . According to Stephen Sz@@ ab@@ o , Exper@@ t in US-@@ European relations , in so doing Berlin is walking a thin diplomatic line . Deutsche Welle : At the beginning of the week , Germany had initially sign@@ alled that it would vote against the Palestinians ' application for ob@@ server status within the United Nations . However , Berlin subsequently abstained from voting . Why ? Stephen Sz@@ ab@@ o : Germany does not support what the Israelis have done in Gaza . Now , however , due to their special relationship with Israel , Germany must be cau@@ tious . At the same time , however , I do not believe that it supports the American position either . Germany wanted to demonstrate its independence - albeit without being too critical of Israel . During the up@@ rising in Libya in March 2011 , Germany likewise abstained from voting , when it came to establishing a no-@@ fly zone . This was ultimately implemented by NATO . Does Germany find it difficult to adopt a clear position when it comes to important international affairs ? Yes , it does . That is because it has just re@@ organised its foreign policy , indeed moving away from a policy that was , so to speak , managed by the USA , in favour of a German foreign policy . This situation is ag@@ grav@@ ated by the fact that the Europeans do not have a coherent and standardis@@ ed policy . The Germans thus find themselves caught between two fron@@ ts . It is expected of them that they play a more independent role , yet this is something that they are not accu@@ st@@ omed to . I believe that they are still finding their way in this role , but they are en route to a " more normal " foreign policy . A foreign policy similar to that of France , or Great Britain . So what specifically does a " normal " foreign policy ent@@ ail , from a German perspective ? It shows a willingness to adopt positions on international matters , which are independent of those of the USA or European partners . I believe that the German foreign policy is motivated by the economic policy , that is , by export and its relations with certain regions such as Russia , China or the Near East . Germany 's economic interests are to a certain extent different from those of the other major powers and therefore Germany must protect its interests . Have these economic interests had an influence on their attitude towards the Near East conflict and their voting in the UN ? On the one hand , Germany has major revenue markets in the Near East , and particularly in the Gulf States . Therefore it must be careful not to aff@@ ront the public , but also the elite in the Arab@@ ic countries . In any case , this plays a role . However , I w@@ ouldn 't want to as@@ cri@@ be too much weight to this . This is not an entirely one-@@ si@@ ded relationship . Nonetheless , it does play an important role in Germany 's considerations . Has Germany damaged its relations with the USA , by ab@@ sta@@ ining to vote on important decisions , such as the vote on Palestine ? I think that in Europe , and even in the USA , a great understanding for the German position prev@@ ails . Therefore I do not think that this was as dramatic a fra@@ c@@ ture as was the case in the matters regarding Libya . Perhaps it will even earn Germany a certain degree of respect . After all , it signals that the country must be taken seriously as an international player and that its interests must be considered . In Europe there are diverse opinions regarding the Palestinian initiative . The USA , on the other hand , have spoken out clearly in favour of a ve@@ to . Are there differences of opinion between the USA and the many European nations ? Due to the American domestic policy , these differences have always existed . I think that sec@@ re@@ tly , the government under Obama actually has a great deal of understanding for the European situation . However , due to the political situation here , the government is naturally unable to voice this position publicly . It is my belief that the actual differences in opinion are not so vast as they always appear . If you look at the relations between Obama and Prime Minister Net@@ an@@ j@@ ah@@ u , Obama is really not quite so enth@@ used by Net@@ an@@ j@@ ah@@ u 's policies . Does Germany find it difficult to re@@ conci@@ le its close relations with Israel and the USA on the one hand , and the position of its most important partners in the EU on the other ? I think that this is precisely what makes things so difficult for the Germans . It would of course be a little simpler for the Germans if there were a coherent and standardis@@ ed European policy , which is currently not the case . Thus they are unable to be part of a wider authority and must instead drive matters forward from their own position . This is precisely what they are doing with the Euro . I believe that in the future Germany will take on a leading role in ur@@ ging Europe towards a standardis@@ ed European position . This is , of course , no simple task for Germany , on account of its relations with Israel . This has always been a sensitive subject . Yet I do think that Germans are clear that they must play a more independent role . Does Germany view itself as playing the role of an important international player - does Germany actually want to assume a leading role ? Or does Germany still find leadership roles difficult ? Germany is still not used to it , the country continues to be un@@ comfortable and , for obvious reasons , still finds it difficult to play a more prominent role . If we look at the Euro crisis for example , every time that Germany assumes a more prominent role , various anti-@@ German feelings become apparent . This does not make matters simple for the Germans . This is actually the same old problem : one does not want to be surrounded by hosti@@ le countries . From this stance , Germany is in a much more difficult position than the USA . It must be recep@@ tive to the most diverse of neighbours and opinions , and this is not easy . The influence of the USA over European politics is continually dimin@@ ishing , yet the EU is currently not feeling this vacuum , so who is filling the gap ? The Germans will simply have to play a greater role . Even if they do not like it , even if it is un@@ comfortable and makes them even more un@@ popular - c '@@ est la vie ! Stephen Sz@@ ab@@ o is associ@@ ate director of the Tran@@ satlan@@ tic Academy in Washington , an institute in which academ@@ ics and political experts from Europe and North America come together to research the challenges of the transatlantic community . Sz@@ ab@@ o is also a member of the German Mar@@ shall Fund , in which he has specialised in German policy , US foreign policy and transatlantic relations . " Brand protection " in China : When P@@ uma and Ar@@ man@@ i suddenly become Chinese Ar@@ man@@ i is a world-@@ famous brand , Polo R@@ alp@@ h La@@ uren likewise . However , what is Ar@@ man@@ i Polo ? Beh@@ ind this name hi@@ des a fully officially registered brand in China , however , one that has nothing whatsoever to do with the original companies . Nonetheless , it is enjoying protection , provided the actual cre@@ ators of the names do not sue . And even then it is not clear whether they will have any rights . " It is becoming increasingly more difficult for foreigners to protect their brands in China , " said Thomas P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch , lawyer within the Tay@@ lor W@@ essing law firm , who speci@@ alis@@ es in copyright infringement in the Far East . Every week a new case lands on my desk . All the copy@@ c@@ ats require are a few additional letters in order that they can register their brands . Thus Gu@@ c@@ ci simply becomes Lu@@ -@@ Gu@@ c@@ ci , Pra@@ da@@ -K@@ ny is registered in place of Pra@@ da . German companies are also ' legally ' cop@@ ied in this manner , such as manufacturer of sporting appar@@ el , P@@ uma . P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch opens a file containing regi@@ str@@ ations with the trademark office in Peking . On 14 September 2010 a Chinese company copy@@ righ@@ ted the brand name Z@@ eg@@ na DF P@@ uma there , an ali@@ as that also helps itself to the name of fashion retail@@ er Er@@ men@@ eg@@ il@@ do Z@@ eg@@ na . The fact that the Chinese are world champ@@ ions in cop@@ ying and infr@@ ing@@ ing on intellectual property is well-known . In the major cities there are multi-@@ level department stores that sell counter@@ f@@ eit goods almost exclusively . P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch 's cases , however , are slightly different : on behalf of his clients he takes action against the fact that Chinese companies can be granted the right to use a name by the trademark office , fully officially , which is already protected elsewhere . The Chinese call this " B@@ ang M@@ ing@@ pa@@ i , " a passenger brand . The word is based on " B@@ ang D@@ aku@@ an . " This refers to women who lat@@ ch onto rich men . The Chinese authorities are un@@ aware of any wron@@ g@@ doing . " This har@@ ms business and we must fight against it , " challenges P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch . " The brand is water@@ ed down , its uniqu@@ eness dis@@ appears - the image damage is enormous . " The financial losses and process costs of the affected branches amount into the millions , especially in the case of expensive flag@@ ship products . According to information from market research company CL@@ SA , with a volume of 15 billion euros annually , China is the third largest market for luxury items , and the fastest growing . However , the del@@ e@@ tion of du@@ bi@@ ous entries in the trademark regi@@ stry are difficult to achieve , and cost a pretty p@@ enny . The process can last for up to nine years , with an uncertain outcome . P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch reports of instances whereby the court dis@@ mis@@ ses cases , because after a long period of time , the name to which the ob@@ jection is being raised has become a " market reality . " If the compl@@ ain@@ ant is un@@ lucky , he may even have to pay the pl@@ ag@@ i@@ ar@@ ist money for having infr@@ ing@@ ed on his trademark in China , said P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch . Sometimes the law of the jung@@ le prev@@ ails here . Fam@@ ous cases also relate to graphic elements . In 2009 , Daim@@ ler lost a legal battle with the construction machinery manufacturer S@@ any , the company that recently acquired German concrete pump manufacturer P@@ utz@@ meister . Even today , the Chinese company is therefore permitted to use an emb@@ lem that res@@ emb@@ les the Merc@@ edes star . Vol@@ vo@@ -@@ purchaser Ge@@ ely originally used a blue and white logo that res@@ emb@@ led the BMW logo ; the dispute was arbitr@@ ated and Ge@@ ely was forced to change it . Fas@@ hion house Lac@@ o@@ ste lost a suit in China against copy@@ c@@ ats from Hong Kong and Singapore , who were using the famous cro@@ codi@@ le looking in the other direction . The Chinese authorities are un@@ aware of any wron@@ g@@ doing . The CT@@ M@@ O trademark office in Peking does acknowledge that there were bot@@ t@@ len@@ ecks in 2010 due to limited staff@@ ing and equipment . In the past year , however , things report@@ edly " returned to normal following this emergency situation regarding the work flow . " Thus the stock of un@@ processed appeal proceedings was reduced by 22 percent . Almost 5@@ 7@@ ,000 such c@@ ased were closed , 75 percent more than in the previous year . Nonetheless , there are still 8@@ 1,@@ 500 appe@@ als waiting to be resolved in the office . To remedy this is very expensive As is so often the case in China , the figures are imposing . In the past year , more than 1.4 million applications for trademark protection were submitted to the CT@@ M@@ O , almost one third more than in 2010 . This is a record and means that China , for the ten@@ th time in succ@@ ession , is the global leader when it comes to new trademark applications , informed the authority . The same applies for the inventory of valid trademarks , tot@@ alling 5.@@ 5 million in number . In 2011 , 1.@@ 8 billion y@@ u@@ an in fees were received . P@@ ut simply , this means that each application costs on average 1,@@ 280 y@@ u@@ an , or 160 euros . To appeal against an application costs many times this amount , as can be seen in the case of the German family business , Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg . For more than seven years , the group has been cont@@ esting against a Chinese pl@@ ag@@ i@@ ar@@ ist . The Germans did in fact manage to ex@@ pose the company 's illegal manufacturing of cop@@ ied motor vehicle parts . However , the copy@@ cat still secured the Chinese rights to the Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg brand . This is something we missed ourselves , as family names cannot be protected in Germany , said H@@ ann@@ o W@@ ent@@ z@@ ler , Chairman of the Board of Management at Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg Chem@@ ical Speci@@ alities in Munich . The CT@@ M@@ O trademark office then also dis@@ missed the M@@ uni@@ ch-@@ based company 's appeal . In the next two instances , Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg was proven right , however the opposing party continues to contest the matter to this day . You have to pay extremely careful attention . The matter is now pending before the Supreme Court . W@@ ent@@ z@@ ler is confident that the matter will be brought to a positive conclusion and pra@@ ises the professionalism of the courts . However , he also says : " The process is extremely expensive and takes a lot of time , money and ner@@ ves . " The internal costs can barely be calculated , the company archive even had to look through cent@@ ur@@ y-@@ old records in order to provide proof . Five years ago Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg un@@ successfully offered the opposing party a " high six-@@ figure sum in euros " as settlement . " This shows how much this is worth to us , " says W@@ ent@@ z@@ ler . The dangers in the Far East even threaten to sp@@ illing over , back into Europe . Partic@@ ularly if im@@ it@@ ators secure un@@ protected brand names there . For example , a Chinese manufacturer wanted to register the Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg label for shoes and leather in Germany . This is a business sector that the group had long vac@@ ated , yet nonetheless managed to prevent the registration . " You have to pay extremely careful attention , " says W@@ ent@@ z@@ ler . Both he and P@@ att@@ lo@@ ch advise companies to be very careful when conducting business with China . It is not sufficient to rely on international trademark rights , rather foreigners should also register " everything " that is in any way worthy of protection in China as well , " said W@@ ent@@ z@@ ler . Otherwise costs can be much more expensive than the registration fee . In actual fact : if Fre@@ u@@ den@@ berg were to loo@@ se at the final hur@@ dle of its trademark drama , they would probably have to pay the opposing party license fees for the use of their own name , explained W@@ ent@@ z@@ ler . Or altern@@ atively we would be forced out of the market in the respective sector . World AIDS day : St@@ om@@ p , sing , help In Heidelberg , the Im@@ bon@@ gi cho@@ ir is re@@ hear@@ sing - and in the S@@ wa@@ z@@ il@@ and , AIDS orph@@ ans are delighted . The history of a link that over@@ comes far more than a distance of 8,@@ 7@@ 33 kilometres . First of all , the st@@ amp@@ ing : co@@ w@@ boy bo@@ ots , bas@@ ketball shoes , ladies ' pumps and men 's lo@@ af@@ ers attempt to find the beat on the par@@ quet floor , and quickly do just that . O@@ ne-@@ two-@@ three-@@ four . Only then do the voices of the sing@@ ers slowly s@@ well - alto , bass , ten@@ or and s@@ op@@ ran@@ o sur@@ ge , beg@@ u@@ ile and ha@@ unt . And Fi@@ ete H@@ opf , the 29@@ -@@ year-old conductor , almost rises up out of his shoes as he brings the ens@@ emble together with his smooth , yet wild gest@@ ures . It is Monday evening and in the music room of the Institute for Medical Psych@@ ology in Heidelberg the Im@@ bon@@ gi Cho@@ ir are practi@@ sing a new song . The fifteen sing@@ ers , aging from 23 to 69 years old , range from human gene@@ tici@@ sts to the maintenance man . " O@@ m '@@ O@@ ban@@ i " is by no means a simple piece , with each voice having a different text , and in an extremely foreign language at that : Zul@@ u , which is spoken by el@@ even million people in South Africa , Bot@@ sw@@ ana , Les@@ oth@@ o , Mal@@ a@@ wi , Moz@@ ambi@@ que and in parts of S@@ wa@@ z@@ il@@ and . Hel@@ ping others to help themselves There are around 34 million people infected with HIV around the world , as according to the estim@@ ations of Un@@ ai@@ ds , the United Nations ' programme to battle AIDS . Of these , 2@@ 3.5 million live in South Africa . In S@@ wa@@ z@@ il@@ and , there are 24@@ 5@@ ,000 AIDS orph@@ ans . Meanwhile , more than 40 percent of the population are HIV positive . The Vo@@ ices for Africa Association has found spons@@ ors in Germany for 180 AIDS orph@@ ans in the village of E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i . 70 of these attend a secondary school . For 15 or 20 euros per month , you can become a spons@@ or . This guarantees the child money for school , a school uniform and a warm meal each day in the G@@ ogo Centre . In Zul@@ u , Im@@ bon@@ gi means stor@@ y@@ t@@ eller or wor@@ shi@@ pper . In this region , no-@@ one can speak the Ban@@ tu language flu@@ ently , but they can sing it . For almost ten years the cho@@ ir has been practi@@ sing songs in this foreign , ' soft ' language , and now and then they bring them back to where they originally came from : the South of Africa . For an 8,@@ 7@@ 3@@ 3-@@ kilomet@@ re flight away from Heidelberg , in the north west of the S@@ wa@@ z@@ il@@ and Kingdom , lies the village of E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i , which rel@@ ies on the vocal power of the German cho@@ ir . For@@ ty percent are infected . Around 2@@ ,000 people live there , some still in simple mu@@ d and stra@@ w hu@@ ts , and the majority of them are children . More than 300 of them no longer have parents , as they succ@@ um@@ bed to the HIV virus . In E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i you get a small fores@@ ha@@ dow of the illness from which all of S@@ wa@@ z@@ il@@ and is suffering : according to Uni@@ c@@ ef , the region has the highest HIV infection rates and the lowest life expect@@ ancy in the world . Cir@@ cum@@ c@@ ision , which has been proven to reduce the risk of contracting the virus by half , is barely practi@@ sed by the population . More than for@@ ty percent of people in the S@@ wa@@ z@@ il@@ and carry the imm@@ un@@ o@@ defici@@ ency virus , and dying in you mid-@@ thir@@ ties is by no means rare . On a group trip to Africa in early 2005 , the Cho@@ ir visited the village , but first and foremost , the Im@@ b@@ ong@@ is saw many children on the streets , lacking not only in par@@ ental care but in practically everything else as well : food , clothing , education . Without a school leaving certificate , there are barely any opportunities , particularly in a poor country . Initi@@ ally it was the private commitment of individuals to send a child to school and enable him / her to have one warm meal a day for a few euros per year . However , just one year later , the cho@@ ir established the " Vo@@ ices for Africa " Association , which since then has been looking after the AIDS orph@@ ans in E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i at an almost professional level . F@@ acts on sex@@ ually transmitted inf@@ ections . What are the most important sex@@ ually transmitted diseases ? B@@ ac@@ ter@@ ial ST@@ Is include s@@ yp@@ hi@@ lis , ch@@ lam@@ y@@ dia and gon@@ or@@ r@@ ho@@ ea . Common vir@@ al ST@@ Is are HIV , human pap@@ ill@@ oma viruses , her@@ pes gen@@ ital@@ is and h@@ ep@@ ati@@ tis . Cr@@ ab@@ s and sc@@ ab@@ ies belong among the par@@ asi@@ tic ST@@ Is . Who are the main affected groups ? S@@ yp@@ hi@@ lis and gon@@ or@@ r@@ ho@@ ea occur primarily in men that have inter@@ course with other men . The Robert K@@ och Institute understands that at least four in five of all s@@ yp@@ hi@@ lis cases reported in Germany are transmitted by means of sexual contact between men . Among hetero@@ sexual adults , ch@@ lam@@ y@@ dia inf@@ ections , tri@@ ch@@ om@@ oni@@ asis , candi@@ di@@ asis ( f@@ ung@@ al ) , gon@@ or@@ r@@ ho@@ ea and human pap@@ ill@@ oma viruses are frequently occurring sex@@ ually transmitted diseases . The spread of HIV among hetero@@ sexual adults in this country is relatively low ; however , around 20 percent of newly contrac@@ ted cases of HIV are found in this group . Among young people , ch@@ lam@@ y@@ dia inf@@ ections are much more common than in other population groups . According to European surve@@ ys , three quarters of all inf@@ ections affect young people between the ages of 15 and 25 . In this country , human pap@@ ill@@ oma viruses are also frequently found in young people . How has the number of inf@@ ections developed ? Not all sex@@ ually transmitted diseases are noti@@ fiable . According to the Robert K@@ och Institute , the number of s@@ yp@@ hi@@ lis inf@@ ections has more than doub@@ led from 1,@@ 6@@ 97 cases in 2001 , to 3,@@ 6@@ 98 cases in 2011 . The number of newly contrac@@ ted cases of HIV has been on the decline since 2007 . In 2011 there were around 2,@@ 700 cases . This is around one ten@@ th fewer than the previous year . Which symptoms indicate a sex@@ ually transmitted disease ? The inf@@ ec@@ tious diseases can cause ul@@ c@@ ers in the gen@@ ital area , dis@@ comfort when ur@@ in@@ ating , discharge , lower ab@@ domin@@ al pain and bli@@ sters or war@@ ts . However , often they cause no pain or any other symptoms , thus remaining und@@ et@@ ected . How can you protect yourself ? Con@@ d@@ oms can reduce the risk of contrac@@ tion , however , they do not offer 100 % protection . This is because occasionally , the pa@@ tho@@ gens of sex@@ ually transmitted diseases can also be passed on via sme@@ ar inf@@ ections and close bo@@ di@@ ly contact . Therefore , first and foremost experts recommend that people with frequently changing sexual partners under@@ go regular exam@@ inations . If diagno@@ sed early , the majority of ST@@ Is can be cur@@ ed and long-term consequences avoided . Through sponsor@@ ships donations and by no means least the funds that the cho@@ ir raises across the whole of Germany , the money all adds up . " In total , we have already sent around 200@@ ,000 euros to E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i , " said An@@ nette L@@ enn@@ art@@ z , Chair@@ person of the association . In the village itself , Z@@ od@@ wa D@@ lam@@ ini , a self-@@ assured and asser@@ tive woman , manages the money from Germany . She makes sure that the orph@@ ans have good accommodation , for example with one of their grand@@ mothers . The G@@ og@@ os , as the old ladies are called in Zul@@ u , are the pillars of the village . Some of them have up to 14 orph@@ ans living with them , providing them with a roof over their heads and making sure that the children get to their school classes punc@@ tually every day , in their school uni@@ forms . Anyone who doesn 't have anyone left , arri@@ ves at the shel@@ ter with Kh@@ any@@ isi@@ le , a single woman who ear@@ ns the same sal@@ ary from the association as the two coo@@ ks who co@@ ok for more than 200 hung@@ ry children every day . In addition , " Vo@@ ices for Africa " has established a se@@ wing school , built two ch@@ icken co@@ ops and , together with the American health organisation , PS@@ I , organised for many in the village to be tested for HIV . This is nothing to be taken for granted , as is clearly the attitude towards illness throughout the entire country , the best way of keeping things under w@@ rap@@ s is if people are dead . A king with 14 wi@@ ves " AIDS is an absolute t@@ abo@@ o subject , " said An@@ nette L@@ enn@@ art@@ z , " because it is associated with sexu@@ ality . " This is actually strange for a country in which the king officially has 14 wi@@ ves . The last absolute mon@@ arch of sub@@ -S@@ ah@@ aran Africa , King M@@ sw@@ ati III . , is known for his excessive lifestyle . Poly@@ gam@@ y in place of democracy . Among other factors , the fact that the HIV virus has spread quickly over the past number of decades can also be attributed to this officially sanc@@ tioned lifestyle . Another factor is the large number of migrant workers who carry the virus across the country . There are free con@@ d@@ oms on every corner , said An@@ nette L@@ enn@@ art@@ z , " but they are hardly used . The culture prescri@@ bes otherwise - fl@@ esh to fl@@ esh . " In order to promote the cultural exchange , the Im@@ bon@@ gi cho@@ ir tra@@ vels through Southern Africa every two or three years and s@@ ings songs of mel@@ anch@@ oly , fighting spirit , confidence and black self-@@ est@@ e@@ em , which many from the southern tip of the black continent still know from the times of apar@@ thei@@ d . A bus full of white people , who sing songs in a black language - this degree of recognition brings not only mor@@ ale and joy , but some gri@@ m-@@ faced border soldiers even shed a few t@@ ears . The journey always leads to E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i , where the sing@@ ers visit their spons@@ or children . Even though you can barely find the small village on a map , it is more than well-known in the valley of the E@@ zul@@ wen@@ i River . " Go to E@@ sit@@ jen@@ i , that 's where the light is , " say the people there . And if you make the 8,@@ 7@@ 3@@ 3-@@ kilomet@@ re flight back to Heidelberg , to visit the st@@ omp@@ ing sing@@ ers in their re@@ hear@@ s@@ al room , you 'll see that the light is there too . Messenger : N@@ ASA dis@@ covers ice on Mer@@ cury The Messenger probe has found evidence of ice on the planet Mer@@ cury . It is thought that the ice cover may be up to 20 metres thick . The US space agency , N@@ ASA , has proven the existence of ice on the planet Mer@@ cury . Although the planet lies closest to the sun , it does have frozen water - as shown in three studies published on Thursday in specialist magazine " Science . " The Messenger probe has found evidence that there is an ice cover in the region of the planet that lies permanently in shadow . This is thought to be at east 30 cen@@ timet@@ res and perhaps up to 20 metres thick . The water presum@@ ably came from com@@ ets or perhaps also ast@@ ero@@ ids that imp@@ acted with Mer@@ cury . However , no-@@ one is linking the discovery of ice with the existence of life on the planet , said Chief Scienti@@ st for the Messenger probe , S@@ ean Sol@@ om@@ on . The temperature on Mer@@ cury can reach up to 4@@ 26 degrees Cel@@ si@@ us . That said , the findings could help explain how water and other building blocks of life reached other regions of the solar system . Un@@ known to the majority of the Earth 's inhabitants , there are prob@@ es , tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es and small robots such as the Pho@@ enix , deployed to research the dep@@ ths of the universe . From time to time , they trans@@ mit images to Earth : small pe@@ ep@@ holes into the infin@@ ite expan@@ se . This image comes from a camera developed by German researchers at the Max Plan@@ ck Institute . The eight plan@@ ets of our solar system , plus the d@@ war@@ f planet Cer@@ es . Like P@@ lu@@ to , which or@@ bits around the sun behind N@@ ept@@ une , Cer@@ es is not a planet according to the new definition of the term issued by the International Astronom@@ ical Union in 2006 . This image section from an infr@@ ared recording by the Spit@@ zer tel@@ esc@@ ope shows a " family portra@@ it " of countless generations of stars : the oldest stars are seen as blue d@@ ots , while more difficult to identify are the pin@@ k-@@ coloured " new@@ -@@ bor@@ ns " in the star delivery room . This star@@ -@@ forming region - rather un@@ roman@@ tically named W@@ 5 by scientists - was discovered by the Spit@@ zer tel@@ esc@@ ope in the C@@ assi@@ op@@ ei@@ a con@@ stell@@ ation , at a distance of 6,@@ 500 light years away . This shi@@ m@@ mer@@ ing g@@ low of a dying star was captured by N@@ ASA 's Spit@@ zer tel@@ esc@@ ope . The don@@ ut@@ -@@ shaped ring consists of material , e@@ jected by the star in the process of dying . In the huge Tri@@ fi@@ d Neb@@ ula , 5,@@ 400 light years away from the Earth , new stars are created from gas and dust . N@@ ASA 's Spit@@ zer tel@@ esc@@ ope shot this photo of the gal@@ ac@@ tic delivery room . The P@@ lei@@ ades star cluster , also referred to as " The Seven S@@ ist@@ ers , " can be seen with the bare eye at night . With the tel@@ esc@@ ope , however , the colours really come into their own . In this infr@@ ared photo , the Heli@@ x Neb@@ ula looks back at the ob@@ server like a red eye . It is located 700 light years away in the Aqu@@ ari@@ us con@@ stell@@ ation . Its simil@@ arity with the continent resulted in this Neb@@ ula acqu@@ iring the title ' North America ' . A combination of normal and infr@@ ared photography produced the spectacular colour@@ ing . This baby star could only be captured in its full beauty using the Spit@@ zer tel@@ esc@@ ope 's infr@@ ared det@@ ec@@ tors . Satur@@ n and its rings : How these occurred is the greatest pu@@ zzle in the field of astronom@@ y . Perhaps they are the rem@@ n@@ ants of a moon of Satur@@ n , which disappeared without a trace 4.@@ 5 billion years ago . One of the largest and sharp@@ est pictures from the Hub@@ ble tel@@ esc@@ ope : the Whirlpool Galax@@ y Depending on the colour@@ ing , photographs of spir@@ al galax@@ ies can become genuine works of art . The phot@@ ograph published by the European Southern Ob@@ serv@@ atory shows the Tri@@ fi@@ d Neb@@ ula in the Sag@@ itt@@ ari@@ us con@@ stell@@ ation , several thousand light years away . The name Tri@@ fi@@ d st@@ ems from the Latin word tri@@ fi@@ dus ( divided into three parts ) , as dark stri@@ pes of dust divide the core of the birth@@ place of stars into three parts . In the Op@@ hi@@ u@@ ch@@ us con@@ stell@@ ation , astronom@@ ers have photograph@@ ed the signs of a co@@ sm@@ ic col@@ li@@ sion : 400 million light years from the earth , the cor@@ es of two mer@@ ging galax@@ ies move rapidly towards one another , dest@@ ined to col@@ li@@ de . This star birth was captured by the Hub@@ ble tel@@ esc@@ ope in the M@@ 83 spir@@ al galax@@ y . Anyone who doesn 't like technical ab@@ bre@@ vi@@ ations may prefer to call it by its nick@@ name , the Southern Ca@@ ther@@ ine Whe@@ el . The photo taken by the Hub@@ ble space tel@@ esc@@ ope shows a section of the Ir@@ is Neb@@ ula in the C@@ ep@@ heu@@ s con@@ stell@@ ation . The ne@@ bul@@ a , 1,@@ 400 light years away , consists of partic@@ les of dust that are ten to one hundred times smaller than standard house dust . This image was put together from the X-@@ ray images captured by various tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es . It shows a ring of black holes , 4@@ 30 million light years away from the Earth . This group of galax@@ ies , named Ar@@ p 27@@ 3 , was pic@@ tured for N@@ ASA by the Hub@@ ble space tel@@ esc@@ ope . Scienti@@ sts call the larger spir@@ al galax@@ y U@@ G@@ C 18@@ 10 . This star ne@@ bul@@ a is home to the brigh@@ test group of young stars in our Mil@@ ky Way . This ' star cra@@ dle ' continually produces new yo@@ ungst@@ ers . Likewise , this star cl@@ oud , connected to the Ros@@ ette Neb@@ ula , continually produces new baby stars - 5000 light years away from the Earth . In this bright sh@@ ining galax@@ y with one small black hole , there exists no dust - only gas . Res@@ ear@@ chers pres@@ ume that it only came into being shortly after the Big B@@ ang , when the universe was comp@@ ris@@ ed primarily of hydro@@ gen . Our view of the universe : the most important tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es The tel@@ esc@@ ope is thought to have been invented in 16@@ 08 by Hans Li@@ p@@ per@@ h@@ ey - even before Galileo Gal@@ il@@ ei used the device to observe the stars one year later . Since then , the mir@@ rors in optical tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es have become increasingly large and the insi@@ ghts that they provide increasingly profound . For a period of 30 years , namely from 1947 until 1975 , the H@@ ale tel@@ esc@@ ope in the Pal@@ om@@ ar Ob@@ serv@@ atory near San Di@@ ego was the largest tel@@ esc@@ ope in the world . The mirror , shown in the image , had a diameter of five metres . Ari@@ zona , USA , is home to the Large Bin@@ oc@@ ular Tel@@ esc@@ ope . It enables views of space via two mir@@ rors , each with a diameter of 8.@@ 4 metres . The inner work@@ ings of the Gran Tel@@ es@@ cop@@ io Can@@ ari@@ as on the Can@@ arian island of La Palma are huge - the mirror alone has a diameter of 10.@@ 4 metres . The mirror of the Southern African Large Tel@@ esc@@ ope in South Africa is seg@@ m@@ ented - to reduce costs . In spite of this it achiev@@ es a diameter of around el@@ even metres . The disadvantage of this in@@ expensive construction method : the tel@@ esc@@ ope is secur@@ ely cl@@ amp@@ ed at its angle of inc@@ lin@@ ation and its movement is therefore limited . The Hob@@ by E@@ ber@@ ly tel@@ esc@@ ope in Texas also has a fixed angle of inc@@ lin@@ ation . What sets it apart : the high ligh@@ t-@@ gathering capacity . This - in spite of its compar@@ atively low mirror diameter - even matches that of the world 's largest refl@@ ector tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es . With the help of a radio tel@@ esc@@ ope in Are@@ ci@@ bo ( Puerto R@@ ico ) researchers can listen for ex@@ tr@@ ater@@ restri@@ al signals in space . The radio tel@@ esc@@ ope has a diameter of 30@@ 5 metres . In the " Search for Ex@@ tr@@ ater@@ restri@@ al Intelli@@ gence " ( S@@ ET@@ I ) every computer owner can be of assistance , by making his / her processing capacity available . View of the European Southern Ob@@ serv@@ atory ( ES@@ O ) in the Chi@@ lean An@@ des . This is home to the Very Large Tel@@ esc@@ ope , which lives up to its name . With its total of four mir@@ rors , the tel@@ esc@@ ope can also focus on the medi@@ al infr@@ ared spectrum . Likewise to be located at the ES@@ O Ob@@ serv@@ atory in Chile , the European Extre@@ m@@ ely Large Tel@@ esc@@ ope is also being planned . Its main mirror is to span a full 42 metres and will be made from almost 1,000 mirror elements . However , images are not to be expected until 20@@ 18 at the earliest . Until 2007 , the two K@@ eck tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es at the Ha@@ wai@@ ian volcan@@ o , Ma@@ una K@@ ea , were the largest in the world . They each have two mir@@ rors , each with a diameter of ten meters . The K@@ eck Tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es are part of the Ma@@ una K@@ ea Ob@@ serv@@ atory , which alongside the K@@ eck tel@@ es@@ cop@@ es , can look to the heav@@ ens with the help of the Sub@@ ar@@ u tel@@ esc@@ ope and the IR@@ T@@ T@@ F . Another huge new tel@@ esc@@ ope is also to be built on the Ma@@ una K@@ ea , with a mirror diameter of thirty metres . Here you can mar@@ vel at an artist 's impression . However , the most important insi@@ ghts into space are provided by the Hub@@ ble space tel@@ esc@@ ope . Since 24 April 1990 it has been supplying images of distant worlds . Since March 2009 the Ke@@ pler space tel@@ esc@@ ope has been searching for extra@@ -@@ solar plan@@ ets , especially for any that may be inhab@@ itable . On 2 February 2011 it was announced by N@@ ASA that 1,@@ 23@@ 5 plan@@ etary candidates had been identified since the mission began . The image documents the final launch preparations on the Ke@@ pler space tel@@ esc@@ ope . The James Web@@ b Space Tel@@ esc@@ ope ( J@@ W@@ ST ) will be launched into space on board an Ari@@ ane@@ 5 ro@@ cket by 20@@ 18 at the earliest . The primary mirror of the infr@@ ared space tel@@ esc@@ ope has a diameter of 6.@@ 5 metres . One of the tel@@ esc@@ ope 's tasks is to search for light from the first stars and galax@@ ies that emerged after the Big B@@ ang . Scienti@@ sts are assuming that ice also exists at Mer@@ cury 's south pole . However , there is no reliable data in support of this as the Messenger or@@ bits around the plan@@ ets much closer to the north pole . For decades , ra@@ dar measurements have indicated that there is ice on Mer@@ cury . Thanks to the Messenger probe that was launched in 2004 , the first to or@@ bit Mer@@ cury , scientists can now be certain . Drin@@ k but@@ ter on a daily basis - and live to 16@@ 8 years of age In Southern Azer@@ bai@@ jan , many people reach bi@@ b@@ lical ages . There is even a museum of lon@@ ge@@ v@@ ity . A h@@ unt for evidence in the country in which 97 years old is still compar@@ atively young . In Southern Azer@@ bai@@ jan , many people reach ages that can almost be considered bi@@ b@@ lical . There is even a museum of lon@@ ge@@ v@@ ity . A h@@ unt for evidence in the country in which 97 years old is still compar@@ atively young . The journey through the T@@ aly@@ sh Mountains can be described as wild and romantic . The mini@@ bus ru@@ mb@@ les over the win@@ ding streets , past den@@ sely woo@@ ded hills , ra@@ ging rivers and simple farm@@ houses . Every@@ where is green and lush - you could be for@@ given for thinking you were in the Black Forest . However , this is the deep south of Azer@@ bai@@ jan , and the border with Iran is just a few kilometres away . This is the home of the C@@ auc@@ asi@@ an people group , the T@@ aly@@ sh , of whom not much is known except that they speak perfect Per@@ sian and Az@@ eri and live long lives . The final stop is L@@ eri@@ k . The small town is bur@@ sting with over@@ power@@ ing architecture from Soviet times , which doesn 't fit with the picturesque mountain landscape at all . Tour@@ ists from Europe rarely come here ; the journey from Azer@@ bai@@ jan 's capital city , Bak@@ u , is too ar@@ du@@ ous . It takes eight hours to travel the 3@@ 23 kilometres , as too much of the route is just a single track . The fabulous wealth , for which the country has its oil in the Cas@@ pi@@ an Sea to thank , has not yet arri@@ ves here in the province . Yet Pil@@ ata Fat@@ ul@@ ay@@ eva ( 48 ) is convinced that L@@ eri@@ k has what it takes to be a tourist attraction . " Bak@@ u became famous in May due to the Euro@@ vision Song Con@@ test , and next year we are having a festival to celebrate the oldest people in the world , " said Fat@@ ul@@ ay@@ eva . She is the Director of the Museum of Lon@@ ge@@ v@@ ity , most likely the only of its kind in the world . Here the lives of eight do@@ zen T@@ aly@@ sh from the area who lived to older than 100 are documented . Fat@@ ul@@ ay@@ eva points out a black & white photo . This here is my grand@@ father , he was 120 years old . At the age of 13@@ 6 he fa@@ ther@@ ed another child . However , the un@@ ri@@ v@@ alled star of the museum is sh@@ ep@@ her@@ d Shi@@ r@@ ali Musli@@ mo@@ v who is said to have lived to 16@@ 8 years old . However no birth certificate exists to confirm this . And given that the longest confirmed li@@ fes@@ p@@ an was 12@@ 2 years of age , Musli@@ mo@@ v 's claim seems extremely doub@@ t@@ ful . " He was born in 18@@ 05 , here in the region , and died in 1973 , " explains Fat@@ ul@@ ay@@ eva . The man married three times and had 23 children , and is said to have fa@@ ther@@ ed another daughter at the age of 13@@ 6 . So did Shi@@ r@@ ali Musli@@ mo@@ v mis@@ calcul@@ ate his age by a couple of decades ? But Rem@@ brand@@ t Sch@@ olz , resear@@ cher on ageing at the Max Plan@@ ck Institute in Ro@@ stock , has also heard of people living to impressive ages in Central Asia . " A stri@@ k@@ ingly high number of extremely elderly people can also be found in some areas of China , in Japan or the H@@ un@@ za Valley in Pakistan , " said Sch@@ olz , " while there is also an extremely large number of very old men in Sard@@ inia . " Due to lacking documentation , however , there is no scientific proof of age , particularly as there are no birth regi@@ sters . Mel@@ ted but@@ ter by the glass , every day However , the fact remains that the people of the region surrounding L@@ eri@@ k reach a bi@@ b@@ lical age with striking regul@@ arity . There are currently 20 individuals older than 100 years of age . So why do so many very old people live here in the south ? The Az@@ eri travel guide F@@ ari@@ d Mu@@ g@@ im@@ z@@ ade@@ h explains this as being due to the special T@@ aly@@ sh gene@@ tics . In contrast , Museum Director Fat@@ ul@@ ay@@ eva believes that it is due to diet . However the notion that the cal@@ or@@ ie-@@ rich diet of the T@@ aly@@ sh , who love meat , bread and especially dairy products , and of whom many drink a glass of mel@@ ted but@@ ter on a daily basis , could be considered healthy from a nutrition science perspective does not really seem pl@@ au@@ sible either . Or is it the traditional way of life that keeps the people young ? In C@@ en@@ gem@@ ir@@ an , a tiny settlement not far from the town of L@@ eri@@ k , lives Rub@@ aba Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva . At 97 years old she is still compar@@ atively young for the area . Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva , who claims to have 14@@ 3 desc@@ end@@ ants , lives in a simple wooden house , which is typical of the entire Caucasus region . She si@@ ts on the floor with a but@@ ter chur@@ n , which she roll@@ s back@@ wards and for@@ wards ti@@ rel@@ ess@@ ly . Ei@@ ght people live here under this roof , including one of Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva 's sons and a daughter , both of whom have been grand@@ parents for some time . There are also two small children running around . In the kitchen , tea is prepared for the guests , which is served in typical , bul@@ ging Ar@@ ma@@ du gl@@ asses . Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva 's white teeth stand in perfect rank and file , ben@@ e@@ ath her head@@ scar@@ f she conc@@ eals long , dark bl@@ ond pla@@ its , which her son pro@@ u@@ dly reveals for us . I have always wash@@ ed my hair with milk , and it has never fallen out or lost its colour . " I have never used sham@@ po@@ o either , " said Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva . Mon@@ thly pension is enough to live on She has only ever e@@ aten what she could get from her own farm - tom@@ at@@ oes , pot@@ at@@ oes , pe@@ as . My whole life I have never once bought gro@@ c@@ eries in the super@@ market . Then she tells of her husband who was in the army . Th@@ ings were at their worst during the time after the Second World War . However , everything became better when the " bel@@ o@@ ved father " He@@ y@@ dar Ali@@ y@@ ev took the ru@@ d@@ der . The propaganda seems strange coming from the mouth of an old lady . Yet the cul@@ t that revol@@ ved around the father figure for the nation , who governed his country like a dict@@ ator practically knows no limits in Azer@@ bai@@ jan . He held power until 2003 and his son Il@@ ham later took over the hel@@ m . At least there is no de@@ priv@@ ation among Azer@@ bai@@ jan 's elderly . Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva receives 230 Man@@ at ( around the same sum in euros ) per month as her pension , which in a local context is an amount on which one can live comfortably . And perhaps Mir@@ z@@ ay@@ eva 's long gre@@ ying son is right : " The elderly enjoy a deep respect in our culture . " They live among their extended family , are loved , car@@ ed for and are happy . If this is not a reason to live for as long as possible , then what is ? The notion of " human rights " is om@@ itted from the constitution . The revolution has returned to Cairo . Comp@@ eting demonstrations in Cairo reveal the deep division within the country . The future constitution based on Sh@@ aria law is f@@ ier@@ c@@ ely disp@@ uted . The Egyptian President is not holding back his emo@@ tion . We must make the transition . " And making sure it succ@@ eed@@ s is my responsibility , before the people and before God , " he said on state television . His speech was aimed at the entire population , however in particular at the Cop@@ tic Christians , the liber@@ als , en@@ ligh@@ tened Muslims and sec@@ ular@@ ists . For all of them , until now hop@@ eless@@ ly est@@ ran@@ ged in a be@@ wil@@ dered opposition , are fear@@ ful . They are fear@@ ful of a God State on the Ni@@ le at the mer@@ cy of the powerful Muslim Bro@@ ther@@ hood . According to Moh@@ amed Mur@@ si , speaking almost ap@@ olo@@ ge@@ tically , he has temporarily restricted the authority of the constitutional court and increased his own authority , " in order to rescue the revolution . " However , Egyp@@ ti@@ ans - and the world - are not entirely sure what the 6@@ 1-@@ year-old engineer who holds a Doc@@ torate from the American University of Southern California , really wants to save . Should the judiciary be deprived of power ? In actual fact , the 23@@ 4 articles , which have been pushed through by the Islam@@ ic-@@ dominated 1@@ 10-@@ person Constitu@@ ent Assembly , are in some aspects cause for concern . As was also the case under previous constitu@@ tions , under the draft ju@@ dic@@ ature is justified on the " principles of Islamic law . " Yet what are " principles " ? This was and remains subject to interpretation and there is concern that the Islam@@ ists will make use of the wo@@ ol@@ ly form@@ ulation and the resulting room for legal manoeu@@ vre in favour of a stricter interpretation of Sh@@ aria law . This is at least suggested by one newly added article : in all issues affecting Sh@@ aria law , the Al Ash@@ ar University must be consulted , the country 's most important Islamic institution , which has great influence throughout the whole of Sun@@ ni Islam . This can , but does not necessarily have to mean that the cl@@ ergy will over@@ see legislation , which would result in the de facto incap@@ ac@@ itation of the judiciary . Much in the constitutional draft is open to interpretation Also problematic : civil military jurisdiction will continue to be uph@@ eld . During M@@ ub@@ ar@@ ak 's rule , these courts served to sup@@ press opposition . Following the fall of the dict@@ ator , up to 11@@ ,000 civilians were under military impris@@ onment . According to the draft , the state should also protect " the true character of the Egyptian family , and promote its mor@@ als and values . " From a legal perspective , this is formulated in such an unclear manner that state institutions could even use this article to control the content of cin@@ em@@ atic art and literature . In plain language , this is nothing other than cens@@ or@@ ship . In@@ ci@@ dentally , no article explicitly establishes the equality of men and women . Another does prohi@@ bit the ins@@ ult or s@@ lander of the proph@@ et Moh@@ amed and his emis@@ s@@ aries . However , what constitutes an ins@@ ult and how this should be sanc@@ tioned remains unclear . Equ@@ ally du@@ bi@@ ous is the form@@ ulation stating that " ins@@ ul@@ ting people " is forbidden . Is a car@@ ic@@ ature of the president sufficient , or a jo@@ ke at the expense of a jur@@ ist ? Open to interpretation , like so much in the draft submitted by Mur@@ si to be signed and that , in his own words , will be submitted to Egyp@@ ti@@ ans for referendum " very soon . " " The revolution is back " For weeks the opposition has been gathering to combat the superior strength of the Islam@@ ists . T@@ ens of thousands gathered on Friday evening at the T@@ ah@@ ri@@ r Square in Cairo , in un@@ familiar unity , and ple@@ dged to bring down the charter before it has even come into effect . " The revolution is back and we are going to be vic@@ t@@ orious , " said Ham@@ din Sab@@ ba@@ hi , third place candidate in the presidential elections . Nob@@ le Peace Prize winner and former Head of the International Atom@@ ic Energy Authority , Moh@@ amed El@@ -@@ Bar@@ ad@@ ei explained that the constitutional draft belongs " on the rub@@ b@@ ish tip of history . " Via SMS service Twitter , he accused Mur@@ si 's fol@@ lo@@ wers of wanting to lead " a coup against democracy . " " If he calls for the referendum , we will go to his palace and over@@ throw him , " said member of the opposition J@@ asser Sa@@ id . " We have not yet grown tired , the blood of our brothers has not yet been at@@ oned for , " stated the Egyptian media , quot@@ ing opposition politi@@ cian Chal@@ ed Ali . And several judges have sign@@ alled that they do not want to over@@ see the referendum , which would render it invali@@ d . " The Kor@@ an is our constitution " The well-@@ organised Muslim Bro@@ ther@@ hood gathered for a counter-@@ demonstration , although acting cau@@ ti@@ ously they did not choose the T@@ ah@@ ri@@ r Square but rather a mass pra@@ yer on the other side of the Ni@@ le , outside the Cairo University . Many vei@@ led women and fol@@ lo@@ wers of the Sal@@ af@@ is took part , sh@@ ou@@ ting out : " The people demand the application of God 's law . " They demanded of Mur@@ si : " Cle@@ an@@ se the country ! " and prot@@ ested : " The Kor@@ an is our constitution . " A struggle for control over the symbolic T@@ ah@@ ri@@ r Square , where everything began , would have most likely prov@@ oked events ver@@ ging on civil war . Quite clearly , this was something that Mur@@ si 's fol@@ lo@@ wers did not want to risk . The Muslim Bro@@ thers stated that both those against and those in favour of the constitutional draft had expressed themselves loud and clear . Now is the time to let the population decide at the bal@@ lot box , in which direction the country should move forward . It is a certainty that there is a majority in favour of the Islam@@ ists ' draft . " The term ' human rights ' does not even appear once " Haf@@ ez Abu Sa@@ eda is fur@@ ious about this forced constitu@@ tive process , which actually should have la@@ sted until February and should have involved all social interest groups . The 4@@ 8-@@ year-old human rights lawyer and Chairman of the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights ( E@@ O@@ HR ) defended the Muslim Bro@@ ther@@ hood , when impris@@ oned or in court under M@@ ub@@ ar@@ ak . Not because he shared their world view , but because for him , human rights are indi@@ visible . For this he was batter@@ ed , condemned and impris@@ oned . " And now the term human rights does not even appear once in the new constitution , " he bem@@ o@@ an@@ ed in a discussion with " Welt am Sonntag . " The lawyer has resign@@ ed himself to Mur@@ si extending his power to all three branches of state government . These measures are b@@ lat@@ ant bre@@ aches of the ground rules of democracy and will guide Egypt into a new dictatorship . " Instead of strengthening the civil society , the President is effectively susp@@ ending it , " compl@@ ained Sa@@ eda . Yet without civil society organisations , a democracy cannot function . Sa@@ eda feels abandoned , even by the international community , which is ob@@ serving the battle over the ideological direction on the Ni@@ le with a mixture of cur@@ io@@ sity and exc@@ itement . This could come back to ha@@ unt them . One demonstr@@ ator at the T@@ ah@@ ri@@ r war@@ ned : " You are letting loo@@ se a mon@@ ster that you can no longer control . " Norway 's rak@@ fis@@ k : Is this the world 's sm@@ elli@@ est fish ? Norway 's five million people enjoy one of the highest standards of living , not just in Europe , but in the world . Could the secret of the country 's success be connected to the local ap@@ peti@@ te for some exceed@@ ingly sm@@ el@@ ly fish ? Take a selection of over-@@ ri@@ pe che@@ es@@ es . Place them in the midst of a pi@@ le of dirty , wet so@@ cc@@ er kit . Le@@ ave for a week . Now you have the no@@ se-@@ num@@ bing smell of rak@@ fis@@ k , one of the great Norweg@@ ian delic@@ acies . I am in the small town of F@@ ag@@ ern@@ es , about three hours from Oslo . There is snow , spectacular scenery - and that od@@ our , ever present , hang@@ s in the air . Rak@@ fis@@ k is tro@@ ut sprin@@ kl@@ ed with salt and fer@@ m@@ ented in water for - depending on how sm@@ el@@ ly you like your fish - up to a year . As the dark sets in and the weather turns cold , Norweg@@ ians flo@@ ck to a festival here in F@@ ag@@ ern@@ es devoted to this most , well , cap@@ tiv@@ ating of foods . " You eat it raw , and then s@@ wal@@ low a glass of aqu@@ av@@ it , " says Hav@@ ard Hal@@ var@@ sen , full-@@ time local fire@@ figh@@ ter but also the so-called " Rak@@ fis@@ k General , " in charge of running the festival . All around us people are eating little c@@ ub@@ es of the fish and kno@@ cking back quantities of drink . " Some people like the aqu@@ av@@ it more than the rak@@ fis@@ k , " says Hav@@ ard . The drink can kill the smell . I try a few pieces . If you can avoid passing it under your nose , it is not bad - not unlike a sli@@ ce of sus@@ hi that has been on rather a long bus journey . Rak@@ fis@@ k is a product of very different , pover@@ ty-@@ stri@@ cken times in Norway when , pre-@@ refriger@@ ation , fish was so@@ aked in air@@ tight bar@@ rel@@ s of water and salt in autumn . Then in the dep@@ ths of winter , well and truly fer@@ m@@ ented , it is taken out and - no doubt with the senses kno@@ cked out by alcohol - e@@ aten . Only a generation ago , thousands of Norweg@@ ians were forced to leave their country in search of work , emi@@ gr@@ ating mainly to the US . Now the population is expanding fast - more than 13 % are immigrants , attracted by pl@@ enti@@ ful jobs , high wages and a comprehensive care system . People from Sweden , the old ri@@ val and not so long ago far ri@@ cher than Norway , stream in to work . Rak@@ fis@@ k is seen as signi@@ fying something important , a vital if rather sm@@ el@@ ly part of Norway 's past . It is among the more expensive dishes you can buy . But then everything is expensive - a small glass of beer or a sand@@ wich kno@@ ck you back £ 9 ( $ 14 ) each . Norway does not often make it on to the global news agenda - and most seem to like it that way . People here are still lo@@ ath to mention by name Anders Brei@@ vi@@ k , the right-@@ wing , rac@@ ist extrem@@ ist who g@@ un@@ ned down and killed 77 men , women and children last year . Instead , the sho@@ ot@@ ings are referred to as " the July the 2@@ 2nd incident . " Norweg@@ ians find it very difficult to believe that in their peac@@ e-@@ lo@@ ving country one of their own was capable of such brut@@ ality and murder . The growth since the early 1970s of one of the world 's biggest oil and gas industries lies behind much of Norway 's present@@ -@@ day wealth . " But oil is not the only reason we are doing so well , " says Anna our wa@@ it@@ ress , hand@@ ing round tra@@ ys of mat@@ uring rak@@ fis@@ k and , with her long bl@@ ond hair and star@@ t@@ l@@ ingly blue eyes , the image of Nordic well-being . We are a - how you say - pru@@ dent people . Her English , like that of most people here , is f@@ law@@ less . We are not very show@@ y , we do not like ost@@ entation . Norway has handled its oil wealth very carefully - all but a small percentage of money from the industry is invested in a special fund for the benefit of future generations . When everyone else was thro@@ wing around money they did not have , in the years leading up to the global financial crash , Norway kept its pur@@ se str@@ ings tigh@@ tly bound . " As long as we can ski in winter and go hiking in summer we are happy , " says Anna . " And eat rak@@ fis@@ k , " she adds with a car@@ ef@@ ree lau@@ gh . I stand in the snow and queu@@ e for something to eat - I have had enough rak@@ fis@@ k . Now an el@@ k burger is certainly something different and rather su@@ c@@ cul@@ ent to the taste . But in the evening , it is more of that sm@@ el@@ ly fish . The hotel I am staying in is one of a number of venues hosting a rak@@ fis@@ k dinner where guests vote on the best - or perhaps the most n@@ as@@ ally challenging - fish . There is a live TV link up to a comp@@ ere in a bow tie surrounded by plates of rak@@ fis@@ k . It is like the Euro@@ vision song contest . " What score do you have for the best fish up there in the mountains Th@@ or-@@ Ju@@ er@@ gen ? " " Here are our points , Hav@@ ard . " There is cl@@ apping , lau@@ ghter . A man falls off his chair , perhaps overcome with aqu@@ av@@ it . Or maybe it is the f@@ umes from all that fish . Mexico 's En@@ ri@@ que P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to faces tough start As Mexico 's incoming President En@@ ri@@ que P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to prepar@@ es to take office , the BBC 's Will Gr@@ ant looks at the challenges facing him and the mixed expectations of his population . Traff@@ ic in Mexico City is particularly bad at present . A con@@ gest@@ ed city at the best of times , a ring of steel has been er@@ ected since Monday cutting off several key routes into the capital and causing chaos on the roads . The aim , however , wasn 't to stop comm@@ uters getting to work but prevent protes@@ ters from reaching parliament . On Saturday , Mexico 's new president En@@ ri@@ que P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to will receive the presidential s@@ ash and take over the running of the nation . He faces a complicated task . Mexico has been performing well economically under the out@@ going administration of Feli@@ pe Cal@@ der@@ on , but the country is in the gri@@ p of a drug war , which has already claimed an estimated 60@@ ,000 lives in six years . " My government has a great commitment to the Mexican people to reduce the violence , " Mr P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to told US President Barack Obama in the O@@ val Office earlier this week . I will be proposing a new security strategy which will allow us to achieve that aim . Before rub@@ bing shoul@@ ders with the US president , Mr P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to 's previous political experience was as govern@@ or of his home state , the State of Mexico . A popul@@ ous , spra@@ w@@ ling state surrounding the capital , opinions about the new leader are divided in his old st@@ omp@@ ing ground . A straightforward man In the bu@@ co@@ lic town of Valle del Bra@@ vo , for example , he is remembered f@@ ondly . Res@@ idents credit him with boo@@ sting tourism in the resort and building infrastructure . To reach the town you can drive along one of Mr P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to 's new motor@@ ways , a vast improvement on the cra@@ cked and b@@ ump@@ y roads it replaced . Pla@@ ques bearing his name also hang outside a modern sports centre and an impressive interactive museum about climate change . " We are looking to him to bring about real and lasting change , " says friend and political ally Gabri@@ el Ol@@ ver@@ a Her@@ nan@@ dez , a state con@@ gres@@ sman for Mr P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to 's party , the PR@@ I . Partic@@ ularly in terms of security and the economy , we 're hoping for an interesting and true change which our country so badly needs . After an un@@ broken 81 years in power , the PR@@ I was ou@@ sted in 2000 by Vic@@ ente Fox . Con@@ gres@@ sman Ol@@ ver@@ a ad@@ mits that after 12 years outside the presidential palace of Los Pin@@ os , there is much exp@@ ec@@ tation within the party about En@@ ri@@ que P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to . And he re@@ jects the opposition 's character@@ isation of the new president as lacking substance . He 's a very straightforward man , very committed with an excellent vision of the country . He 's an excellent stat@@ es@@ man and , above all , he 's someone who knows how to listen . But on the other side of the state , that is not the impression many people have of their former govern@@ or . In Ne@@ zah@@ u@@ alco@@ y@@ ot@@ l , also known as Ci@@ u@@ dad Ne@@ za , the contrast with the co@@ b@@ b@@ led streets of Valle del Bra@@ vo couldn 't be shar@@ per . Tu@@ cked away under motorway fl@@ y@@ over@@ s , it is in many ways a sub@@ ur@@ b of Mexico City itself . And the problems in the municipality are also gr@@ itt@@ y and urban . Ear@@ lier this year , the military was called in to help tackle the drug gangs operating in the neigh@@ bour@@ h@@ oods , and violence against women is particularly acute . On a patch of wast@@ eland by a vast land@@ fill site , the bodies of doz@@ ens of murdered women have been dump@@ ed over the past two years alone . More than 1,000 women were killed in Mexico State while Mr P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to was govern@@ or , a rate much higher than in the not@@ ori@@ ously violent city of Ci@@ u@@ dad Ju@@ are@@ z - a place syn@@ onymous with the murder of innocent women . Mr P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to 's critics say , at best , he failed to adequately address the problem of fem@@ icide while he was in office . At worst , they acc@@ use his administration of turning a blind eye . In a concrete home typical of the r@@ und@@ own neighbourhood , I@@ rin@@ ea Bu@@ endi@@ a stru@@ gg@@ les to fight back the t@@ ears as she shows me photos of her late daughter , Mari@@ ana L@@ una . According to the official version of events , Mari@@ ana committed suicide in 2010 . However her family believes she was murdered by her partner . " When I arrived at her house it seemed her body had been wash@@ ed , " S@@ enor@@ a Bu@@ endi@@ a rec@@ alls . There were signs she 'd been be@@ aten , and rig@@ or mor@@ tis had already set in . As her mother re@@ counts the story , a picture of Mari@@ ana looks down from the walls , next to a cross bearing a single word : Justice . However , that is exactly what the family say they have been denied . The state authorities have treated me like I 'm an old go@@ ssi@@ p , a troub@@ le-@@ maker , a wh@@ iner . What they want is that one simply accepts what they say and sh@@ uts up . " But that can 't be right when there were so many irregularities and om@@ is@@ sions , " she says . As President P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to receives the s@@ ash on Saturday , it comes with a heavy responsibility . T@@ ens of thousands of families have been affected by violent crime in Mexico over the past six years and the new president has promised to make them a priority during his time in office . " I hope he 's the same kind of president as he was a govern@@ or , " says PR@@ I Con@@ gres@@ sman Ol@@ ver@@ a in Valle del Bra@@ vo . That , however , is exactly what victims ' families in Ci@@ u@@ dad Ne@@ za most fear . Bra@@ d@@ ley Mann@@ ing didn 't compl@@ ain about mist@@ re@@ at@@ ment , prosec@@ ut@@ ors cont@@ end Pro@@ sec@@ ut@@ ors try to counter Bra@@ d@@ ley Mann@@ ing 's claims of abuse in con@@ fin@@ ement The hearing focuses on Mann@@ ing 's time in the military bri@@ g at Qu@@ an@@ tico , Vir@@ g@@ inia Def@@ ense wants case dis@@ missed on grounds that Mann@@ ing 's con@@ fin@@ ement was harsh The Army private is accused of ste@@ aling thousands of classified documents Pro@@ sec@@ ut@@ ors tried to establish Friday that Army private Bra@@ d@@ ley Mann@@ ing -- charged in the largest le@@ ak of classified material in U.S. history -- missed multiple opportunities to compl@@ ain about the mist@@ re@@ at@@ ment he 's alleg@@ ing he suffered in military cust@@ ody . While cross-@@ examining Mann@@ ing at a pre-@@ trial hearing at F@@ t . Me@@ ade , Mar@@ y@@ land , prosec@@ utor Maj@@ . Ash@@ den F@@ ein asser@@ ted that records of weekly visits Mann@@ ing had with unit officers during nine months of detention at Qu@@ an@@ tico , Vir@@ g@@ inia , show no complaints about his treatment . The cross-@@ examination -- during a hearing on a defense motion to have Mann@@ ing 's case dis@@ missed on grounds that his con@@ fin@@ ement has been harsh and has amoun@@ ted to enough punishment -- came a day after Mann@@ ing t@@ esti@@ fied that he had considered suicide while in cust@@ ody . The Army intelligence analy@@ st , arrested in June 2010 , is accused of ste@@ aling thousands of classified documents while serving in Iraq . The material was then published online by Wiki@@ Le@@ aks . Wiki@@ Le@@ aks has never confirmed that Mann@@ ing was the source of its information . In Friday 's hearing , F@@ ein reviewed with Mann@@ ing the forms that officers filled out after meeting with Mann@@ ing during his detention at Qu@@ an@@ tico 's bri@@ g , where he was held under a hei@@ gh@@ tened con@@ fin@@ ement status from July 2010 to April 2011 . Offic@@ ers would ask Mann@@ ing questions and write down his responses . When F@@ ein asked about the forms Friday , Mann@@ ing acknowledged that he rated treatment by his gu@@ ards as " excellent " and treatment by the facility overall as " very professional . " The forms show no complaints of mist@@ re@@ at@@ ment , even though the officers asked Mann@@ ing directly about his treatment , F@@ ein cont@@ ended . Mann@@ ing responded that he would verb@@ ally express concern about issues and that the visiting officers would talk through the concerns and indicate that they would be addressed , but they didn 't record the issues . " They would write down ' no issues ' ( after discussing the concerns ) , and it didn 't necessarily mean I didn 't bring something up , " Mann@@ ing said . The judge , Army Col@@ . Den@@ ise L@@ ind , also asked Mann@@ ing why he didn 't compl@@ ain about his treatment during a January 2011 meeting with a board examining the su@@ ici@@ dal thoughts he expressed in a form months earlier . Mann@@ ing rep@@ lied that his intention during that meeting was to get his " prevention of injury " status down@@ gra@@ ded . The military said they put him on this restrictive status -- a step below suicide watch -- for his protection and the safety of others . " I wanted staff to know I was fine , and ( I wanted to ) get off the PO@@ I status ... to enjoy an increased quality of life from my view@@ point , " Mann@@ ing said . Mann@@ ing t@@ esti@@ fied Thursday about his arrest in Iraq and his transfer to Ku@@ wait , where he was held for nearly two months before being transferred to the bri@@ g at Marine Base Qu@@ an@@ tico in Vir@@ g@@ inia in July 2010 . He said he contem@@ pl@@ ated suicide in Ku@@ wait and once passed out there due to the heat . He said not being allowed to know what was happening to him or in the outside world was dist@@ res@@ sing . " My world just shr@@ ink to Camp Ara@@ f@@ j@@ on , to that c@@ age , " Mann@@ ing said Thursday . I thought I was going to die in that c@@ age . Once at Qu@@ an@@ tico , Mann@@ ing said , he spend most days in a small cell -- at least 21 hours and often more than 23 hours -- with no company . Mann@@ ing said he was allowed only a mat@@ t@@ ress , blan@@ ket , fli@@ p-@@ fl@@ ops , some clothes and his gl@@ asses . He said he tried to keep moving , because sleeping during the day or even lying down was against the rules . Mann@@ ing said he always sle@@ pt with light from outside his cell in his eyes . If gu@@ ards could not see his face when he rolled over at night , he said they would wake him to roll back over . Mann@@ ing 's lawyer filed a formal ob@@ jection to Mann@@ ing 's treatment in January 2011 . Mann@@ ing was moved to the military prison at Fort Le@@ aven@@ worth , K@@ ans@@ as , in April 2011 . Also Friday , the judge asked Mann@@ ing about an alleg@@ ation that he made in Thursday 's testim@@ ony -- that after being forced to sleep n@@ aked one night in his Qu@@ an@@ tico cell , he was forced to stand n@@ aked in front of gu@@ ards and other in@@ m@@ ates during a morning head count . Mann@@ ing had t@@ esti@@ fied that he was never given a chance to cover himself with his blan@@ ket during the head count . Under ques@@ tioning from the judge Friday , Mann@@ ing said that he in@@ ferred from his guard 's order that he should drop a blan@@ ket that could have covered him , but he acknowledged that no one had ordered him to drop it . Mann@@ ing t@@ esti@@ fied Thursday that he was forced to sleep n@@ aked the previous night because of his attempt to show an officer that he wasn 't a danger to himself . Mann@@ ing said that he told the officer that he could have used the wa@@ ist@@ band of his under@@ wear or his fli@@ p-@@ fl@@ ops to h@@ urt himself but ha@@ d@@ n 't done so . That night , Mann@@ ing t@@ esti@@ fied , his under@@ wear , fli@@ p-@@ fl@@ ops and gl@@ asses were removed from his cell . His lawyers hope the judge will at least take his experiences during con@@ fin@@ ement into account and sharp@@ ly reduce his sentence should he be convic@@ ted at his cour@@ t-@@ mar@@ ti@@ al , which is expected to begin early next year . The defense has said it plans to have Mann@@ ing ple@@ ad guilty to less@@ er off@@ enses and fight other charges as being too extreme . The hearing is scheduled to resume this weekend , with prosec@@ ut@@ ors expected to argue that the detention conditions were warran@@ ted . The Pent@@ ag@@ on has maintained that Mann@@ ing was held in accordance with rules governing all maxim@@ um-@@ cust@@ ody det@@ ain@@ ees at Qu@@ an@@ tico . Coun@@ ts against Mann@@ ing include ai@@ ding the enemy , wron@@ g@@ fully causing intelligence to be published on the Internet , trans@@ mitting national defense information and th@@ eft of public property or records . If he 's convic@@ ted on all counts , he could face a life sentence . My Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ American identity crisis He says many were forced to leave Mexico because of the lack of opportunities there Mex@@ ic@@ ans tend to fault those who left ; they remind Mex@@ ic@@ ans of hard times , he says Nav@@ ar@@ ret@@ te says Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans are caught between two worlds On a recent trip to Mexico City , I had barely made my way down the con@@ course and arrived at the immigration processing area when I got st@@ ump@@ ed . Sign@@ s pointed the way to two lines : one for " Mex@@ ic@@ anos " ( " Mex@@ ic@@ ans " ) , another for " Ex@@ tran@@ jer@@ os " ( " For@@ eign@@ ers . " ) I stood there for a few seconds , un@@ sure of where to go . Gro@@ wing up in Central California , I had been called a " Mexican " my entire life . It 's ethnic shor@@ th@@ and in the same way that my friends in Boston refer to themselves as " Irish " or my friends in New York describe themselves as " Italian . " Later , I settled on " Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ American . " But , this was Mexico . And , in the hom@@ eland of my grand@@ father , there was no need for shor@@ th@@ and or hy@@ ph@@ ens . I was simply an American . I speak Spanish , good enough to handle either end of an interview in that language . But I don 't have the voc@@ abul@@ ary of a native , and I can 't sha@@ ke my American acc@@ ent . So I took my U.S. passport and got in the line for Ex@@ tran@@ jer@@ os . I thought about that moment this week when Mexican presi@@ dent@@ -@@ elect En@@ ri@@ que P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to visited the White House to meet with President Obama . On the agenda , as usual , when the leaders of these two countries meet : immigration , drugs and trade . P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to was also e@@ ager to talk about the growth of the Mexican economy , which is one reason that Mex@@ ic@@ ans are now just as likely to stay in Mexico as venture to the United States . He wants to partner with the United States and Canada , and create a European Uni@@ on-@@ style trading blo@@ c in North America . And P@@ ena N@@ ie@@ to v@@ owed to continue Mexico 's war against the drug car@@ tels , even though he offered no specific@@ s . For Mexico , the relationship with the United States is complicated and filled with hard feelings . Most Americans probably never give a thought to the fact that , in 18@@ 48 , the United States inv@@ aded Mexico and forced its leaders to sign over half their territory at the point of rif@@ le . But for Mex@@ ic@@ ans , who think in terms of centuries , not minutes , the remin@@ ders are everywhere . So the minute that a U.S. official says anything the least bit critical of Mexico , you start hearing -- in the Mexican press , and among the el@@ ites -- complaints about how the Americans are en@@ cro@@ aching upon their neigh@@ bor 's sovereignty . And the children of Mon@@ te@@ zu@@ ma go on the war@@ path . And yet , for Mexico , the really challenging relationship is with the more than 35 million Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans living in the United States . You want to talk about hard feelings ? There is plenty . Mexico has winners and lo@@ sers , people for whom the country provides opportunities and others for whom it doesn 't . The only reason you have so many people of Mexican ancest@@ ry living in cities like Los Angeles , Las Vegas , Pho@@ enix , Den@@ ver or San Antonio is because , at some point in our family tree , there was a person , maybe a parent or grand@@ parent , who was shut out from opportunity in Mexico and had to go north . And more often than not , that person fit a profile -- dark skin , little education , from a poor village , etc . We 're their off@@ spring , and we 're loy@@ al to them . Not Mexico . And even though we may now be living the American Dre@@ am , having gone to good schools and taken good jobs , we can never lose sight of the fact that it 's the American Dre@@ am we 're living , and not the Mexican one . Our identity might sometimes be fu@@ zz@@ y , but our loy@@ alty is clear . It 's to the United States . Besides , we 're aware that many of the elite Mex@@ ic@@ ans in the ruling class don 't like us . The feeling is mutual . They see us as a remin@@ der of a hum@@ ili@@ ating defeat and look down on us as inf@@ erior stock that isn 't sufficiently Mexican . Our Spanish will never be good enough , our ties to Mexico never strong enough . Our existence is , as they see it , all about failure . If our families ha@@ d@@ n 't failed in Mexico , they w@@ ouldn 't have left . And we w@@ ouldn 't now find ourselves tra@@ pped behind the sil@@ k cur@@ tain , living well in the United States but lost sou@@ ls nonetheless . My wife , who was born in Gu@@ ad@@ al@@ aj@@ ara and came to the United States legally as a child , remin@@ ds me that there is fri@@ ction between Mex@@ ic@@ ans and Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans because Mex@@ ic@@ ans have a fir@@ mer gr@@ asp of who they are and Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans res@@ ent that . While she 's a U.S. citizen , she sees herself as a part of two countries . Meanwhile , many Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans I know don 't feel like they 're a part of either . We love listening to the Mexican band , Los Ti@@ gr@@ es del Nor@@ te , but also to Bru@@ ce Sp@@ ring@@ ste@@ en . You get the best of both worlds , but you 're rooted in neither . In Mexico , we 're seen as Americans . And in the United States , we 're considered Mexican . Now , to complic@@ ate the relationship even further , as I learned during my trip , some Mexican leaders and parts of the intelli@@ gent@@ sia want to re@@ connect with the Di@@ as@@ por@@ a . They want to put Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans to work as ma@@ kes@@ hi@@ ft " ambass@@ ad@@ ors " for Mexico , representing its interest in the United States . We would tell our fellow Americans what a great country this is to visit and pressure political leaders to strengthen ties with Mexico . Y@@ e@@ ah . That 's not going to happen . To@@ o many hard feelings . And , with income inequality and r@@ amp@@ ant corruption and drug violence , many of us are not so sure that it is a great country . I 'm afraid you 're on your own , am@@ ig@@ os . That 's fair . If at least some Mex@@ ic@@ ans aren 't yet ready to for@@ give the United States for how it treated Mexico a century and a half ago , then they have to accept the fact that some Mex@@ ic@@ an-@@ Americans still hold a gru@@ dge for how their family members were treated much more recently than that . H@@ mm@@ m . Maybe we 're more " Mexican " than I thought . Old batt@@ les , new Middle East The ceas@@ ef@@ ire between Israel and Hamas could yet be an unlikely foundation for peace Can there ever be a lasting peace between Arab@@ s and Jews in the Middle East ? Another round of bloo@@ d@@ shed suggests that any such hope is v@@ ain . A@@ mid the usual fu@@ tile arguments over who started it , scores of buildings have been reduced to rub@@ ble ; more than 140 Palestinians , most of them civilians , and six Israelis have been killed ; and , for the first time , missi@@ les from Gaza have land@@ ed near Tel Avi@@ v , Israel 's metro@@ polis , and the hol@@ y city of Jerusalem . But though the Israelis and Palestinians seem stuck in their ancient conflict , all around them the Middle East is changing . The Arab spring has thrown the pieces up in the air , and , like it or not , the Palestinians and Israelis are caught up in the regional tur@@ mo@@ il . Maybe this will make their struggle bloo@@ di@@ er than before . However , there are reasons for thinking it could just break their le@@ th@@ al stal@@ em@@ ate . A war that is neither lost or won At first sight , optim@@ ism looks very hard to justify now . Even if the ceas@@ ef@@ ire agreed on November 21st holds , this week 's fighting has strengthened the ha@@ w@@ ks on both sides . The leaders of Hamas , the Islam@@ ist movement that has ruled Gaza since 2007 , will claim to have forced the Israelis to back off , even though Gaza has taken a dru@@ b@@ bing . Despite killing some of its leaders and bot@@ t@@ ling up Gaza 's 1.@@ 7@@ m people in one of the most w@@ ret@@ ched and crow@@ ded cor@@ ners of the planet , Israel has failed to destroy Hamas . Indeed Hamas is gaining on the West Bank , the other bit of Palestine currently run by its bitter ri@@ vals in Fat@@ ah , the more moderate Palestinian fac@@ tion . Moreover , Hamas 's leaders may well conclude that time is on their side . As Islam@@ ists across the Arab world have gained cl@@ out , so Hamas has made powerful and rich friends . Turkey , a res@@ urgent regional power that was once Israel 's closest Muslim ally , has taken up Hamas 's cause ; so has Q@@ atar , one of the rich@@ est and most dynamic of the Gulf states . Jubil@@ ant Hamas people say an Islam@@ ist c@@ res@@ cent is cur@@ ving around Israel , from Lebanon in the north , where the H@@ iz@@ bul@@ l@@ ah part@@ y-@@ cum@@ -@@ mili@@ tia holds s@@ way , through Syria , where re@@ bels of an increasingly Islam@@ ist b@@ ent may t@@ opp@@ le B@@ ash@@ ar Ass@@ ad , and on down through Jordan , where Hamas 's allies are men@@ ac@@ ing the king . Above all , on Israel 's southern flan@@ k , the rise of the Muslim Bro@@ ther@@ hood under President Mu@@ ham@@ mad Mor@@ si in Egypt , by far the most popul@@ ous and pi@@ vot@@ al of Arab countries , has changed the region 's balance . Ho@@ s@@ ni M@@ ub@@ ar@@ ak , the secular des@@ pot who ran Egypt for 30 years until his down@@ fall in 2011 , had little time for Hamas . By contrast , the Bro@@ ther@@ hood is a c@@ ous@@ in of Hamas , and its leaders are more subject to popular opinion . In future diplomacy Hamas may emerge as an actor that cannot be shut out even by Israel and America . Meanwhile , Israel 's hard@@ lin@@ ers will draw the opposite conclusions . In military terms , Hamas has been put back in its box . Israel 's Ir@@ on D@@ ome anti-@@ missi@@ le system has proved its worth and many of Hamas 's missi@@ les have been destroyed . Israelis will sleep more sound@@ ly - for a while . In diplomatic terms , America is as ste@@ ad@@ fast as ever ; many European countries also bl@@ amed Hamas for starting the latest round of violence . Above all , Israel has prosp@@ ered , especially under Bin@@ y@@ amin Net@@ any@@ ah@@ u , a prime minister who has largely ignored the peace process . Although ro@@ ckets from Gaza have killed around 30 Israelis since 2004 , Israel has been fairly free of su@@ ic@@ ide@@ -@@ bom@@ bers , thanks in part to the barrier that bit@@ es into the West Bank , the main ch@@ unk of a w@@ oul@@ d-@@ be Palestinian state , and protects the Jewish settlements that continue to expand despite their illeg@@ ality in international law . Mr Net@@ any@@ ah@@ u , whose Li@@ ku@@ d party has mer@@ ged with an even more ha@@ w@@ k@@ ish lot under Avi@@ g@@ dor Lie@@ ber@@ man in the run@@ -up to an election on January 2@@ 2nd , is sitting pretty . Why co@@ ddle those twi@@ sty Palestinians by giving them a state of their own ? If they really ran the West Bank , would they not fire ro@@ ckets , just as their comp@@ atri@@ ots have done in Gaza ? Bet@@ ter to keep them behind that wall and sm@@ ite them if they raise their heads . Maybe the hard@@ lin@@ ers will win out ; yet the Arab spring may change their calculations . Even if the Islam@@ ists taking power in Egypt and elsewhere have little love for Israel , their priority will be tackling difficulties at home . Israel 's defence budget is bigger than that of its four Arab neighbours combined . Starting a war with the local super@@ power will hardly help the new Arab governments m@@ end their economies . That the pragmatic Mr Mor@@ si worked with Barack Obama to obtain a ceas@@ ef@@ ire au@@ g@@ urs well - and might just mark the start of something . Israelis too should look to the longer term . With the rest of the Arab world becoming more democratic , depri@@ ving Palestinians of their right to self-@@ determination is creating a powder ke@@ g that is bound one day to explo@@ de in the territories occupied by Israel - much as a bus explo@@ ded in Tel Avi@@ v this week . Repres@@ sion is already undermining democracy in the Jewish state , and demo@@ graphy exacerb@@ ates this as the Arab population s@@ well@@ s . B@@ loo@@ dy missions against Gaza every few years to kno@@ ck back Hamas will exact a growing diplomatic toll . Both sides need pro@@ d@@ ding by out@@ si@@ ders The answer remains the one tru@@ mp@@ eted by sensible people on both sides , most of the outside world and this newspaper : two states , with Israel c@@ eding territory for security . The hope - a small one in the short term - is that the ceas@@ ef@@ ire will give a little more le@@ verage to out@@ si@@ ders pushing that cause . Egypt , which must now set about st@@ opping the flow of arms into Gaza , along with Turkey and Q@@ atar , is better placed than ever to persuade Hamas to accept the idea of a Jewish state based on the 1967 boundaries with land sw@@ aps and a shared Jerusalem . Arab out@@ si@@ ders should also press Hamas and Fat@@ ah to come together . That would do more to create a Palestinian state than the im@@ min@@ ent bid for virtual stat@@ eh@@ ood at the UN . Mr Obama also has a part in getting Israel to the table . During his first term , he negl@@ ected to present his own plan for peace . Back in the White House , he is looking just as reluc@@ tant to be drawn in . This is wo@@ efully short-@@ si@@ ghted . America has a vital interest in a stable Middle East . That means a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians . C@@ igar@@ ette plain packaging laws come into force in Australia Smoking war@@ nings and dise@@ ased body parts emb@@ la@@ z@@ oned on d@@ ull green boxes that are the same for all tobacco brands Australia 's world-@@ first laws on cigar@@ ette and tobacco plain packaging have come into force , replacing brand logos and colours with generic dr@@ ab olive green cover@@ ings , gru@@ es@@ ome pictures of dise@@ ased body parts and depic@@ tions of children and bab@@ ies made ill by their parents ' smoking . Apart from the varying health war@@ nings and images the only difference between the p@@ acks , mandatory from Saturday , are the brand names , and these are all printed in identical small font . It is the world 's most strict regime for the packaging of tobacco . Australia 's federal government says the aim is to deter young people from smoking by stri@@ pping the hab@@ it of gl@@ am@@ our . It is rel@@ ying on studies showing that if people have not started smoking by age 26 there is a 99 % chance they will never take it up . " Even from a very early age you can see that kids understand the message that the tobacco company is trying to sell through their br@@ anding , " said the federal health minister , T@@ any@@ a P@@ liber@@ se@@ k , c@@ iting studies that showed , for example , children linking a cro@@ wn in a logo with the idea of being a pr@@ inc@@ ess . While Australia has one of the world 's lowest smoking rates and the changes will have little impact on multination@@ als ' profits , other countries are considering similar steps . The tobacco industry lob@@ bi@@ ed hard against the laws . Tob@@ acco firms said they would boost black market trade , leading to cheaper , more accessible cigar@@ ettes . " There will be serious un@@ intended consequences from the legislation , " said Scott Mc@@ Int@@ y@@ re of British American Tob@@ acco Australia . Co@@ unter@@ fei@@ ters from China and Indonesia will bring lots more of these products down to sell on the streets of Australia . O@@ thers say the laws have boo@@ sted their business . Sand@@ ra H@@ a of Z@@ ico Import P@@ ty Ltd , a small family business , said demand for cigar@@ ette cases , si@@ lic@@ on covers to mask the un@@ pal@@ at@@ able packages , had shot up from almost nothing two months ago since British American Tob@@ acco , Britain 's Imperial Tob@@ acco , Phili@@ p Mor@@ ris and Japan Tob@@ acco lost a challenge to the laws in Australia 's high court . H@@ a said Z@@ ico had sold up to 6@@ ,000 to wholes@@ ale out@@ lets and was awaiting new stock . This is good business for us . The potential hit@@ ch , experts say , is the popularity of social media with the very demographic the plan is target@@ ing . After a series of Australian laws bann@@ ing TV advertising and sports sponsor@@ ship and requiring most s@@ ellers to hide cigar@@ ettes from view , tobacco marketing has moved online . Australia has banned web advertising by local companies and sites but cannot restrict overseas sites . " If you are a tobacco mark@@ eter and you 've only got this small window left to promote your products , online is the comp@@ elling place for you to be in , " said B@@ eck@@ y Fre@@ eman , a public health resear@@ cher at Sydney University . Fre@@ eman noted an increase in " average Jo@@ e " reviews of brands on social media sites such as YouTube , Twitter and Facebook . We have to ask , is that just a private citizen who really lo@@ ves Mar@@ l@@ bor@@ o cigar@@ ettes and they 've gone to the trouble of making a video , or is there a marketing company involved ? British American Tob@@ acco Australia said the industry was focused on dealing with the new rules rather than marketing . The industry has gone as far as paying for Ukraine , Hon@@ dur@@ as and the Domin@@ ican Republic to challenge the new rules - the countries are claiming at the World Trade Organisation that trade is being un@@ fairly restricted , despite none of the countries having significant trade with Australia . A WTO ruling is likely in mid-@@ 2013 . P@@ liber@@ se@@ k said the government had held discussions with other countries considering similar laws on packaging . Canada was the first country to make phot@@ ograph war@@ nings mandatory in 2001 . They now extend to more than 40 countries including Brazil , Turkey and Ukraine . Tou@@ gh@@ er laws are being considered in Britain , New Zealand , South Africa and India . Many smo@@ kers in Australia remain de@@ fi@@ ant . The pictures don 't affect me . I just ignore them . " You just gr@@ ab a smoke and put it away , " said Vic@@ tor El H@@ age as he purchased a pack with a phot@@ ograph of a mouth tum@@ our . Hon@@ est@@ ly , there 's only one reason I 'd stop , and that 's my little girl . James Y@@ u , who runs the King of the Pack tob@@ ac@@ con@@ ist in central Sydney , said the uniform packaging made it harder to st@@ ack his shel@@ ves " It used to take me an hour to un@@ load a delivery , now it takes me four hours , " Y@@ u said . " The government should have just banned them altogether and then we 'd go OK , fine , we 're done , we 'll shut up shop , " he said , thro@@ wing his hands up in the air . In a Con@@ st@@ antly Plug@@ ge@@ d-@@ In World , It 's Not All Bad to Be Bor@@ ed I spent five unexpected hours in an airport this Th@@ an@@ ks@@ giving holiday when our plane had mechanical difficulties and we had to wait for another plane to arrive . So I had plenty of time to think about the subject of bor@@ ed@@ om . I won 't lie to you . Hal@@ f a day in an airport waiting for a flight is pretty te@@ di@@ ous , even with the di@@ stra@@ c@@ tions of books , magazines and i@@ Ph@@ ones ( not to mention dut@@ y-@@ free shopping ) . But increasingly , some academ@@ ics and child development experts are coming out in praise of bor@@ ed@@ om . It 's all right for us - and our children - to be bor@@ ed on occasion , they say . It forces the brain to go on interesting t@@ ang@@ ents , perhaps fo@@ stering creativity . And because most of us are almost consistently plug@@ ged into one screen or another these days , we don 't experience the benefits of bor@@ ed@@ om . So should we embra@@ ce bor@@ ed@@ om ? Yes . And no . But I 'll get back to that . First of all , like many people , I assumed that bor@@ ed@@ om was a relatively recent phenomenon , with the adv@@ ent of more leisure time . Not so , says Peter T@@ oo@@ h@@ ey , a professor of Greek and Roman history at the University of Cal@@ g@@ ary in Canada and the author of " Bor@@ ed@@ om : A Li@@ vely History " ( Y@@ ale University Press , 2011 ) . " Bor@@ ed@@ om actually has a very long history , " he said . There 's Latin gra@@ ff@@ iti about bor@@ ed@@ om on the walls of P@@ omp@@ ei@@ i dating from the first century . Then there 's the question of how we define bor@@ ed@@ om . The trouble is that it has been defined , and discussed , in many different ways , said John D. E@@ ast@@ wood , an associ@@ ate professor of psych@@ ology at York University in On@@ t@@ ario , Canada . After looking over the research literature and putting the idea in front of a focus group of about 100 people , Professor E@@ ast@@ wood and his colleagues defined bor@@ ed@@ om as an experience of " wanting to , but being unable to engage in satis@@ fying activity . " What separ@@ ates bor@@ ed@@ om from ap@@ ath@@ y , he said , is that the person is not engaged but wants to be . With ap@@ ath@@ y , he said , there is no urge to do something . The core experience of bor@@ ed@@ om , he said , is " dis@@ ruption of the attention process , associated with a low mood and a sense that time is passing slowly . " Bor@@ ed@@ om can sound an aw@@ ful lot like de@@ pression . But Professor E@@ ast@@ wood said that while they can be related , people who are bor@@ ed tend to see the problem as the environment or the world , while people who are de@@ pressed see the problem as themselves . Sometimes we think we 're bor@@ ed when we just have difficulty concentr@@ ating . In their study , " The Un@@ engaged M@@ ind : Defin@@ ing Bor@@ ed@@ om in Terms of At@@ tention , " which appeared in the journ@@ al Per@@ spec@@ tives on Psych@@ ological Science in September , Professor E@@ ast@@ wood and his colleagues pointed to an earlier experiment in which participants listened to a tape of a person reading a magazine article . Some groups heard a loud and un@@ related television program in the next room , others heard it at a low level so it was barely notic@@ eable , while the third group didn 't hear the sound@@ track at all . The ones who heard the low-@@ level TV reported more bor@@ ed@@ om than the other two groups - they had difficulty concentr@@ ating but were not sure why , and attributed that difficulty to bor@@ ed@@ om . When you 're trying to focus on a difficult or eng@@ aging task , dis@@ ruption of attention can lead to bor@@ ed@@ om , said Mark J. F@@ ens@@ ke , an associ@@ ate professor of neur@@ o@@ science at the University of Gu@@ el@@ ph in On@@ t@@ ario and one of the authors of the study . On the other hand , when you 're doing something d@@ ull , " such as looking for bad wid@@ gets on a factory line , di@@ stra@@ c@@ ting music can help you not be bor@@ ed . " In fact , he said , we now know that squ@@ ir@@ ming and d@@ oo@@ d@@ ling , often seen as a sign of bor@@ ed@@ om , can actually help combat it by keeping people more physi@@ cally alert . " Research shows that kids who are allowed to fi@@ d@@ get learn more and retain more information than those who are forced to sit still , " Professor F@@ ens@@ ke said . We all experience bor@@ ed@@ om at some points - my flight delay , a d@@ ron@@ ing speaker , a particularly te@@ di@@ ous movie . But some individuals are more likely to be bor@@ ed than others . To help measure this , researchers developed a " Bor@@ ed@@ om P@@ ron@@ eness Sc@@ ale " in the 1980s . The scale includes questions like , " Many things I have to do are re@@ peti@@ tive and mon@@ ot@@ on@@ ous , " and " I have so many interests , I don 't have time to do everything . " Using such sc@@ ales , researchers have discovered that boys tend to be bor@@ ed more often than girls , said Stephen Vo@@ dan@@ ovi@@ ch , a professor of psych@@ ology at the University of West Florida , especially when it comes need@@ ing more , and a variety of , external stim@@ ulation . But in general , teen@@ agers are a pretty j@@ aded lot . In 1991 , Re@@ ed Lar@@ son , a professor of human and community development at the University of Il@@ lin@@ ois , conducted an experiment in which he cont@@ acted almost 400 teen@@ agers and their parents seven to eight times a day by be@@ eper . He found that 32 percent of ad@@ ol@@ esc@@ ents said they were bor@@ ed in school and doing home@@ work , while 23 percent said they were bor@@ ed when they weren 't in school . On the other hand , 3 percent of parents said they were bor@@ ed . Professor Lar@@ son said he did not know whether the bor@@ ed@@ om percent@@ ages now , 21 years later , would be higher or lower . But he said he did know that " ad@@ ol@@ esc@@ ence is a peak period for bor@@ ed@@ om , " largely because children and teen@@ agers are not given a lot of control over what they want to do . So back to my original question : Is bor@@ ed@@ om good for you ? Sometimes no , because in its extreme it can lead people to take absurd physical risks , gam@@ ble or indul@@ ge in substance abuse as a way to ease it , research shows . On the other hand , many philosoph@@ ers and writers discuss the connection between bor@@ ed@@ om and creativity , said Professor Vo@@ dan@@ ovi@@ ch , who has been studying the issue for more than two decades . " Bor@@ ed@@ om is the brain 's way to tell you you should be doing something else , " said G@@ ary Mar@@ cus , a professor of psych@@ ology at N@@ .@@ Y@@ .@@ U@@ . But the brain doesn 't always know the most appropriate thing to do . If you 're bor@@ ed and use that energy to play guitar and co@@ ok , it will make you happy . But if you watch TV , it may make you happy in the short term , but not in the long term . So if your child is bor@@ ed and you give him an i@@ Pad , he may not be bor@@ ed anymore , but he has@@ n 't learned how to enter@@ tain himself , or self regulate , Professor F@@ ens@@ ke said . And " that self-@@ regulation transfers from one situation to other , " he said . Your k@@ id doesn 't just learn to enter@@ tain himself , but gets more self-@@ control in other areas . I don 't think we really want to celebrate bor@@ ed@@ om . Nor should we be too critical of it . Rather , our goal should be to feel comfortable away from the constant chat@@ ter of activity and technology . Professor E@@ ast@@ wood agreed . " We frame it as we need to be bor@@ ed more , but bor@@ ed@@ om is an agon@@ izing , rest@@ less desire to be connected with something meaningful , " he said . What people are really searching for , he said , is a way to un@@ plug and enjoy down time . " In an environment where we are constantly over@@ stim@@ ulated , " he said , " it 's hard to find ways to engage when the noise sh@@ uts down . " In Col@@ or@@ ado , No Play@@ book for New Mari@@ ju@@ ana Law Anth@@ ony O@@ ro@@ z@@ co , 19 , a community college student and so@@ cc@@ er player in sou@@ the@@ astern Col@@ or@@ ado , is facing criminal charges for something that will soon be legal across this state : the possession of a few nu@@ g@@ gets of mari@@ ju@@ ana and a pipe he used to smoke it . Mr. O@@ ro@@ z@@ co said that one day in September he and a few friends were driving in Lam@@ ar , on the pl@@ ains near the K@@ ans@@ as border , when they were pul@@ led over . After the police officer found mari@@ ju@@ ana in the car , Mr. O@@ ro@@ z@@ co was issued a sum@@ mon@@ s for possession and drug par@@ aph@@ ern@@ alia - pet@@ ty off@@ enses that each carry a $ 100 fine - and given a court date . " We get treated like criminals , " Mr. O@@ ro@@ z@@ co said . But is he one ? In the uncertain weeks after Col@@ or@@ ado 's vote to leg@@ alize small amounts of mari@@ ju@@ ana for recreational use , the answer in hundreds of minor drug cases depends less on the law than on location . H@@ und@@ reds of mis@@ de@@ mean@@ or mari@@ ju@@ ana cases are already being dropped here and in Washington State , which approved a similar measure . Police departments have stopped charging adults 21 years and older for small-@@ scale possession that will be legally sanc@@ tioned once the laws take effect in the coming weeks . But prosec@@ ut@@ ors in more conservative prec@@ inc@@ ts in Col@@ or@@ ado have v@@ owed to press ahead with existing mari@@ ju@@ ana cases and are still c@@ iting people for possession . At the same time , several towns from the Den@@ ver sub@@ ur@@ bs to the Western mountains are voting to block new , state-@@ licensed retail mari@@ ju@@ ana shops from opening in their communities . " This thing is evol@@ ving so quickly that I don 't know what 's going to happen next , " said Daniel J. O@@ ates , the police chief in Aur@@ ora , just east of Den@@ ver . Reg@@ ul@@ ators in Washington State are also scrat@@ ching their heads . And they are looking for guidance on how to set up a system of licenses for production , manufacturing , distribution and sales - all by a deadline of Dec@@ . 1 , 2013 . They say that Col@@ or@@ ado , for better or worse , is ahead of most states in regulating mari@@ ju@@ ana , first for medical use and now recre@@ ation@@ ally . " Col@@ or@@ ado has a more regulated market , so they will be a good guide , " said Bri@@ an E. Smith , a spo@@ kes@@ man for the Washington State Li@@ qu@@ or Control Board . But no place or system , Mr. Smith conc@@ eded , can do more than suggest what might work . " There 's no real precedent for us to follow , " he said . Washington 's law , called I-@@ 50@@ 2 , takes effect on Dec@@ . 6 , which also leaves a year of lim@@ bo during which the state licensing system will not yet exist , but leg@@ alized possession will . And there are thor@@ ny mechanical questions that must be resolved during that time , like how to balance the state 's mandate of " adequate access " to licensed mari@@ ju@@ ana with its prohi@@ bitions on c@@ ann@@ ab@@ is businesses within 1,000 feet of a school , park , playground or child care center . " No@@ where will it be more difficult to site a licensed c@@ ann@@ ab@@ is business than in urban areas , particularly in the Seattle metro@@ politan area , " said Ben Liv@@ ing@@ ston , a spo@@ kes@@ man for the Center for Legal Cann@@ ab@@ is , a recently formed research group . On Nov@@ . 21 , Chief O@@ ates in Aur@@ ora sent his officers an e-mail announc@@ ing that the city att@@ or@@ ney would no longer be prosec@@ uting small mari@@ ju@@ ana violations for anyone 21 years or older , and that the police would stop charging people for those crimes " effective immediately . " Chief O@@ ates said that the police would enforce city codes regulating medical mari@@ ju@@ ana gro@@ wers , and that they would still pursue drug traff@@ ick@@ ers and dealers . In northern Col@@ or@@ ado 's W@@ eld County , the district att@@ or@@ ney , K@@ en Bu@@ ck , represents a stricter view . After the vote , he said his office would continue pursuing mari@@ ju@@ ana possession cases , mostly as a way to press users into getting treatment . Right now , 1@@ 19 people face charges of poss@@ essing two oun@@ ces or less of mari@@ ju@@ ana , though many are facing other charges . " Our office has an obligation to prosec@@ ute off@@ enses that were crimes at the time they occurred , " Mr. Bu@@ ck said in a statement . The response has been complicated even in places like rural Mes@@ a County , where voters rejected the mari@@ ju@@ ana initiative . The police in Grand J@@ unc@@ tion , the coun@@ ty 's largest city , are no longer c@@ iting adults for possession of small amounts . The coun@@ ty 's district att@@ or@@ ney , P@@ ete Hau@@ tz@@ inger , supported that decision , but also decided not to dis@@ miss all of the pending possession cases . " I do not think I 'm wast@@ ing my time continuing to enforce the law until it changes , " he said . Although 55 percent of Col@@ or@@ ado voters supported the measure , bringing recreational mari@@ ju@@ ana into the fol@@ ds of government and the legal system was never going to be simple . And the contradictory reactions across the state lay bare a deep ambi@@ val@@ ence among local officials about the state 's big green experiment . " It 's a cultural barrier " with district att@@ or@@ neys , said S@@ ean Mc@@ Alli@@ ster , a Den@@ ver lawyer who represents mari@@ ju@@ ana def@@ end@@ ants and is a local spo@@ kes@@ man for the National Organization for the Reform of Mari@@ ju@@ ana La@@ ws . " They spent so much of their lives prosec@@ uting people that they still don 't really accept that this is legal , " he said . As the first states to treat small amounts of mari@@ ju@@ ana like alcohol , Col@@ or@@ ado and Washington are po@@ ised to become national test cases for drug leg@@ alization . As advocates and state officials plan for a new fron@@ tier of leg@@ alized sales , they are also anx@@ i@@ ously awaiting direction from the federal government , which still plans to treat the sale and cultivation of mari@@ ju@@ ana as federal crimes . Ad@@ voc@@ ates for leg@@ alized mari@@ ju@@ ana are hoping the Justice Department yiel@@ ds . Despite some high-@@ profile arres@@ ts of medical mari@@ ju@@ ana patients and s@@ ellers , the federal government has mostly allowed medical mari@@ ju@@ ana businesses to operate in Col@@ or@@ ado , Washington and 16 other states . While drug agents will probably not beat down doors to sei@@ ze a small bag of the drug , they are likely to bal@@ k at allowing the state-@@ regulated recreational mari@@ ju@@ ana shops allowed under the new laws , said Kev@@ in A. Sab@@ et , a former drug policy advis@@ er in the Obama administration . Several cities in Col@@ or@@ ado are not waiting for federal authorities to act . Even before El@@ ection Day , some local governments approved mor@@ at@@ oriums on any new mari@@ ju@@ ana shops , even though it will be about a year before any can open . Last week , the western city of Mon@@ tro@@ se took up a six-@@ month ban , and is likely to pass it next week . " We don 't want to be put in a position where we license somebody and then have a big federal issue , " said B@@ ob Nich@@ ol@@ son , a City Council member . Our community voted against this amendment . We 're looking at what the community voted for ver@@ sus what the state voted for . There 's an aw@@ ful lot of questions . Pet@@ ron@@ ella W@@ y@@ att : I was bul@@ lied out of Oxford for being a T@@ ory It is not just today 's university students who are attacked for their views I can 't remember a time when I didn 't dream of winning a place at Oxford University . Both my father and my el@@ der brother had been at what I imag@@ ined was the world 's greatest seat of learning , a modern@@ -@@ day win@@ e-@@ bl@@ us@@ hed Greek sym@@ posi@@ um encouraging the dual pillars of civilisation , free thinking and tolerance . Yet , within two weeks of taking up my place at Wor@@ c@@ ester College in the late Ei@@ gh@@ ties to read history , I 'd packed my bags , pre@@ cip@@ it@@ ating the first scandal of my life . My father broke down and cri@@ ed . Friends were b@@ aff@@ led . The E@@ ven@@ ing Standard di@@ ary claimed I 'd qu@@ it because I objec@@ ted to fellow under@@ gradu@@ ates having sex in the room next to mine . The writer A N Wil@@ son announced wag@@ g@@ ish@@ ly that I 'd depar@@ ted because I was forced to drink out of chi@@ pped mu@@ gs . The truth was less dro@@ ll . I ran away . Yes , ran , because I had been subject to systematic bul@@ lying and intim@@ id@@ ation . Not on account of my rather ou@@ tr@@ é name , or the fact that I came from a private school . I was persec@@ uted for one reason only , and in this cra@@ dle of supposed en@@ ligh@@ ten@@ ment it was both big@@ oted and barbar@@ ic : my father , the late Woo@@ dro@@ w W@@ y@@ att , was a high-@@ profile advis@@ er to Margar@@ et Th@@ at@@ cher and I was a Conserv@@ ative suppor@@ ter . Why bring this up now , you might ask . Well , recent reports suggest that a new generation of Ri@@ ght-@@ of-@@ centre students are suffering a similar persecution . Such is the institution@@ alised and increasing hat@@ red of T@@ ory students at Oxford that last week a group of them demanded the same equ@@ al-@@ rights protection as g@@ ays , disabled people and ethnic minorities . Conserv@@ ative members of Cor@@ p@@ us Chr@@ is@@ ti College 's junior common room ( J@@ CR ) claim they are " often actively isolated , personally attacked and made to feel un@@ welcome " because of their political views . They want to create a post on the college 's equal opportunities committee to ensure that their opinions can be ai@@ red freely . Their situation wasn 't helped by a recent BBC Two documentary , W@@ onder@@ land : Young , B@@ right and on the Right , about student politics , which portra@@ yed T@@ ories as od@@ d@@ balls and neo-@@ Naz@@ is . It featured graduate Jo@@ e C@@ oo@@ ke , former president of the Oxford University Conserv@@ ative Association ( O@@ UC@@ A ) , travelling in a Roll@@ s-@@ Roy@@ ce , sporting a silver suit and sil@@ ver-@@ t@@ opp@@ ed cane . At other universities , Conserv@@ ative students say they are being treated as " scap@@ ego@@ ats " for the introduction of higher tu@@ ition fees . " Lu@@ ke Black , 20 , vic@@ e-@@ president of Not@@ t@@ ingham University Conserv@@ ative Association , told a Sunday newspaper that " there is a growing L@@ ef@@ t-@@ wing bi@@ as at universities . People assume we are like the Bul@@ ling@@ don Club without meeting us . " Sam@@ uel Rober@@ ts , 21 , a history student at Cor@@ p@@ us Chr@@ is@@ ti , who proposed the motion for greater protection , says such a climate is " un@@ comfortable , " while Steph@@ anie Cher@@ ill , 19 , president elect of O@@ UC@@ A , says there has been a deterioration in the attitude of J@@ CR members towards people who are Right of centre . " This poses a threat to the atmosphere of intellectual discussion , as well as to the welfare of members , " she says . I was in a minority of one during my first few weeks at Oxford . I had gone up in September 1986 , a cri@@ p@@ pl@@ ingly sh@@ y 18-@@ year-old . Hat@@ red of the Conserv@@ ative Party was at its most f@@ eb@@ ri@@ le . The year before , the university had voted to refuse Margar@@ et Th@@ at@@ cher - a former student - an hon@@ or@@ ary degree , because of cuts in higher education funding . The atmosphere would have made a Stal@@ in@@ ist sh@@ u@@ d@@ der with ap@@ pre@@ hen@@ sion . During the first few days of fresh@@ ers " week , when new students soci@@ alise with each other and the d@@ ons , I had a taste of the wor@@ m@@ wood that was to come . I was to find that the d@@ ons not only con@@ ni@@ ved in the ta@@ unting of T@@ ory under@@ gradu@@ ates but took part with rel@@ ish . The politics of the min@@ ers " strike , priv@@ atisation and the government 's opposition to sanctions against apar@@ thei@@ d South Africa were brought into the woo@@ d-@@ pan@@ elled rooms of the tut@@ orial . My first one involved transl@@ ating 18@@ th-@@ century French texts into English , and I was un@@ prepared for what followed . " Mis@@ s W@@ y@@ att , " said the don , Harry P@@ itt ( now dec@@ e@@ ased ) , " please translate the first paragraph . " I st@@ umb@@ led over it . A small man with a face like c@@ ake bat@@ ter , P@@ itt was big on bile . " Do Th@@ at@@ cher@@ ites refuse to learn French or are they just stup@@ id ? " he demanded . The other under@@ gradu@@ ates gi@@ gg@@ led . T@@ ears pri@@ cked the back of my eyes . " I suggest you take some basic French lessons in your spare time - that is , if you 're not too busy soci@@ alising , " P@@ itt s@@ nar@@ led . I wal@@ ked back to my rooms a dis@@ con@@ sol@@ ate figure . At dinner in college that evening I sat by myself ; then I felt a light t@@ ap on my shoulder . It was a second-@@ year English student named James who introduced himself as a member of the O@@ UC@@ A . " I know who you are , " he said kin@@ dly . I 'm afraid it 's like that . Anyone susp@@ ected of being a T@@ ory is picked on . It 's bad enough for me , but they know your father is close to Margar@@ et Th@@ at@@ cher , so it will be worse for you . Most T@@ ory fresh@@ ers pre@@ tend they 're Labour . Later , at a local pub , I cra@@ ven@@ ly attempted to dis@@ simul@@ ate . I insi@@ sted that I didn 't agree with everything Mrs Th@@ at@@ cher said . This p@@ lo@@ y proved un@@ successful . A first year PPE student , who , ir@@ on@@ ically , had been to E@@ ton , said : " You 're the daughter of a fasc@@ ist p@@ ig . " You 're contamin@@ ated . Other students took up the refra@@ in . I was per@@ ver@@ ted , dirty . " How do T@@ ories have sex ? " one asked . They beat each other , don 't they ? I felt the way homo@@ sexu@@ als must have felt before the liberal legislation of the Six@@ ties . Would I ever be able to lead a normal life at Oxford ? Would I be forced to meet lik@@ e-@@ minded people only after dark ? Would I have to turn to Labour and sup@@ press my natural inc@@ lin@@ ations ? The three years before me stret@@ ched out as a pur@@ g@@ atory of o@@ stra@@ c@@ ism and isolation . The only openly T@@ ory don was Nor@@ man Stone , Professor of Modern History , who was based at my college . He was h@@ ated for being not only a Conserv@@ ative but a foreign policy advis@@ er to Th@@ at@@ cher and one of her speech writers . He was hardly ever there . He lo@@ ath@@ ed the place as provin@@ cial and pet@@ ty , and for its adher@@ ence to the Mar@@ x@@ ist@@ -@@ determin@@ ist view of history . In 1997 he took up a prof@@ ess@@ or@@ ship at the University of Bil@@ k@@ ent , in Ankara , Turkey . " You won 't be happy here , " he told me . I began comm@@ uting from Oxford to my parents " house in London , finding refuge with my more open-@@ minded metro@@ politan friends and family . I told my father I h@@ ated Oxford and why . He was incre@@ dul@@ ous . During his time there in the For@@ ties , all political views had been accepted . " But it 's the best place in the world , " he said pa@@ the@@ tically . They w@@ ouldn 't do that , not among my dre@@ aming sp@@ ires . Even my Communist friends always had imp@@ ec@@ cable mann@@ ers . His r@@ he@@ um@@ y eyes began to cl@@ oud . Gi@@ ve it a chance . I 'm sure it 's all just a te@@ ase . It would break my heart if you left . Ex@@ hau@@ sted by my frequent trips to London , my emotional resistance was deterior@@ ating . A male friend of mine , also a T@@ ory suppor@@ ter , had succ@@ um@@ bed to pressure and ren@@ ounced his cre@@ ed . During a tut@@ orial the following week , when another history don had suggested , in complete seri@@ ousness , that I was an " enemy of the people , " I decided to do the same . In@@ war@@ dly bl@@ us@@ hing with shame , I admitted to being " bra@@ in@@ wash@@ ed by my parents " and called them " old fo@@ ols . " The resp@@ ite was short . It was my father who dro@@ ve the n@@ ail into the coff@@ in of my Oxford career . At the time , he wrote two columns in the Mur@@ doch press each week . My door was locked . I co@@ wer@@ ed inside , and after five minutes , my pursu@@ ers gave up . When they left , I packed a su@@ it@@ case and caught the first train to London . I never went back . You may call me a s@@ ni@@ v@@ elling wi@@ mp . But no 18-@@ year-old should be subject to such intim@@ id@@ ation and vit@@ ri@@ ol in an educational institution . Even more tragic is that it was Oxford , which not only produced 14 T@@ ory prime ministers , but , to this day , hi@@ des behind an ill-@@ deser@@ ved reputation for equality and freedom of thought . " Valent@@ ino pre@@ fers elegance to not@@ ori@@ ety " On the occasion of the " Valent@@ ino : Master of Cou@@ ture , " an exhibition that opened this week in London , AB@@ C speaks with Nat@@ y Ab@@ as@@ cal , Fi@@ ona Thyssen@@ -B@@ orn@@ emis@@ za and other of the Italian designer 's famous clients . Som@@ er@@ set House , former home of Queen Eli@@ zab@@ eth I of England , is the only place in the British capital worthy of hosting a Valent@@ ino Gar@@ av@@ ani exhibition . During the inau@@ gur@@ ation of " Valent@@ ino : Master of Cou@@ ture , " the designer acknowledged a retro@@ spective apo@@ the@@ o@@ sis that brings together over 130 cou@@ ture g@@ owns created by his fashion house over the past 50 years . " I love this palace " he says , in his un@@ mist@@ ak@@ able Italian acc@@ ent . This exhibition is the cul@@ min@@ ation of a story whose only prot@@ agon@@ ist is " sign@@ ore " Gar@@ av@@ ani , although it could not have been written without his distinguished clients . Valent@@ ino has always been fascin@@ ated by the r@@ are@@ fied and distant world of the no@@ bility . In the first room of the exhibition , open until March 3 , there are a number of private letters and photos signed by the cream of ar@@ ist@@ oc@@ racy , from Princ@@ ess S@@ ali@@ ma@@ h Ag@@ a K@@ han , Lord Snow@@ don , Princ@@ ess Mari@@ e-@@ Ch@@ ant@@ al of Greece to Margar@@ et of England . Valent@@ ino exhi@@ bits these personal memories as if they were tro@@ phi@@ es of his social as@@ cent from hum@@ ble cou@@ tur@@ ier in Vo@@ gh@@ era , northern Italy , to i@@ do@@ l of the international jet@@ -@@ set . There is nothing wrong with lo@@ ving ro@@ y@@ alty . " At least they don 't drop cigar@@ ette ends on your magnificent car@@ pet , like some beautiful pop music celeb@@ ri@@ ties do , " says Baroness Fi@@ ona Thyssen@@ -B@@ orn@@ emis@@ za . In the ' 6@@ 0s and ' 7@@ 0s , we both lived in the Alps and were good friends . Valent@@ ino is a spectacular host whose enter@@ tains with gener@@ o@@ sity and elegance . " We all loved being invited to his chal@@ et in G@@ sta@@ ad " says " Hein@@ i " Th@@ y@@ ssen 's ex-@@ wife , a close friend of forgotten beau@@ ties such as Mar@@ ella A@@ gn@@ elli and Eu@@ gen@@ ie Ni@@ arch@@ os . Valent@@ ino has always preferred elegance to not@@ ori@@ ety . And yet , he is a star . Val@@ eria Ma@@ zza , wearing a Valent@@ ino . The Argent@@ ine model Val@@ eria Ma@@ zza also rec@@ alls the cou@@ tur@@ ier 's char@@ is@@ ma . Many years ago , after a fashion show in Piazza di Sp@@ agna in Rome , we went for dinner at his flat . There were twenty of us , including Sharon Stone and John Kenne@@ dy J@@ r . You could see and feel his " spirit " in every detail of the flat and its decor , the food and the music . " All the guests were made to feel important and loved " rec@@ alls the top model , who started working with him during Hau@@ te Cou@@ ture We@@ ek Paris , in 1995 . " His designs are works of art and so never go out of fashion " she concludes . No@@ bility par@@ ade Gar@@ av@@ ani 's life is not a story of ob@@ session , but of well reciproc@@ ated love . He lo@@ ves well-@@ educated people who come from good back@@ grounds , and they love him . One of the Som@@ er@@ set House galleries has been transformed into a gl@@ amor@@ ous , six@@ ty-@@ foot long cat@@ walk which offers a role re@@ versal : visitors take the place of the models and have to par@@ ade down the cat@@ walk while looking at a dream " audience " wearing Valent@@ ino master@@ pieces , for example , the dress Jack@@ ie Kenne@@ dy chose for her wedding with A@@ rist@@ ot@@ le On@@ assis , the cost@@ ume Mon@@ ica Vit@@ ti wor@@ e in " La Not@@ te " and the w@@ ool and leather coat that belong@@ ed to Em@@ press Far@@ ah Di@@ ba . In this crowd of man@@ ne@@ qu@@ ins , names stand out such as Si@@ b@@ illa of Luxembourg , Gl@@ oria von Th@@ ur@@ n und Ta@@ xis , M@@ ett@@ e-@@ Mar@@ it of Norway , Ros@@ ario of Bulgaria and Sofia of Habs@@ burg . Nat@@ y Ab@@ as@@ cal and the designer , in 2006 Many of these clients say your first Valent@@ ino is like your first love , " impossible to forget . " I remember it perfectly . It was a pair of tro@@ users , a shirt , a " gi@@ let " wa@@ ist@@ coat and jack@@ et from the 197@@ 1-@@ 1972 aut@@ um@@ n-@@ winter collection . " It was a gift he gave me " says Nat@@ y Ab@@ as@@ cal , one of the designer 's m@@ uses . " I prefer him to other designers because of his femin@@ inity , his great love of women , and because he enh@@ ances our beauty " added the former Du@@ ch@@ ess of Feri@@ a . I love the colours he uses , they really stand out and " lend themselves " to your face . Their propor@@ tions are perfect . The pr@@ inc@@ ess and fashion advis@@ or Patri@@ cia della Giov@@ amp@@ a@@ ola d '@@ Ar@@ enberg also rem@@ embers the first time she wor@@ e a Valent@@ ino . As a teen@@ ager living in Italy , I dre@@ amed of reaching the age when I 'd have the chance to wear one of his evening g@@ owns ... My time finally came in the late ' 9@@ 0s . I bought my first Valent@@ ino dress to wear at a party in the castle belonging to my c@@ ous@@ in , Prince E@@ dou@@ ard de Lig@@ ne . It was a red dress , with a fri@@ l@@ ly sk@@ ir@@ t , d@@ rap@@ ed " cor@@ sage " and a stra@@ pl@@ ess nec@@ k@@ line . " It was a dream come true " says Princ@@ ess D '@@ Ar@@ enberg , the wi@@ dow of Ro@@ dri@@ go d '@@ Ar@@ enberg . " Valent@@ ino is in@@ different to fashion , his ob@@ session is tim@@ eless " says this Italian ar@@ ist@@ oc@@ rat who lives between Paris , New York and Buenos Aires . Princ@@ ess D '@@ Ar@@ enberg looks after her cou@@ tur@@ ier g@@ owns with " the utmost care ... because a dress not just a dress , it 's also the many memories that go with it . " The " king " of fashion The " grand fin@@ ale " of the Som@@ er@@ set House exhibition is Mari@@ e-@@ Ch@@ ant@@ al Mill@@ er 's wedding dress from her marriage to Paul of Greece in 1995 . It took four months ' work and 25 " girls " ( as the designer calls his seam@@ stresses ) to create the pe@@ ar@@ l-@@ en@@ cru@@ sted , i@@ vor@@ y-@@ coloured sil@@ k g@@ own with twelve different types of l@@ ace and a train four and a half metres long . According to journalist Su@@ zy Men@@ kes , the leading authority of the specialist press , that dress represents a high fashion mil@@ estone of the late 20th century , " the return of high society clients . " D@@ azz@@ led for years with the " s@@ avo@@ ir@@ -@@ être " of the elite , Valent@@ ino is now its finest exp@@ on@@ ent . Cav@@ ali@@ ere di Gran Cro@@ ce ( the high@@ est@@ -@@ ranking distinction in Italy ) , Cav@@ ali@@ ere del La@@ vor@@ o , Comm@@ an@@ de@@ ur de L '@@ Or@@ dr@@ e des Arts et des Let@@ tres , and awarded the Leg@@ ion of Hon@@ our , Gar@@ av@@ ani accum@@ ul@@ ates as many hon@@ ours as any of his clients ' hus@@ bands . " I 've always been struck by his refined and calm manner , and his ne@@ at and perfect appearance " acknowled@@ ges D '@@ Ar@@ enberg . The last time I saw him was a month ago at a g@@ ala dinner at the Or@@ say Museum . He was on the table of Coun@@ t@@ ess J@@ acqu@@ eline de Ri@@ bes , a great friend of mine . " He was imm@@ ac@@ ulate , time stands still for him . " If a pr@@ inc@@ ess says that ... The har@@ dest job in the world : the human m@@ ules of K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en For four euros , the Indones@@ ian volcan@@ o por@@ ters risk life and lim@@ b carrying 70 ki@@ los of sul@@ ph@@ ur along steep stone paths . There are people for whom work is hell , and others who - literally - work in hell . This is the case of An@@ to Wi@@ j@@ aya , one of the 400 min@@ ers who make their living taking sul@@ ph@@ ur from the K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en volcan@@ o , east of the Indones@@ ian island of Java . To do so , he has to desc@@ end every day to the bottom of the cr@@ ater , where the sul@@ ph@@ ur@@ ous gas eman@@ ating from the bow@@ els of the earth solidi@@ fies on contact with air . After breaking off large sul@@ ph@@ ur rocks , which in total can wei@@ gh up to 70 ki@@ los , he carries them in two b@@ am@@ bo@@ o bas@@ k@@ ets on his shoul@@ ders along the steep stone paths . It is only 250 metres to the top of the volcan@@ o , which rises to 2,@@ 3@@ 86 metres above sea level , but the exhau@@ sted por@@ ters take over 40 minutes to get there , at sn@@ ail 's pace , keeping their balance and measuring their steps carefully to avoid sli@@ pping and falling over the pre@@ cip@@ ice . They know that one sli@@ p could cost them their lives , as happened to a French tourist who pl@@ ung@@ ed to her death a few years ago on the hazardous K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en cli@@ ffs . The K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en min@@ ers are paid 5 euro c@@ ents for each kil@@ o of sul@@ ph@@ ur removed . Once at the top , they make their way past the tourists who phot@@ ograph them like cir@@ cus mon@@ keys and then , lug@@ ging their heavy bas@@ k@@ ets , they walk three kilometres to the sc@@ ales installed by a mining company a little further down , 1,@@ 8@@ 50 metres above sea level . This is PT N@@ gri@@ m@@ bi Can@@ di , a company which , since 1960 , has been explo@@ iting the volcan@@ o , and quite literally its workers , whom it pays 6@@ 62 ru@@ pe@@ es ( 5 euro c@@ ents ) per kil@@ o of sul@@ ph@@ ur . It then s@@ ells the sul@@ ph@@ ur for 10,000 ru@@ pe@@ es ( 83 c@@ ents ) to the pet@@ ro@@ chemical industry , as the mineral is widely used in everyday life and is used in the manufacture of matches , fire@@ works , cosme@@ tics , dynam@@ ite and even for wh@@ it@@ ening sugar . " We generally carry 70 ki@@ los , so we get about 4@@ 6@@ ,000 ru@@ pe@@ es ( 3.@@ 8 euros ) a trip " explains An@@ to , who usually make three trips a day . Each one takes three hours and you end up exhau@@ sted , but it means he gets 13@@ 8@@ ,000 ru@@ pe@@ es ( 11.@@ 5 euros ) at the end of the day . Although it seems a p@@ itt@@ ance for such an in@@ human effort , it is three times what he would earn in the field . " Min@@ ers ' wages are very high here , whereas coffee harv@@ esting is paid 15@@ ,000 ru@@ pe@@ es ( 1.2 euros ) a day and the average monthly wage is two million ru@@ pe@@ es ( 16@@ 7 euros ) " explains the porter , who previously worked as a mas@@ on in the island resort of Bali . There , his wage was 75@@ ,000 ru@@ pe@@ es ( 6.@@ 2 euros ) a day and the work was not as hard , but An@@ to has returned with his family to B@@ any@@ u@@ w@@ an@@ gi , a village near the volcan@@ o , for a comp@@ elling reason which , in Indonesia , is as over@@ riding as the sul@@ ph@@ ur : " I married a girl from Bali , where they are Hindu , and I 've brought her to Java to convert to Islam . " An@@ to has as@@ th@@ ma , he has difficulty brea@@ thing , cou@@ gh@@ s constantly and his eyes are ir@@ rit@@ ated by the toxic gases . At 27 years old , An@@ to has been ris@@ king his life for three years in the K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en volcan@@ o , and the sul@@ ph@@ ur has already begun to take its toll on him , even though he covers his face with special mask and g@@ og@@ g@@ les . He has as@@ th@@ ma , he has difficulty brea@@ thing , cou@@ gh@@ s constantly and his eyes are ir@@ rit@@ ated by the toxic gases from the volcan@@ o . This is the price you have to pay to realise your dreams . " I 'll go on working two more years because I want to open a shop or study Spanish or French " he v@@ ows in more than acceptable English . Pun@@ ished for life , this pleasant , intelligent young man could be a tour guide , wa@@ iter or hotel recep@@ tion@@ ist , but instead he does the work of a mu@@ le . Shar@@ ing a fil@@ thy wooden h@@ ut with other por@@ ters , he gets up every day at two in the morning because the sul@@ ph@@ ur doesn 't stop f@@ lowing at night , when its characteristic yellow colour turns blue and it g@@ lows in the dark . Def@@ ying the shad@@ ows , An@@ to desc@@ ends the cr@@ ater and lights the path with a small tor@@ ch attached to the hel@@ met he bought with his money . Some 400 por@@ ters carry sul@@ ph@@ ur bas@@ k@@ ets on their shoul@@ ders from the cr@@ ater . Despite their huge profits , the mining company has not mechan@@ ised the sul@@ ph@@ ur extrac@@ tion process to save costs , nor has it provided any equipment for the por@@ ters , who work for themselves and by the kil@@ o . In fact , they do not even see any of the 30@@ ,000 ru@@ pe@@ e ( 2.5 euro ) per camera sur@@ charge that , on top of the 15@@ ,000 ru@@ pe@@ e ( 1.2 euro ) entrance fee , the gu@@ ards of this natural reserve charge to tourists who come to phot@@ ograph the volcan@@ o and their human m@@ ules . " This work is for animals , not people " protests Mad@@ rus@@ in , a bur@@ ly 4@@ 2-@@ year porter who has been working at K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en for three decades , since leaving school . He can lift up to 110 ki@@ los , ensuring that he will go on working " all he can " because he needs the money to educ@@ ate his three children , aged between 18 [ months ? ] and 10 years old . I won 't reti@@ re , I 'll die here because the volcan@@ o has been my whole life . Although the sul@@ ph@@ ur bur@@ ns your thro@@ at and st@@ ings your eyes when the wind suddenly changes and tra@@ ps the min@@ ers in the thick columns of smoke coming out of the volcan@@ o , they are so har@@ dy that no-@@ one compl@@ ains of serious ill@@ nesses ... apart , of course , from their common resp@@ ir@@ atory problems , o@@ ste@@ o@@ ar@@ thri@@ tis , kne@@ e pain and sor@@ es on the shoul@@ ders , which have been mis@@ sha@@ pen by the weight of the bas@@ k@@ ets . Bal@@ ancing the bas@@ ket on his back , Un@@ ain@@ ik can only carry 50 ki@@ los now he is 53 years old . Every day , he and his fellow workers break off 15 tonnes of sul@@ ph@@ ur from the volcan@@ o , which three lor@@ ries move to the wareh@@ ouse in Tam@@ ans@@ ari , 18 kilometres away along a go@@ at path that passes through sc@@ rub@@ land . " I won 't reti@@ re , I 'll die here because the volcan@@ o has been my whole life " says Un@@ ain@@ ik , opening a mouth full of gaps where teeth use to be . The oldest of his five children , 30 years old , also works carrying sul@@ ph@@ ur . Time passes , but poverty perpet@@ u@@ ates from generation to generation in one of the har@@ dest jobs in the world : the one done by human m@@ ules in the K@@ aw@@ ah I@@ j@@ en volcan@@ o . Singapore seeks bab@@ ies to save its economy Singapor@@ e@@ ans blame their care@@ ers , stress and the cost of property and education for not having children . " Singapore 's population needs to grow . " I 'm a patri@@ otic husband , you 're my patri@@ otic wife , let 's do our civi@@ c duty and create life ! It may seem unlikely that these ver@@ ses are part of an ad@@ ver@@ t for min@@ t swe@@ ets , but in spite of this - or perhaps because of it - the video went vir@@ al on YouTube in Singapore earlier this year . The phr@@ ases are part of a ra@@ p and make use of local references such as " Let 's put a ba@@ o ( bu@@ n ) in the oven " to make fun of the birth rate in Singapore . The advertising company that made the video , BB@@ H , is hop@@ eful that the adverti@@ sement will manage to focus attention to the problem in a fun way . Its creative director , Dou@@ glas Ham@@ il@@ ton , says he wanted to use the power of music to make people perform their " national duty . " It 's purely an Internet thing , so we had to make it fun and am@@ using . It 's the biggest problem facing this country . We are the world 's worst at re@@ producing our own pro@@ gen@@ y , so we felt it was an issue we had to address . We knew the Government had tried many things , like launching perf@@ umes with pher@@ om@@ ones or organising speed dating evenings . Many of these ideas may have been creative , but they didn 't necessarily work . So we thought : why not be as creative as possible to solve the problem , by com@@ posing a ra@@ p ? 1.2 children But the Singapore Government is not taking it so ligh@@ tly . It sp@@ ends USD 1,@@ 300 per year on policies to encourage people to have more children . A government package for marri@@ ages and parents grants up to USD 15@@ ,000 per child , extends mat@@ ernity leave and distri@@ butes tax benefits . But this has all had little effect . Singapore is a rich , high technology city State in Sou@@ theast Asia , also known for the conserv@@ atis@@ m of its leaders and its strict social controls . The birth rate in Singapore , according to its national population division , currently stands at 1.2 children per woman . The last time it was over 2 , known as the replacement rate , was in 1976 . So why are Singapor@@ e@@ ans not having children ? T@@ an W@@ ei M@@ ing , Director of Mar@@ ri@@ age and Family Policy of the National Pop@@ ulation Division , said that it is a result of " better education " and " a wider range of career opportunities . " " This has given people a wider range of options in terms of life goals and priorities , beyond getting married and starting a family " he explains . These changes in social norms have contributed to increasing numbers of people who are single , and del@@ aying marriage and bir@@ ths , which has resulted in a decrease in the birth rate in Singapore . Meanwhile , an EU immigration policy aimed at dramatically increasing immigration to cope with the population decline has created res@@ ent@@ ment among the local population . In Singapore , there are websites where xenophobia against many new immigrants is widespread and thin@@ ly dis@@ gu@@ ised , especially the Chinese who are criticised for keeping wages low and not integrating . Incre@@ ased immigration is also seen as one of the reasons why , last year , the Singapore ruling party experienced its worst election result since independence . Since the election there has been an attempt to correct the problem , with the highest taxes and le@@ vies for foreign workers . Un@@ expected consequences While a fall in the birth rate has known effects on a nation 's economic growth , tax revenues , healthcare costs and immigration policies , in Singapore 's case there are also some unexpected consequences . The Government is trying not to build so many small houses . For example , it has started to influence the real estate sector . Its urban development authority has started to control the number of small apartments , known as " shoe boxes , " which can be built in certain areas of the city . These apartments have a surface of 46 square metres and have been very successful in terms of sales . However , there is concern that they may promote a single-@@ living lifestyle and dis@@ courage developers who want to build large family houses . But , L@@ im Y@@ e@@ w So@@ on , managing director of the real estate company EL Develop@@ ers , says his " shoe boxes " sell much faster than larger units . They are more popular , in the sense that the units sell days , even weeks , faster than larger units . This means they are much better for our cash flow . However , he ad@@ mits that the new regulations give clearer guidance to developers , who previously had obstacles put in their way if they provided for too many small units in a project . To@@ o stressed Singapore is a city State . Although these new rules may be a step towards increasing the national birth rate , when talking to Singapor@@ e@@ ans working in the central financial district , it seems they will not have much impact . " People are very stressed , houses are expensive and so is education , so a lot of people are putting off having a family " says a young executive . Other people can have children . " But , for me , it is important to have my own money and time " says another young man of around 20 years old . Men and women alike mention their care@@ ers , stress and the cost of property and education as the reasons preventing them from having children . So , much as the Government is trying to encourage its citizens to have children , when it comes to bab@@ ies , the Singapor@@ e@@ ans have the last word . What is private offline is private online Privacy . According to the Spanish Royal Academy Dic@@ tionary , it means the quality of private life or " the level of privacy which a person is entitled to protect from any interference . " What is privacy for an under 16 ? How do you apply this definition to their daily life and social networks ? Do they understand the dangers they are exposed to by air@@ ing information over the Internet which they probably would not share offline ? El@@ Peri@@ ó@@ dic@@ o inter@@ viewed five children aged between ten and 15 years old who are frequent Internet users . In four cases , they associated the term with " something very much mine " on a personal level , and " in the user name and password " when applied to social networks . " I w@@ ouldn 't upload my deep@@ est sec@@ rets in a post " says Jor@@ ge , aged ten , when trying to explain the meaning of privacy on sites such as Facebook , Twitter , Hot@@ mail and Windows Live Messenger , with which he has had accounts for two years . " They are very secret sec@@ rets , I 'll tell my mother , but not everybody " he says . On F@@ B I upload nice pictures or games . And I have fun with people I know . " I w@@ ouldn 't share a photo that isn 't mine , or that belongs to somebody who 's doing something stup@@ id " he says . The child recognises that it is bad to post ob@@ scene pictures of n@@ aked people , crimes , or write hum@@ ili@@ ating or aggressive comments . Jor@@ ge says he knows the 35 friends he has on F@@ B and his nine fol@@ lo@@ wers on Twitter . Most are relatives . His mother is included , and she has the password to one of the accounts . I opened Twitter to express myself and post interesting t@@ we@@ ets . " I don 't know if they answer me , I only upload them " he adds . " Social networking is fun , I can talk quickly to relatives far away or my friends " he says . He does not hesitate to reply that he would never accept a request from an unknown person . Nor would he take any notice of someone who recommends a stran@@ ger to him . The case of Joseph , aged 14 , is different . This teen@@ ager has accounts with Hot@@ mail , Facebook , My Space and As@@ k , and in the last case he ad@@ mits not knowing 20 of the people added to his friends list . " It doesn 't bo@@ ther me , because we have something in common , like music " he says . The boy says that no-@@ one has suggested anything to him or asked him for his home address or phone number . " If they pres@@ sur@@ ed me or asked me for it , I 'd just delete them from my account " he states . Joseph became a follow@@ er on As@@ k , after reading a recommendation on Twitter . This teen@@ ager is not alien to experiences of what is now known as cy@@ ber@@ bul@@ lying . An acqu@@ a@@ int@@ ance of a friend of mine was being p@@ ester@@ ed on a social network . They were threatening him and demanding money from him . " I never found out who it was " he says . The victim , according to José , did not close his account . " He just made it private . " He then explains a series of steps to configure the account safely . Unlike Jor@@ ge , this boy would upload photos of acqu@@ a@@ int@@ ances in un@@ comfortable or embar@@ rass@@ ing situations . I would do it if I didn 't like somebody , or they made me want to do it . " However , I know that 's cy@@ ber@@ bul@@ lying " he ad@@ mits . Key questions Mari@@ el@@ os Por@@ ras , an English teacher with a degree in Education and Learning , believes that to guide children and teen@@ agers , they should understand that the purpose of social media is to inform . " The Internet emerged as a means of searching for information , but with the appearance of these websites , the rules of the game changed " he says . Por@@ ras says the schol@@ ar Marc Pr@@ ens@@ ky , with a Master 's degree in Education from Y@@ ale University and author of the work Digital N@@ atives , Digital Im@@ migrants , co@@ ined these terms to explain the phenomenon . Digital n@@ atives are those children and young people born with technology . " We are the digital immigrants who have to teach them , when we are still in fact learning " he says . He says that the issue is complex , " because we are asking them to have a clear policy on what is appropriate or not to dis@@ close , publish or di@@ vul@@ ge , at an age at which mat@@ urity is not con@@ du@@ ci@@ ve to this . " " They also have to be sel@@ ective when what matters most is to be popular and have thousands of friends , without thinking of the consequences " he adds . According to the specialist , the most effective way to teach children and teen@@ agers what privacy is , is through questions that make them think . " T@@ elling them not to do it is no good " he adds . Por@@ ras then lists some options : There are things you w@@ ouldn 't tell a stran@@ ger , so why do it online ? Or , would you like a friend to publish a photo of you like the one you posted of a friend ? Do you know what others publish about you ? When tag@@ ging party photos , did you ask the other people 's permission to tag them ? And one more question : does everyone need to know what you 're doing all the time ? Another point is to make them see that they must beh@@ ave online as they do offline . The rules are the same . " Out@@ side the Internet , people act with respect , mor@@ ality and other principles , so they should act the same way on social networks " he says . Monitoring Stu@@ art Gu@@ ard , a university professor , primary school teacher and educational consult@@ ant , says it is essential for parents to read social networks ' policies thoroughly . By understanding all the clauses , they have solid grounds to talk to their children about the implications of opening an online account . " For example , the age at which you are allowed to share or publish " he says . According to Guar@@ dia , it is important to remind children the " don 't talk to stran@@ gers " lesson . Un@@ asur Summit clo@@ ses without making public the Lim@@ a Declaration The Six@@ th Presi@@ denti@@ al Summit of the South American Union of Nations ( Un@@ asur ) concluded today in Peru without making public the Lim@@ a Declaration , previously announced and theore@@ tically signed by the seven atten@@ de@@ e leaders . E@@ fe repeatedly tried to gain access to the document signed at the Six@@ th UN@@ AS@@ UR Meeting of Heads of State and Government , but Presi@@ denti@@ al and Chancell@@ ery sources initially said they would deliver it after the summit closed , but later they claimed that it will be published at some point on the Peru@@ vian Government website . When asked about the text , they pointed out that the content had been dis@@ closed by Peru@@ vian President , Ol@@ lan@@ ta Hum@@ ala , during a brief statement to the press . Journ@@ alists ' access to information from the Summit was restricted at all times . During the summit , in the press room , only video was ai@@ red , with no sound , showing the presidential meeting with the message " closed session , audio restricted . " The little information that circul@@ ated among re@@ por@@ ters was given by the press spo@@ kes@@ men of some of the UN@@ AS@@ UR governments attending the meeting , but not the Peru@@ vian Government . The only document released during the summit was the list of attending pres@@ idents , which anger@@ ed hundreds of journalists from various national and international media , who asked for more details . The Peru@@ vian President then sent an email to the media with the " final statement " of the summit , but this was Hum@@ ala 's statement , and not the official document that closed the summit . Last October , Peru hosted the Third Summit of South Americ@@ an-@@ Arab Countries ( AS@@ PA ) , and this time , despite repeated requests from the press , the previously announced Lim@@ a Declaration was again not made public . The AS@@ PA official website confirms that the document was published last Tuesday . At both international events , the Peru@@ vian authorities were at pain@@ s to ensure that there were broadcasting systems assured for all the journalists , but limited the obtaining of information to a maximum . The summit also concluded with the joint commitment of Chile and Peru to accept a ruling by the Hague Court to adju@@ dic@@ ate a border dispute between the two countries . The Presidents of Peru , Ol@@ lan@@ ta Hum@@ ala , and Chile , Sebas@@ ti@@ án Pi@@ ñ@@ era , met during the regional event and confirmed that they will respect the decision of the International Court of Justice ( IC@@ J ) , which on Monday , at The Hague , will start to hear the arguments of both parties , in the law@@ suit Lim@@ a has filed against Santiago . " We will o@@ bey and execute the order that currently defines the differences we are bringing before this international court " said Hum@@ ala , together with his Chi@@ lean counter@@ part . " Chile has been , is and will remain a country that respects international law and the peaceful resolution of disputes , treaties and international courts " added Pi@@ ñ@@ era , gre@@ eting Hum@@ ala with a hand@@ sha@@ ke , alongside the flags of the two countries . Con@@ fir@@ mation of both pres@@ idents that they would submit to the IC@@ J came after Colombia this week den@@ ounced the B@@ og@@ ot@@ á Pact , whereby it accepted to submit to the jud@@ gement of this international court , following a decision on its maritime bound@@ ary with Nicar@@ agua which it regarded as seriously f@@ law@@ ed . The summit was held with the absence of the Presidents of Brazil , Dil@@ ma R@@ ous@@ se@@ ff ; Venezuela , Hu@@ go Cha@@ vez ; Boli@@ via , E@@ vo Mor@@ ales ; and Argentina , Crist@@ ina Kir@@ chner . Par@@ agu@@ ay , which was suspended by UN@@ AS@@ UR in 2011 after the dis@@ miss@@ al of former President Fern@@ ando Lu@@ go , was not involved in the meeting . Ho@@ st President Ol@@ lan@@ ta Hum@@ ala was responsible for opening the session in the morning and closing the summit , just after noon in Lim@@ a . The President read the final document which reported that 16 agreements were adopted and the action plans laid down for 31 projects between the South American countries , for a total of 17 billion dollars of investments . Among the resolutions adopted , it was mentioned that UN@@ AS@@ UR countries will take " important steps toward the goal of a South American citizenship , for which residence agreements are being extended . " He reported that actions are being implemented to improve " cooperation in the fight against in@@ security and transnational organised crime , actions to make medic@@ ation more accessible , low-@@ cost Internet access in all areas of South America , and to deal jointly and efficiently with risks of natural disasters . " With Europe in crisis , " economic consolidation ( in Latin America ) should not have a tri@@ ump@@ hal@@ ist attitude but should serve to expand its productive mat@@ rix and gli@@ mp@@ se a better future for its people " Hum@@ ala added . " We decided to focus on a group of 31 flag@@ ship projects that will improve connection among areas of South America , especially in rural and border areas ... un@@ iting our countries and creating new economic networks " said the Peru@@ vian President in a message read out . Among these projects , he mentioned that five are in Peru and are located in the trans@@ verse ax@@ es of its territory , between the coast and Brazil , and two focus on increased connection with Ecuador , although he gave no further details . Also , the final document mentioned the political situation in Par@@ agu@@ ay . " We hope the electoral process in that country serves to re@@ incorporate it in the Union of South American Nations , " from which it is currently excluded . The need for Latin America to remain a prosp@@ erous , peaceful and integrated nation , with good neigh@@ bour@@ ly relations , was another issue highlighted by the summit . In this sense , the President of Colombia , Juan Manuel San@@ tos , said before attending the start of the regional event that he expected to meet with his counter@@ part from Nicar@@ agua , Daniel Ort@@ ega , on Saturday in Mexico , to resp@@ ect@@ fully discuss the maritime dispute after the failure of the IC@@ J , ques@@ tioned by B@@ og@@ ota . " The day after tomorrow ( Saturday ) I might have a meeting with President Daniel Ort@@ ega " San@@ tos said . " We will review all these paths , [ which ] are not exclusive , and the treaty with Nicar@@ agua will require a conversation with Nicar@@ agua " he emphasised . " With President Ort@@ ega , I hope I can say that we handle this in the most civili@@ sed and resp@@ ect@@ ful manner possible " said San@@ tos . San@@ tos and Ort@@ ega are due to meet on Saturday in Mexico , where they expect to attend the inau@@ gur@@ ation of the country 's new President , En@@ ri@@ que Pe@@ ña N@@ ie@@ to . Also , as part of the summit , the blo@@ c 's foreign defence ministers met in advance to approve the 2013 Action Plan , which seeks to strengthen dialogue and consensus on defence in the region . Argentina , Boli@@ via , Colombia , Ecuador , Peru , Brazil , Urugu@@ ay , Venezuela , Chile , Gu@@ y@@ ana , Sur@@ in@@ am and Par@@ agu@@ ay make up UN@@ AS@@ UR , although the latter is currently suspended . Peru has the pro tempor@@ e presidency of the regional blo@@ c . " South America should learn from Europe to integrate citizenship " says Raf@@ ael Cor@@ rea The President of Ecuador , Raf@@ ael Cor@@ rea , said today that the creation of a common citizenship is a goal that " South America , in this case , must learn from Europe . " Cor@@ rea , who took part in the Ele@@ ven@@ th Presi@@ denti@@ al Summit of the Union of South American Nations ( UN@@ AS@@ UR ) held in Lim@@ a , told Peru 's state television that Europeans " killed one another in the Second World War " and other conflicts , " but are now practically one country . " To this end , he defended the project to establish South American citizenship encouraged by member countries of UN@@ AS@@ UR . " We have to achieve the free movement of citizens and workers for any South American country , as is already the situation with members of the An@@ de@@ an Community . However , there are still re@@ ac@@ tionary sectors that want us to return to the past " he said . The Ecu@@ ad@@ orian President was also in favour of the restructuring of the Organisation of American States ( O@@ AS ) under the premis@@ e of reducing the influence of the Ang@@ lo@@ -S@@ ax@@ on states and taking into account those who have signed the Pact of San José on human rights . Those who speak with authority never commit to anything , whereas we South Americans sign everything . " It is in@@ comprehensible that the Inter@@ -@@ American Commission on Human Rights is in Washington under US funding " he said referring to Ecuador giving political asylum to Wiki@@ Le@@ aks founder Juli@@ an Ass@@ ange . Cor@@ rea said he does not regret that decision because with it he has not betra@@ yed his principles , but has respected his " deep democratic and human rights values . " He added that , at the time , " he had reasonable sus@@ pic@@ ion that Ass@@ ange would be ex@@ tradi@@ ted to another country and that his case would not be respected . " Additionally , he criticised the Swedish courts for demanding that he be subject to ques@@ tioning for an alleged sexual off@@ ence in his country , when " Swedish legislation itself dict@@ ates that he can be ques@@ tioned via vide@@ o@@ conference , which could be done from the Ecu@@ ad@@ orian Em@@ bass@@ y in London . " Cor@@ rea said that there is a risk of deterioration of Ass@@ ange 's physical and mental health . " I have not spoken to him since he was at our emb@@ ass@@ y , but the ambass@@ ador informed me that he had a minor lung problem , nothing serious " said the Ecu@@ ad@@ orian President . What there is , is the danger that his physical and mental health may deterior@@ ate due to being locked in a small space without any outdoor exercise . " That would complic@@ ate the health of any person " he added . Cor@@ rea said that the solution to the asylum granted to Ass@@ ange in June by the Ecu@@ ad@@ orian Em@@ bass@@ y , in London , through the issue of a saf@@ e-@@ conduct pass that permits travel to Ecuador , is in the hands of Great Britain , Sweden and the European legal authorities , and stressed that there have been talks with London to seek a solution to the impris@@ onment of the Wiki@@ Le@@ aks founder . We do not negotiate with human rights , we do not use that word in this case , but there have been ongoing discussions . " The solution to this problem is in the hands of Great Britain , Sweden and the European legal authorities , because Ass@@ ange 's lawyer , Bal@@ ta@@ z@@ ar Gar@@ zon , is handling a series of cases in different European courts " he said . And he felt that " if Britain says no to the saf@@ e-@@ conduct pass , it 's over . " And if Sweden , as its legislation perfectly well allows it to do , and as it has done in other cases , questions Mr Ass@@ ange at the Em@@ bass@@ y of Ecuador in London , or inter@@ ro@@ gates him via Skype tomorrow , this problem is over . Cor@@ rea took the opportunity to reas@@ sert himself as a def@@ ender of freedom of the press and stated that what he does not toler@@ ate is " the medi@@ oc@@ r@@ ity , dish@@ on@@ esty and lies that undermine the freedom of expression . " " The greatest enemies of the press freedom are not evil and wick@@ ed politicians , but bad journalists depending on profit , black@@ mail and ext@@ or@@ tion " he said . In that regard , he welcomed the fact that it was no longer these journalists , " or the ban@@ kers or bour@@ ge@@ ois and he@@ gem@@ onic countries that domin@@ ate Ecuador " and said that , if re-@@ elected , he will " step up the revolution to continue on the same path and in the right direction . " Cor@@ rea also supported the decision to maintain the ve@@ to on Par@@ agu@@ ay in UN@@ AS@@ UR , at least until their next elections , argu@@ ing that the body " must be firm and not toler@@ ate opport@@ un@@ ism and a coup m@@ asked with leg@@ ality " because this will in fact " destroy the legitimacy of Par@@ agu@@ ay@@ an democracy . " The Ecu@@ ad@@ orian President also considered the " perfectly per@@ tin@@ ent " desire of his Colom@@ bian counter@@ part , Juan Manuel San@@ tos , to now negotiate with Nicar@@ agua the maritime bound@@ ary between the two countries , after the ruling of the International Court of Justice in The Hague , in favour Nicar@@ agu@@ an maritime sovereignty . For now that ruling is not being followed . It is a problem between a South American country and a Central American one . Con@@ f@@ lic@@ t is inevitable , but must be overcome by the desire to walk together . They need to be processed in a comprehensive manner to overcome them and move forward . Additionally , he tru@@ sted in a sound conclusion to the maritime bound@@ ary dispute opposing Peru and Chile in the same court and said that " it is right for Latin America to refer to international courts if both countries agree to accept losing , however hard it may be . " With reference to the possibility of his standing as a candidate in the upcoming presidential elections in Ecuador seeking a third consec@@ utive term , he said he sees that possibility " with much optim@@ ism and joy , although at times it is pretty hard . " Cor@@ rea said that if he loses the elections in February 2013 , he will reti@@ re from public life . Person@@ ally , I 've never been interested in power , but in situations as un@@ just as those in Ecuador , socio-economic poverty can only be corrected by political power . " My political movement believed that it was me who ensured that prob@@ able victory , so we have to accept that responsibility " he said . If I won , it would be my last period in office and then I would leave public life . If I lose , likewise . " It 's a decision " he confirmed . Cor@@ rea also referred to Venezu@@ el@@ an President Hu@@ go Cha@@ vez 's new health treatment in Cuba . I just spoke with Venezu@@ el@@ an Vice President Nic@@ ol@@ ás Mad@@ ur@@ o and he tells me that Cha@@ vez went for treatment that was already planned , routine treatment , and it was expected he would win the campaign and return to Cuba . " This does not mean a health rel@@ ap@@ se for President Cha@@ vez " he said . In Lim@@ a today , the Ecu@@ ad@@ orian Head of State attended the Six@@ th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Union of South American Nations ( UN@@ AS@@ UR ) , which concluded with calls for greater regional integration to sustain progress , equality and security . De@@ aths caused by AIDS are nowadays due to late detection Fabri@@ zio was 21 years old when they confirmed his test result : HIV positive . " It was like a bomb dropped on me " he says , rec@@ alling the time of the announcement , which the doctor was trying to make " sof@@ ter , " apparently un@@ successfully . The boy hi@@ d it from his family . He decided to care for his illness alone and began to learn about it ; thanks to his efforts he has just celebrated his 4@@ 3rd birthday . He is undoubtedly one of the oldest patients in the HIV Unit of the Gu@@ ad@@ al@@ aj@@ ara Civil Hospital ( CH@@ G ) , where he arrived in 1994 after several batt@@ les with his health . Fabri@@ zio has lived with the human imm@@ un@@ o@@ defici@@ ency virus ( HIV ) for 22 years , hard to imagine in the early ' 9@@ 0s , when there were many questions , few treatment options and a great deal of s@@ tig@@ ma . Then , even the director of an IM@@ SS [ Mexican Social Security Institute ] clin@@ ic refused to discharge him " because he had a cut . " At that time , having A@@ ids was syn@@ onymous with death . Now it is possible to survive the syn@@ dro@@ me and do so with quality of life . However , many people are still un@@ aware of their illness , and only seek help when the virus has already caused ha@@ vo@@ c , " exhau@@ sted " their imm@@ une systems and they are suffering from opport@@ un@@ istic inf@@ ections . 31 years after of the on@@ set of AIDS around the world , at least since the first reported cases , " the great achievement at this time is that the life expect@@ ancy of patients starting treatment in good time and the life expect@@ ancy of the general population is exactly equal " stated the head of the CH@@ G HIV Unit , Ja@@ ime An@@ dra@@ de Vil@@ lan@@ u@@ eva , saying that this information was endorsed in April this year in a prestigious scientific journ@@ al . Inf@@ ec@@ tious disease specialist and expert in HIV / AIDS , An@@ dra@@ de Vil@@ lan@@ u@@ eva said that since 2008 scientists had concluded that AIDS was not a death sentence , but that life expect@@ ancy and quality of life depend on the degree of damage to the imm@@ une system that patients present when they are diagno@@ sed , with a higher life expect@@ ancy for non-@@ drug users : up to 30 years for patients with a 200 CD@@ 4 count and 50 years for those reporting a 500 CD@@ 4 count . In simple terms , this means that anyone diagno@@ sed HIV positive at 25 years old , under these terms and " as long as they keep it under control , can live with no problems to 75 " said the inter@@ vie@@ we@@ e . To gau@@ ge this progress , it should be remembered that the average life expect@@ ancy of Mex@@ ic@@ ans today is 76 years . Although mort@@ ality has dropped significantly in recent years and , in the case of Mexico , the number of people dying of AIDS has fallen from 6,@@ 6@@ 78 in 2007 to 4,@@ 8@@ 62 in 2011 ( UN@@ AIDS annual report ) , it is also true that since the adv@@ ent of AIDS , 60 per cent of patients in the national database have died . In J@@ alis@@ co alone , only 25@@ 5 people died in 2011 , and there have been 18@@ 7 deaths up to May of this year ; however , we are assured that there has been universal access to anti@@ retro@@ vir@@ al drugs since 2005 . - Why are do still deaths occur ? - I think the problem is not to do with access to treatment . That 's how I view it , and that 's how it 's been at our hospital . For at least the last 12 years we 've had no shortage of medicine , the problem is that patients arrive in an advanced state of illness because they are un@@ aware of their HIV status , that is to say , the later stages of the disease . He gave a comp@@ elling statis@@ tic : " Nine out of ten patients arrive when they already have an opport@@ un@@ istic infection , so what needs to be done to have a greater impact on overall mort@@ ality is to make earlier diagno@@ ses and , therefore , offer mass detection tests for everyone who needs them . " Speci@@ alists and officials of the State Council of AIDS Pre@@ vention in J@@ alis@@ co ( CO@@ ES@@ ID@@ A ) agree on this proposal , as do the patients themselves , such as Fabri@@ zio , who came to be tested at a private laboratory , motivated only because a friend had done so and , despite his young age , he was around in the AIDS era and had even suffered Ka@@ posi sar@@ com@@ a , a can@@ cer@@ ous tum@@ our that is one of the common complic@@ ations . Everything changes when you know you have AIDS . Some people think they 're going to die and don 't want to know anything . " If I 'm going to die , I 'd rather have a b@@ low-@@ out three times a week " they say , but not in my case . The change was for the better ; I eat well , I exercise , I take my drugs . To date , his parents are only aware he had cancer . I live as normal a life as anyone else . " I work , I take part in a lot of activities , I travel , I have an active but responsible sex life , I take care of myself and the other person " said Fabri@@ zio , who agreed to share his intimate sec@@ rets with M@@ IL@@ EN@@ IO J@@ AL@@ IS@@ CO , to motiv@@ ate those people with his story who today , in the context of World AIDS Day , are afraid . They should get tested if they are at risk@@ . because the sooner they know if they are HIV positive , the better , and if they have already been diagno@@ sed , they must learn to live like any other person , while being responsible . This is his message , which summ@@ arises the theme of the fight against AIDS in 2012 . Con@@ d@@ oms behind the counter . The gaps between health programmes and ordinary citizens are huge , said Ric@@ ardo Sal@@ az@@ ar , a journalist from Gu@@ ad@@ al@@ aj@@ ara who has taken up the HIV cause . And the greatest cure is prevention . In places dedicated to this task " the distribution of con@@ d@@ oms has actually increased ; previously , they used to give us one or two , now they give us pack@@ ets of a hundred , and that 's fine , but it turns out there are still people out there who have no access con@@ d@@ oms " he said . Among the most vulnerable to new inf@@ ections are teen@@ agers . " Why do you want them ? " is a common question , asked with sar@@ cas@@ m and judged according to the values of social workers , coun@@ s@@ ell@@ ors , pharm@@ acy workers and healthcare staff who do not want to ex@@ pose teen@@ agers to sex , said the speaker . It was decided to change such in@@ efficient allocation , and that con@@ d@@ oms should not only be placed behind counters , but that pack@@ ets of one hundred should be found in public toilet disp@@ en@@ sers in places frequ@@ ented by young people . This is not promoting promis@@ cu@@ ity . It is not about paying for their be@@ ers or m@@ otel fees , as Govern@@ or Em@@ ili@@ o Gonz@@ al@@ ez said , when asked if there would be distribution of con@@ d@@ oms during his administration . " And it 's not about sexu@@ ality , but it is best to provide con@@ d@@ oms to those already practi@@ sing sexual activity " he said . J@@ alis@@ co key points There are 13@@ ,@@ 4@@ 35 cum@@ ulative cases ( 12@@ ,@@ 15@@ 8 AIDS and 1,@@ 3@@ 17 HIV ) . The state is 4th in the nation in new and cum@@ ulative cases of AIDS and 13th in HIV . 92 % of new inf@@ ections are through sex , 6 % via the bloo@@ d@@ stream and 2 % per@@ in@@ at@@ al . An estimated 50@@ ,000 people may be living with HIV , as for each registered case there are around 4-@@ 5 people who do not know they are positive . Rati@@ fied by a United States court of appeal , a jud@@ gement which ign@@ ores the restructuring of the Vit@@ ro Group 's debt achieved via a bank@@ rupt@@ cy in Mexico , the scenario is an omin@@ ous precedent for any national company with offices in the neighbouring country that has solven@@ cy problems . It seems , then , that the proceedings in support of survival of firms permit Mexican law are not valid in the land of stars and stri@@ pes , contrary to international conventions . In practical terms , the endor@@ sement of the jud@@ gement delivered on 15 June by Ju@@ dge Har@@ lin H@@ ale of the Bank@@ rupt@@ cy Court of the Northern District of Texas , leaves Mexican firms defen@@ cel@@ ess against possible sei@@ z@@ ure of their property outside of Mexico . However , the decision opens the door for the leading glass manufacturer in Mexico to appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States , claiming three in@@ consisten@@ cies . From the start , while the trial judge notes that credi@@ tors should be governed by the United States Bank@@ rupt@@ cy Code , the Court of Ap@@ pe@@ al for the Fif@@ th Cir@@ cu@@ it , based in New Or@@ le@@ ans , states that the main action is the in@@ solven@@ cy action handled in Mexico . The first point would involve ign@@ oring international procedural cooperation in cases of in@@ solven@@ cy of companies with transnational profiles . Indeed , the UN Model Law for International Trade Law Uni@@ formity was created for this purpose , with the American Law Institute positioned as arbitr@@ ator . Secondly , the jud@@ gement establishes that without the inter@@ company vote , with the debts the Vit@@ ro subsidiaries had with their parent company recognised in the critical mass of the in@@ solven@@ cy , the majority needed to approve the restructuring might not be achieved . However , Mexican law recognises the possibility . In fact , the Vit@@ ro case was not the first one in which the scheme was accepted . There are half a do@@ zen examples , including Agre@@ m@@ ex and Commer@@ cial Mex@@ ic@@ ana , whose inter@@ company debts were endorsed by the Federal Bank@@ rupt@@ cy Institute . What is also certain is that , not including the votes of subsidiaries , the Vit@@ ro credi@@ tors who fought against it in the US courts , namely " vul@@ ture " funds such as Aur@@ eli@@ os Capital , Aur@@ eli@@ os Conver@@ gence , El@@ li@@ ot International and Li@@ ver@@ pool Limited , did not achieve a majority . The vote was apparently 45 percent ver@@ sus 37 . This data is om@@ itted by the Court of Ap@@ pe@@ al . From another perspective , the latter bl@@ ames Vit@@ ro for the difficult situation it has faced since 2008 , while trying to avoid the severe economic crisis faced by the United States , turning its back on the country . For now , the Gonz@@ al@@ ez S@@ ada family firm has lo@@ dged a motion for re@@ consideration before the Court of Ap@@ pe@@ al for the vote to reach the plenary of the court , that is , the five judges , given that only three voted previously . Should this fail , an appeal for review by a higher court , in this case the US Supreme Court , will be filed . The real problem is that the court b@@ yp@@ ass@@ ed a document sent by the Government of Mexico in the capacity of am@@ ic@@ us cur@@ i@@ ae ( " friend of the Court " ) , which details the procedure followed by Vit@@ ro under the framework of the Commer@@ cial In@@ solven@@ cy Law , not@@ ing that the latter dischar@@ ged itself with adher@@ ence to the agreements signed by the two countries to link it with Chapter 15 of the Bank@@ rupt@@ cy Act of the United States . Moreover , it should be noted that the country yiel@@ ded to the principles of the United Nations Commission on International Trade , that is the rules set for cross-border in@@ solven@@ cy cases , ensuring fair@@ ness for deb@@ tors and credi@@ tors . Double wh@@ amm@@ y : Vit@@ ro hit and country hit . Balance S@@ he@@ et With the complaints put on the table by the unions of Mex@@ ic@@ ana Airlines against the former owner of the company , Gast@@ ón Az@@ c@@ á@@ r@@ ra@@ ga An@@ dra@@ de , who is accused of mis@@ management , dor@@ m@@ ant for several months , the Air@@ line Pil@@ ots Union Association already found the bot@@ t@@ len@@ eck . The proceedings headed by Carlos Di@@ az Cha@@ vez Mor@@ ine@@ au has just filed a criminal complaint against the National Banking and Sec@@ urities Commission , which is accused of ob@@ struc@@ ting justice . The claim is that the supervisory authority has consistently refused to provide reports to the Att@@ or@@ ney General 's Office on a transaction carried out by the employ@@ er to remove 19@@ 8 million p@@ es@@ os from trust F / 5@@ 89 of B@@ anc@@ o IX@@ E , on behalf of Mex@@ ic@@ ana de Avi@@ ación . The resources were apparently chann@@ elled towards the purchase of shares in the company Ad@@ minist@@ ra@@ dor@@ a Pro@@ fes@@ i@@ onal de Hotel@@ es . As you know , Az@@ car@@ ra@@ ga An@@ dra@@ de is the main shar@@ eholder of the Po@@ sa@@ das hotel chain . Op@@ posing Dra@@ gon Mar@@ t A group of local and foreign environment@@ alists , academ@@ ics , business@@ men and members of the public gathered at the weekend at a forum at the University of the Caribbean to approve the creation of a broad front to oppose the opening of the Chinese Dra@@ gon Mar@@ t in Can@@ cu@@ n . As you know , we are talking about a huge sales and distribution centre in Mexico , Central America and the Caribbean , selling Chinese products , with a residential area at the bottom for employees of 150 companies . Pre@@ viously , Can@@ ac@@ in@@ tra had managed to unite the govern@@ ors of the sou@@ theast of Mexico to oppose the monum@@ ental building that destroyed part of a protected area and represents the mother of all threats to industry . The death of AC@@ TA The Government ignored an order of the Sen@@ ate to explain under what terms and conditions the Mexican Ambass@@ ador in Japan signed the Anti-@@ Co@@ unter@@ fei@@ ting Trade Agreement , known by its ac@@ ron@@ ym AC@@ TA , according to the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property , and the matter has already been archi@@ ved . As you know , the action was taken even though the Sen@@ ate had ruled out the possibility , de@@ em@@ ing it an infringement of freedom of expression on social networks . Hom@@ ex long term In effort to rep@@ ay long-term debt without affecting short-term debt , the housing developer Hom@@ ex is placing securities exchange certificates on the market for 500 million p@@ es@@ os . The issue is the first of four identical issues which are offering to rep@@ ay interest every 28 days . Bir@@ th of Com@@ pe@@ tival A con@@ sortium under the name Com@@ pe@@ tival has just been established , comprising the companies N@@ Y@@ CE , e-@@ Quality and Kern@@ et , leaders in information technology , the objective of which will be to market the services of software clu@@ sters in Central and South America . Invest@@ ments in this area exceed USD 1.5 billion . H@@ ector " He@@ tin " Re@@ yes : " Bas@@ ketball has been my life " Bas@@ ketball glo@@ bet@@ ro@@ tter H@@ ector " He@@ tin " Re@@ yes was involved in the sport for over 60 years and , thanks to it , trav@@ elled the world . Fe@@ w people in Puerto R@@ ico have a mental rec@@ oll@@ ection of local bas@@ ketball history as broad as that of H@@ é@@ c@@ tor " He@@ tin " Re@@ yes . Re@@ yes was immer@@ sed in the sport for over 60 years before being confined to a whe@@ el@@ chair in 2008 following a stro@@ ke ; he was a minor le@@ ague player , National Superior Bas@@ ketball player , BS@@ N representative and manager with the Bay@@ am@@ ón V@@ aqu@@ er@@ os or President of the Bas@@ ketball Federation . " I wor@@ e lots of h@@ ats in bas@@ ketball throughout my life , including several at the same time , like when I was president of the BS@@ N , general manager and feder@@ ative president of the National Team during the ' 9@@ 0s , " rec@@ alled Re@@ yes during Pri@@ mer@@ a Hor@@ a 's visit to his home in Bay@@ am@@ ón , where he lives with Is@@ abel , his loy@@ al wife for over 50 years . " Bas@@ ketball has been my life . " Re@@ yes is not exagger@@ ating when he makes that statement . The walls of his house are almost totally decorated with pictures and memor@@ abili@@ a den@@ oting his long career , which goes to prove it . Bay@@ am@@ ón at heart Of them all , the ones he treas@@ ures with the most emo@@ tion are the ones that remind him of his time spent with the V@@ aqu@@ er@@ os , from the mid-@@ 50@@ s as a player until 1982 , when he completed 15 years serving as co-@@ agent or agent of the fran@@ chise . " Those were my best years , the ones I enjoyed the most because I had the opportunity to be part of the V@@ aqu@@ er@@ os ' eight champ@@ ion@@ ships , since 1967 , either as agent , co-@@ agent or manager . There were many good years , including the five consec@@ utive champ@@ ion@@ ships from 1971 to 1975 . And then I said good@@ by@@ e with one in 1981 , Jer@@ ome M@@ inc@@ y 's de@@ but year in the BS@@ N . Then " Cu@@ co " Or@@ tiz took over - he was a great manager " said Re@@ yes . I remember that G@@ ene Bar@@ to@@ w , who had directed here and was at the University of Al@@ ab@@ ama ( Birmingham ) , said to me ' I 've got a very strong player for you , 6 ' 7 " t@@ all . Do you want him ? ' And that was the beginning of M@@ inc@@ y , one of the best players Puerto R@@ ico ever had . Bar@@ to@@ w then recommended the sharp@@ sho@@ oter G@@ aus@@ se Ray@@ mond , who established resi@@ dency here and was one of our best sh@@ oo@@ ters . I remember him saying that if M@@ inc@@ y had given Bay@@ am@@ on one champ@@ ionship , G@@ aus@@ se would help get another . The V@@ aqu@@ er@@ os ' champ@@ ionship with G@@ aus@@ se was enjoyed , but from a distance , because in 1988 he was already becoming a feder@@ ative big@@ shot . For that time , he preferred to enjoy his own and M@@ inc@@ y 's accomp@@ lish@@ ments in the national team . I remember when we beat the United States for the first time during the 1989 Pre@@ -@@ Olymp@@ ics in Mexico . Then came the 1990 World Cup , where we came fourth and it should have been bron@@ ze , but for the Canadian refer@@ ee who made us repeat the final play for the second time , said Re@@ yes . Is the 1990 World National Team the best you 've ever seen ? It 's one of the best , as good as the one that beat the Dre@@ am Team in the 2004 Olymp@@ ics . However , my favourite was the one in the 1991 P@@ an American Games in Cuba , when we won gold and gave the US team a be@@ ating , which was quite similar to the time we won bron@@ ze at the World Cup . That team not only again included M@@ inc@@ y , G@@ aus@@ se , Ram@@ on Ri@@ vas , F@@ ico L@@ ó@@ pez and ' P@@ icul@@ ín ' ( Or@@ tiz ) , but also the young ( J@@ avier ) ' To@@ ñ@@ ito ' Col@@ ón and James Car@@ ter , the Leon brothers ( Francisco and Ed@@ gar ) and Mario ' Qui@@ jo@@ te ' Mor@@ ales , who was kept out of the 90 team by a kne@@ e injury . A team that maybe was not the best in terms of members , but which gave us a gold med@@ al and was a great joy to work with , was the 1995 Pre@@ -@@ Olympic team in Neu@@ qu@@ en , Argentina . With role players such as ' Can@@ ito ' Ni@@ ev@@ es , P@@ ab@@ lo Alic@@ ea and the young Rol@@ ando H@@ our@@ ru@@ it@@ iner replacing the players suspended after the sh@@ amb@@ les of the Mar del Plat@@ a Pan@@ -@@ American Games , we won gold against all the odds . Who was the best Puerto Ric@@ an player ? Without any doubt , P@@ icul@@ ín Or@@ tiz . His numbers at international tournament level are a@@ wes@@ ome . Nob@@ ody in Puerto R@@ ico has dominated at that level like P@@ icul@@ ín did . Not to mention his career in the various le@@ ag@@ ues he played in . Who was the best Puerto Ric@@ an manager ? That 's a difficult one . We had a very good team , including Juli@@ o Tor@@ o , Fl@@ or Mel@@ ende@@ z , Carlos Mor@@ ales , Ray@@ mond Dal@@ m@@ au , Ar@@ man@@ di@@ to Tor@@ res . Of the yo@@ ungst@@ ers , I really like the work of Le@@ o Ari@@ ll . What do you consider your greatest achievement in the federation ? Having been part of the National Team 's most gl@@ orious era between 1988 and 1995 and in the early 9@@ 0s the BS@@ N had up to 17 teams in a season . What was there left for you to do ? There were things I 'd have liked to implement , such as region@@ alising the minor le@@ ag@@ ues . For example , the boys of P@@ once only play in their area and only get to face teams from other parts of the island in the national play@@ off@@ s . Right now the kids are riding and playing too much , un@@ necessarily . At least I see the fruit of compulsory certi@@ fications and a course for leaders , table officials and refer@@ ees . That ple@@ ases me . What are you doing now ? The most I do is listen to music , watch music videos from my era on YouTube , enjoy my grand@@ children and occasionally go to bas@@ ketball games . And of course , enjoy the company of my wife , Eli@@ zab@@ eth , who has always been with me . Ac@@ tor Lar@@ ry H@@ ag@@ man dies Lar@@ ry H@@ ag@@ man , born on 21 September 19@@ 31 in Fort Wor@@ th ( Texas ) , became world famous for his role as John Ro@@ ss E@@ wing , better known as " J@@ R , " in the television series " D@@ allas , " in which he played a ru@@ th@@ less , mal@@ icious and manipul@@ ative business@@ man . Lar@@ ry H@@ ag@@ man , whose role as oil ty@@ co@@ on pre@@ dat@@ or J@@ R E@@ wing in the television series " D@@ allas " became a symbol of gre@@ ed in the 1980s , has died . He was 81 . H@@ ag@@ man , who returned this year as J@@ R in a new season of " D@@ allas , " died on Friday afternoon of cancer complic@@ ations , according to a family statement provided to the Associ@@ ated Press by the War@@ ner Bro@@ s. , producer of " D@@ allas . " " Lar@@ ry was back in his bel@@ o@@ ved hom@@ et@@ own of D@@ allas , once again representing the i@@ con@@ ic role he most liked " the family said . Lar@@ ry 's family and closest friends were with him in D@@ allas for the Th@@ an@@ ks@@ giving Day holiday . Lin@@ da Gra@@ y , who played his wife in the original series and the sequ@@ el , was with H@@ ag@@ man when he died in a hospital in D@@ allas , said her public@@ ist , J@@ eff@@ rey Lan@@ e . He brought joy to all who knew him . He was creative , generous , f@@ unny , lo@@ ving and tal@@ ented , and I will miss him de@@ arly . " He was an original guy and lived life to the full " said Gra@@ y in a statement . H@@ ag@@ man was diagno@@ sed with cir@@ r@@ ho@@ sis of the li@@ ver in 1992 and admitted that he had dr@@ unk a lot over the years . In 1995 a mal@@ ign@@ ant tum@@ our as found in his li@@ ver and he under@@ went a transp@@ l@@ ant . Y@@ ears before " D@@ allas , " H@@ ag@@ man became famous on television as a decent guy in the light com@@ edy " I Dre@@ am of Je@@ ann@@ ie , " ai@@ red on N@@ BC from 1965 to 1970 . He played Captain Tony N@@ elson , an a@@ stron@@ aut whose life is changed when he meets an attractive gen@@ ie , played by Barbar@@ a Eden , and takes her home to live with him . He also star@@ red in two sit@@ com@@ s that were not ai@@ red for long , " The Good Life " ( N@@ BC , 197@@ 1-@@ 72 ) and " Here We Go Again " ( AB@@ C , 1973 ) . His film work included roles well received by critics in " The Group , " " Harry and T@@ onto " and " Prim@@ ary Col@@ ors . " But it was his master@@ ful interpretation of deli@@ ght@@ fully det@@ est@@ able J@@ R that led to H@@ ag@@ man reaching his peak of star@@ dom . The drama series on C@@ BS about the E@@ wing cl@@ an and other characters in their or@@ bit ai@@ red from April 1978 to May 1991 . The tag@@ line " Who shot J@@ R ? , " designed to generate h@@ ype around an episode full of emotions in which H@@ ag@@ man 's character is nearly killed , generated international speculation and millions of ris@@ ky dollars wag@@ ered in gaming establishments . It also helped give the series a record audience at the time . When the answer was revealed in an episode in November 1980 , an average of 41 million vie@@ wers tun@@ ed in and made " D@@ allas " the second most wat@@ ched entertainment programme in history , after the final episode of " MAS@@ H " in 1983 , which had 50 million vie@@ wers . It was J@@ R 's si@@ ster@@ -in-@@ law Kris@@ tin ( played by Mary Cro@@ s@@ by ) who shot him . J@@ R got her pregn@@ ant then threatened to say she was a pro@@ stitute unless she left town , but there were others who also had reasons to attack him . H@@ ag@@ man portra@@ yed E@@ wing as a cor@@ rupt ins@@ ati@@ able man with a char@@ is@@ m@@ atic s@@ mile : a dish@@ on@@ est entreprene@@ ur and che@@ ating husband who tried to have his alcoho@@ lic wife , S@@ ue El@@ len ( Lin@@ da Gra@@ y ) , sec@@ tioned . " I know what I want on J@@ R 's tom@@ b@@ stone " H@@ ag@@ man said in 1988 . It should read : " Here lies the honest citizen J@@ R E@@ wing . " This is the only deal he lost . Victoria Princip@@ al , co-@@ star of the original series , rec@@ alled H@@ ag@@ man on Friday as someone " huge , on and off screen . " He is unforgettable and ir@@ replac@@ eable , for millions of fans around the world , and in the hearts of each one of us who was fortunate enough to know and love him . Ten epis@@ odes of the new edition of " D@@ allas " were broadcast a few months ago with great success for T@@ NT . He had already finished recording five epis@@ odes for the second series and a sixth was in process , the chain reported . Im@@ medi@@ ately after , there was no statement from War@@ ner or T@@ NT about how the series would handle the loss of H@@ ag@@ man . H@@ ag@@ man , born in Fort Wor@@ th , Texas , was the son of act@@ ress and singer Mary Martin , who star@@ red in classi@@ cs such as " South Pacific " and " Peter P@@ an . " Martin was still a teen@@ ager when she had him in 19@@ 31 during her marriage to lawyer Ben H@@ ag@@ man . He tried his luck in the New York theatre scene in the early ' 50@@ s , and later served in the Air Force from 195@@ 2 to 1956 , in England . While there , he met the young Swedish designer Ma@@ j Ax@@ el@@ sson and married her . The couple had two sons , Pres@@ ton and Hei@@ di , and lived for a long time in the Califor@@ ni@@ an city M@@ ali@@ bu , home to many celeb@@ ri@@ ties . In 2001 , he called his mem@@ o@@ irs " H@@ ello Dar@@ lin ' : T@@ all ( and Absol@@ utely Tru@@ e ) T@@ ales About My Life . " " I didn 't put anything in it that I believed would h@@ urt anyone or affect them in any way " he told Associ@@ ated Press at the time . After his li@@ ver transp@@ l@@ ant , he became an organ donation promot@@ er and worked as a volunte@@ er at a hospital , helping fear@@ ful patients . " I advise them , encourage them , meet with them when they come for their surgery , and afterwards " he said in 1996 . I try to offer some comfort , such as " Don 't be afraid , it will be a little un@@ comfortable for a short time , but then you 'll be fine . " He was also an anti-@@ smoking activ@@ ist and took part in several campaigns . Start of a course that expl@@ ores the " End of the World " Each week , students explore apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic themes such as nuclear war , z@@ om@@ bi@@ es , viruses and ger@@ ms , and global warming . This term , when Professor of religion , Stu@@ art Char@@ m@@ é , decided to give a course on the end of the world , he knew he had a comp@@ elling h@@ ook : The end of the " long coun@@ t@@ down " of the May@@ an calendar , 21 December , which had convinced many people that the end of the world was coming . But Char@@ m@@ é had no idea what awa@@ ited him over the next couple of months : The cat@@ ac@@ ly@@ sm@@ ic hur@@ ri@@ cane Sand@@ y , a fiscal pre@@ cip@@ ice some called " debt Ar@@ ma@@ ge@@ dd@@ on " and a growing conflict involving Israel , where end-@@ of-the-@@ world Christians the@@ or@@ ists think the Apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ se will begin . " I didn 't realise this was going to be the most apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic term ever " said Char@@ m@@ é this week to students at R@@ ut@@ ger@@ s-@@ Cam@@ den University ( New Jer@@ sey ) . If you look at what has been happening in the world today as if we were at 30 days and counting , this has been a really good period . And remember that bad is good for those with an apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic ment@@ ality . And he is not the only professor who offers courses on the " end of the world " this term , theore@@ tically the last in history . At Temple , Associ@@ ate Professor Bar@@ ry V@@ ack@@ er is giving the course " Media , Culture and the end of the world . " Each week , students explore apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic themes such as nuclear war , z@@ om@@ bi@@ es , viruses and ger@@ ms , and global warming . " We looked at why these ideas pro@@ lifer@@ ate over time " he said , and how they offer hypo@@ the@@ tical scenarios that guide human behaviour . If nuclear material falls into the hands of terrorists , for example , a war could break out . This month students analy@@ sed movies with an apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic theme and expl@@ ored how they compare with real-@@ life examples . " I 've tried to inform students about what is possible , prob@@ able , credible and impossible " said V@@ ack@@ er . At the main P@@ enn@@ sy@@ lv@@ ania State University camp@@ us , Latin American History Professor Mat@@ the@@ w Rest@@ all , and his colleague Am@@ ara Sol@@ ari , an Associ@@ ate Art History and An@@ throp@@ ology Professor , have te@@ amed up to give a course , called simply " The end of the world . " " We don 't add ' 2012 ' so we always have the option of running the course again , if the world doesn 't come to an end " said Rest@@ all . Despite the " imp@@ ending d@@ oom , " students have to study , undertake projects and take final exam@@ s . At P@@ enn State , the final ex@@ am will be taken on the eve of the Apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ se , which leaves students no choice but to work " until the very night the world is supposed to end " said Rest@@ all . The courses proved quite popular . " It was fully booked within two hours " said Rest@@ all , on his course for students with high aver@@ ages , which was filled with 35 students . We received emails for weeks and weeks before the start of the term , from people asking if there were any places . Stu@@ dents , mean@@ while , say the course is one of the most interesting around . " I find it fascinating to see what people do to console themselves " said Bri@@ d@@ gi@@ d Rob@@ inson , a 23@@ -@@ year-old post-@@ graduate Religion and Soci@@ ology student from H@@ add@@ on@@ field , New Jer@@ sey , at R@@ ut@@ ger@@ s-@@ Cam@@ den . And the apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic , secular or religious ment@@ ality is just a matter con@@ sol@@ ation or a lack of it . Will W@@ ek@@ esa , a 25-@@ year-old post-@@ graduate Psych@@ ology and Nur@@ sing student , said he had seen all the apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic movies . " I 'd never heard of a class that could teach it " he said . I enjoy it . But none of the students inter@@ viewed - much less any professor - said they believed in the end date of December 21st . " Our first project was about the May@@ an proph@@ ec@@ y and to a certain extent we dis@@ credited it " said Ju@@ lie Z@@ eg@@ len , a 2@@ 1-@@ year-old final year student at Temple , from West Ch@@ ester . The May@@ ans never predic@@ ted the end of the world : it is just a key point in the calendar , said Rest@@ all . But he said that Western culture suff@@ ers from apo@@ cal@@ yp@@ tic anx@@ i@@ ety , which goes back several centuries , in which people react to changes around them by predic@@ ting the end of the world . The Internet has caused a boom in these spec@@ ulations . " In other places , people don 't think about it " he said . It 's mostly in the Engli@@ sh@@ -@@ speaking world . Joseph Dou@@ gh@@ er@@ ty , a Professor of religion at La S@@ alle University , who is giving courses in the Philipp@@ ines this year , responded quickly to the question of whether he knew about any courses on the " end of the world " there . " The Philipp@@ ines are not taking part in the end of the world " he wrote , suggest@@ ing an exception of a higher authority . We have an indul@@ gence from the P@@ ope . Rest@@ all noted that over the years there has been talk of many days of the last jud@@ gement , and said that if nothing happens on December 21st , " people will immediately start thinking of the next date " or philosoph@@ ising that December 21st is the beginning of a sev@@ en-@@ year period after which the world will end . Stu@@ dents and teachers are taking the date ligh@@ tly . Some said they plan to go to " end of the world " parties . " Maybe I 'll call some friends so we can have a lau@@ gh together " said Sam@@ ira Ford , 20-@@ year-old communications student .