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Visual Diary of a journalist

Krystsina Yarashevich

Flood alert

Judge scuppers New York soda ban at the last minute

Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio elected new pope

ALMA set to reveal the Universe

Educating the green guardians of the future

International Space Station crew land safely in Kazakhstan

London celebrates spring Russian style

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Dams that protect urban areas from flooding sometimes fail, resulting in catastrophic damage. But what can be done to prevent such disasters?

Robert Meijer, a Professor of Applied Sensor Networks, at the University of Amsterdam, who is coordinating the Urbanflood project said: “There are 48 sen-sors constantly telling us how this dam is feeling and how it’s behaving. This technology makes this the smartest dam in the world.”

The underground sensors, developed within a European Union research project, transmit measurements to data centres in several countries. Boston, on the east coast of England, is one of the main test sites for the new technology. Its river rises dramatically with the sea tides, putting local citizens at risk.

Engineers involved in the study have designed several types of sensors, reli-able and affordable enough to be put in damp soil embankments.

Robert Meijer explained: “A sensor is a measuring device that has electron-ic components inside a stainless steel container. It has a tiny opening through which water can enter. This device measures the amount of water in the dam and many other parameters such as the underground temperature, and the movement of the sensors inside the dam.”

These indications can be followed in real time using any internet-enabled device. A touch screen panel installed in a Boston café allows the public to see how the system works. If the artificial intelligence anticipates a breach, it sends a warning to the responsible services that may otherwise be unaware of the weakening within the flood defences.

Mark Robinson a Senior Coastal Advisor, at the UK Environment Agency said: “Currently we use a visual walkover. It means probably two or three times a year we got people viewing the asset [the dam] from a visual point of view. This tech-nology allows us to actually understand how the bank is performing, so it looks at how it’s moving under pressure, whether we’ve got leakages through the de-fence, and also we can see if there’s an incident in real time what’s happening.”

The software calculates how fast the site will be flooded if the dam fails, and even suggests the best ways to move citizens into safer areas.

Alexandra Topple, a Senior Flood Management Engineer, at HR Wallingford, said: “This system will allow to show you the outline of the flood mapping; we can then run a life safety model which will show the evacuation process that people can take — this can be used by emergency planners, for them to be able to test various scenarios of evacuation to find the best evacuation procedure in the event of the failure.”

If proved reliable, this system could be deployed in many urban areas in Eu-rope and across the world to protect vulnerable cities from the imminent effects of climate change.

Flood alert www.euronews.com11/03 11:40 CET

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New technology can help residents of countries and cities, which are located on the banks of rivers, seas and oceans to avoid unpleasant surprises.

This system allows monitoring the dikes condition in real time and if there is a threat of a breakthrough, specialists will be able to respond immediately. Obviously, this is a logical approach to the problem of flooding: do not wait for a tragedy, but prevent it. Moreover, from an economic point of view, elimination of defects according to the plan is more profitable than liquidation the consequenc-es in the flood affected areas.

In addition, innovation of this project is in using of modern technologies such as several types of sensors, software and Internet. Considering, that the dams are estimated by eye until the present time, the introduction of new technologies into the work is a really significant leap forward in the development.

Urbanflood is only a three-year project, therefore I think it is necessary to carry out a lot of tests and especially visual experiments in order to convince of the feasibility of this system not only the public, but also investors.

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Judge scuppers New York soda ban at the last minute

One day before it was due to go into come into effect, a ban on large sugary drinks in New York has been thrown out.

Certain places would have had to stop selling the soft drinks known as sodas in 16 ounce servings – equivalent to nearly half a litre.

At the last minute, a judge called the ban “arbitrary and capricious”, putting a stop to its enforcement, much to the dismay of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. “We strongly believe that in the end the court will recognise the Board of Health’s authority to regulate the sale of beverages that have virtually no nutritional value and which, consumed in large quantities, are leading to dis-ease and death for thousands of people every year,” he said.

The judge also said the ban would be hard to enforce because it only stops certain places from selling the big drinks.

Some retailers were prepared for a ban. One of them was Ayman Kamel, Gen-eral Manager of Frames Bowling NYC. “It’s going to cost a little bit more money and of course juices are not as cheap as sodas, but I think people will figure out the value they are getting,” Kamel said, anticipating the ban would be put in place.

Even if the ban had received the go-ahead, people would still have been able to buy the large sodas at some outlets, such as supermarkets.

The judge’s decision is being appealed.

www.euronews.com 12/03 01:05 CET

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks to the media at New York's City Hall.REUTERS

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Statistics show that obesity in the United States, in this case in New York, has been cited as one of the major health problem. The prohibition selling of large amounts of sugary beverages seems quite reasonable.

However, there are some contradictions. Firstly, the reason to forbid selling a certain number of soda such as 16 ounces is obscure. It was proved that the consumption of soda can harm the health, so why exactly this quantity are per-secuted so severely. Secondly, the prohibition only applied to the certain estab-lishments. In other words, people can purchase desired drinks without restric-tions at any other places. These half-measures force to doubt about sincere care of people when making such decisions.

Nevertheless, it is obvious that the ban could cause only negative reaction. On the one hand, interests of very powerful companies have been affected. This kind of corporations will not execute new rules no questions asked, especially if such terms infringe their interests. On the other hand, plenty of people have taken this bill with hostility. People do not like to be considered unreasonable. But any prohibition, moreover due to solicitude, hints frankly that people do not know what is good for them and what is bad.

It seems to me that any method of solving a problem by prohibiting will not be able to cause a healthy public reaction. Because of such decision, the leader could become a despot.

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Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio elected new pope

The Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio has been elected as the new pope. He becomes the first Latin American, as well as the first Jesuit leader of the Catholic Church.

In his first words after election, the man who will be known as Pope Francis said: “As you know the duty of the conclave is to give Rome a bishop. It seems that my brother cardinals went almost to the end of the world!”

Bergoglio becomes the first pope to choose a name in tribute to Saint Fran-cis of Assisi, the 13th century reformer who lived in poverty and told followers: “Preach the Gospel always, if necessary use words.”

White smoke was released from the Sistine Chapel shortly after 19:00 CET on March 13, signalling that the Vatican had elected a new pope.

As bells rang out over St. Peter’s Square in Rome, a crowd of thousands hud-dled under umbrellas cheered.

The identity of the new pontiff was revealed to the world from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica by French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran. Pope Fran-cis then stepped forward to deliver his first public address and blessing to the gathered faithful, asking for the prayers of “all men and women of good will” to help him lead the Catholic Church. Speaking Italian with a slight Latin Ameri-can accent he added the world should set off on a path of love and fraternity. He concluded by bidding the huge crowd: “Good night and have a good rest.”

Roman Catholic cardinals took part in the secret voting process, known as the conclave, to select a successor for Pope Benedict XVI, who stepped down on February 28.

The white smoke came on the evening of the second day of the conclave — with the cardinals reaching agreement earlier than many analysts predicted.

The last four popes were all elected within two or three days. Seven ballots have been required on average over the last nine conclaves. Benedict was clear frontrunner in 2005 and elected after only four ballots.

The new pope asked the crowd to join him in a prayer for his predecessor, now known as the emeritus Pope.

Pope Francis is said to have appeal across the Catholic Church — although many will note that at 76, he is only two years younger than Benedict was when he became pope.

www.euronews.com 13/03 21:56 CET

The new pope Francis waves to people from the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica.Getty Images

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The church as a social institution has a very secular type of organization. Furthermore, there are many historical facts that the church, during its exist-ence, was under the influence or in close collaboration with the government. In addition, history shows that previous conclaves had a very complicated story. Such human features of the church impugn the divine participation in the elec-tion of a new pontiff.

However, if to watch this action without the “proper” religious awe, such a rare church ritual as the election of a new Pope may be interesting not only to Christian believers.

In view of I was indifferent to the result of the voting, as for me the most fascinating part of conclave was the ceremony. It was like a colourful spectacle against the background of brilliant scenery. Besides, the realization, that I am an eyewitness of this interesting historic event attached importance to the moment.

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ALMA set to reveal the Universe

www.euronews.com 14/03 16:13 CET

Mankind has a new eye on the heavens today with the inauguration of the world’s largest telescope in Chile.

The ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter Array) is high in the Atacama desert, 5000 metres above sea level. Once fully operational its 66 radio antennas spread over a 10-kilometre radius for maximum efficiency will be able to probe deeper into the universe than ever before, and with a resolution 10 times sharper than the orbiting Hubble telescope.

ALMA, a new radio telescope array, is built high up in the Chilean Atacama desert.SPACE.com

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It is interesting to notice, that both such news as the election of a new pon-tiff and inauguration of the world’s largest observatory occurred during a week. The church is an organization which has its own very clear concept of the creation and the structure of the world, whereas the goal of a new telescope is a study the formation of galaxies, stars and planets, but, obviously, it is not to confirm the theory of the church. It seems to me, it is pretty ironic.

Due to a lack of deep scientific knowledge, I cannot realize objectively, what opportunities this telescope provides. However, there are a plenty significant distinctions between this observatory and other telescopes, such as a huge size of ALMA, a favourable location for researches, participation by professionals from over the world in its creation etc. All this features give reason to suggest, that in the near future we can expect even if not fundamental discoveries, then interesting facts at least.

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Educating the green guardians of the future

www.euronews.com 15/03 16:36 CET

With climate change, deforestation and ever increasing threats to wildlife, environmental activists believe much more still needs to be done to protect our planet.

Around the world, efforts are being made to boost awareness amongst young people about environmental issues. The hope is that today’s classroom pupils will be the green guardians of tomorrow.

Vietnam: Small steps, big changesSome of Vietnam’s floating villages are UNESCO World Heritage Sites and

attract visitors from all over the world. While it is good news for the local econ-omy, it can be bad news for eco-systems. Five million people flock to Halong Bay, northern Vietnam, every year — drawn by its natural beauty.

Cua Van is a 100-year-old floating village, the largest in the area.Under a scheme led by various agencies, children have been learning about

the importance of their environment and how to protect it — with dedicated les-sons held during and after school time.

Tanzania: Hands off our wildlifeIn some parts of Tanzania, wildlife has suffered from over-grazing, poach-

ing and deforestation — turning rich, natural areas into wastelands.The Ndarakwai Camp organises wildlife safaris for groups of students

from the West Kilimanjaro area — to teach them about conservation work at the 11,000 acre site. The area was damaged by years of overgrazing — and took almost a decade to recover.

Italy: Earth educationSteve Van Matre, an American environmental activist, author and educator,

founded the Institute for Earth Education. The organisation runs a programme which is billed as a revolutionary approach to green education.

Speaking on the island of Sardinia, Van Matre told euronews that there should always be a focus on people getting to grips with the environment first hand. He believes that conventional forms of education have failed to give a comprehensive insight into conservation issues.

“All our programmes are designed around three basic points,” he explained.“One is how does it (the environment) function ecologically. Two, how can

we feel this ourselves, not just to talk about it in a science class at school, butto get out here in the middle of it and feel it.

“And three, how can we personally make some changes so we can have less impact on the systems of life.”

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In regard to environmental education an interesting paradox can be noted: to build is easier than to break. Design a new kind of attitude to the environ-ment among the younger generation is much easier than to change established judgments of modern people. As a result, those people who study the ecology should realize the need to create a clear structure and methodology of this sci-ence. The sooner this will happen the sooner we can expect a change in relation to the nature.

It should be noticed, that in this situation, when there is a lack of education, these ubiquitous slogans such as “Save the nature!” or “Save the planet!” are only interfere with promote the ideas of ecology. For many skeptics the such state-ments is a reason to laugh. And it is difficult to argue with them. This planet does not need a protection. The Earth survived much more serious shocks long before the formation of the human race. This belief that people can destroy it, is an unbearably arrogant. The only thing that people can do is destroy themselves on this planet. It is clear that the love for the nature is one of the motivations to engage in protection of it, but it seems easier to get people interested in based on their love for themselves. Often, people just cannot grasp the connection between these vague and largely idealistic slogans and the main idea — the goal is not to preserve the nature for the nature, but it is to save it to yourself.

Lack of systematization often undermines the credibility of ecology as a sci-ence. In some cases, the statements of people, involved in the protection of the environment, perceive as unfounded predictions about the future. In my opin-ion, Steve Van Matre system is logical and can be used as an example for other educational projects. Only a serial explanation of all the consistent patterns and intricacies of this science can afford to develop a healthy understanding of the need to care about the environment.

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International Space Station crew land safely in Kazakhstan

www.euronews.com16/03 08:36 CET

Three International Space Station (ISS) crew have returned to earth safely.The Russian Soyuz capsule carrying them landed in the Kazakhstan steppes

a day later than planned due to poor weather conditions.The Russo-American trio Kevin Ford, Oleg Novitskiy and Evgeny Tarekin had

spent 144 days aboard the space station and clocked up 61 million miles in space.The crew’s descent took just under four hours. NASA reported that the deor-

bit burn had gone flawlessly, with the capsule landing upright almost hitting the bulls-eye landing spot through thick fog.

The crew are said to be doing well and will be transported to a post-flight rehabilitation centre.

They leave aboard another three-man crew. Canadian Chris Hadfield took the helm on Wednesday ahead of their departure. It marks the first time a non-American or non-Russian commands the outpost.

Russia remains the only country capable of getting astronauts to and from the ISS since the Americans retired their space shuttles in 2011.

ISS crew members Russian cosmonauts Evgeny Tarelkin (L) and Oleg Novitskiy (C) and U.S. astronaut Kevin Ford sit together at Kustanay Airport. REUTERS

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In the modern world human flight to the cosmos have become quite ordi-nary fact, which can easily get lost among the other news. Probably, only the first astronaut was greeted as a hero and conqueror of the space, as in the Middle Ages the discoverers of new continents were met. Nowadays, return of astronauts from the ISS is not treated as an event of international significance.

A man, who flies into space, is originally a special and interesting person as unusual as other talented people and geniuses in other fields of human knowledge. Because they should go through a hard complex selection and training to fly to the cosmos, but this is not everyone’s strength. Staying in the space is a big experiment, not only for physical but also for psychological pos-sibilities of man. So if the doctors are able to track and analyse physiological changes of the astronaut’s body, whereas the changes in human consciousness remain outside the researches.

We can only imagine how great the discrepancy between what people think living here on the earth and what there is in the space in fact. The per-son, who was in the space, gets a completely different point of view. The scale of the events changed, consequently the relation of man to them did the same. The people living on the earth has only the knowledge that we are a small part of the cosmos, however the man who saw our planet from the side, touched the greatness of the space around us has a particular perception that humanity is insignificant against such a huge system as the Universe. This changes the mind and attitude of man for sure.

The fact that not every astronaut is recognizable or famous, it is a prob-lem of information priorities which formed in the society. In any case, people who have been in space are admirable. They are the few who have seen and felt that, what felt only a few of the billions of people who ever lived on the Earth.

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London celebrates spring Russian style

www.euronews.com17/03 08:47 CET

Russians have something to celebrate in London right now with the Maslen-itsa festival, which celebrates the end of winter and the start of spring.

Well, they might need to spend a little longer in Britain before they get the hang of the interminable rain and cold that seems never-ending to natives, but they filled Trafalgar Square and put on brave faces nonetheless.

“On a personal note, it brings the most wonderful memories from the child-hood – big stuffed dolls and a lot of pancakes, a lot a lot of delicious sugar and sweets,” said model Natalia Vodianova.

There have never been more Russians in the capital; on one estimate 200,000, a big increase from just a few thousand several years ago when the rich started pushing up property prices and buying football clubs. But that influx poses problems of its own; for example Russian-language schooling for most children is almost non-existent.

“The spring is yet to come to London, but people here are already celebrating it. This is the finale of Maslenitsa culture festival that has brought great talent from Russia to London,” concludes euronews’ London correspondent Ali May.

Great talent, and great pots of money, too.

Photo from www.londontown.com

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Pancake week is a Slavic cycle of holidays. This celebration is a way of wav-ing farewell to winter and welcoming in the warmth of spring. There is a holi-day since the days of paganism, but the holding of Pancake week is not changed essentially with the advent of Christianity, only the interpretation changed. Nowadays it is the last week before Lent. Each day of this carnival has its own name and appointment. The main features of the holiday are eating different kinds of pancakes and noisy festivities. The culmination of the festival is the burning of a huge straw doll symbolizing winter on Sunday.

It is clear that this Pancake week celebration in London are for a general informational purposes to Russian culture, and it does not aim to celebrate this holiday traditionally. It was not noticed in the story, but judging by the festival was performed on Trafalgar Square, it is hardly that the festivity was finished with the ritual burning of the doll. Such close familiarity with Russian culture could scare untrained Londoners.

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Visual Diary of a journalist

Krystsina Yarashevich Belarus, 2013