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Strolling Around Central Europe. Histories, Philosophies and Literatures of ‘Mitteleuropa’. Book Review of Martin C. Putna, Obrazy z kulturních dějin Střední Evropy, Vyšehrad, Praha 2018.
Get PDFThe new book of Czech author Martin C. Putna offers a ‘deep insight’ and at the same time a ‘wide overview’ of the main historical and cultural facts that contributed to shape East-Central Europe over the centuries. All historical parts of the former Habsburg Empire (Austrian) are crossed – from Vorarlberg in the far west to Bukovina in the far east, from the former Ottoman Bosnia and Herzegovina in the south to the Austrian region of Bohemia in the north – focusing on major events as well as on important writers or relevant cultural movements of those areas.The new book of Czech author Martin C. Putna offers a ‘deep insight’ and at the same time a ‘wide overview’ of the main historical and cultural facts that contributed to shape East-Central Europe over the centuries. All historical parts of the former Habsburg Empire (Austrian) are crossed – from Vorarlberg in the far west to Bukovina in the far east, from the former Ottoman Bosnia and Herzegovina in the south to the Austrian region of Bohemia in the north – focusing on major events as well as on important writers or relevant cultural movements of those areas
The Great War and Polish Memory. Architectural Forms of Commemoration and the Myth of a New State
Get PDF1918 was a seminal year in the history of 20th-century Poland – the country which, together with other Central and Eastern European states, gained independence as the Great War drew to an end. At the same time, the Great War does not appear to occupy a special and privileged place in Polish cultural memory. As a matter of fact, overshadowed by the trauma of World War II it is anything but an important site of memory. In the field of visual arts and literature the period 1914-1918 did not bring works which would be either formally ‘modern’ or would account for the tragedy of the war. It might well be stated that the eruption of modern means of expressions which were used by artists and writers to narrate the experience of the Great War – the phenomenon that can be observed in art and literature of many post-World War I European states – did not leave any substantial traces in Polish culture. On the contrary, if the Great War was represented in Polish art, it was done so in a highly traditional and academic fashion. What one may find surprising is not only a special conservatism of formal means applied to textual and visual narratives about World War I. What also calls one’s attention to is the semantic operation conducted in Polish post-World War I culture: the substitution of the Great War memory with the memory of 1914-1920. This extension of the conflict by two more years made it possible for the new Polish state to divert the social attention and concern from World War I to the on-going fights for Poland’s eastern border. It was the latter that became a climax – not only in Polish public discourse but also in war art and literature. While the rest of Europe was, at that time, erecting the tombs of the unknown soldiers that died in the Great War, Poland was erecting the tomb of the unknown soldier that died in the Polish-Ukrainian war. The present article wishes to investigate some selected works of literature, art and architecture from the period 1916-1926 so as to illustrate the above-mentioned processes of the use and abuse of the meaning and memory of the Great War – all in order to create a new culture of memory for a new state. 1918 was a seminal year in the history of 20th-century Poland – the country which, together with other Central and Eastern European states, gained independence as the Great War drew to an end. At the same time, the Great War does not appear to occupy a special and privileged place in Polish cultural memory. As a matter of fact, overshadowed by the trauma of World War II it is anything but an important site of memory. In the field of visual arts and literature the period 1914-1918 did not bring works which would be either formally ‘modern’ or would account for the tragedy of the war. It might well be stated that the eruption of modern means of expressions which were used by artists and writers to narrate the experience of the Great War – the phenomenon that can be observed in art and literature of many post-World War I European states – did not leave any substantial traces in Polish culture. On the contrary, if the Great War was represented in Polish art, it was done so in a highly traditional and academic fashion. What one may find surprising is not only a special conservatism of formal means applied to textual and visual narratives about World War I. What also calls one’s attention to is the semantic operation conducted in Polish post-World War I culture: the substitution of the Great War memory with the memory of 1914-1920. This extension of the conflict by two more years made it possible for the new Polish state to divert the social attention and concern from World War I to the on-going fights for Poland’s eastern border. It was the latter that became a climax – not only in Polish public discourse but also in war art and literature. While the rest of Europe was, at that time, erecting the tombs of the unknown soldiers that died in the Great War, Poland was erecting the tomb of the unknown soldier that died in the Polish-Ukrainian war. The present article wishes to investigate some selected works of literature, art and architecture from the period 1916-1926 so as to illustrate the above-mentioned processes of the use and abuse of the meaning and memory of the Great War – all in order to create a new culture of memory for a new state.
A fast and reliable method for Diplodia seriata inoculation of trunks and assessment of fungicide efficacy on potted apple plants under greenhouse conditions
Get PDFDiplodia seriata is a polyphagous and widespread pathogen that infects trunks, shoots, fruit and leaves of apple plants. Fungicides applied in integrated pest management programmes can act against D. seriata. However, introduction of scab-resistant apple cultivars and the consequent reduction in fungicide applications under low input disease management may increase the incidence of disease caused by D. seriata. Despite potential outbreaks of trunk canker, no fast and reproducible protocols for artificial inoculation of D. seriata and fungicide efficacy tests are available for apple plants. In this study, protocols for mycelium plug- and conidium suspension-inoculation of apple stems and shoots were optimised; canker disease assessments were carried out on potted apple plants under greenhouse conditions and coupled with D. seriata DNA quantification with quantitative PCR (qPCR). Efficacy tests of commercial fungicides showed that captan, dithianon and fluazinam inhibited D. seriata mycelium growth and conidium viability in vitro, while penconazole and ziram did not. However, dithianon spray applications did not reduce trunk canker severity and amount of D. seriata DNA in artificially inoculated plants under greenhouse conditions. This optimised protocol for fast and precise assessment of fungicide efficacy is suitable for further investigating the effects of other fungicides against D. seriata
Pedagogical and creative perspectives of handwriting, human heritage
Get PDFIn this article we are wondering if nowadays more than ever it is possible to consider as well-founded and emerging a pedagogy of the writing gesture, committed to recognise and support the creativity range of a complete educational process closely connected to certain dynamics that subtend the learning of handwriting, considered a common good and a human heritage.The increasingly widespread tendency to remove this educational significance, replacing the handwriting and its implicit complexity by using virtual technological instruments, apparently represents an unstoppable, not devoid of pedagogically relevant consequences
La paideia di Odisseo
Get PDFThe article explores Homer’s paideia, which is considered to have established the foundation of the educational principles that still govern European culture today. The historical and educational dimension of the survey is enhanced by the attempt to continually illuminate the research in terms of the origins, motives and meanings of the spirit of Western education and here finds a precise specialization in the determination to identify and evaluate those aspects linked to the formative stages of man and understand more fully the complex traumas of the human and educational realities of today. Thus, after highlighting the traces of weakness in the theoretical and rational approach of Western education through the education of the hero of the Iliad, the investigation focuses on the Odyssey’s paideia, in which, as the representation of an alternative educational approach to the logic of pure reason and human perfection, are explored the signs of a new consciousness that has developed on the margins of the history of civilisation revealing more anthropological than postmodernist features
Testimonianze
Get PDF“Studi sulla Formazione” plays an important role in Italy for pedagogical research: it hosts articles by international authors from different research fields. The testimonies of three important authors show the contemporary relevance of the journal in pedagogical research and its vocation for dialogue
L’omaggio di due amici
Get PDFIl primo maggio del 2009 è stato celebrato presso il St Anthony’s College di Oxford l’ottantesimo compleanno di Ralf Dahrendorf. Nell’occasione si è tenuto, in sua presenza, un seminario internazionale nel quale si è affrontato, nelle diverse prospettive tipiche delle scienze sociali, il topos della libertà, un tema che è stato la stella polare della sua vita di pensatore a cavallo tra mondo accademico ed impegno politico. L’evento è stato coordinato dal professor Timothy Garton Ash che SMP ringrazia caldamente per aver autorizzato la pubblicazione, qui di seguito, di due importanti interventi ora raccolti nel libro da lui stesso curato On Liberty.The Dahrendorf Questions (University of Oxford, 2009)
The Border Crosser: Ralf Dahrendorf as a Public Intellectual between Theory and Practice
Get PDFDahrendorf was an intellectual whose influence crossed borders in a twofold sense. In one sense, he consistently bridged the boundaries of the academic, political and public spheres. In the other sense, he lived a German-British life, becoming a transnational intellectual. As a professor of sociology and as a journalist, Dahrendorf was influential in forwarding ideas pertinent to a liberal-democratic society. In line with his desire for the greatest intellectual impact possible, Dahrendorf time and again established close links with the political sphere and became a member of the executive branch in Germany and in the European Economic Community – a position which, however, conflicted with his role as an independent intellectual. Nonetheless, the numerous boundaries he bridged, and his various professional experiences and relationships were also beneficial for his position as a public intellectual. They allowed him both an inside view and an understanding of larger contexts
Technical efficiency and farm size: an analysis based on the Brazilian agriculture and livestock census
Get PDFThis paper analyzes the relationship between technical efficiency and farm size, considering different classes of area and efficiency levels in Brazil. Stochastic Frontier Production was used to obtain the technical efficiency and the Quantile Regression was used to identify their determinants. Microdata from the 2006 Brazilian Agriculture Census were used. It was found a positive and non-linear relationship between farm size and efficiency in all area classes. However, the more efficient the producers, the weaker the relationship, which indicates that such producers were less dependent on the land factor. In addition, irrigation, technical assistance and cooperatives membership were the factors which contributed most to increasing efficiency, especially for the less efficient producers