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Category: Universities

  • MIL-OSI Global: Butchers, bakers, candlestick-makers − and prostitutes: The women working behind the scenes in papal Avignon

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Joelle Rollo-Koster, Professor of Medieval History, University of Rhode Island

    The papal palace in Avignon, where the pope’s court was based for much of the 14th century. Jean-Marc Rosier from http://www.rosier.pro/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

    In the medieval church, women’s roles were limited – usually some form of enclosure and celibacy, such as becoming an anchoress walled up alone for life, or a nun in a classic convent. On the other extreme were a few dramatic examples of women who made history for the church while flying in the face of gender norms: heroes such as Joan of Arc.

    The full truth, though, is more complicated. Medieval women were there all along, even in priests’ own houses. In her book “The Manly Priest,” historian Jennifer Thibodeaux reminds us that while celibacy was always the church’s ideal, it was not truly enforced until later in the Middle Ages. At least until the 11th century, some priests had wives and children who were not considered illegitimate. Even after the 14th-century Black Death, clerical households with wives and children thrived in Italy.

    As the church’s notions of illicit sex and illegitimacy hardened, however, its attitudes toward women did, too. Medieval scholars – all men – defined women’s temperament in negative terms: Women were libidinous, frivolous, unfaithful, capricious, unpredictable and easily tempted. They required constant surveillance and were kept away from clerics, at least in theory. They certainly could not hold overt positions in the pope’s court unless they were his mother or sister.

    Still, another reality emerges. The church may not have seen women as equals, but nevertheless, their work was key to the workings and finances of the papal court and its surroundings. The fact is made obvious in the archives by simply following the money. It was hardly glamorous work but necessary for the functioning of the papal court.

    A page from a 15th-century edition of ‘The Decameron’ shows a laundress working on the beach.
    Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal via Wikimedia Commons

    Vatican payroll

    The Vatican Archives’ account registers make it possible to trace who was paid and for what at the medieval papal court in Avignon, where the papacy was based for most of the 14th century. Amid the tedious task of deciphering various medieval shorthand systems, which organize expenses into categories such as “extraordinary wages,” “liturgical ornaments,” “war expenses” or “wax account,” I encountered surprises: Women appear in the lists of salaried employees at the medieval papal court.

    Furthermore, they were involved in tasks that “touched” the leader of the church. Even a pope’s clothes need making, mending and washing. Women crafted an ornate style highly appreciated by the pontiffs – glorifying them with pure white linen and gold embroidery. The Vatican Apostolic Archives’ Introitus and Exitus, medieval financial records, provide substantial evidence that women made sacerdotal ornaments and garments.

    Between 1364-1374, the registers recorded the pope’s launderesses – women otherwise lost to history. Among them were Katherine, the wife of one Guillaume Bertrand; Bertrande of St. Spirit, who washed all the papal linens upon his election; and Alasacie de la Meynia, the wife of Peter Mathei, who did the pope’s laundry for the Christmas festivities of 1373 and is mentioned again in 1375.

    These women were all wives of officers at the papal court. Records identified them by their full name, which was not the case for everyone on the pope’s payroll. This is important: The records gave them real presence, unlike most female laborers.

    A woman doing laundry appears in the Codices Palatini germanici, a German medieval manuscript.
    Heidelberg University Library

    Later records were less clear. Between the 1380s and 1410s, liturgical garments were made and washed by various women, including the unnamed wife of Peter Bertrand, a doctor of law; Agnes, wife of Master Francis Ribalta, a physician of the pope; another Alasacie, wife of carpenter John Beulayga; and the unnamed wife of the pope’s head cook, Guido de Vallenbrugenti – alias Brucho.

    Only one woman, Marie Quigi Fernandi Sanci de Turre, appears without a male relative. As time progressed, women’s names were not systematically recorded.

    Most of these later women, too, were married to curial officers who maintained rank at court by working in trade, medicine or the military. Women were never paid directly; their husbands collected their salaries. Still, this was not “unseen” labor but a salaried occupation, explicitly recorded.

    A 15th-century painting of the papal palace in Avignon, from the artist workshop of Maître de Boucicaut.
    Bibliothèque Nationale via Wikimedia Commons

    Working day – and night

    Many other women immigrated to work in Avignon. According to a partial survey of the city’s heads of households in 1371, about 15% were women. Most had traveled far and wide – from elsewhere in present-day France, as well as Germany and Italy – to reach the papal court and a chance at employment.

    Of the total female heads of household, 20% declared an occupation. The range of these women’s trades is staggering. There were fruit-sellers, tailoresses, tavern-keepers, butchers, candlemakers, carpenters and stonecutters. Women in Avignon worked as fish-sellers, goldsmiths, glove-makers, pastry-bakers, spice merchants and chicken-sellers. They were sword-makers, furriers, booksellers, bread-resellers and bath-keepers.

    An illustration from ‘Theatrum sanitatis,’ a 13th-century Latin manuscript by Giovannino de Grassi.
    De Agostini Picture Library/Getty Images

    Bathhouses, the “stews,” were often brothels. Prostitution was considered a legal occupation in Avignon and controlled by the church. Marguerite de Porcelude, known as “the Huntress,” paid an annual tax to the diocese for her lodging. Several prostitutes rented tenements from the convent of St. Catherine, and Marguerite Busaffi, daughter of a prominent banker, owned a brothel in the city.

    In 1337, the marshal of the Roman court – the highest secular judicial officer – taxed prostitutes and procurers two sols per week. Pope Innocent VI, scandalized by the practice, annulled it in 1358.

    Still, because of the general taint associated with the sex trade, the church attempted to reform prostitutes and convert them into nuns. The Avignon popes locked them up in a special convent, the Repenties, set up far from the center of town.

    A brothel scene illustrated by Maïtre François in a 15th-century edition of St. Augustine’s book ‘City of God.’
    National Library of the Netherlands via Wikimedia Commons

    Eventually, the establishment became a form of prison for “unruly” women – those who were pregnant out of wedlock. But for some hundred years, groups of ladies of the night took vows and lived as nuns there, controlling the affairs of their own convent with an iron fist.

    In the 1370s, Pope Gregory XI offered the nuns and their donors a plenary indulgence, a forgiveness of sins. They followed a rule emphasizing that regardless of their pasts, abstinence and continence could make them spiritually “chaste.”

    The ladies of the convent left detailed records of the properties they acquired. In 1384, its leaders petitioned the papal treasury, demanding arrears they were owed from a priest’s donation – and received what was due. Few medieval women had the chutzpah to petition a court for past dues, much less the pope’s. The Repenties did.

    Joelle Rollo-Koster does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Butchers, bakers, candlestick-makers − and prostitutes: The women working behind the scenes in papal Avignon – https://theconversation.com/butchers-bakers-candlestick-makers-and-prostitutes-the-women-working-behind-the-scenes-in-papal-avignon-249345

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Colorado is tackling air pollution in vulnerable neighborhoods by regulating 5 air toxics

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jenni Shearston, Assistant Professor of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder

    The Suncor Refinery in Commerce City, Colo., is a known air polluter. RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post via Getty Images

    The Globeville, Elyria-Swansea and Commerce City communities in metro Denver are choked by air pollution from nearby highways, an oil refinery and a Superfund site.

    While these neighborhoods have long suffered from air pollution, they’re not the only ones in Colorado.

    Now, Colorado is taking a major step to protect people from air pollutants that cause cancer or other major health problems, called “air toxics.” For the first time, the state is developing its own state-level air toxic health standards.

    In north Denver, the 80216 ZIP code has been named one of the most polluted in the country. Rocky Mountain PBS created a two-part documentary about the history of this area and the impact the pollution has on current residents.

    In January 2025 Colorado identified five air toxics as “priority” chemicals: benzene, ethylene oxide, formaldehyde, hexavalent chromium compounds and hydrogen sulfide.

    The state is in the process of setting health-based standards that will limit the amount of each chemical allowed in the air. Importantly, the standards will be designed to protect people exposed to the chemicals long term, such as those living near emission sources. Exposure to even low amounts of some chemicals, such as benzene, may lead to cancer.

    As a researcher studying chemical exposure and health, I measure and evaluate the impact of air pollution on people’s well-being.

    Colorado’s new regulations will draw on expert knowledge and community input to protect people’s health.

    Communities know what needs regulation

    In your own community, is there a highway that runs near your house or a factory with a bad odor? Maybe a gas station right around the corner? You likely already know many of the places that release air pollution near you.

    When state or local regulators work with community members to find out what air pollution sources communities are worried about, the partnership can lead to a system that better serves the public and reduces injustice.

    For example, partnerships between community advocates, scientists and regulators in heavily polluted and marginalized neighborhoods in New York and Boston have had big benefits. These partnerships resulted in both better scientific knowledge about how air pollution is connected to asthma and the placement of air monitors in neighborhoods impacted the most.

    In Colorado, the process to choose the five priority air toxics included consulting with multiple stakeholders. A technical working group provided input on which five chemicals should be prioritized from the larger list of 477 toxic air contaminants.

    The working group includes academics, members of nongovernmental organizations such as the Environmental Defense Fund – local government and regulated industries, such as the American Petroleum Institute.

    Community members often know which air toxics they want regulated.
    Hyoung Chang/Denver Post via GettyImages

    There were also opportunities for community participation during public meetings.

    At public hearings, community groups like GreenLatinos argued that formaldehyde, instead of acrolein, should be one of the prioritized air toxics because it can cause cancer.

    Additionally, formaldehyde is emitted in some Colorado communities that are predominantly people of color, according to advocates for those communities. These communities are already disproportionately impacted by high rates of respiratory disease and cancer.

    Other members of the community also weighed in.

    “One of my patients is a 16-year-old boy who tried to get a summer job working outside, but had to quit because air pollution made his asthma so bad that he could barely breathe,” wrote Logan Harper, a Denver-area family physician and advocate for Healthy Air and Water Colorado.

    How is air quality protected?

    At the national level, the Clean Air Act requires that six common air pollutants, such as ozone and carbon monoxide, are kept below specific levels. The act also regulates 188 hazardous air pollutants.

    Individual states are free to develop their own regulations, and several, including California and Minnesota, already have. States can set standards that are more health-protective than those in place nationally.

    Four of the five chemicals prioritized by Colorado are regulated federally. The fifth chemical, hydrogen sulfide, is not included on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s hazardous air pollutant list, but Colorado has decided to regulate it as an air toxic.

    State-level regulation is important because states can focus on air toxics specific to their state to make sure that the communities most exposed to air pollution are protected. One way to do this is to place air pollution monitors in the communities experiencing the worst air pollution.

    For example, Colorado is placing six new air quality monitors in locations around the state to measure concentrations of the five priority air toxics. It will also use an existing monitor in Grand Junction to measure air toxics. Two of the new monitors, located in Commerce City and La Salle, began operating in January 2024. The remainder will start monitoring the air by July 2025.

    When Colorado chose the sites, it prioritized communities that are overly impacted by social and environmental hazards. To do this, officials used indexes like the Colorado EnviroScreen, which combines information about pollution, health and economic factors to identify communities that are overly burdened by hazards.

    The Commerce City monitor is located in Adams City, a neighborhood that has some of the worst pollution in the state. The site has air toxics emissions that are worse than 95% of communities in Colorado.

    Air toxics and health

    The five air toxics that Colorado selected all have negative impacts on health. Four are known to cause cancer.

    Benzene, perhaps the most well known because of its ability to cause blood cancer, is one. But it also has a number of other health impacts, including dampening the ability of the immune system and impacting the reproductive system by decreasing sperm count. Benzene is in combustion-powered vehicle exhaust and is emitted during oil and gas production and refinement.

    Ethylene oxide can cause cancer and irritates the nervous and respiratory systems. Symptoms of long-term exposure can include headaches, sore throat, shortness of breath and others. Ethylene oxide is used to sterilize medical equipment, and as of 2024, it was used by four facilities in Colorado.

    Formaldehyde is also a cancer-causing agent, and exposure is associated with asthma in children. This air toxic is used in the manufacture of a number of products like household cleaners and building materials. It is also emitted by oil and gas sources, including during fracking.

    Hexavalent chromium compounds can cause several types of cancer, as well as skin and lung diseases such as asthma and rhinitis. A major source of hexavalent chromium is coal-fired power plants, of which Colorado currently has six in operation, though these plants are scheduled to close in the next five years. Other sources of hexavalent chromium include chemical and other manufacturing.

    Finally, long-term exposure to hydrogen sulfide can cause low blood pressure, headaches and a range of other symptoms, and has been associated with neurological impacts such as psychological disorders. Some sources of hydrogen sulfide include oil refineries and wastewater treatment plants.

    Read more of our stories about Colorado.

    Jenni Shearston has received funding from the United States National Institutes of Health.

    – ref. Colorado is tackling air pollution in vulnerable neighborhoods by regulating 5 air toxics – https://theconversation.com/colorado-is-tackling-air-pollution-in-vulnerable-neighborhoods-by-regulating-5-air-toxics-248520

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Students of SPbGASU were told about financial instruments of the money market

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering –

    On February 24, third-year students of the Faculty of Economics and Management of SPbGASU listened to a lecture on “Financial Instruments of the Money Market”. The event took place in the office of SRO A “Association of Builders of St. Petersburg”.

    First Deputy General Director Boris Lysich introduced the speakers – employees of Uralsib Bank: Director of Development and Mentoring from the Premium Bank Department Milana Semikopenko and financial consultant Dmitry Koveshnikov. Boris Ivanovich informed the students about the opportunity to do an internship at the bank, as well as to choose a topic for their diploma work that is close to the banking sector.

    During the lecture, students learned what shares are for, what denomination Russian bonds have, whether it is worth buying yuan, and much more.

    “A very useful lecture! We had heard about financial instruments, but we were not familiar with them in such detail,” shared her opinion Daria Pilyugina.

    “I liked everything. Complex things were explained in simple language,” said Sergei Kotov.

    As Associate Professor of the Department of Management in Construction Alexandra Prikhodko explained, the lecture was held within the framework of the topic “The Economic Essence of Benchmarking” in the course “Benchmarking in Construction”.

    According to Alexandra Nikolaevna, the importance of such events is in immersing students in professional topics and the opportunity to personally communicate with professionals representing real market segments: “Working to improve students’ financial literacy is an important task both in general and in the context of each discipline related to management practices. A modern manager must have complete knowledge, including in the field of financial instruments. And the experience of leading construction companies, their ups and downs, is invaluable material that must be learned from and conclusions drawn. This will certainly help our guys in their professional careers. In addition, the example of young and successful specialists who come to the SRO site to meet with students, such as our guests today, inspires and serves as an excellent example.”

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The State University of Management will host an acting master class from the star of the TV series “Ranetki”

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    Yes, that’s right! Actress from the cult TV series “Ranetki” Margarita Ivanova will hold a master class this Friday at the Student Theater of the State University of Management, where she will share the secrets of artistry on stage and in front of the camera, and give valuable advice to those who are just starting their path to success.

    Margarita Ivanova played the role of drummer Tonya Petrova in Ranetki. The actress’s filmography also includes the series: Real Boys, Son of the Father of Nations, The Fool Herself and others. In the theater, she played Juliet in the famous play by Shakespeare, as well as in productions by Chekhov, Lermontov, Moliere, Vampilov and other famous playwrights. Margarita is the author and performer of her own songs. She was the soloist of the group Grani Ruma. She has published three books of her own poetry, two of which are for children. She voices children’s fairy tales.

    When: February 28 Time: 19:00 Place: A-124

    The master class is open to everyone who wants to feel like a real actor, immerse themselves in the atmosphere of art and learn something new.

    Subscribe to the tg channel “Our State University” Announcement date: 02/25/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How early voting on campuses can boost election turnout – not only for students but for residents, too

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Stephen C. Phillips, Lecturer in Political Science, Clemson University

    NextGen, a youth and democracy group, encouraging University of Central Florida students to vote early on campus in the 2018 midterms, Orlando, Florida, Oct. 25, 2018. Willie J. Allen Jr./AP Images

    Republican-led legislatures in several U.S. states, from Indiana to Oklahoma, are considering imposing restrictions on early voting, from shortening the number of days to tightening ID requirements for voters.

    Florida, by contrast, offers several tools to increase voting access, including for young people – a historically low-turnout group. Floridians may preregister to vote at age 16 and request vote-by-mail ballots with no justification needed. And starting in 2018, Florida election officials began offering in-person early-voting sites on college and university campuses after a federal judge nullified a 2014 rule barring higher education facilities from serving as early-voting sites.

    I am a lecturer of political science who studies American political development and public law, and my research suggests that expanding on-campus early-voting sites can boost turnout in U.S. elections by making voting more convenient – not only for students but for residents of surrounding communities too.

    Campus voting is popular

    I have been tracking votes cast at on-campus early-voting sites in Florida since 2018. The data shows these voting sites are increasingly popular.

    My research shows that 59,205 votes were cast across 12 Florida campuses hosting early-voting sites in 2018. That number increased to 92,344 at 11 locations in 2020 and jumped again – by about 50,000 votes – during the 2024 election.

    During 14 days of early voting in October and November 2024, 142,085 Floridians cast ballots across 16 on-campus early-voting sites across the state. One-quarter of them – 35,245 voters – took advantage of three campus sites in Miami-Dade County, the state’s most populous county.

    A 2019 study by the Andrew Goodman Foundation, a nonprofit promoting youth participation in democracy, determined that overall voter turnout in Florida increased during the 2018 election, in comparison with previous midterm elections, in part “due to the added convenience” of on-campus voting.

    Greater access to in-person early voting also increases the likelihood of a person’s ballot counting, since mail-in ballots tend to be rejected at higher rates than in-person votes.

    Who votes on campus?

    On-campus early voting makes elections more accessible for all voters.

    My data from 2024 shows that 35% of voters at Florida’s 16 on-campus early-voting sites were registered Democrats and 32% were registered Republicans. The remaining 33% registered with minor parties or had no party affiliation.

    These results differ from voter registration data from 2024 in Florida, which shows 40% of registered voters as Republicans, 31% as Democrats and 29% as other. That is to be expected, because studies of on-campus early voters in Florida find that these voters are younger and more diverse than those at other polling places.

    Both students and local residents may vote at on-campus polling sites in Florida.

    A 2019 report from the Andrew Goodman Foundation found “Hispanic and Black voters disproportionately cast ballots” at campus locations alongside college-age voters. It also said that 56% of early voters at campus sites were under age 30.

    Differences in party turnout at tracked sites, then, may reflect the higher share of Gen Z voters registered as Democrats or with no party affiliation.

    Obstacles to voting access

    Before casting a ballot, voters face four decisions. First, whether to register to vote. Second, whether to vote in an election. Third, how to vote: early in-person, vote-by-mail or on Election Day. Fourth, whom or what to vote for.

    Turnout rates among young voters vary widely across states, but in states where on-campus voting locations are frequent – such as Arizona, Florida and North Carolina – youth turnout tends to be higher.

    In the 2024 election, people ages 18 to 29 represented 14% of overall Florida voters – roughly on par with their proportion of the state’s population. It is difficult to make a direct comparison between the voting age population and voter turnout rates because of voter eligibility rules.

    But, for reference, 18-to-29-year-olds made up 14% of voters in Texas in 2024, too – yet are estimated to be nearly 17% of the population.

    Several states have rules seemingly designed to hinder young people from voting. After the 2020 election, Ohio passed a law making it harder for out-of-state students to vote by restricting the documents voters may use to prove their residency. Data from the Campus Vote Project shows several states, including Texas, Iowa and Missouri, do not accept student IDs as valid identification to vote. Oklahoma is currently considering similar legislation.

    While turnout rates reflect many factors, including the popularity of the candidates, low voter turnout is often associated with increased difficulty in casting a ballot.

    Florida shows that college campuses play an important role in increasing access to voting, not just for students but for residents in the surrounding communities, too. Nearly 3% of the 5.4 million people who voted early in person statewide in 2024 cast their ballot at a campus polling site, up from 2.2% in 2018.

    Election officials, university leaders and lawmakers know that having on-campus early-voting sites is a successful method for engaging voters. As one first-time voter at York Technical College in South Carolina told South Carolina Public Radio in 2024, the convenient location “definitely encourages me to vote.”

    Across the country, from Iowa to Texas, many schools and election officials host early on-campus voting.

    In other places, however, state and local laws, or decisions by local officials, prevent many campuses from hosting polling sites.

    For example, Ohio limits the number of early-voting sites to one per county. That meant that, in 2024, Ohio State University had no campus early-voting sites, and for its students the closest place to vote in person was about 6 miles (10 kilometers) away.

    In South Carolina, though some campuses do host polling sites, the university where I teach, Clemson, does not. In 2024, students had to travel four miles to reach the nearest in-person early-voting location in Pickens County.

    A recent study found that long distances and travel times to polling locations constitute “a barrier to voting.” And students, as a population, often have particularly limited access to transportation.

    Further studies will show more precisely how on-campus early voting expands the voter universe. But my vote tracking and other new research provides some clues, suggesting that early in-person voting on campus increases early voting and diversifies the electorate.

    Expanding on-campus early voting, then, is not just about convenience. It is about empowering the next generation of voters and strengthening democracy.

    Stephen C. Phillips does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. How early voting on campuses can boost election turnout – not only for students but for residents, too – https://theconversation.com/how-early-voting-on-campuses-can-boost-election-turnout-not-only-for-students-but-for-residents-too-247161

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting prioritizes ‘real’ independence from the US − but what does that mean and is it achievable?

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Garret Martin, Senior Professorial Lecturer, Co-Director Transatlantic Policy Center, American University School of International Service

    Germany’s presumptive new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, faces challenges both at home and overseas following his conservative alliance’s election victory on Feb. 23, 2025.

    A strong showing from the hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) – which Merz, in line with other mainstream German parties, refuses to countenance as a coalition party as part of an unofficial “firewall” against extremism – will make forming a functioning government tricky.

    But in the moments after the election results, it was the future of the European Union and its relationship with America that was his immediate focus: “My absolute priority will be to strengthen Europe as quickly as possible so that, step by step, we can really achieve independence from the USA.”

    To understand why that is such a concern for Germany now and what “real independence” from Washington means, The Conversation U.S. turned to Garret Martin, an expert on U.S.-Europe relations at American University, for answers.

    What prompted Merz’s ‘real independence’ line?

    Presumably it was a response to a series of recent announcements and actions by the Trump administration that have shocked the German political establishment. This includes the sudden revelation that the U.S. would negotiate directly with Russia to end the war in Ukraine, but seemingly without the Europeans or Ukrainians involved. That development went down like a lead balloon in Berlin, especially considering Germany’s significant financial support of Kyiv since 2022.

    Moreover, the German establishment has also frowned at a series of recent declarations by members of the Trump administration. Vice President JD Vance’s speech at the Munich Security Conference, in which he harshly criticized Europe for allegedly undermining freedom of expression, provoked clear pushback from German leaders. Trump, for his part, hardly endeared himself to his German allies when he denounced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a “dictator.”

    And, of course, Elon Musk’s interference in the German elections – as well as his open support for the far-right Alternative for Germany – provoked a fierce response from Merz. The then-candidate promised that Musk would need to be prepared for legal consequences for his meddling.

    Elon Musk addresses, via videolink, the election campaign launch rally of the far-right Alternative for Germany on Jan. 25, 2025.
    Sean Gallup/Getty Images

    How would this ‘real independence’ be achieved?

    Defining what “real independence” means and being able to implement such a drastic change in transatlantic relations will be a tall order. If by “real independence” Merz means that Germany would no longer rely on the U.S. for its security, then that would require several major steps.

    Merz would first need to convince his likely coalition partners, the Social Democrats, that this is the right goal. After all, German governments are bound by very detailed coalition agreements. Second, Merz would need to significantly increase German defense spending. As it stands, Germany’s annual defense budget is slightly over US$90 billion, or 2% of its GDP. But a recent study by the economic think tank Bruegel suggests Berlin would need to increase its budget by $145 billion annually to defend Europe without the assistance of the U.S.

    But to achieve this, Merz will likely need to increase defense spending by such a level that it will contravene the country’s “debt brake.” This 2009 constitutional rule essentially caps the annual deficit that the government can take on. But overturning this mechanism would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers of the German Parliament. Merz’s Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union party won 28.6% of the vote – and even with the support of the country’s main center-left party, the Social Democrats, Merz will fall short of the parliamentary votes needed.

    Finally, “real independence” would also require convincing other European Union partners to join him down that path. Assuming that the Trump administration continues its current trajectory and further undermines NATO, the EU would have to step in to become a more prominent security actor for the continent. It might also require, as Merz hinted, that the United Kingdom and France be ready to share their nuclear weapons, since the U.S. may not be trusted anymore to defend NATO countries.

    All of these steps would cover “real independence” only in the security sphere and not touch other crucial policy areas, such as trade and energy. And that would be an equally tall order given the level of economic ties binding Germany to the U.S., as well as the looming threat of tariffs.

    What does this mean for German-US relations?

    Merz’s “real independence” statement would have been noteworthy coming from any German chancellor. But it is even more striking when one considers the fact that Merz is a committed transatlanticist who deeply admires the U.S. and counts Ronald Reagan as one of his role models.

    At 69, Merz came of age during the final years of the Cold War, when the U.S. played a key role in enabling German reunification. He worked for years for Atlantik-Brücke, a lobbying group pushing for closer transatlantic ties. And he has, by his own account, traveled more than 100 times to the U.S.

    Independence will not likely mean a complete divorce between the U.S. and Germany – the ties binding the two countries, whether economic, cultural or political, run too deep. However, we can expect that Berlin will not hesitate to take a more combative approach toward Washington when necessary, so to protect German and European interests. As Merz pointed out, it is clear that the Trump administration does “not care much about the fate of Europe.”

    What does this signal for Merz’s view of Germany’s position in the EU?

    Merz’s win will certainly lead to important shifts in Germany’s position in the EU, and could be a major boost for a union in need of leadership. His predecessor, Olaf Scholz, was hampered by a weak economy, divisions within his coalition and indecisive leadership in Europe. Moreover, poor relations with French President Emmanuel Macron also stalled the Franco-German partnership, normally a key engine of leadership in the EU.

    Merz certainly plans to take a very distinct approach toward the EU than his predecessor. His calls for “real independence” will certainly be very welcome in France, which has long called for Europe to be more responsible for its own security. As such, it opens up the possibility of far closer ties between Paris and Berlin than we saw in recent years. Moreover, Merz, with his more hawkish position toward Russia, could be counted on to provide greater support for Ukraine.

    Garret Martin receives funding from the European Union for the Transatlantic Policy Center, which he co-directs.

    – ref. Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting prioritizes ‘real’ independence from the US − but what does that mean and is it achievable? – https://theconversation.com/germanys-chancellor-in-waiting-prioritizes-real-independence-from-the-us-but-what-does-that-mean-and-is-it-achievable-250708

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Selenium is an essential nutrient named after the Greek goddess of the Moon − crucial to health, it may help prevent and treat cancer

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Aliasger K. Salem, Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Iowa

    Selenium is found in trace amounts in living organisms, soil and plants. Nazarii Neshcherenskyi/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    Selenium is a nutrient that plays a crucial role in human health, contributing to the thyroid and immune function, DNA repair, and cardiovascular and cognitive health.

    It acts as an antioxidant – substances that protect cells from unstable molecules that can damage DNA, proteins and cell membranes. It can even protect against cancer.

    Selenium is a vital trace element found in living organisms, soil and plants, and your body needs only a small amount of it to function. The recommended dietary allowance for selenium in adults is 55 micrograms per day, with an upper limit of 400 micrograms. In comparison, adults need between 900 to 10,000 micrograms daily of copper, another trace element, and between 8,000 to 40,000 micrograms of the trace element zinc.

    An excess or deficiency of selenium can have significant health consequences. In my work as a pharmaceutical science researcher, my colleagues and I study the potential use of selenium to boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy for cancer treatment.

    A dose of selenium

    Selenium was first discovered in 1817 by chemist Jöns Jacob Berzelius while analyzing an impurity in a batch of sulfuric acid produced in a factory in Sweden. Berzelius initially thought the material was the element tellurium, but he eventually realized that it was actually an unknown substance at the time. He named the mineral after Selene, the Greek goddess of the Moon, because of its similarity to tellurium, which had been named after the Roman goddess of the Earth.

    Selenium exists in both organic and inorganic forms. Organic compounds contain carbon atoms and are typically derived from living organisms, while inorganic compounds do not have carbon atoms and generally originate from nonliving sources. Your cells chemically convert between these forms to carry out various physiological functions.

    Selenium deficiency is a significant health issue, particularly in regions with selenium-poor soils, such as parts of China, Africa and Europe. Low selenium levels are associated with Keshan disease, a fatal heart condition, and Kashin-Beck disease, which affects joints and bones. Deficiency also weakens immune function, increasing susceptibility to infections.

    Brazil nuts contain particularly high levels of selenium.
    R.Tsubin/Moment via Getty Images

    Consuming too much selenium is also an issue. Oversupplementation or excess environmental exposure can lead to selenosis, a condition with symptoms such as brittle hair and nails, digestive issues, skin rashes and neurological symptoms such as irritability and fatigue. In severe cases, selenium toxicity can result in organ failure and death.

    Selenium has a narrow therapeutic window, which is the dosage range that provides safe and effective treatment with minimal harmful side effects. For example, selenium can either increase or decrease your body’s immune function, depending on the dose. Adequate levels of selenium strengthen your immune cells’ ability to fight infections and tumors, while excessive selenium intake can suppress immune responses by damaging immune tissues.

    Selenium and cancer prevention

    Selenium may have the potential to treat and prevent cancer.

    Scientists have long studied selenium’s role in cancer prevention. Initially suspected to be a carcinogen, later studies found it had protective effects against liver damage. In the 1960s. researchers proposed that selenium could be used to prevent cancer, a concept that gained further traction in the 1990s.

    However, large-scale clinical trials have produced mixed results. The Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial was a study of over 35,500 men that ran from 2001 to 2004. They found that taking selenium daily did not reduce prostate cancer risk and may even increase the risk of prostate cancer in men with already high selenium levels.

    Findings from a study conducted from 1983 to 1996, the Nutritional Prevention of Cancer Trial, suggested selenium may protect against prostate and other cancers. But researchers also observed a heightened incidence of nonmelanoma skin cancer among participants.

    These conflicting results may be due to the different forms of selenium each study tested, as well as differences in baseline selenium levels among participants. Other studies have found that selenium-contaminated water in a municipality of Italy has been linked to an increased risk of melanoma.

    The antioxidant effects of selenium vary depending on its dose.
    Razaghi et al./EJC, CC BY-SA

    Selenium and cancer treatment

    Selenium may also have the potential to stop cancer from spreading.

    My research focuses on the potential of using selenium to supplement chemotherapy for cancer treatment. Selenium compounds such as methylseleninic acid, or MSA, and seleno-L-methionine, or SLM, show promise in targeting proteins that drive tumor progression and treatment resistance. Studies from my team and I have found that MSA can modulate key biochemical pathways related to kidney cancer by reducing levels of proteins that influence tumor growth and immune evasion. We also observed that SLM may slow kidney tumor growth in mice without toxic side effects.

    More significantly, in a Phase 1 clinical trial, we found that combining SLM with the chemotherapy drug axitinib was effective in treating metastatic kidney cancer in patients, with minimal side effects. Of the 27 patients we treated, over half saw their tumors shrink in size, with a median overall survival of nearly 20 months. These findings suggest that selenium may have a synergistic effect on chemotherapy by making it more effective.

    Further investigation into how selenium may help overcome treatment resistance and what doses are optimal will clarify its potential as a viable addition to cancer treatment.

    Striking the right balance

    Whether as an immune booster or potential treatment for disease, the significance of selenium in human health is undeniable.

    Eating selenium-rich foods – such as Brazil nuts, seafood, whole grains and eggs – can help sustain optimal nutrient levels. In regions with selenium-deficient soils, supplementation with medical supervision may be necessary.

    The fine line between benefit and harm underscores the importance of balanced intake and personalized approaches to selenium supplementation. As research continues, I believe selenium’s multifaceted role in health will become more clear.

    Aliasger K. Salem receives funding from the National Institutes of Health. He serves on the Executive Board of the American Association for Pharmaceutical Scientists.

    – ref. Selenium is an essential nutrient named after the Greek goddess of the Moon − crucial to health, it may help prevent and treat cancer – https://theconversation.com/selenium-is-an-essential-nutrient-named-after-the-greek-goddess-of-the-moon-crucial-to-health-it-may-help-prevent-and-treat-cancer-248548

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: If US attempts World Bank retreat, the China-led AIIB could be poised to step in – and provide a model of global cooperation

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Tamar Gutner, Associate Professor, American University

    Donald Trump is no fan of international organizations. Just hours after taking office on Jan 20, 2025, the U.S. president announced his intention to withdraw from the World Health Organization and the Paris agreement on climate change.

    Could the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank be next?

    Certainly, supporters of the twin institutions – that have formed the backbone of global economic order for 80 years – are concerned. A Trump-ordered review of Washington’s support of all international organizations has led to fears of the U.S. reducing funding or pulling it altogether.

    But any shrinking of U.S. leadership in international financial institutions would, I believe, run counter to the administration’s ostensible geopolitical goals, creating a vacuum for China to step into and take on a bigger global role. In particular, weakening the World Bank and other multilateral development banks, or MDBs, that have a large U.S. presence could present an opportunity for a little-known, relatively new Chinese-led international organization: the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank – which, since its inception, has supported the very multilateralism the U.S. is attacking.

    AIIB’s paradoxical role

    The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) was created by China nine years ago as a way to invest in infrastructure and other related sectors in Asia, while promoting “regional cooperation and partnership in addressing development challenges by working in close collaboration with other multilateral and bilateral development institutions.”

    Since then, it has served as an example of an international body willing to deeply cooperate with other major multilateral organizations and follow international rules and norms of development banking.

    This may run counter to the image of Beijing’s global efforts portrayed by China hawks, of which there are many in the Trump administration, who often present a vision of a China intent on undermining the Western-led liberal international order.

    But as a number of scholars and other China experts have suggested, Beijing’s strategies in global economic governance are often nuanced, with actions that both support and undermine the liberal global order.

    As I explore in my new book, it is clear that today the AIIB is a paradox: an institution connected to the rules and norms of the liberal international order, but one created by an illiberal government.

    Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei speaks during the signing ceremony of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank on Oct. 24, 2014, in Beijing.
    Takaki Yajima-Pool/Getty Images

    The AIIB is deeply tied to the rules-based order as displayed through its many cooperative connections with other major multilateral development banks, such as the World Bank and the Japan-led Asian Development Bank.

    As such, the AIIB may present a Chinese counterpoint in a landscape where U.S. leadership is receding.

    The cooperative design of the AIIB

    For decades, multilateral development banks have served the important task of lending billions of dollars a year to support economic and social development.

    They can be vital sources of funding for poverty reduction, inclusive economic growth and sustainable development, with a newer emphasis on climate change. These international lenders have also been remarkably durable in today’s climate of fragmentation and crisis, with member nations actively considering ways of further strengthening them.

    At the same time, MDBs perennially face criticism from civil society organizations who highlight areas of weak performance and are concerned about potential downsides of the major MDBs’ greater emphasis on working more closely with the private sector. MDB expert Chris Humphrey has also noted that major “MDBs were built around a set of geopolitical and economic power relationships that are coming apart before our eyes.”

    When Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 proposed creating the AIIB to lend for infrastructure development in Asia, there was a lot of suspicion among major nations about China’s intentions.

    The Obama administration responded to the move by urging other countries not to join. Its concern was that China would use lending to gain further influence in the region, but without adhering to strong environmental and social standards.

    Nonetheless, all the other major nonborrowing nations, with the exception of Japan, joined the new bank. Today, the AIIB is the second-largest multilateral development bank in terms of member countries, behind only the World Bank. It currently has 110 member nations, which translates to over 80% of the global population. With US$100 billion in capital, it is one of the medium-sized multilateral lenders.

    From the get-go, the AIIB was designed to be cooperative. Jin Liqun, who became the bank’s first president, is a longtime multilateralist with a long career at China’s finance ministry and past positions on the boards of the World Bank and the Global Environmental Facility, as well as a vice presidency of the Asian Development Bank.

    The international group of experts that helped design the AIIB also included former executive directors and staff from the IMF and other development banks, as well as two Americans with long careers at the World Bank who played leading roles in designing the bank’s articles of agreement and its environmental and social framework.

    How the AIIB took its cue from others

    The bank fits into the landscape of other multilateral development banks in a variety of ways. The AIIB’s charter is directly modeled on the Asian Development Bank’s foundation, and built into the AIIB’s charter is the bank’s mission of promoting “regional cooperation and partnership in addressing development challenges.”

    The AIIB shares similar norms and policies with other major multilateral development banks, including its environmental and social standards.

    Alongside borrowing foundational principles, the AIIB also works in close conjunction with its peers. The World Bank initially ran the AIIB’s treasury operations. The AIIB has also co-financed a high percentage of its projects with other multilateral development banks, particularly in its first years.

    In a recent sign of cooperation, in 2023, a deal between the AIIB and World Bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) saw the AIIB issue up to $1 billion in guarantees against IBRD sovereign-backed loans. This increased the IBRD’s ability to lend more money, while diversifying the AIIB’s loan portfolio.

    As of Feb. 6, 2025, the AIIB has 306 approved projects totaling $59 billion. Energy and transportation are its two largest sectors of lending. Recently approved projects include loans to support wind power plants in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, and a solar plant in India. India, which has a bumpy relationship with China, is one of the bank’s largest borrowers, along with Turkey and Indonesia.

    Cooperating and competing with China

    From its birth until recently, the multilateral AIIB has repeatedly distinguished itself from China’s bilateral initiatives. Chief among those is China’s Belt and Road Initiative, an umbrella term for infrastructure lending by Chinese institutions that has been criticized for lacking transparency and accountability.

    Indeed, some Belt and Road Initiative-linked projects have faced concerns about corruption, costs and the opacity of the loan agreements.

    In the past several years, the AIIB has made more mention of synergy with Belt and Road lenders, and the bank now hosts the secretariat of a facility, the Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance, that offers grants and support to developing countries seeking to finance infrastructure in countries where Belt and Road lending takes place. This may blur the line between the AIIB and lending under the Belt and Road umbrella, but it does not appear to weaken the bank’s standards.

    Concerns about the level of Chinese government influence at the AIIB are not new. Canada froze its ties with the bank in June 2023, pending a review of allegations by a Canadian staff member, who dramatically quit after accusing the bank of being dominated by members of China’s Communist Party.

    No other member nations expressed such concern, and Canada has not yet published any review. A group of AIIB executive directors oversaw an internal review that found no evidence to support the allegations.

    As the new U.S. administration formulates its policies toward China, it would do well to take into account the variation in China’s strategies in global economic governance, as a recognition of areas of cooperation, competition and conflict requires more nuanced responses. In many areas, the U.S. will both cooperate and compete with China.

    Paradoxically, any moves by the Trump administration to pull back from multilateral organizations may leave the AIIB, whether or not it is an anomaly, in a position to offer a better model of cooperation than leading multilateral development banks with a powerful U.S. role.

    Tamar Gutner does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. If US attempts World Bank retreat, the China-led AIIB could be poised to step in – and provide a model of global cooperation – https://theconversation.com/if-us-attempts-world-bank-retreat-the-china-led-aiib-could-be-poised-to-step-in-and-provide-a-model-of-global-cooperation-244595

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: A hazy legal landscape means people can get high on hemp products, even where pot is prohibited

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Katharine Neill Harris, Fellow in Drug Policy, Rice University

    Delta-8 supplements on a shelf at a Texas store. Sergio Flores/Washington Post via Getty Images

    In Texas, where I live, marijuana has long been illegal. Yet on a busy street in my Houston neighborhood, at least five stores within a half-mile of each other sell cannabis products that promise a strong high.

    Texas isn’t alone. Due to a mix of recent legal changes and an uncertain policy landscape, residents in roughly half of American states have easy access to impairing hemp products that bear a strong resemblance to marijuana and are far less regulated.

    As hemp sales soar – reaching nearly US$3 billion in 2023 – a number of states are tightening their restrictions, while experts are analyzing the public health implications. That’s why I analyzed hemp policies in all 50 states with some of my colleagues at Rice University’s Baker Institute, where I’m a drug policy fellow.

    Marijuana and hemp: Same plant, different policies

    Marijuana and hemp are both varieties of cannabis sativa, a plant with many uses that produces thousands of compounds. Among them is the popular intoxicant delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, or delta-9 THC.

    Hemp is widely valued as an industrial crop, and for most of American history, farmers freely cultivated it. But by the mid-20th century, lawmakers had grown increasingly opposed to marijuana and were concerned by hemp’s similarity to its impairment-causing cousin.

    In an effort to permit hemp cultivation while prohibiting production of a psychoactive plant, the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 defined hemp as all parts of the cannabis plant with less than 0.3 percent concentration of delta-9 THC by dry weight. Cannabis that exceeded this threshold was considered marijuana.

    The 1970 Controlled Substances Act ushered in the modern era of prohibition of marijuana and other drugs. Hemp remained technically legal, but because of its similarity to marijuana, it was listed as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin and other substances deemed to have a high potential for abuse and no medical value.

    Because of hemp’s Schedule I status, the Drug Enforcement Administration tightly regulated its production. But hemp farmers have long argued that these regulations were excessive – and in 2018, Congress agreed. That year, lawmakers passed a farm bill that removed hemp from the Controlled Substances Act and legalized the manufacture and sale of hemp and its derivatives.

    The ABC News affiliate in San Diego reports on the 2018 farm bill from a local perspective.

    Crucially, the 2018 bill still defines hemp as all parts of the plant and its derivatives that have less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC. But it left a loophole: While delta-9 is the most well-known form of THC, it’s not the only one. Other forms of THC, known as THC isomers, have similar effects. These isomers, like delta-8 and delta-10 THC, can be derived from the hemp plant, and like delta-9 THC, they can cause impairment. The 2018 Farm Bill legalized all of them.

    In 2023, sales of hemp-derived cannabinoids reached US$2.8 billion. Market growth has been accompanied by a rise in adverse health events. Chemists have expressed alarm at how some hemp products are made, and analyses of commercially available products have found them to contain heavy metals, residual solvents and pesticides.

    Given the lax regulatory environment, many public officials now question the lack of guardrails on this burgeoning hemp industry. As a result, officials and governments across the country are now enacting or considering policy changes.

    Some states are imposing age and advertising restrictions

    In 2023, 11.4% of 12th graders said they had used hemp-derived delta-8 THC in the past year. Easy access to any substance can encourage use, and THC can have negative impacts on the adolescent brain.

    While federal law prohibits the sale of tobacco and alcohol to individuals under 21, there is no similar national requirement for hemp. But at least 27 states that permit the sale of hemp-derived products now have minimum age requirements, and several others have pending legislation.

    Lessons from the tobacco market also demonstrate that advertising restrictions can reduce the use of legal but potentially harmful products. Most efforts to curtail hemp advertising focus on youth. Sixteen states restrict the use of packaging and marketing materials that may appeal to minors. Meanwhile, federal regulations also limit youth-targeted marketing.

    There are fewer restrictions on advertising to adults. The Food and Drug Administration does prohibit using unverified health claims to sell hemp products, but this standard gives the industry plenty of leeway. Hemp ads often tout their purported physical benefits, like reducing pain or improving sleep, or portray them as mood-boosters that can make one feel euphoric and aroused, with few downsides.

    Other states are establishing potency limits

    The use of products high in THC has been linked to greater risk of cannabis dependence and adverse mental health outcomes. Concerns about product potency have led all states with recreational marijuana markets to limit the amount of delta-9 THC in edible products. This threshold is typically around 10 milligrams, a dose that’s strong enough to affect most people.

    Hemp is a different story. To satisfy federal requirements, hemp just has to have less than 0.3% delta-9 THC by weight. This limit sounds low, but the weight-based metric does not account for heavier products, like food and drinks.

    For example, a 50-gram candy bar – roughly the size of a Snickers bar – with 150 milligrams of hemp-derived delta-9 THC is legal in the 34 states that don’t have milligram caps on hemp products. This is a dose 15 times higher than what any recreational marijuana market allows. Meanwhile, states that only restrict hemp’s delta-9 content also leave the door open to products with high amounts of other forms of THC.

    At least 13 states have responded to potency concerns by adding milligram caps on the total THC permitted in a single serving of a hemp product. Some of these limits are so low – 1 milligram or less in Connecticut, New York, Montana and Rhode Island – that one serving is unlikely to cause impairment.

    Enforcement is a wild card

    Only regulations that are enforced are effective, and states differ in the level of energy they devote to industry oversight.

    In Virginia, the Office of Hemp Enforcement has issued over $12 million in fines to noncompliant hemp retailers since its creation in 2023. On the other end of the spectrum, Massachusetts considers hemp-derived THC products illegal, but it has not provided local jurisdictions with funding for enforcement, resulting in continued availability of prohibited products.

    Some states with legal hemp markets have added additional sales taxes to help fund enforcement. In Nebraska, Missouri and Connecticut, attorneys general have sued hemp retailers for selling illegal items, marketing to minors and engaging in deceptive trade practices.

    As the hemp industry expands, so will concerns about how to protect public health. The demand for THC, and the market to supply it, continues to grow. If lawmakers want to develop industrywide safety standards or deal with the challenges of online marketplaces that sell hemp products to minors, it will take action from Washington. In the meantime, many states and policymakers are exploring an expansive middle ground between unfettered access and blanket bans.

    Katharine Neill Harris does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. A hazy legal landscape means people can get high on hemp products, even where pot is prohibited – https://theconversation.com/a-hazy-legal-landscape-means-people-can-get-high-on-hemp-products-even-where-pot-is-prohibited-247168

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Targeted training is a confident step into the profession

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering –

    Every year, thousands of applicants face the choice of what profession to choose. One of the options to take a confident step into the profession is targeted training.

    What is Targeted Learning

    The applicant enters into an agreement with the customer – a federal ministry, department, regional authority, state or municipal institution, enterprise with a state share, private company, individual entrepreneur. Except for the last two cases, the applicant will enter the university not on a general basis, but through a separate competition (target quota). An agreement for training outside the target quota can also be concluded with state institutions throughout the entire period of study.

    The graduate undertakes to work in the customer’s company for three to five years after receiving his diploma.

    If a student is admitted under a quota, then his/her tuition is paid for by the federal budget. The customer pays for the scholarship and other support measures at his/her discretion. If a student is admitted without a quota, then tuition may be paid for by the customer.

    Benefits of Targeted Training

    Targeted training provides the opportunity to study for free. After completing the training, the graduate is guaranteed a job. The contract may specify the possibility, by mutual agreement of the parties, to transfer to another branch of the same company or to another organization subordinate to the same government agency.

    How to apply for targeted training

    Those wishing to enroll in targeted training should study the offers on the Work in Russia platform. Then you need to submit an application for a targeted training agreement. This can be done either through the Work in Russia platform, or through the government services portal, or directly at the educational institution (in person, by mail).

    The conclusion of an agreement on targeted training occurs after enrollment, but before September 1.

    The contract may be concluded between the customer and the citizen, between the customer, the citizen, the employer, the educational organization, or between the customer, the citizen and the employer.

    Regulatory legal acts governing targeted training: Federal Law of 29.12.2012 No. 273-FZ “On Education in the Russian Federation”; Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 27, 2024 No. 555 “On targeted training in educational programs of secondary vocational and higher education”.

    Targeted training at SPbGASU

    Olga Tatarinova

    The Admissions Committee is responsible for organizing and conducting admissions within the target quota at our university. Olga Tatarinova, Deputy Secretary of the Admissions Committee, reported that in 2024, the ranks of students were replenished with more than 45 target students.

    “If an employer is ready to sign one contract, but several people responded, the university holds a competition and enrolls the strongest. In this case, the target individual achievements of the applicant who took part in the company’s events are taken into account.”

    Olga Afanasyevna informed that if someone does not find a job after completing their studies, they pay a fine to the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation in the amount of the costs incurred by the state for their training, and also return the amount spent by the employer on paying a scholarship and social support measures. If a company refuses to hire a graduate, it pays a fine in the same amount and compensation in an amount equal to three times the average monthly accrued salary in the subject of the Russian Federation, in the territory of which the citizen must be employed in accordance with the contract for targeted training.

    The conclusion of contracts for targeted training with students who are already studying at SPbGASU is coordinated by the Center for Student Entrepreneurship and Career.

    Ekaterina Abolina

    Ekaterina Abolina, director of the student entrepreneurship and career center, said that currently there are more than 130 target students studying at the university. For the successful implementation of target training, the interaction of the company and the student plays a huge role. Ekaterina Arvidovna especially noted the Titan-2 company, which actively works with its target students, maintains contact with them and immerses them in the profession. Last semester, the company organized an off-site meeting, where students visited a construction site, a workshop, a history museum, and also took part in educational programs.

    “Targeted training is a good tool for both the student and the employer. The student has the opportunity to be closer to the industry, receive support from the company and be confident in his professional future. The employer, through practice and the topic of the final qualifying work, can influence the content of the training and, upon graduation, receive an employee who is already familiar with the company and involved in its activities, thereby reducing the time for the adaptation of a young specialist.”

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Chernyshenko: The National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga” Needs to Be Scaled to All Subjects of the Country

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Dmitry Chernyshenko greeted the participants of the II All-Russian Conference of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”

    February 25, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko greeted the participants of the II All-Russian Conference of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”

    February 25, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko greeted the participants of the II All-Russian Conference of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”

    February 25, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko greeted the participants of the II All-Russian Conference of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”

    February 25, 2025

    Previous news Next news

    Dmitry Chernyshenko greeted the participants of the II All-Russian Conference of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”

    Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko welcomed the participants of the II All-Russian Conference of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”. The conference was held at the site of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives (ASI) with online participation of representatives of 86 subjects of the Russian Federation.

    “President Vladimir Putin supported this large-scale project. “Berloga” involves the younger generation in the sphere of technology through games. The Republic of Bashkortostan became a pioneer in the implementation of the cyber-physical platform. There, educational institutions and technology companies joined “Berloga”. This allowed us to take the technological education of schoolchildren to a new level. And also to use games as a powerful tool for involving young people in themes that are priority for the region. This experience was picked up by other regions,” said Dmitry Chernyshenko.

    He also noted that the project’s geography already covers 21 regions and the Berloga team, together with local representatives, is actively developing regional “road maps” that include creating new useful games, opening a network of clubs, launching educational programs and training teachers. According to him, this work is being carried out especially actively in Novosibirsk Oblast, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug – Yugra, Kamchatka and St. Petersburg.

    “We see that the project is gaining more and more popularity. Users have already downloaded the Berlogi games more than 320 thousand times. But our plans are even more ambitious. It is necessary to scale the project to other regions of the country,” the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized.

    ASI General Director Svetlana Chupsheva reported that in a year and a half, four flagship free video games dedicated to the development directions of Russia’s technological sovereignty have been released on the Berloga platform. New formats are being developed – the Workshop of Cyberphysical Innovations, tournaments of young cyberphysicists, etc. Russian indie developers have also joined in the creation of useful games, having already released 14 mini-games on the platform.

    “For the first time the idea of creating”Dens” was presented to the President of the Russian Federation at the forum “Strong Ideas for a New Time” in 2023 as a tool for involving schoolchildren in new technologies and programming through mobile games. This is an excellent example of how, together with our colleagues from the NTI Circle Movement, with the enormous support of the Government of the Republic of Bashkortostan, the NTI Platform and University 2035, we were able to grow an entire ecosystem from an idea. Now the key task for the regions is to create infrastructure and opportunities for schoolchildren to try to join the project for the first time. At the same time, young people can try themselves not only as programmers, but also choose the role of a designer or analyst. The project expands the range of opportunities for the manifestation of children’s talents,” noted Svetlana Chupsheva.

    The National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga” is being implemented by a team of ASI, the National Technology Initiative (NTI) Platform, the NTI Circle Movement and University 2035 with the support of the Government of the Russian Federation; the Republic of Bashkortostan acted as the pilot region for the project launch.

    Prime Minister of Bashkortostan Andrey Nazarov noted that the republic pays special attention to engineering and information technology. It is actively developing them within the framework of additional education, which covers more than half a million children and adolescents. Schoolchildren of Bashkortostan choose information technology, unmanned aircraft systems and robotics. Since 2023, a network of 100 Berlogi technology clubs and 20 support sites in different districts has been developing in Bashkortostan – in them, schoolchildren undergo educational programs in cyberphysics, programming, robotics, electronics, UAS, etc. The Cyberphysical Innovation Workshop in Ufa has opened laboratories and youth design bureaus, which are becoming a point of attraction for schoolchildren, students, representatives of the technology business, young scientists and developers of the region.

    “Thanks to the assistance of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives, Bashkortostan has become a pilot region for the implementation of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga” project. Over two years, more than 6.5 thousand schoolchildren have been involved in the project. We opened a Cyber-Physical Innovation Workshop at the Ufa Interuniversity Student Campus. It has become the all-Russian methodological coordination center of the National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga”. In addition, we help other regions create such workshops in their own regions, including in Crimea, the Donetsk People’s Republic and Altai,” said Andrey Nazarov.

    According to Gennady Bukaev, Vice President of PJSC NK Rosneft and General Director of JSC Rosneftegaz, following the example of the Republic of Bashkortostan, all Russian regions can build a new system of technological education based on the Berloga NKFP, promote priority areas of development through game formats popular with young people, and introduce their cultural and historical features.

    “The project team is currently working on launching a new direction of game development. These games will simultaneously immerse children in the study of school subjects – including physics, chemistry – and introduce them to real professions, give them the opportunity to try themselves in one role or another, in solving a real production problem. Such games can become a tool for long-term career guidance and the formation of a personnel reserve for specific tasks – for the needs of regions in partnership with technology companies that are interested in working with young people, in the fight for talent,” emphasized Gennady Bukayev. “I urge representatives of regional teams and enterprises to use this opportunity at the start and become flagships of the new direction.”

    As noted by the Vice-Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, the leader of the NTI Circle Movement Dmitry Zemtsov, the Berloga project began with one game teaching schoolchildren the basics of programming. Now the platform has already released two dozen useful games, including those from young indie teams – schoolchildren and students, finalists of the National Technology Olympiad and the All-Russian Developers Competition, which was held jointly with VK Play.

    “The National Cyber-Physical Platform “Berloga” today is an entire ecosystem that involves young people in the field of technology, it includes useful games – with training in programming, engineering, UAV piloting, chemistry – as well as phygital formats, clubs, educational programs and technological solutions. The setting of “Berloga” is best suited for talking to the younger generation about the future of technology, our country and the whole world. At the same time, the world of “Berloga” is constantly evolving, enriched thanks to new games and the All-Russian Science Fiction Competition, which we launched together with ASI this year,” added Dmitry Zemtsov.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA: New Study on Why Mars is Red Supports Potentially Habitable Past

    Source: NASA

    A new international study partially funded by NASA on how Mars got its iconic red color adds to evidence that Mars had a cool but wet and potentially habitable climate in its ancient past.

    The current atmosphere of Mars is too cold and thin to support liquid water, an essential ingredient for life, on its surface for lengthy periods. However, various NASA and international missions have found evidence that water was abundant on the Martian surface billions of years ago during a more clement era, such as features that resemble dried-up rivers and lakes, and minerals that only form in the presence of liquid water.
    Adding to this evidence, results from a study published February 25 in the journal Nature Communications suggest that the water-rich iron mineral ferrihydrite may be the main culprit behind Mars’ reddish dust. Martian dust is known to be a hodgepodge of different minerals, including iron oxides, and this new study suggests one of those iron oxides, ferrihydrite, is the reason for the planet’s color.
    The finding offers a tantalizing clue to Mars’ wetter and potentially more habitable past because ferrihydrite forms in the presence of cool water, and at lower temperatures than other previously considered minerals, like hematite. This suggests that Mars may have had an environment capable of sustaining liquid water before it transitioned from a wet to a dry environment billions of years ago.
    “The fundamental question of why Mars is red has been considered for hundreds if not for thousands of years,” said lead author Adam Valantinas, a postdoctoral fellow at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, who started the work as a Ph.D. student at the University of Bern, Switzerland. “From our analysis, we believe ferrihydrite is everywhere in the dust and also probably in the rock formations, as well. We’re not the first to consider ferrihydrite as the reason for why Mars is red, but we can now better test this using observational data and novel laboratory methods to essentially make a Martian dust in the lab.”

    “These new findings point to a potentially habitable past for Mars and highlight the value of coordinated research between NASA and its international partners when exploring fundamental questions about our solar system and the future of space exploration,” said Geronimo Villanueva, the Associate Director for Strategic Science of the Solar System Exploration Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and co-author of this study.
    The researchers analyzed data from multiple Mars missions, combining orbital observations from instruments on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, ESA’s (the European Space Agency) Mars Express and Trace Gas Orbiter with ground-level measurements from NASA rovers like Curiosity, Pathfinder, and Opportunity. Instruments on the orbiters and rovers provided detailed spectral data of the planet’s dusty surface. These findings were then compared to laboratory experiments, where the team tested how light interacts with ferrihydrite particles and other minerals under simulated Martian conditions.
    “What we want to understand is the ancient Martian climate, the chemical processes on Mars — not only ancient — but also present,” said Valantinas. “Then there’s the habitability question: Was there ever life? To understand that, you need to understand the conditions that were present during the time of this mineral’s formation. What we know from this study is the evidence points to ferrihydrite forming and for that to happen there must have been conditions where oxygen from air or other sources and water can react with iron. Those conditions were very different from today’s dry, cold environment. As Martian winds spread this dust everywhere, it created the planet’s iconic red appearance.”
    Whether the team’s proposed formation model is correct could be definitively tested after samples from Mars are delivered to Earth for analysis.
    “The study really is a door-opening opportunity,” said Jack Mustard of Brown University, a senior author on the study. “It gives us a better chance to apply principles of mineral formation and conditions to tap back in time. What’s even more important though is the return of the samples from Mars that are being collected right now by the Perseverance rover. When we get those back, we can actually check and see if this is right.”
    Part of the spectral measurements were performed at NASA’s Reflectance Experiment Laboratory (RELAB) at Brown University. RELAB is supported by NASA’s Planetary Science Enabling Facilities program, part of the Planetary Science Division of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
    By William Steigerwald
    NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: EDB holds kick-off ceremony and experiment proposal design briefing session for Hong Kong Secondary Student Space Station Popular Science Payload and Science Experiment Design Challenge (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

         The Education Bureau (EDB) is organising the Hong Kong Secondary Student Space Station Popular Science Payload and Science Experiment Design Challenge, which encourages student teams to submit scientific experiment design proposals suitable for implementation under space conditions or microgravity. The kick-off ceremony and experiment proposal design briefing session of the challenge were held today (February 25).

         The Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, officiated at the ceremony, which took place at the Education Bureau Kowloon Tong Education Services Centre with representatives from the co-organising, supporting, and partner institutions. The challenge is jointly organised by the EDB, the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS-TECSU), and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), with the Department of Educational, Scientific and Technological Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government (LOCPG) in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) serving as a supporting organisation. The Beijing-Hong Kong Academic Exchange Centre, the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, and the Education Convergence are partner organisations.

         The challenge aims to promote aerospace education, deepen students’ understanding of the country’s achievements in the aerospace area, and strengthen their confidence in science and technology. Award-winning and selected proposals have opportunities to be realised and developed into final products, and would be recommended to the space station space mission and Space Station Hong Kong Popular Science Satellite Project, to commence in 2026.

         Speaking at the kick-off ceremony, Dr Choi said that China’s aerospace engineering is a major testament to the country’s technological and comprehensive national strengths, fulfilling the long-held aerospace dreams of the Chinese people. This competition gives students valuable opportunities for aerospace education, training and practice, enabling them to have the opportunity to participate in national aerospace projects, explore aerospace science, and realise their aerospace dreams. She added that the challenge is highly meaningful and students are encouraged to form teams to participate in it.

         She pointed out that, to align with the national direction of invigorating the country through science and education, and in support of Hong Kong’s development into an international innovation and technology (I&T) hub, the EDB continues to step up the promotion of STEAM (science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics) education in schools, with an aim to enhance students’ interest and capabilities in scientific research and I&T through diversified support measures.

         Dr Choi expressed her gratitude to the CAS-TECSU, the Department of Educational, Scientific and Technological Affairs of the LOCPG in the HKSAR, and HKUST, among other organisations, for their robust support of the challenge, which has enabled its smooth implementation.

         Associate Vice-President for Research and Development (Research) of HKUST Professor Penger Tong also officiated at the ceremony. He said he hopes that this science popularisation activity will ignite the passion of Hong Kong’s younger generation for aerospace technology and enable them to make greater contributions to the aerospace endeavours of the country.

         During the briefing session, the project leader of the Space Station Hong Kong Popular Science Satellite from HKUST, Professor Yu Hongyu, delivered a keynote titled “Exploring the Universe, Igniting Dreams – Building Aerospace Aspirations with Hong Kong Secondary Students,” introducing the latest developments in the aerospace technology of the country to teachers and students. Meanwhile, Associate Director of the Space Science and Technology Institute of HKUST Professor Wang Yi and EDB representatives introduced the regulations, rules, and scoring criteria of the challenge.

         Other officiating guests included the Deputy Director of the Department of Educational, Scientific and Technological Affairs of the LOCPG in the HKSAR, Dr Chen Zhilu; the President of the Beijing-Hong Kong Academic Exchange Centre, Mr Hsu Hoi-shan; the Chairman of the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, Mr Wong Kam-leung; and the Vice Chairperson of the Education Convergence, Mr Chan Wai-lun. A total of 400 teachers and students from various schools also attended the briefing session.

         Under the Hong Kong Secondary Student Space Station Popular Science Payload and Science Experiment Design Challenge, participating student teams are required to submit science experiment design proposals that are suitable for conducting in a space environment or under microgravity conditions for review by an expert panel. The organising bodies will provide a series of training activities for participating teams, including payload design creation sessions led by aerospace experts, as well as online consultations, payload design reviews and improvement suggestions. An award ceremony and achievement exhibition is expected to be held in late June or July.

         Student teams interested in participating are required to register on the challenge’s website (spacepayload.hkust.edu.hk) after obtaining a nomination from their respective school(s) by March 8. For details, please refer to Education Bureau Circular Memorandum No. 31/2025 (applications.edb.gov.hk/circular/upload/EDBCM/EDBCM25031E.pdf).         

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Charles University Prague builds partnerships with 6 UK universities

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    World news story

    Charles University Prague builds partnerships with 6 UK universities

    A delegation from Charles University visited the UK to build strategic partnerships with 6 UK universities. It creates collaborative research and development opportunities.

    The delegation from Charles University at Imperial College London.

    Charles University is the oldest university in central Europe (established in 1348) with 17 Faculties and 50,000 students including more than 10,000 from abroad. It has 8,600 staff, 3,900+ are academics. The university is the best (world TOP150) in the following 5 subjects:

    • anatomy and physiology
    • economics
    • geography
    • linguistics
    • political science and international studies

    Charles University currently has bilateral agreements with 58 British universities. About 95 British students come to study in Prague every year.

    Between 27 and 31 March 2023, 18 delegates from Charles University led by the first ever female Rector Milena Králíčková and her 2 Vice-Rectors (Jan Kuklík and Ladislav Krištoufek) travelled round the UK to enhance strategic partnerships with 6 respected British universities:

    • London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)
    • Imperial College London
    • University College London
    • Cardiff University
    • University of St. Andrews
    • University of Edinburgh

    They were met by Vice-Chancellors or their deputies and large delegations of their counterparts.

    Prague UK Science and Innovation Network supported the idea of the mission from its beginning, contributed to the organisation of the mission and accompanied the Rector and Vice-Rectors to their key meetings.

    There were also many side meetings directly between faculty members and researchers in various sectors from pedagogy to biomedical and sport sciences. Overall, more than 20 meetings took place during the week and over 40 British leaders and researchers participated.

    Impact

    The mission itself is a great success on its own right. It highlights that the UK is a partner of choice for science and research at Charles University and a quality of British Higher Education is well recognized. The rector prioritized the UK for her first longer foreign visit and showed how important British networks for Charles University are.

    There was a huge interest to join from faculty members (Deans and Vice-Deans) and a formerly planned 5 people team turned to a large group of 18 delegates. The mission was self-funded by Charles University with no HMG financial support, showing high commitment to the collaboration.

    In all meetings, a part of the discussions focused on students and teachers’ mobility, celebrating already existing exchanges, for example, a cooperation between Charles University with Realistic graphics and Imaging Group at Imperial College London and Parasitology at LSHTM. New annual exchanges of 5 law students with Cardiff University have been agreed.

    Discussions also focused on research – matching strengths of institutions and finding ideal areas for collaboration. One early success of the visit was a Horizon Europe Teaming bid worth €1 million, submitted by the Faculty of Arts of Charles University together with the University College London and KTH Leuven to Brussels. The bid has not received funding, but the research teams of universities continue cooperating.

    Policy discussions focused on research security and exchanges of best practice between Charles University and British institutions. A common approach to privacy, research integrity and ethics is needed. Sustainability of Universities and Net-Zero pledges as well as energy security and high-inflation were also on minds of university leaders in both countries.

    The Rector of Charles University established a “strategic partnership seed fund” for Charles University staff to facilitate collaborations between staff from Charles University and their British counterparts that have a strong potential to establish mutually beneficial educational and research connections and make a valuable contribution to the international advancement of both universities.

    Expected outputs from this seed fund are mobility, teaching opportunities, joint publications, workshops and grant applications. An average of £5,000 is planned for one project with an estimated annual limit of 6 new collaborative opportunities between Charles University and 6 UK counterparts every year!

    SIN Officer Contact: otakar.fojt@fcdo.gov.uk

    Updates to this page

    Published 25 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Students of SPbGASU learned how to get a grant to implement their ideas

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Lecture by Alena Zinkevich

    On February 21, the lecture “The Ecosystem of Youth Policy in Russia” was held in the “Growth Point” space of SPbGASU. The head of the media department of the charitable organization “Anna Helps”, expert-mentor of Rosmolodezh, expert of the “Movement of the First”, lecturer of the Russian society “Knowledge” Alena Zinkevich told students about organizations that work in the field of youth policy, and about the opportunities that young people have today.

    According to Alena Zinkevich, youth policy at various levels is implemented by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh), the Committee for Youth Policy and Interaction with Public Organizations of the Administration of St. Petersburg, educational institutions, and youth centers.

    Alena Zinkevich spoke in detail about the Rosmolodezh forums, which provide the opportunity to travel for free, communicate with like-minded people, and receive funding for your projects.

    The speaker reviewed various projects and programs of Rosmolodezh, explained what grants are, what types of grants exist, and where to look for them. Thus, until March 17, you can apply for the correspondence competition “Rosmolodezh. Grants Season I”. Alena Zinkevich shared useful tips and offered assistance in filling out applications. Those interested could make a request and receive a gift from the speaker – a checklist on social design. After the lecture, we asked the students if they had projects that they dreamed of bringing to life.

    Anna Bogolyubova, a first-year undergraduate student at the Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Urban Management, has not previously participated in grant competitions. She does not have a project yet, but she has ideas. Anna learned a lot of new things at the lecture.

    Anna Kozhemyak, a second-year bachelor’s student at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, actively attends lectures at Tochka Rosta. She has several ideas aimed at solving student problems. Anna is a participant in the World Youth Festival in Sochi. She wants to continue the experience she gained there.

    Lecture audience. In the center is Lev Zadumkin

    The lecture was attended by Lev Zadumkin, the leading system administrator of the information technology department of SPbGASU. His project is a youth cycling school. “It’s like a driving school, only on bicycles, where we teach traffic rules and city riding in the format of a full course, with theory and practice. After classes, students stop being afraid of the roadway, understand road signs, and can provide first aid,” he said. In 2023, Lev, as part of a team from the “Let’s Go” association, applied for a grant (subsidy) competition from the Committee on Youth Policy and Interaction with Public Organizations.

    “We won then, but not last year, but we are not giving up and will try again this year, with the project of the school of urban mobility, which will include training in riding not only bicycles, but also SIM (individual mobility devices – electric scooters, unicycles and others). This innovation gives the project additional relevance in connection with the increase in demand for urban micromobility as an affordable and environmentally friendly alternative to public transport and private cars,” Lev continued.

    Lev Zadumkin reported that as a public project, “Bike School” has existed for more than 10 years thanks to activist Alexander Kozhanov and the public movement “Bicycling of St. Petersburg”. “Previously, these were one-time classes for a wide audience, video lectures, performances at festivals, then we tested the format of courses for residents of the municipal district (MO-72) and released several streams,” he said, specifying that he himself has been actively involved in the project since 2023.

    “As far as I know, there are no similar schools to ours yet, we are pioneers. There are schools that teach how to ride a bike (mainly for children), there are “electric scooter schools” from sharing companies, but there is a problem everywhere – they do not prioritize the use of bicycles and SIMs as transport and do not teach traffic rules. And classes at the bike school are free!” – concluded Lev Zadumkin.

    “Our university offers many opportunities for young people to realize themselves. On February 26 at 19:00, Rosmolodezh. Grants and Dvizhenie Perviy ambassadors will hold individual consultations at the Growth Point. This is a good social lift. Come with your ideas!” urged Ekaterina Kovalenko, Deputy Head of the Youth Policy Department.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: “Genius of the Place”: HSE School of Design Holds Competition Among Applicants

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –

    Competition projects will be useful for admission

    Works submitted to the “Genius Loci” competition may be presented during entrance examinations for the following bachelor’s degree programs: online bachelor’s degree “Design” at HSE Perm, “Design” at HSE Nizhny Novgorod, “Design” at HSE St. Petersburg, “Design” at the HSE School of Design in Moscow.

    The points received in the competition may differ from the points received in the entrance examinations due to the different levels of preparation of the participants and the number of works submitted.

    Participation in the “Genius of the Place” competition does not exempt you from the mandatory entrance exam upon admission. Do not forget to submit documents and upload a creative project.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Smart is sexy – new study on fish doing puzzles hints intelligence partly evolved via sexual selection

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ivan Vinogradov, Animal Behaviour Researcher, Australian National University

    Turner Brockman/iNaturalist, CC BY-SA

    We humans often underestimate the intelligence of other animals. You’ve probably seen videos of monkeys, ravens or parrots solving puzzles.

    But fish also possess impressive problem-solving skills, despite the notorious slander that goldfish have a three-second memory.

    The intelligence of animals can be a useful tool when testing various ideas in biology. For example, could intelligence have evolved in part thanks to sexual selection, rather than as a means of survival?

    In a new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, we used distinct tests to measure cognitive abilities of male mosquitofish – a thumb-sized fish endemic to central America but now a major pest in many parts of the world, including Australia.

    We then tracked how many offspring each male produced when competing for mates in small ponds. Our study showed that smarter males had more offspring than their less intelligent brethren.

    Our findings imply that the evolution of cognitive abilities may have been driven by sexual selection, with smarter males gaining more mating opportunities.

    To be smart is to survive

    Cognitive abilities, such as learning and problem solving, likely arose because they helped animals gather food, find shelter and avoid predators.

    Individuals that were better at these tasks lived longer and passed on genes to their offspring that improved the offspring’s performance. Natural selection favoured smarter survivors who had more descendants than the average individual.

    As a result, populations became smarter over time.

    But there is another explanation for the evolution of intelligence: smarter is sexy. A better brain might help an animal find more mates, have more sex, and eventually have more babies.

    If this is the case, intelligence partly evolved through sexual selection, where traits that boost mating and fertilisation success become more common over generations.

    We did our study on male fish – sexual selection is usually stronger on males than females, because in most species there are more males seeking mates than females ready to mate and breed.

    A shoal of mosquitofish.
    David Fanner

    Measuring animal IQ

    Even in humans, intelligence can be difficult to pin down: maths skills, creativity, street smarts, and standardised IQ tests all capture different aspects of human braininess.

    For animals, this challenge is tougher still. But biologists broadly agree that cognition is the ability to acquire, store, process, and act on information; and that distinct cognitive abilities are governed by different brain regions.

    We designed four special underwater tests to tap into these distinct cognitive abilities of our male mosquitofish.

    First, we measured their spatial learning by placing fish in a maze with a single correct route that led them to a shoal of their compatriots. Mosquitofish are highly motivated to swim with other fish, so reaching this shoal acts as a reward for solving the maze.

    Second, we measured their self-control (formally called “inhibitory control”) by placing a transparent barrier between the fish and a reward. We then documented how quickly a male learned not to swim into the barrier but to detour around it.

    A variation of the apparatus used to test self-control in mosquitofish. Fish needed to overcome their impulse to swim straight through the transparent barrier and detour it instead.
    Ivan Vinogradov

    Then, we measured associative learning by presenting a fish with two coloured corridors once a day. One colour (for example, green) led to a dead end, while the other (for example, red) to a reward.

    The number of days it took a male to consistently choose the correct corridor – the one with a reward – indicated how quickly they learned the association.

    Lastly, we reversed the colour cues to measure reversal learning. If green, for example, was previously the dead end, it now became the reward corridor, while red became the dead end. This tested how quickly the fish could “overwrite” his previously learned association to learn the new one.

    A winning edge in mating

    After these tests, we moved the males to ponds where they competed for mates. Two months later, the females gave birth, and genetic paternity tests revealed who fathered each offspring.

    Males that scored highly on self-control and spatial learning had significantly more children. But why?

    Something about these males seemingly gave them an edge in securing mating opportunities. Perhaps females recognised and preferred smarter males? Maybe smarter males were better at chasing the females and forcing them to mate (a common, if unpleasant, practice in mosquitofish).

    Future research is needed to observe the males’ mating behaviours more closely and see if smarter and dumber males differ in how they court mates.

    Our research sheds light on the evolution of our most prized possession – the brain. It seems that sophisticated intelligence isn’t only driven by our need to find food or avoid danger to survive, but also by the complex challenges of finding love.

    Ivan Vinogradov does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Smart is sexy – new study on fish doing puzzles hints intelligence partly evolved via sexual selection – https://theconversation.com/smart-is-sexy-new-study-on-fish-doing-puzzles-hints-intelligence-partly-evolved-via-sexual-selection-249862

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/PHILIPPINES – Sister Ana, a missionary among young Filipinos: this is how we help them discover their talents

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Tuesday, 25 February 2025

    Photo: Suor Ana Palma

    by Pascale RizkSan Carlos (Agenzia Fides) – A few days ago the seventh edition of the “Asian Mission” initiative ended, which this year had the motto “Made for a mission. Made for peace”. The event brought together 50 participants, including eight young people from Japan, five from the diocese of Daejon in South Korea, five from the Philippine diocese of Nampicuan and two from San Fabian, as well as 30 young people from the “Servants Missionary Youth” group from Malasiqui. The meeting, organized by the Congregation of the Servants of the Gospel of the Divine Mercy, takes place once a year and was held from February 6 to 16 in San Carlos, in the Philippine province of Pangasinan.”While young people in the Philippines suffer from poverty, young people in South Korea and Japan suffer from their families’ crushing expectations of success within a very competitive, rigid and demanding social system that causes a high suicide rate. The Asia Mission initiative aims to support all these young people,” says Sister Ana Palma, a Spanish missionary who has been in the Philippines with her community since 2015. “By creating this space, we want to sensitize young people to realities that are different from their own.””They should experience ‘human fraternity’ by being able to participate in pastoral activities with young people, children and university students. At the Pangasinan State University, young people meet with the university pastoral staff to share experiences of life in their respective societies and discuss ways to promote peace. In general, games, workshops and key meetings are held on human values such as freedom of expression, human dignity and work, depending on the age group,” explains the nun.San Carlos is 122 kilometers from Manila and is characterized by great poverty. It is usually the fathers who provide for the families by working in agriculture; families are made up of an average of five or six people and the most common work is building bamboo houses, called “Bahay-kubo”. The daily wage is 450 pesos, which is about 9,900 pesos a month, or about 200 euros. Women who do the cleaning work receive 350 pesos a day. With this income, families cannot afford to send all their children to university, and they only choose those who have the best prospects of success.The different needs of these young people also include the financial aspect. The parishes promote university scholarships of 1,500 pesos (about 26 euros) per month for the entire academic year. “My community sponsors 20 students with financial support of 1,750 pesos – 360 euros per year – from private donors,” adds Sister Ana, who continues: “Our work with young people aims above all to give them the confidence to change their lives. We encourage them to discover their potential, their talents and abilities. They are all very gifted, but at the same time they are crushed by the reality of poverty, which always makes them underestimate their potential.”According to Sister Ana, young people who are unable to continue their studies at university help their fathers with construction work, and the girls act as “laundresses,” washing the clothes by hand for families who do not have washing machines. It also happens that girls enrolled in university have difficulty paying the exam fees and therefore turn to prostitution.In addition to their work with young people, the missionaries of the Congregation of the Servants of the Gospel of Divine Mercy are involved in children’s catechism in parishes, in the distribution of the Eucharist to the elderly from door to door and in various educational, recreational and entertainment programs for young people. Every week, the missionary community meet with the youth group of the “Servants Missionary Youth” to pray. “The strength and power of prayer is very important. Filipino Catholics have a strong sense of popular piety,” emphasizes the missionary from Granada.”I am very happy that these young people, who come from very poor families – I know, for example, a family with up to fourteen members – can study at university. Many study nursing, political science or education. It is beautiful to see how they mature through open-mindedness,” says Sister Ana, “Even if, unfortunately,” reports Sister Ana, “today many are leaving the Catholic Church to join the ‘Born Again’ sect, attracted by music and animation”. (Agenzia Fides, 25/2/2025)
    Photo: Suor Ana Palma

    Photo: Suor Ana Palma

    Photo: Suor Ana Palma

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    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: The impact of violence against women and girls on young Londoners

    Source: Mayor of London

    Following the murders of Bibaa Henry, Nicole Smallman, Sarah Everard, Maria Rawlings, Sabina Nessa and others, reducing violence against women and girls (VAWG) has been a priority issue in London.

    The Mayor’s draft Police and Crime Plan 2025-29 states that one of the four priority aims for reducing violence and criminal exploitation is to “bring more perpetrators of VAWG to justice and increase preventative efforts to tackle misogyny.”1

    VAWG is an important issue for young people in London. 16-19 years old is the most common age for perpetration of rape and serious sexual offences.2 According to figures from the Youth Endowment Fund, 52 per cent of perpetrators of child sexual abuse and exploitation were children aged 10-17, with the most common age being 14 years old.3

    The London Assembly Police and Crime Committee will tomorrow begin an investigation into VAWG, focussing on the impact on young people. The Committee will question guests on the experiences of young people, and how the Mayor can ensure that prevention-based education programmes and initiatives are reaching boys and young men in London.

    The guests are:

    Panel 1 (10:00am – 11:15am):

    • Janaya Walker, Head of Public Affairs, End Violence Against Women coalition
    • Sanskriti Sanghi, Policy, Campaigns and Communications Officer, Southall Black Sisters

    Panel 2 (11:20am – approx. 12:30pm):

    • Kate Lexén, Director of Services, Tender
    • Ellie Softley, Head of Education, Everyone’s Invited
    • Professor Jessica Ringrose, Faculty of Education and Society, University College London

    The meeting will take place on Wednesday 26 February 2025 from 10am in the Chamber at City Hall, Kamal Chunchie Way, E16 1ZE.

    Media and members of the public are invited to attend.

    The meeting can also be viewed LIVE or later via webcast or YouTube.

    Follow us @LondonAssembly.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New chair appointed at the Office for Nuclear Regulation

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Press release

    New chair appointed at the Office for Nuclear Regulation

    The Minister for Transformation, Andrew Western, has announced today that Dr Nicola Crauford will take up the role of chair of the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) on 1 March 2025.

    • Dr Nicola Crauford has been appointed as the new Chair of the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR)
    • As part of her role, she will ensure ONR continues to regulate the nuclear industry efficiently and effectively on behalf of the public

    ONR is the UK’s independent nuclear regulator for the 36 nuclear sites in Great Britain, including the existing fleet of operating reactors, fuel cycle facilities and waste management and decommissioning sites. It also regulates the design and construction of new nuclear facilities including the supply chain as well as the transport of civil nuclear and radioactive materials.

    ONR also plays a crucial role in delivering the government’s energy security and growth missions 

    This is done principally through their approach to regulation, being open to innovation and new, efficient cost-effective ways of working, being ready to regulate new projects and providing trusted, timely, independent advice and guidance to Government.

    Minister for Transformation, Andrew Western, said:

    I am pleased to confirm Dr Nicola Crauford as the next chair of the Office for Nuclear Regulation. She brings a wealth of experience to this challenging but rewarding role.

    I would also like to thank Dame Judith Hackitt for all she has done as interim chair and her valuable contribution to nuclear safety and security.

    Dr Nicola Crauford said:

    I am delighted to join ONR at a time when the nuclear sector embarks upon significant growth, diversification and change.

    As the UK’s independent nuclear regulator, ONR has a vital role in holding the industry to account on behalf of the public, but it also needs to continue to strive for the most effective ways of working and regulatory excellence in order to help the sector to succeed.

    Dr Crauford’s appointment comes as the government announces more nuclear power plants will be approved across England and Wales. 

    These reforms will clear a path for smaller, and easier to build, nuclear reactors – known as Small Modular Reactors – to be built for the first time ever in the UK. This will create thousands of new highly skilled jobs while delivering clean, secure and more affordable energy for working people.

    Additional Information

    • Dr Nicola Crauford takes up her five-year appointment as ONR Chair from 1 March 2025. The current Interim Chair, Dame Judith Hackitt stands down on 28 February 2025.
    • Dr Nicola Crauford has extensive governance and senior management experience in infrastructure and engineering. She has a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and a doctorate in applied science from the University of Southampton and has worked in the oil and gas, energy and banking sectors.
    • Dr Crauford’s governance portfolio has spanned utilities (particularly electricity and water), ports and logistics, science research and development, environmental protection, fire and emergency management, housing/urban development and regulation.
    • More on the government’s plans for nuclear power: Government rips up rules to fire-up nuclear power – GOV.UK

    Updates to this page

    Published 25 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: NDA funds Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub with universities

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    News story

    NDA funds Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub with universities

    The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has announced it’s establishing a Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub with the Universities of Manchester and Sheffield.

    Nuclear fuel reprocessing plant product store

    The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has announced it’s establishing a Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub with the Universities of Manchester and Sheffield.

    It follows a commitment from NDA Group CEO, David Peattie, of a £5 million investment over the next five years in postgraduate research to contribute the NDA’s nationally important plutonium disposition strategy work.

    In January, the UK Government made a policy decision to immobilise the UK’s inventory of civil separated plutonium at Sellafield, putting the material beyond reach, further mitigating the long-term safety and security risks associated with it more efficiently.

    The Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub will fund around 20 PhD and 2 post-doctoral researchers engaging in cutting-edge research to identify the preferred technology for immobilisation, converting the material to an even safer and more stable form.

    Dr Rick Short, NDA Research Manager, said:

    The NDA group has invested in PhD students and post-doctoral researchers supporting many aspects of our mission for several years.

    It’s a key element of our strategy to develop the capability we need for the future with the skills and expertise we know will be critical to drive forward our nationally important mission.

    The Hub will be central to developing the technical expertise and subject matter experts we need to deliver the plutonium disposition strategy and continue to meet our commitment to safely, securely, and sustainably deal with the UK’s civil nuclear legacy.

    The inventory could be immobilised into a ceramic material which binds the plutonium in a stable form, suitable for disposal in a GDF, and puts it beyond use. This collaboration with academia will help improve our understanding of the materials and build the fundamental skills required to underpin and deliver a solution.

    Key Objectives of the Hub:

    • Innovative Research: Conduct ground-breaking research to develop key ceramic and manufacturing technologies for safe and effective plutonium disposition.
    • Academic Excellence: Foster a collaborative environment that promotes academic excellence and innovation.
    • Future Leaders: Train the next generation of nuclear scientists and engineers, equipping them with the skills and knowledge to address future challenges in nuclear decommissioning.

    Led by Dr Robert Harrison at the University of Manchester the Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub aligns with the goals of the Dalton Nuclear Institute, which aim to grow the scale and scope of the university’s world-class nuclear activities, and foster interdisciplinary collaboration.

    It also supports the Henry Royce Institute’s Nuclear Materials Research Area, which focuses on enhancing the UK’s strengths in nuclear energy and supporting net-zero ambitions through innovation in radioactive materials research.

    Dr Rob Harrison, Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub Lead at the University of Manchester, said:

    We are thrilled to be leading the £5m NDA Plutonium Academic Ceramics Hub at the University of Manchester in collaboration with the University of Sheffield.

    Our combined expertise and state-of-the-art facilities uniquely position us to successfully deliver the Hub and develop future subject matter experts in the field. This initiative will enable us to continue supporting the safe management of the UKs plutonium stockpile, addressing a critical challenge in the NDAs mission.

    Dr Lewis Blackburn, Plutonium Ceramics Academic Hub Co-Lead at the University of Sheffield, said:

    We are very pleased to play a pivotal role in the delivery of this exciting initiative for NDA. The safe and timely disposition of separated plutonium is a key aspect of NDA strategy. The Universities of Manchester and Sheffield are well placed to support this mission, allowing us to contribute to a national resilience in nuclear materials skills and expertise.

    While work continues on developing a suitable immobilisation solution to submit for Government approval to progress to the next phase, plutonium will continue to be stored in a suite of custom-built facilities at Sellafield that ensure its safety and security in line with regulatory requirements.

    Updates to this page

    Published 25 February 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Universities Australia Solutions Summit

    Source: Australia Government Ministerial Statements

    Thank you for the opportunity to speak here again tonight.

    It’s a real privilege.

    We are now on the cusp of a federal election.

    And so, I think it is probably appropriate to talk tonight about where we have come over the last few years, and what comes next.

    I think you know me now and what drives me.

    You know I think we have got a good education system, but it can be a lot better and a lot fairer.

    And I want to make it better and fairer.

    The first time I spoke here I told you my own story. How I was the first person in my family to finish high school or even finish year 10.

    How that wasn’t really an option for people like my mum and dad when they were growing up.

    How much we have changed since then.

    And how that change still hasn’t reached into every corner of this country or every home.

    I talked about the fact that almost one in two Australians in their 30s today have a uni degree, but not everywhere.

    Not where I grew up. Not amongst poor kids. Not in our outer suburbs or in the regions.

    And how I want to do something about this.

    I also made the point that fixing this doesn’t start and end at university.

    How we have got to reform our entire education system.

    There’s a pretty simple reason for that.

    It’s because the same people who aren’t at your universities are the same people who aren’t finishing high school.

    And they are the same people who are falling behind in primary school. And never catch up.

    A lot of those kids also start school behind.

    And a lot of them have never set foot in a child care centre or a pre-school at all.

    It is all connected.  

    If we are going to fix this, we have to fix all of this.

    Not just because of the individual lives this will change.

    But something bigger than that.

    A good education changes lives.

    A good education system changes countries. It’s changed ours.

    If you want the proof of that think about what’s happened in our own lifetimes.

    The big reforms of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating weren’t just Super, Medicare or floating the dollar.

    Under them the percentage of people who finished high school basically doubled.

    From 40 percent to almost 80 percent.

    One of the real privileges of being a Labor MP is I got to meet Bob and talk to him.

    And he used to talk to me about this, a lot.

    It was one of the things he was proudest of.

    Because he knew what it did. Not just the lives it changed.

    The businesses it helped create. The economy it helped build.

    It was real microeconomic reform.

    We’re a stronger and wealthier and a better country today than we were back when I was a kid, and education is one the reasons for that.

    It’s the fuel in the tank.

    What the Accord tells us is that the tank is only half full.

    That there is more that we have to do.

    That by the middle of this century we are going to need a workforce where 80 percent haven’t just finished school, but they’ve got a trade certificate or a diploma or a uni degree as well.

    That’s a big change.

    And that means reform.

    To build the education system Australia needs.

    Two and a half years ago, or so, when I got this job, this is what we were faced with.

    Child care costs had skyrocketed. Up 49 percent over 10 years. Double the OECD average.

    Child care workers were leaving in droves.

    So were school teachers.

    Billions had been ripped out of our public schools. And if you doubt me let me point you the 2014 Budget Overview, page 7. There it is in black and white.

    Nothing had been done to reform what was happening in our schools.

    The number of kids finishing high school was falling. Not everywhere. In particular in public schools.

    School teachers were being called duds and university students were being ignored.

    A lot has happened since then.

    In the last two years we have cut the cost of childcare for more than 1 million families nationwide.

    Now there are more kids in early education than ever before. 100,000 more.

    Child care workers are also getting a 15 percent pay rise. Getting the sort of wage they deserve.

    And guess what, applications are up and vacancies are down. People are coming back. Turns out when you pay people more, more people want to do the job.

    A couple of weeks ago something else really important happened.

    We passed laws through this place that will change the lives of some of the most disadvantaged children in Australia.

    The sort of children who need access to early education the most and are the least likely to get it.

    The sort of children who, because of no fault of their own, start school behind most of their classmates, because their parents don’t meet the requirements of something called the Activity Test, put in place by the last Liberal Government.

    The legislation we passed a few weeks ago gets rid of that test and replaces it with a three day guarantee.

    A guarantee of three days a week of government supported early education and care for every child who needs it.

    No one blinks when you say every child has a right to go to school and government has a responsibility to help fund it.

    The same has got to be true today for early education.  That doesn’t mean it should be compulsory. But it should be there for every parent who wants it and every child who needs it.

    To help make sure they start school ready to go. Ready to learn.

    That’s the sort of reform that changes lives. The sort of reform only Labor Governments do. And that our country needs.

    Next is schools. What our schools need.

    If we are going to hit that 80 percent target we need more people to finish school.

    For most of the last decade things have been going in the wrong direction.

    The number of students finishing school dropped. From 83 percent to 73 percent. That’s in public schools.

    Last year, for the first time in about 10 years, that percentage went up. A bit. That’s a good sign, but there is a long way to go.

    And that’s what the agreements I have struck with States and Territories across the country are all about.

    They set a target that by 2030 the proportion of students finishing high school will be the highest it has ever been.

    To do that we need to fix the funding of our public schools. But not just that. That funding needs to be tied to the sort of reforms that will help young people who fall behind to catch up and keep up and finish school.

    Things like evidenced-based teaching.

    Things like phonics checks and numeracy checks in Year 1 to identify kids who need additional help.

    And then making sure they get the help they need through individualised support, things like catch-up tutoring.

    I have signed agreements now with Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, with the ACT and the NT.

    And I want to do the same with Queensland and NSW.

    This is the biggest new investment by an Australian Government in public schools ever.

    And it’s the biggest reform to school education in decades.

    I am telling you this, because all of this is an indispensable part of making the Accord a reality.

    Here tonight is Professor Mary O’Kane and I want to pay tribute to you again Mary.

    You have provided us with a blueprint for how we can reform higher education.

    It’s big. Bigger than one government. 47 recommendations.

    But we have already bitten off a big chunk of it. 31, in part or in full.

    That includes things like Paid Prac for teachers and nurses, midwives and social work students. That starts on 1 July.

    A massive expansion of enabling courses. To help get people started. That’s already started.

    More than doubling the number of study hubs. In the bush and now the suburbs. All of these will be open this year.

    On the weekend, as part of our announcement to help more Australians see a GP for free, we also announced funding to train more GPs.

    Part of that is more Commonwealth Supported Places.

    It’s all part of the biggest GP training program in Australian history.

    We have also fixed the way student debt is indexed. That’s cut the debt of three million Australians by more than $3 billion in December last year.

    And if we win the election, we will cut everyone’s student debt by a further 20 percent.

    It means for someone with an average student debt today of 27 grand, we will cut their debt by another $5,500. That’s a lot.

    The first time I spoke at this dinner I talked about the fact that universities aren’t just places where people study or work. They are also places where people live.

    And I talked about sexual assault on campus and in student accommodation.

    For years organisations like End Rape on Campus have been asking for someone to listen. For someone to act.

    Asking for a dedicated Ombudsman.

    The Accord recommended it. And now it exists.

    Sarah Bendall, is the first National Student Ombudsman.

    Sarah’s powers are real. Like a Royal Commission. And the scope of what she covers is broad. Not just sexual violence. It covers antisemitism and all forms of racism. It covers the quality of the education and services students receive as well.

    And I hope you will see the work that Sarah and her team will do as an asset. Helping to make sure students are safe and get the education they are paying for.

    I also want to recognise in the room tonight the new Chief Commissioner of TEQSA, Professor Kerri-Lee Krause and congratulate her on her recent appointment, and acknowledge TEQSA’s CEO, Dr Mary Russell and thank you for the work that you are doing.

    Just one example of that is the roundtable we held earlier today with university leaders focussed on ongoing action to ensure universities are safe places for students and staff.

    There is also another big piece of work that has just kicked off on improving university governance.

    It was a recommendation of the Accord.

    I have set up an Expert Council that will look at everything from how universities pay staff, to the remuneration settings of senior university staff, and report to Education Ministers later this year.

    On international education, the Accord recommended a fund that universities would have to chip into based on the revenue they make.

    We opted not to do that.

    I proposed a cap. The Liberal Party opted not to do that.

    So instead, we have got rid of Ministerial Direction 107 and replaced it with something else.

    Something that is better and fairer.

    Something that makes sure it’s not just the big universities that get the benefit of international education.

    I get how contentious this is.

    How important this revenue is.

    But it is not the main game.

    What I am focused on, what I want all of us to focus on is how we build the sort of education system that Australia needs. That Australians need.

    I spoke a moment ago about how we are building an early education system based on need.

    And how we are fixing the funding of public schools so they are fully funded based on need.

    And we need to apply the same model to universities.

    That’s what the Accord recommended, and that’s what I announced in December last year.

    For the first time real demand driven needs-based funding for universities. Where the money follows the student.

    The evidence tells us that students in the bush and regions, students from disadvantaged backgrounds, are less likely to finish their uni degree than other students.

    This is designed to fix that.

    This, and the changes to the funding system that start next year, and all the other reforms we are funding already, add up to an extra $6.7 billion injection into higher education over the next decade.

    The Accord also recommended something else. Something to make sure that it doesn’t gather dust or a future government doesn’t just forget about it.

    It recommended an ATEC. An Australian Tertiary Education Commission. An independent body to help drive and steer reform over the long term. Help break down the barriers between TAFE and university. Help implement the funding model and provide advice on pricing and a lot more.

    If we win the election, I will introduce legislation in the second half of this year to formally establish the ATEC and I want it fully operational by this time next year.

    But I can announce tonight the team I have appointed to get it up and running on an interim basis from the 1st of July this year.

    The interim Chief Commissioner will be Professor Mary O’Kane, and she will be supported by Jobs and Skills Australia Commissioner, Barney Glover and Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt.

    I am getting the band back together.

    The people who wrote the Accord will help to make it real.

    I started tonight by saying that we are on the cusp of an election. 

    I want to end by saying thank you. 

    Nothing is certain or permanent. 

    None of us are in these jobs forever.

    But for the last two and a half years or so it has been a real privilege to work with you. 

    The UA campaign is right.

    Universities do matter. To all of us. 

    A few days ago, I met a young woman called Narges. 

    She is a refugee from Afghanistan. 

    She fled to Pakistan when Kabul fell a few years ago.

    About 18 months ago she made it here. 

    She now lives in Mt Druitt in western Sydney. 

    She speaks six languages. 

    The sixth is English. 

    She’s learnt it in the last year, at TAFE. 

    Last year she also completed a diploma in community service. 

    Next week she starts at Western Sydney University. She’s going to study social work. 

    Think about that. 

    After fleeing a country where girls can’t even go to school anymore. 

    Just imagine what this young woman is capable of, and what will happen next in her life, with your help. 

    The lives she will change. 

    Now imagine a million more stories just like that. 

    That’s what you do. 

    Change lives.  

    Change countries. 

    We are the best country in the world, but we can be even better. 

    And you are an indispensable part of making that a reality. 

    Turning the country of our imagination into something real. 

    That’s exciting. 

    That’s why I love this job. 

    And I really look forward to addressing this gala dinner again, this time next year.
     

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: PROF Polytechnic received activists from Petrozavodsk University

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    Our university was visited by a delegation of activists from Petrozavodsk State University. The delegation included representatives of the Trade Union of Students of PetrSU: chairmen of the trade union bureaus of institutes, student councils of dormitories, as well as members of the presidium of the Primary Trade Union Organization of Students.

    The main goal of the meeting was to exchange experience with the SPbPU Students’ Trade Union. The guests were given a tour of the Polytechnic University campus. They also saw the University History Museum and learned about the significant stages of the university’s formation and development. Particular attention was paid to discussing key areas of activity of trade union organizations, student support mechanisms, and the implementation of social and educational initiatives.

    The partners exchanged practical experience, discussed current issues of protecting students’ interests and interaction with university administrations. The meeting took place in a warm and friendly atmosphere, which further strengthened inter-university ties and partnerships.

    Both trade unions expressed interest in further cooperation to implement joint projects and initiatives aimed at improving the learning and living conditions of students.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Polytechnic Media Volunteers Launch Book Lighthouse Festival

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    On February 21, the jubilee tenth All-Russian festival “Book Lighthouse of St. Petersburg. Music of Meanings” started. Students of the Higher School of Media Communications and Public Relations of the Humanitarian Institute of SPbPU helped with the opening ceremony in the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg and the work of the media studio, as well as at 50 thematic sites of the three-day event.

    The ceremonial meeting in the Mariinsky Palace was opened by the deputy of the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg Marina Shishkina, the general director of the State Hermitage Museum Mikhail Piotrovsky, the director of the Central City Public Library named after V. V. Mayakovsky Zoya Chalova, the initiator of the festival, the president of the festival movement “Book Beacons of Russia” Denis Kotov.

    Our students have been participating in the media support of the festival movement for the third year. They organize photo and video shooting, communicate with writers, experts and media personalities in the studio, and fill the festival’s social networks with content. This is a high level of project work, and I am proud of our students, since each of them brings something unique to make the festival bright and memorable. It is very important for us that we participate in the development of the country’s cultural sovereignty with such a significant industrial partner as “Book Beacons”, – noted Marina Arkannikova, Director of the SPbPU GSMiSO.

    The festival cultural project lights its light and sets benchmarks in the book ocean twice a year for five years in a row. This socially significant non-profit initiative is held in a hybrid format, uniting thousands of Petersburgers and a large online audience. A special feature of the festival program is the variety of master classes, round tables and meetings with writers at various venues in the city: from traditional ones – the House of Books, the House of Journalists, libraries and schools of St. Petersburg, to the House of Officers, the Central Broadcast Studio, city shopping centers.

    For the first time, the Book Lighthouse became inclusive, adapted for both blind people and people with other disabilities.

    The festival is designed to unite librarians, publishers, writers, managers and readers to achieve a strategic goal: to create conditions so that 80% of Russians read an average of at least 12 books a year, says Denis Kotov, president of the festival movement “Book Beacons of Russia.”

    The final event, held at the House of Journalists, became a real celebration for guests and connoisseurs of Russian prose, poetry, music and art. The media volunteers of the Higher School of Music and Social Sciences together with the audience not only enjoyed poetry readings and music, but also took part in activities dedicated to Russian literature.

    “The Book Lighthouse” became a door to the world of art and creativity for me. Before it, I had read modern literature, of course, but I was not very interested in the authors of these books. But here I saw writers who were my compatriots. I heard their stories, and this changed my attitude to modern Russian literature, – shared third-year student of the Higher School of Music and Social Sciences of the State University of the Russian Federation Anastasia Kalinina.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Chinese filmmaker Huo Meng makes history with Berlinale win

    Source: China State Council Information Office 3

    Director Huo Meng on Saturday became the first Chinese mainland filmmaker to win the Silver Bear for best director at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival, receiving the honor for his film “Living the Land.”

    Chinese director Huo Meng poses with his Silver Bear award for best director at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival in Berlin, Germany, Feb. 22, 2025. [Photo courtesy of Shanghai Film Group]

    The film, produced by Shanghai Film Group and written and directed by Huo, captures daily life in 1990s north China through documentary-like cinematography and the authentic use of Henan province’s local dialect. The film stars Wang Shang, Zhang Chuwen and Zhang Yanrong, with renowned Chinese actor Yao Chen as executive producer.

    The story follows 10-year-old Xu Chuang, who lives with his grandmother and the Li family after his parents move to the city. Through scenes of spring plowing, autumn harvests, weddings and funerals, the film captures rural life and human relationships. Shot in a warm realist style, it depicts Xu’s family — hardworking, resilient and hopeful — as they strive for a better life, witnessing quiet yet profound changes in their community as they navigate tradition and modernity.

    In his acceptance speech, Huo emphasized filmmaking’s collaborative nature. “I am grateful to the actors for portraying a group of hardworking, kind-hearted and resilient ordinary people. The most captivating aspect of film is its ability to connect the emotions of people from different places,” he said.

    A still from “Living the Land.” [Photo courtesy of Shanghai Film Group]

    The film has received critical acclaim since its Feb. 14 premiere at the festival. The Hollywood Reporter critic Jordan Mintzer stated that it “immerses the viewer in a remote Chinese agricultural community with all the precision and beauty of an accomplished artist,” and praised Huo as “a master at embedding the drama within a broader fresco of social and economic transformation.” In a review for Variety, Guy Lodge wrote, “Though it’s gently paced and narratively diffuse, ‘Living the Land’ is never dull, thanks to a wealth of incident and the complexity of relationships in Huo’s extended family portrait.”

    “I spent my childhood in a rural village,” the director said at the premiere. “For thousands of years, China’s countryside has shaped deeply moving qualities in the Chinese people, such as diligence, kindness and resilience.”

    The film, shot over a year, follows its characters through all four seasons. “It creates a realm where we can experience the way of life and the intense emotional bonds, while also witnessing the possibility of change,” Huo shared.

    A poster for “Living the Land.” [Image courtesy of Shanghai Film Group]

    “Living the Land” is Huo’s third feature film, and he is the first Chinese filmmaker born in the 1980s to win a Silver Bear. An associate professor at the Shanghai Film Academy of Shanghai University, Huo previously won directorial awards for “Crossing the Border-Zhaoguan.” The Shanghai International Film Festival selected him last year for its SIFF YOUNG program, which supports emerging filmmakers with domestic and international film industry resources.

    The 75th Berlin International Film Festival, also known as the “Berlinale,” ran from Feb. 13 to 23. Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud won the Golden Bear for best film with “Dreams,” while Brazilian filmmaker Gabriel Mascaro’s “The Blue Trail” received the grand jury prize. U.S. director Todd Haynes led the main competition jury. Nineteen films competed in the main competition, including two Chinese entries — the other being “Girls on Wire” by director Vivian Qu.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The AtomSkills-2025 qualifying championship was held at the Polytechnic University

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    The Civil Engineering Institute hosted the AtomSkills-2025 qualifying divisional championship in the Engineering Design competency. The event was supported by Rosatom State Corporation and became a significant event for our university.

    The competition was held in two leagues: industry and student. Three teams from Rosatom State Corporation took part in the industry league: JSC FCNIVT SNPO Eleron, JSC KIS ISTOK and JSC KIS ISTOK-2. Five teams of 2nd, 3rd and 5th year students of the Civil Engineering Institute competed in the student league.

    The participants had to develop a project for a capital construction project with utility lines for subsequent construction. They had to use the initial data specified in the technical assignment and apply information modeling technologies.

    The experts of the championship were experienced teachers of the institute and specialists of leading companies, such as JSC VNIPIPT, JSC KIS ISTOK, JSC FCNIVT SNPO Eleron and CSoft Development.

    Following a tense competition week, the winners were determined.

    Student League:

    1st place: Dmitry Zharkov, Alina Doroshenko, Tatyana Slobodanyuk, Vitaly Naumovich — 5th-year students of the specialist program. 2nd place: Alexander Kolosov, Ilya Kazinsky, Daniil Milyutin, Lev Kharitonov — 2nd and 3rd-year students of the specialist program. 3rd place: Semyon Ivanov, Dmitry Laptev, Ivan Kelyin, Ilya Glazov — 2nd-year students of the specialist program.

    Industry League:

    1st place: team of JSC FCNIVT SNPO Eleron 2nd and 3rd places: two teams from JSC KIS ISTOK.

    Now the winners of the selection round are preparing for the next challenge – participation in the final of the industry championship AtomSkills-2025, which will be held in Yekaterinburg.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Trends of Literate People: State University of Management Conducts Financial Security Lessons

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    Recently, financial fraudsters have become more active, actively using not only artificial intelligence, but also modern achievements of social engineering to involve young people in their criminal schemes. The onslaught of fraudsters can only be effectively countered by raising public awareness in the field of financial security, legal, economic and financial literacy.

    The traditional lesson on financial security, which has been the first stage of the International Financial Security Olympiad for several years, is aimed at developing critical thinking skills and raising awareness among young people about threats to financial security. This year, the lesson is called “Not Child’s Play: 2.0. Drop Against Your Will” and is dedicated to issues of involving young people in schemes for cashing out funds obtained through criminal means.

    The State University of Management, as an active participant of the International Network Institute in the field of AML/CFT, did not remain aloof from conducting the lesson. On February 18, Deputy Head of the Department of Finance and Credit of the Institute of Economics and Finance of the State University of Management, PhD in Economics, Associate Professor Valentina Polyakova conducted a lesson with 10th-grade students of School No. 1935 of the socio-economic and technological profile.

    On February 20 and 21, Galina Sorokina, Director of the Institute of Economics and Finance, together with specialists from the Center for Inter-Olympiad Training of Schoolchildren and Students of the P.N. Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, organized a training seminar on conducting a thematic lesson on financial security and preparing schoolchildren for the V International Olympiad on Financial Security for teachers of the DPR, LPR, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions.

    And this Wednesday, February 26, at 11:30, you will be able to join the lesson conducted by the Director of the Institute of Economics and Finance Galina Sorokina for students of the Pre-University of the State University of Management, using the link to the broadcast on the official channel of the State University of Management on Rutube.

    We remind you that from February 1 to 28, the invitational stage of the V International Financial Security Olympiad is taking place on the Sodruzhestvo platform. First of all, students in grades 8-11 and undergraduates are invited to participate. Upon completion of the stage, participants who have completed the tasks will receive a certificate. To participate, you must register on the Sodruzhestvo platform.

    Subscribe to the tg channel “Our State University” Announcement date: 02/25/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Private sector encouraged to invest in major energy projects

    Source: China State Council Information Office

    As the country’s energy sector is shifting toward greater market-driven dynamics, private companies will be further encouraged to invest in energy development, utilization and infrastructure construction, according to China’s top energy authority.

    The government will continue promoting private sector involvement in major energy projects this year, including nuclear power, energy storage and smart grids, to deliver a more efficient and smooth operation of the market, according to the National Energy Administration.

    The administration will continue encouraging private enterprises to participate in the nuclear power industry’s supply chain and to invest in nuclear power projects. Furthermore, the government will continue to support private companies in various forms of oil and gas exploration, power infrastructure construction and other projects, it said.

    There will be an emphasis on supporting private businesses to invest in and build new technologies such as new energy storage, smart microgrids and innovative business models.

    Private companies are expected to spur more technological innovation and increased efficiency within the energy sector, enhancing its overall competitiveness and sustainability, said Lin Boqiang, head of the China Institute for Studies in Energy Policy at Xiamen University.

    The energy sector requires substantial long-term investment for expansion, especially in emerging fields such as new energy storage and smart grids, he said.

    China vows to further deepen its energy market reform this year, working to improve mechanisms where energy prices are mainly determined by the market, legally regulate the energy market order and strengthen the construction of a unified national market.

    Zhu Gongshan, chairman of GCL (Group) Holdings Co Ltd, China’s largest private power conglomerate, said a more market-driven energy sector could lead to increased efficiency in the allocation of resources.

    China’s solar power sector, from upstream silicon production to downstream photovoltaic power station construction, exemplifies the growing role of China’s private economy in energy transformation, he said.

    To deepen market-oriented price reforms of new energies, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration issued a notice recently to promote the integration of new energy sources like wind and solar power into the electricity market.

    This means that around 80 percent of China’s power consumption and generation will be transacted through competitive markets, significantly up from the 61 percent traded in 2024, according to Deng Simeng, a senior analyst for renewables and power research at global consultancy Rystad Energy.

    GCL Group said the company is very optimistic about the virtual power plant market in China, which, according to estimates by Huatai Securities, is projected to reach 10.2 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) this year and further grow to over 100 billion yuan by 2030.

    A virtual power plant is a network of decentralized energy resources that are controlled via software to function as a single, flexible power source. It allows these dispersed resources to operate in a way that mimics the behavior of a traditional power plant, providing electricity to the grid or responding to changes in demand.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Chernyshenko: World-class research centers ensure rapid entry of technologies to the market

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    A meeting on the results of the activities of world-class scientific centers was held under the chairmanship of Dmitry Chernyshenko

    February 24, 2025

    A meeting on the results of the activities of world-class scientific centers was held under the chairmanship of Dmitry Chernyshenko

    February 24, 2025

    A meeting on the results of the activities of world-class scientific centers was held under the chairmanship of Dmitry Chernyshenko

    February 24, 2025

    Previous news Next news

    A meeting on the results of the activities of world-class scientific centers was held under the chairmanship of Dmitry Chernyshenko

    A meeting on the results of the activities of world-class scientific centers (WCSC) was held at the Government Coordination Center under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko. The meeting presented the results of the WCSC’s work over the five years of the program’s implementation – from 2020 to 2024.

    “World-class research centers were created in 2020 as part of the national project “Science and Universities”, the implementation of which was completed last year. On the instructions of President Vladimir Putin, a new stage of the centers’ development will be implemented as part of the state program “Scientific and Technological Development of the Russian Federation”. Over time, they were reoriented from fundamental centers to applied tasks, while showing high results. NCMUs ensure the rapid entry of in-demand technologies into the market. Today, we see good indicators of their extra-budgetary financing – 34% of the budget part, which indicates their demand in the market,” the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized.

    Last year, President Vladimir Putin clarified the strategic goal-setting in the field of science. Dmitry Chernyshenko noted that it is especially important to concentrate efforts on the tasks set by the head of state. In accordance with current challenges, the country’s strategic priorities in the field of science and technology have been updated. State support measures will be focused on them.

    The competition for support of world-class scientific centers will be announced this week.

    “This year’s competition will be aimed at creating centers of the same format as the existing ones, but with an eye on the development and implementation of the most important science-intensive technologies up to and including the sixth level of technological readiness. The Ministry of Education and Science has carried out work to take into account the areas of the humanitarian and social profile,” said Dmitry Chernyshenko.

    The head of the Ministry of Education and Science, Valery Falkov, paid special attention to attracting young specialists to world-class scientific centers. According to him, the NCMU creates opportunities for young researchers to manage scientific projects, thereby motivating talented young people to engage in science and increasing the prestige of the scientific profession. Thus, 38% of the research conducted by the centers was carried out under the supervision of young (under 39 years of age) promising researchers.

    The NCMU employees have been awarded the highest level of prizes and awards for the results they have created. In particular, Irek Mukhamatdinov, a senior researcher at the NCMU “Rational Development of Liquid Hydrocarbon Reserves of the Planet”, became a laureate of the Russian Presidential Prize in Science and Innovation for Young Scientists for 2022.

    Representatives of world-class scientific centers also spoke about developments that have practical significance.

    Rector of Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University Andrey Rudskoy reported that the National Center for Advanced Digital Technologies has created a platform for the development and application of digital twins CML-Bench®. Compared to traditional approaches, the development of products and goods based on digital twin technology can reduce time, financial and other resource costs by 10 times or more. The prototype of the digital platform has been demonstrated and tested in operational conditions.

    In addition, technologies have been developed for producing metal-matrix composite materials using additive manufacturing. This is a reserve for the production of lithium-ion batteries with controlled three-dimensional micro- and macrostructure, improved energy capacity characteristics.

    Rector of the Russian State Agrarian University – Moscow Timiryazev Agricultural Academy Vladimir Trukhachev reported that the NCMU “Agrotechnologies of the Future” created 11 new varieties of peas using genetic technologies that accelerated the ripening process twice as much as traditional selection. Several large Russian producers have already begun to purchase peas of the new varieties.

    Vice-Rector of Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University Danis Nurgaliev noted that the National Center for Mining and Metallurgical Research “Rational Development of Liquid Hydrocarbon Reserves of the Planet” has implemented industrial scaling of in-situ oil refining technology using catalysts that can increase well flow rates by 20–100% and reduce the content of toxic metals in oil within the formation.

    A number of effective technologies of the NCMU are currently being replicated not only in Russian but also in foreign companies and act as import substitutes for products of such companies as Shell and Schlumberger.

    More than 20 low-tonnage chemical products developed by the center to improve the efficiency of oil field development are already being successfully used in practice.

    Efim Khazanov, chief researcher at the Gaponov-Grekhov Institute of Applied Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, reported that the Center for Photonics has developed a fractional rejuvenation device based on a powerful ytterbium fiber laser used in medical cosmetology for skin rejuvenation by laser exposure. In 2024, serial production of a cosmetology device based on a laser developed at the center was launched.

    Kirill Sypalo, Director General of the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute named after Professor N.E. Zhukovsky, said that the NCMU “Supersonic” has created a unique infrastructure to support work on the layout of a supersonic passenger aircraft. The use of such optimal layouts will reduce operating costs per flight by three to four times (in relation to first-generation supersonic passenger aircraft).

    Intelligent systems for monitoring and ensuring cybersecurity of onboard equipment and systems of supersonic passenger aircraft have also been developed.

    Leonid Gokhberg, First Vice-Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, noted that the Center for Interdisciplinary Research of Human Potential has created 40 unique databases on human potential development, half of which are international. The total number of users is more than 20 thousand people worldwide. The databases are used to evaluate family, demographic and economic policies and international research.

    In conclusion, Dmitry Chernyshenko instructed world-class scientific centers, together with the Ministry of Education and Science, federal authorities – curators and industrial partners, to present plans for the further use of the results obtained within the framework of the centers’ programs.

    The meeting was also attended by Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Stepan Kalmykov, representatives of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Digital Development, the Ministry of Energy, the Federal Agency for Subsoil Use and others.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: NSU students are prize winners of the Siberian Federal District

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Novosibirsk State University – Novosibirsk State University –

    The Siberian Federal District Championship in fencing with epees among juniors under 23 and in cross-country skiing among young men aged 17-18 were held. NSU students performed excellently as part of the Novosibirsk Region national teams.

    First place in the overall team standings and second place in the ski relay was taken by first-year student of the FF Alexander Nemov, and he is now preparing to participate in the Russian Championship.

    In epee fencing, student Artem Tsaplin (GGF) took 3rd place in the team competition.

    We congratulate the athletes on their medals at the interregional competitions and wish them further sporting success!

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –