Edward Nalbandyan to visit Moscow
13:02, 20 Dec 2014
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, Edward
Nalbandyan will visit Moscow on December 22, to take part at the
session of Foreign Ministerial Council of the Collective Security
Treaty Organization (CSTO), Armenian MFA’s press service reported.
Armenia’s Defense Minister to attend CSTO session of the Council of
Defense Ministers
15:21, 20 Dec 2014
The delegation, headed by the Defense Minister of the Republic of
Armenia, Seyran Ohanyan, will leave for Moscow to attend the session
of the CSTO Council of Defense Ministers to be held on December 22. As
informed by the Department for Mass Media and Public Relations of the
Defense Ministry, within the framework of the session Seyran Ohanyan
will meet with the Minister of Defense of Belarus Andrei Ravkov,
during the heads of the two governments will approve bilateral
cooperation plan for 2015 between Armenia and Belarus.
PHILATELIE ARMENIENNE
Emission d’un timbre sur la nouvelle cathédrale arménienne de Moscou,
Sainte Transfiguration
Le 12 décembre, la Poste arménienne (HayPost) a procédé à l’émission
d’un timbre-bloc dans la série > qui représente la
cathédrale arménienne Sourp Baïdzaragerboutioun (Sainte
Transfiguration) de Moscou inaugurée le 17 septembre 2013 en présence
du Catholicos Karékine II. Le timbre-bloc qui représente l’église et
quelques détails de ses bas-reliefs gravés sur ses parois extérieures,
émis en 30 000 exemplaires est d’une valeur de 870 drams.
Krikor Amirzayan
samedi 20 décembre 2014,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com
Access to education expanded in Armenia in 2014 – minister
YEREVAN, December 20. /ARKA/. 2014 became a year of expanding access
to education in Armenia, minister of education and science Armen
Ashotyan said at a 2014 summarizing press conference on Saturday.
New educational initiatives were launched in the country during the
year, he said.
Five priority educational programs included a student support project
that provided social aid from the government to about 2,000 Armenian
students.
Under the second program, $3.2 million was provided to some ten
Armenian higher schools to introduce innovative and competitive
curricula.
The third program has been really a pioneering one and aimed at
introduction of a new general education curriculum, the minister said.
In May Armenia’s parliament passed, in the first reading, the
amendments to the law about education that sets the 12-year education
as a requirement, as compared to the current 9-year compulsory
education.
The new law about general education has been another step toward full
transfer to inclusive education, according to the minister. Under the
law passed in September, all secondary schools and kindergartens in
the country will be providing inclusive education services.
And the last achievement was the nineteen medals won by Armenian
schoolchildren in international Olympiads, the minister said.
Ashotyan also said the introduction of “Chess” study groups in
secondary schools has been completed.
The number of inclusive schools in the country increased to 139 this
year, the minister said. -0–
The Armenians of Singapore
By Ric Gazarian on December 18, 2014
Singapore is an incredibly successful country on the southern tip of
Malaysia. More than 5 million people are packed into this compact
area. It is a veritable smorgasbord of ethnicities, languages, and
religions. For instance, Singapore recognizes four languages: English,
Malay, Tamil, and Mandarin. While 75 percent of the population is
Chinese, with the remainder being mostly Malay and Indian,
surprisingly a small Armenian community played an outsized role in
this city-state. Singapore is the model of a successful free market
economy, rated in 2013 as the second freest economy. It has a per
capita income that ranks third in the world. To put that in
perspective, one out of six citizens has a net worth of over a million
dollars even while excluding property!
Marina Bay Sands, an iconic new addition to the Singapore skyline, is
the most expensive building in the world at close to $5 billion. It
was premiered in 2010, and 3 towers that comprise the complex stand at
55 floors with a platform known as the Sands SkyPark on top connecting
the three towers. The Sands SkyPark includes an observation deck,
restaurant, and an infinity pool (guests only!). The complex, which
sits on reclaimed land, has more than 2,500 rooms and a casino.
Remember to double down!
Marina Bay Sands
The view from Marina Bay Sands
Adjacent to the Marina Bay Sands is Gardens By The Bay, which was
created in 2012. Over 200 acres of green space are packed in the
middle of the dense city-state of Singapore. Two giant greenhouses
rise into the sky. The first is the Flower Dome, which is a giant,
enclosed three-acre space containing seven unique gardens. The second
is the Cloud Forest, which showcases a 115-foot tropical waterfall. As
I strolled though the greenhouses, I spied the Sands SkyPark in the
distance. I felt like I was in the flotilla in Battlestar Galactica,
looking at a passing spaceship the SS SkyPark. The highlight of the
garden is the Supertree Grove, a series of “trees” that rise to
heights of 160 feet. At night these trees are lit up, and twice during
the evening there is a light and music show.
Gardens By The Bay
A very dark period in Singapore history is the Japanese occupation
during World War II. Singapore was a British colony at the time, and
the British were quickly routed by the Japanese. Upon occupation,
3,000 civilians were marched directly from the city to Changi Prison.
The prison was meant to hold 600 criminals, but the Japanese managed
to squeeze in 5 times more including children. Nearby the prison,
50,000 POWs, mostly British and Australian, were held. Today, a museum
memorializes these victims and survivors, and includes a replica of a
chapel that was built by the POWs in 1944 using rudimentary tools.
The Changi Prison Chapel
Singapore is a great city to walk and explore. If need be, simply jump
on the MRT, its unbelievably efficient and expansive subway system.
One fun neighborhood to get lost in is Chinatown. A new addition to
the skyline is the 2007 Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. The four-story
temple is said to host a tooth of Buddha Shakyamuni. This vibrant and
colorful temple is well worth the visit.
The 2007 Buddha Tooth Relic Temple
A special place to visit is the oldest remaining church in Singapore.
This modest, white church was consecrated in 1836. The church happens
to be the Armenian Apostolic Church of St. Gregory the Illuminator
located on Armenian Street. It was established for the benefit of a
small Armenian community, which at its height in the 1880’s reached
approximately 100 families. Armenians had established a preliminary
foothold in Asia, including in India, Burma, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
They played influential roles as traders and merchants in the region.
The last Armenian parish priest left in the 1930’s. By the 1950’s,
most of the Armenian community had slipped away, many immigrating to
Australia. Today, the church is a national monument.
The grounds of the Armenian Apostolic Church of St. Gregory the Illuminator
The Armenian Apostolic Church of St. Gregory the Illuminator located
on Armenian Street
On the grounds of the Armenian Apostolic Church of St. Gregory the Illuminator
Despite representing a small fraction of the Singapore community, the
Armenians played a significant role in Singapore. In 1845, Catchick
Movessian co-founded the Singapore Straits Times. Today, this paper is
the highest-selling paper in Singapore. A quartet of brothers from
Isfahan, Iran, also made an impact. The Sarkies brothers over a
45-year period founded or managed 6 hotels in Southeast Asia. Their
properties were considered the most prestigious hotels in the region.
Most well known is the legendary Raffles Hotel founded in 1887 in
Singapore. While rates start at $500, you might consider quaffing a
Singapore Sling at the Long Bar. Both the drink and the bar are iconic
landmarks in Singapore. Agnes Joaquim, a horticulture enthusiast,
unveiled her flower at a competition there, and won the $12 prize in
1899. The Vanda Miss Joaquim was later designated Singapore’s national
flower.
The Raffles Hotel (Photo by Richard Moross/Creative Commons)
The Vanda Miss Joaquim (photo by AJ Cann/Creative Commons)
So, as you stroll down the streets of the ultra-modern metropolis,
remember the impact this small community of Armenians had on this
nation-state.
Find out more about Ric’s work and travels here.
Armenian economist rules out USD surge in January
14:47 * 20.12.14
An Armenian economist said Saturday that he expects appreciation in
the national currency’s value next month against the backdrop of the
US Dollar’s declining exchange rate.
“This period will see people spend their savings, making for the
Dram’s appreciation,” Vilen Khachatryan told a news conference, adding
that he predicts an exchange rate of 450-455 Drams per US Dollar.
He attributed the past days’ currency crisis to two major factors.
“The reality is that we saw a 35%-40% depreciation and a subsequent
20%-25% appreciation in the Dram’s value. I attach importance to two
factors here: it’s first of all Russia and the sanctions against it,
and secondly, it has to do with certain factors in the Armenian
reality,” he added.
The economist said he finds that Armenia by and large incurred the
impact of different geo-economic developments.
PRESS RELEASE
Glendale Public Library
222 East Harvard Street
Glendale CA 91205
Contact: [email protected]
Tel: 818-548-2030
FB:
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Web:
TW:
California Water Infrastructure
An Intriguing Presentation by Maria Mehranian
The public is invited on Thursday, January 22, 2015, at 7 pm to a free
intriguing presentation on California Water Infrastructure by Maria
Mehranian in English at the Glendale Central Library Auditorium.
In the face of aging water infrastructure and the on-going drought,
the need to update to sustainable solutions has become paramount. In
response, state agencies, regional water quality boards, and water
agencies are embarking on various policies to secure reliable water,
protect water quality, and increase conservation. In Los Angeles
County, cities are forging new partnerships to collect and capture
stormwater runoff. Many of these partnerships are a result of a
stormwater permit, passed by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality
Board, to ensure the clean reuse of stormwater. Ms. Mehranian will
detail her experience serving on the Los Angeles Regional Water
Quality Board and working with municipalities throughout the region to
create projects that respond to this changing policy landscape.
Maria Mehranian is the Managing Partner and Chief Financial Officer
for Cordoba Corporation, a Los Angeles based civil engineering and
construction management firm specializing in water, energy,
transportation, and education facility infrastructure. The firm is
nationally known for its work on large-scale public work projects such
as the California High Speed Rail program and the move of Space
Shuttle Endeavour from LAX to the California Science Center. Her
unique approach to building Cordoba into one of the top planning and
engineering firms in the nation has been featured in case studies at
the Harvard Business School and the Kellogg School of Business at
Northwestern University. She is a current member of the Los Angeles
Regional Water Quality Board, and served as chair between 2012 and
2014, overseeing water quality standards in the Los Angeles region
while working closely with municipalities to implement collaborative,
regional, and practical solutions to local water quality issues.
Thanks. Hope to See You All Next Year!
U.S. DIPLOMATS MULL NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT
AzerNews, Azerbaijan
Dec 19 2014
19 December 2014, 13:17 (GMT+04:00)
By Sara Rajabova
The former and current U.S. co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group have
discussed the ways to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
Carey Cavanaugh and Robert Bradtke, former U.S co-chairs of the OSCE
Minsk Group discussed the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with James Warlick,
the current U.S. co-chairman, Warlick wrote on his Twitter page.
The United States is one of the co-chair countries of the OSCE Minsk
Group, which tasked to resolve the long-lasting Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made
territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since a lengthy war in the early
1990s that displaced over one million Azerbaijanis, Armenian armed
forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s internationally
recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent
regions.
Peace talks, mediated by Russia, France and the U.S. through the OSCE
Minsk Group, are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by
the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles. However,
the negotiations have been largely fruitless so far despite the
efforts of the co-chair countries over 20 years.
Armenia continues the occupation in defiance of four UN Security
Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal.
YEREVAN PHYSICS INSTITUTE INAUGURATES NEW CYCLOTRON
Friday, December 19th, 2014
The President of Armenia Serzh Sarkisian and other government
officials and clergy at the accelerator building’s groundbreaking
ceremony. Oct. 2012.
YEREVAN–The Alikhanyan National Laboratory in Yerevan (Yerevan Physics
Institute) will soon take delivery of a new 18 MeV (million electron
volt) cyclotron for a modern diagnostic center funded by the Armenian
government. The cyclotron is purchased from a Belgian Company (IBA)
and the plan is to start installation of the new 18 MeV cyclotron in
January of 2015. The cyclotron will be placed in a newly constructed,
specially designed building on the grounds of the laboratory. The
new cyclotron, the Cyclone 18, is one of the most modern cyclotrons
produced today in the world. The cyclotron will produce negative
proton beams of 18 MeV and deuteron beams of up to 10 MeV energies.
The new cyclotron, in addition to providing short-lived radioactive
isotopes for positron-electron tomography, will also be used to expand
the capability of the Yerevan Physics Institute in nuclear physics
research and the applications of nuclear science to society. The
science questions explored at Yerevan Physics Institute will range
from studying the stellar nuclear reactions which are essential to
the formation of the solar system and to understanding the conditions
responsible for life on earth, as well as applying the techniques
and tools of nuclear science towards understanding early human
development. This science is also applicable to environmental science
and the dating of art and archeological artifacts. This will expand the
capabilities of Armenia in medical treatment and diagnostic techniques.
The accelerator building
This type of cyclotron is being implemented worldwide to produce
radio-isotopes for hospitals and research centers all over the world.
The production of radio-isotopes in Yerevan will provide services
that presently do not exist to patients in Armenia and potentially
provide sales to neighboring countries. The cyclotron will place
Armenia amongst a select list of the world’s countries with their own
production of radio-isotopes that can be used in medical diagnostics
and therapy. The cyclotrons are also very versatile and can be used to
carry out basic nuclear research. Some recent proposals by scientists
at the Yerevan Physics Institute, and approved by the Ministry of
Science and Education, include using the proton beams to study the
“Hoyle” state, which is the resonance state that captures an alpha
particle to make Oxygen and hence facilitated the origin of life
in our cosmos. The state was discovered more than 50 years ago, but
remains a challenge in physics worldwide. Scientists at the Institute
propose to measure the decay of the Hoyle state.
Another example of the kind of research that can be done at the
Institute with the new C-18 Cyclotron is the conversion of the proton
beam into a neutron beam for use for a broad class of studies and
experiments. Neutrons are fundamental particles that make up the
atomic nucleus along with protons. The properties of neutrons such
as their charge neutrality makes them ideal probes to peer inside
all types of matter, including properties of nuclei and various
types of dense matter. Wavelengths of neutron are about the same as
the distances between atoms making them an ideal tool to the study
of engineering of materials, as well as biological, chemical, and
physical systems. Neutrons and the likelihood of various materials
to absorb neutrons (cross-sections) are important to answering a
broad range of open questions from astrophysics, nuclear physics,
and material science. The production of a neutron beam at the Yerevan
Physics Institute will be an important experimental tool for the
country of Armenia. Other societal applications of Nuclear Physics
include energy, climate physics, physics of art, and archeology.
SHOCK OVER: ARMENIAN PM SIGNALS CURRENCY MARKET STABILITY AFTER DRAM REBOUND
ECONOMY | 19.12.14 | 10:41
RELATED NEWS
Ungrounded price increases will not be tolerated, says PM
Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan warned against currency
market speculations and “groundless” price increases as he visited
some supermarkets in Yerevan on Thursday amid apparent stabilization
of the dollar-dram exchange rate.
“If the dollar exchange rate changes by 10-15 percent a product
cannot become 30 percent more expensive,” Abrahamyan told media at
one of the stores. “I am sure that people have realized that they
can’t play such games with our people.”
“People must not be tempted. They must not use such situations to
get more money from our people,” the prime minister stressed.
The dram that hit its historic low of nearly 600 on Wednesday began
to rally strongly the following day, reaching the level of 460-480
at most exchange offices by the end of the day.
Premier Abrahamyan suggested that the “shock is over”. “Yesterday the
dollar was overrated and the dram was underrated. But in the next
two days everything will be settled,” he stressed, adding that the
final market adjustment of the exchange rate is likely in the next
week or so.
The turmoil in the currency market observed in Armenia since Monday
raised negative expectations among economic agents some of whom
suspended trade or raised prices in anticipation of hard currency
shortages.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Prime Minister Abrahamyan gave
assurances that the Armenian banking system has the necessary financial
resources to deal with such situations.