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The shell of the Grade II listed buildings on Piccadilly and Half Moon Street (c1750s). A planning app. from 2017 reveals a desire that this and the area be a 102 room hotel with spa, swimming pool, et al. whilst retaining the front facade. There seems to have been a number of oppositions to the plans but it seems it has got the go ahead. Stepped back from the road, and out of sight, is Cambridge House, a Grade I listed townhouse.
At the Community Activity Center on Camp Casey May 29, civilians and Soldiers of the U.S. Army Garrison Red Cloud and Area I attend a professional development session geared especially to those in leadership positions. The audience of 145 leaders heard briefings on a range of topics that included customer service, mentoring subordinates, administrative and maintenance matters, and leadership itself. Speakers included Col. John M. Scott, Commander, USAG Red Cloud and Area I, and other garrison officials. The afternoon was capped by an indoor supper of hot dogs and hamburgers.
Watching DVDs of our favorite late, great, cancelled series "Arrested Development"
at the campsite. All the best & smartest shows are destined to be cancelled. What gives?
A two day seminar on the theme “Rural Development: Present Scenario and Future Challenges” was organised on 26-27 March, 2011 at Hotel Holiday Home, Shimla. Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal, CM, himachal Pradesh, inaugurated the Seminar and Ramon Magsaysay Awardee Rajender Singh ji presided over the inaugural function. There were about 500 guests including the delegates and guests on this occasion.
At the Community Activity Center on Camp Casey May 29, civilians and Soldiers of the U.S. Army Garrison Red Cloud and Area I attend a professional development session geared especially to those in leadership positions. The audience of 145 leaders heard briefings on a range of topics that included customer service, mentoring subordinates, administrative and maintenance matters, and leadership itself. Speakers included Col. John M. Scott, Commander, USAG Red Cloud and Area I, and other garrison officials. The afternoon was capped by an indoor supper of hot dogs and hamburgers.
Wilhelm Germanovich Stoll (February 18, 1842, Radziwillov, Volyn Governorate – c. 1920, Grafskaya village near Voronezh) was a Russian industrialist, innovative entrepreneur, public figure, philanthropist, patron of the arts, and athlete.
German by origin. Personal nobleman. Since 1844, his parents settled in Voronezh. Stoll's father, Herman Friedrichovich, was the city's chief doctor, who did a lot for the development of health care in Voronezh. Wilhelm's sister, Anna, is the great-grandmother of the musician M. L. Rostropovich.
V. G. Stoll received an excellent technical education. He graduated from the Voronezh gymnasium, studied at the physics and mathematics department of St. Petersburg University, and completed his education in Berlin. Then he did an internship in Europe.
In 1869, he opened a workshop that gradually grew into the largest enterprise in the Russian Empire for the production of agricultural equipment, producing ploughs, harrows, straw cutters, hydraulic presses, equipment for mills, flour mills on a cast-iron pedestal, oil and diesel engines (the latter with a capacity of up to 130 horsepower), steam engines, hydraulic oil presses and even equipment for power plants and cinematography. The factory was constantly modernized. In 1879, Stoll's factory was the first in Voronezh to use a steam engine.
In 1883-1891, Wilhelm Stoll was a member of the Voronezh City Duma.
At the end of the 19th century, the city’s first joint-stock company, V. G. Stoll and Co., was organized on the basis of the “Partnership of the Mechanical Plant Stoll and Company,” where he became a co-owner.
It included German, Swedish, English, French, and American companies. In the early 1900s, in addition to the Voronezh plant, the company owned a large plant in Chelyabinsk and warehouses in 80 settlements. In terms of labor productivity and authority in the industrial world, there was no more powerful Voronezh company at that time. Warehouses with its branded agricultural machinery were located throughout the Russian Empire from Warsaw to Vladivostok. Its products won the most prestigious awards at international exhibitions.
V. G. Stoll was not only a successful manufacturer, but also an active figure in the field of charity. From 1895, he financed the Voronezh branch of the Mariinsky Guardianship of the Blind, and in 1897, he built an eye hospital at his own expense.
Stoll allocated large funds for the maintenance of the "School for the Blind", which occupied the building where the Voronezh Museum of Local History is now located.
At the end of the 19th century, V.G. Stoll moved with his wife to a dacha estate at Grafskaya station.
The history of the Voronezh children's sanatorium, which is still operating today, began with this dacha. Stoll gave most of his dacha estates to it. A shelter-school for blind girls was opened in the main mansion, where they were taught music, embroidery and massage by teachers specially invited from the capital. These skills were supposed to help the blind adapt to independent life. A family atmosphere reigned in the shelter. Theatrical productions were staged with the participation of blind girls as actresses.
Wilhelm Stoll was also the organizer of a cycling club in Voronezh (1883). Thanks to him, the first bicycles appeared in Voronezh and mass competitions began to be held among fans of this new sport at that time. Wilhelm Stoll died around 1920, while in his country house in the village near the Grafskaya station. He was buried near the Tolshevsky Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery. The grave has not survived.
Deals Gateway (ONE SE8) Development by Burwell Deakins Architects Ltd. Photography by Joas Souza | Architectural and Aerial Photographer (www.joasphotographer.com)
Hajvery University (HU) Career Development Society (CDS) held an event for the motivation and emotional support of the youth mainly the students of Hajvery University. The event catered to anybody who cared to attend and listen to the wonderful speaker, be it the youth or even a 70 year old could benefit from the pearls of wisdom scattered on that wonderful day. The speaker was Qaiser Abbas. Pakistan’s highest paid motivational speaker and probably a pioneer of what he does in our country. And the author of International Best-seller ‘Tick Tick Dollar’.
The environment was electric and for the first time in a while everybody attending the event was expecting quite nice things to come their way. This was the reason the auditorium was packed. The theme was DREAM BIG AND HAVE BELIEF. His speech was highly motivational he said nobody in your life tells you your potential but always it’s you who should belief in his own potential. That belief led you to dream big one night and bigger the next night. But dreaming was not everything, to back up those dreams; you have to work day and night, tirelessly and ferociously towards his goals. Students energies renewed, their picture about their selves totally changed and changed for the good.
Hajvery University (HU) is one of the leading Universities in Lahore. HU is Chartered by Govt. Of Pakistan, Accredited by Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) and rated W category. HU is a progressive, Student Centric University, focused on offering rigorous, market driven courses in Business, Fashion, Engineering, Computer sciences, Textile Design, Media Studies, Economics, Commerce, Pharmacy & English. For details:Web: www.hup.edu.pk,UAN: 042-111-777-007 Email: info@hup.edu.pk
Oregon Air National Guard enlisted servicemembers attend a series of professional development courses, held in Eugene, Oregon, April 20, 2018. The three-day Enlisted Development seminars highlighted Airmen responsibilities, teamwork and other management proficiencies. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. John Hughel, 142nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs)
A text In English:
The Swallow-tailed Hummingbird, so called from its forked tail, is one of the largest hummingbirds in cities and gardens, but it also occurs in gallery forests, bushy pastures and edges of woods or coppices. It is green, except for the blue head and upper breast, turning to iridescent purple according to the direction of light; it has dark wings and a heavy black bill. The tail is dark blue with the external feathers longer than central ones. It is very aggressive and attacks other hummingbirds that dare to visit flowers in certain trees. Where the flowers are available for many months, the individual is fiercely territorial, but generally needs to search soon for other flowering plants. It flies to catch small insets on or under leaves in the gallery forests or woodlands. The female builds a small cup-shaped nest saddled on a branch, not far from the main trunk in the shade of leaves. Perched on favorite branches, the male can utter long but low chirps. Once in a while, it interrupts these singing sessions to feed, and flies back for more song or to clean the plumage. They occur from the Guianas and Amazon River to Paraguay and southeastern Peru. They can get along with partially deforested zones, but may disappear with intensive agriculture and with the development of treeless cities.
Um texto em Português:
Beija-flor Tesoura (Eupetomena macroura), fotografado em Brasília-DF, Brasil.
Eupetomena macroura (Gmelin, 1788): tesoura; swallow-tailed hummingbird c.
Destaca-se das espécies estudadas pelo maior porte e pela cauda comprida e bifurcada, o que lhe valeu o nome popular. Como é comum entre os beija-flores, é uma espécie agressiva que disputa com outras o seu território e fontes de alimento.
Nidificação: o ninho, em forma de tigela, é assentado numa forquilha de arbusto ou árvores, a cerca de 2 a 3 m do solo. O material utilizado na construção é composto por fibras vegetais incluindo painas, musgos e liquens, aderidos externamente com teias de aranhas.
Hábitat: capoeiras, cerrados, borda de matas e jardins.
Tamanho: 17,0 cm
A SEGUIR UM TEXTO ENCONTRADO E REPRODUZIDO DO ENDEREÇO nationalgeographic.abril.uol.com.br/ng/edicoes/83/reporta... DA NATIONAL GEOGRAFIC:
Prodígios da micro-engenharia, os beija-flores são os campeões dos pesos-leves entre as aves
Uma faísca safira, um frêmito de asas, e o minúsculo pássaro - ou seria um inseto? - some como miragem fugaz. Reaparece instantes depois, agora num ângulo melhor. É pássaro mesmo, um dervixe do tamanho do meu polegar com asas que batem 80 vertiginosas vezes por segundo, produzindo um zumbido quase inaudível. As penas da cauda, à guisa de leme, delicadamente direcionam o vôo em três direções. Ele fita a trombeta de uma vistosa flor alaranjada e do bico fino como agulha projeta uma língua delgada feito linha. Um raio de Sol ricocheteia de suas penas iridescentes. A cor refletida deslumbra como uma pedra preciosa contra uma janela ensolarada. Não admira que os beija-flores sejam tão queridos e que tanta gente já tenha tropeçado ao tentar descrevê-los. Nem mesmo circunspectos cientistas resistem a termos como "belo", "magnífico", "exótico".
Surpresa maior é o fato de o aparentemente frágil beija-flor ser uma das mais resistentes criaturas do reino animal. Cerca de 330 espécies prosperam em ambientes diversos, muitos deles brutais: do Alasca à Argentina, do deserto do Arizona à costa de Nova Scotia, da Amazônia à linha nevada acima dos 4,5 mil metros nos Andes (misteriosamente, essas aves só são encontradas no Novo Mundo).
"Eles vivem no limite do que é possível aos vertebrados, e com maestria", diz Karl Schuchmann, ornitólogo do Instituto Zoológico Alexander Koenig e do Fundo Brehm, na Alemanha. Schuchmann ouviu falar de um beija-flor que viveu 17 anos em cativeiro. "Imagine a resistência de um organismo de 5 ou 6 gramas para viver tanto tempo!", diz ele espantado. Em média, o minúsculo coração de um beija-flor bate cerca de 500 vezes por minuto (em repouso!). Assim, o desse pequeno cativo teria batido meio bilhão de vezes, quase o dobro do total de uma pessoa de 70 anos.
Mas esses passarinhos são duráveis apenas em vida. Quando morrem, seus ossos delicados e ocos quase nunca se fossilizam. Daí o assombro causado pela recente descoberta de um amontoado de fósseis de aves que talvez inclua um beija-flor ancestral de 30 milhões de anos. Como os beija-flores modernos, os espécimes fósseis tinham o bico longo e fino e os ossos superiores das asas mais curtos, terminando em uma saliência arredondada que talvez lhes permitisse fazer a rotação na articulação do ombro e parar no ar.
A outra surpresa foi o local do achado: no sul da Alemanha, longe do território dos beija-flores atuais. Para alguns cientistas, essa descoberta mostra que já existiram beija-flores fora das Américas, mas se extinguiram. Ou quem sabe os fósseis não fossem de beija-flor. Os céticos, entre eles Schuchmann, afirmam que muitas vezes, ao longo da evolução, outros grupos de aves adquiriram características semelhantes às do beija-flor. Os verdadeiros beija-flores, diz Schuchmann, evoluíram nas florestas do leste do Brasil, onde competiam com insetos pelo néctar das flores.
"O Brasil foi o laboratório do protótipo", diz o ornitólogo. "E o modelo funcionou." O beija-flor tornou-se a obra-prima da microengenharia da natureza. Aperfeiçoou sua habilidade de parar no ar há dezenas de milhões de anos para competir por parte das flores do Novo Mundo.
"Eles são uma ponte entre o mundo das aves e o dos insetos", diz Doug Altshuler, da Universidade da Califórnia em Riverside. Altshuler, que estuda o vôo dos beija-flores, examinou os movimentos das asas do pássaro. Observou que, nele, os impulsos elétricos propulsores dos músculos das asas lembram mais os dos insetos que os das aves. Talvez por isso o beija-flor produza tanta energia por batida de asas: mais, por unidade de massa, que qualquer outro vertebrado. Altshuler também analisou os trajetos neurais do beija-flor, que funcionam com a mesma vertiginosa velocidade encontrada nas aves mais ágeis, como seu primo mais próximo, o andorinhão. "São incríveis; uns pequenos Frankesteins", compara.
Certamente eles sabem intimidar: grama por grama, talvez sejam os maiores confrontadores da natureza. "O vocabulário do beija-flor deve ser 100% composto de palavrões", graceja Sheri Williamson, naturalista do Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory. A agressão do beija-flor nasce de ferozes instintos territoriais moldados à necessidade de sugar néctar a cada poucos minutos. Os beija-flores competem desafiando e ameaçando uns aos outros. Postam-se face a face no ar, rodopiam, mergulham na direção da grama e voam de ré, em danças de dominância que terminam tão subitamente quanto começam.
O melhor lugar para vermos tais batalhas é nas montanhas, especialmente no Equador, em que ricos ecossistemas se apresentam em suas várias altitudes. Sheri supõe que o sentido norte-sul das cordilheiras americanas também crie rotas favoráveis à migração para onde haja constante suprimento de flores. O que contrasta, diz ela, com as barreiras naturais que se estendem de leste a oeste na África, como o Saara e o Mediterrâneo.
Algumas espécies de beija-flor, porém, adaptaram-se a atravessar vastidões planas, onde o alimento é escasso. Antes de sua intrépida migração da primavera para os Estados Unidos e o Canadá, os beija-flores-de-garganta-vermelha reúnem-se no México e empanturram-se de insetos e néctar. Armazenam gordura e duplicam de peso em uma semana. Em seguida, atravessam o golfo do México, voando 800 quilômetros sem escalas por 20 horas, até a costa distante.
A região próxima à linha do equador é um reino de beija-flores. Quem sai do aeroporto de Quito, no Equador, pode ser logo saudado por um cintilante beija-flor-violeta, com pintura de guerra de manchas púrpura iridescentes nos lados da face. A leste da cidade, nas cabeceiras da bacia Amazônica, o beija-flor-bico-de-espada esvoaça na mata portando o bico mais longo de todas as aves em proporção a seu tamanho: mais de metade do comprimento total do animal. Nas encostas do Cotopaxi, um vulcão ao sul de Quito, o beija-flor-do-chimborazo foi avistado acima dos 4,5 mil metros. Ali ele passa a noite entorpecido em cavernas, pois desacelera seu ritmo metabólico o suficiente para não morrer de fome antes de amanhecer. Mais tarde, aquecido pelo Sol, ele recomeça a se alimentar.
"Quem estuda beija-flores fica irremediavelmente enfeitiçado", diz Sheri Williamson. "São criaturinhas sedutoras. Tentei resistir, mas agora tenho sangue de beija-flor correndo nas veias."
Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT
The workshop aimed at ensuring improved knowledge of SADC countries on database management with regards to diagnostic protocols, pests and natural enemies’ data sets, treatment schedules of the commodity value chain, and national/ international standards obligations and compliance.
Copyright ©FAO. Editorial use only. Photo credit must be given: ©FAO/Precious N. Chitembwe
At the Community Activity Center on Camp Casey May 29, civilians and Soldiers of the U.S. Army Garrison Red Cloud and Area I attend a professional development session geared especially to those in leadership positions. The audience of 145 leaders heard briefings on a range of topics that included customer service, mentoring subordinates, administrative and maintenance matters, and leadership itself. Speakers included Col. John M. Scott, Commander, USAG Red Cloud and Area I, and other garrison officials. The afternoon was capped by an indoor supper of hot dogs and hamburgers.
While strengthening the national and local capacities according to the needs, the ART GOLD MOROCCO programme supports the implementation of the strategic planning process at the local level (participation, diagnosis, formulation, execution and follow-up-evaluation).It aims the valuation of Regions through the reinforcement of capacities, the promotion of the dialogue and the coordination in the planning and the management of local development actions.
Photo by Adam Rogers / UNDP
Oratai,-AAT's partner, hyde parking on the stage in front of thousands of women for IWD.
Women are taking part in a march for land rights, from the United Nations Office to Parliament House in Bangkok on International Women's Day (IWD) 2012.
Photo: Chokdee Smithkittipol/ActionAid
The Crescent Development Project or The Crescent Bay (formerly known as Caspian Plus) is skyscraper complex which is under construction on the Caspian Sea coast in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The complex comprises an offshore hotel (Crescent Hotel), office tower (Crescent City), residential tower, and a retail and entertainment centre (Crescent Place). The project is intended to be an architectural landmark.
History
In February 2008, skyscrapernews.com, a well-known architectural review website, published an article about two projects designed by the Korean company, Heerim Architects, for construction in Baku. The projects, both with a lunar theme, were described as, "an attempt to reinvent the concept of the skyscraper beyond the traditional". The article described two skyscraper complexes, proposed for construction on neighbouring peninsulas, on opposite shores of Baku Bay. The first, Full Moon Bay, was to be constructed on the western side of the bay. It included a 158-meter, 35-storey, discoid hotel called "Palace of the Winds 1 and 2". The second complex, "Caspian Plus", had been proposed for construction on the eastern edge of Baku Bay near the seaport, acting as a counterpoint to "Full Moon Bay". Initially, the second project included a 32-storey crescent-shaped hotel (standing on its "horns" offshore), four high-rise residential buildings, and a 43-story business centre standing 203 metres tall (now called Crescent City Tower). The fate of the related projects remained uncertain until October 2009 when foundation work in the location of the "Caspian Plus" complex was started.
The project has since been modified. A trio of high-rise residential buildings was removed to avoid visual overlapping of two other buildings (Port Baku Towers and Port Baku Residence). After modification, the project consisted of a hotel ("The Crescent Hotel"), an office tower ("The Crescent City"), and a high-rise residential building with a podium ("The Crescent Place"). The previous name of the project, "Caspian Plus", was changed to "The Crescent Development Project".
The project Full Moon Bay was cancelled.
Project
The "Crescent Development Project" is situated with one part on the waterfront of Baku. An offshore part, which includes "The Crescent Hotel", will be located on an artificial island about 170 metres from shore. There will be an office tower ("The Crescent City"), and a residential high-rise building with a podium ("The Crescent Place"), on the coastline behind "The Crescent Hotel".
The Crescent Hotel
"The Crescent Hotel" is a curving arched building. It is designed to look like a crescent moon with its points on the surface of the Caspian Sea. The crescent shape of the building refers to one of the symbols of Azerbaijan, depicted on its national flag. The skyscraper’s arcuate configuration will not affect the interior of the hotel as the building will rely on two multi-storey column-like towers, which will create additional space and act as a support for the hotel.[10] These supporting towers are called Eastern and Western in accordance with their location. "The Crescent Hotel" comprises 32 floors (28 storeys of the hotel itself standing over a 4-storeys podium). Upon completion, the hotel will comprise 230 guest rooms, 74 apartments and 16 villas. The total area is 177,969 m²2, parking is planned for 601 cars.[10] "The Crescent Hotel" will be connected to the shore and other buildings of the project via a bridge. This hotel is planned to be a 'seven-star' facility.
The Crescent City
The office tower, “The Crescent City”, is a 210-metre skyscraper with 43 overground levels. It is being built behind "The Crescent Hotel" on the waterfront next to the seaport of Baku and the “JW Marriott Absheron”. According to the project design, the facade of the building is cylindrical and slightly flattened at the north-south direction. The bottom of the tower is narrow and widens as it approaches the top which includes a concave notch. The shape of "The Crescent City" is designed to resemble a torch.
The Crescent Place
"The Crescent Place" consists of 3 basement floors and 32 overground levels: a 5-storey podium, 2 floors of town houses and a 25-storey residential tower with 2 additional penthouse levels. The Crescent Place will be located onshore next to the tower of "The Crescent City". This residential building, standing 170 metres tall, will include 168 apartments. The total area of the Crescent Place is 273 000 m², with space for approximately 100 retail outlets and an additional 40 food and beverage units.
Construction
According to a report published by the management company, almost all piling work for the project had been completed by November 2013. Nine percent of the entire project had been constructed. Ten percent of the coastal part of the Project had been completed.
In July 2015, DSA Architects International was appointed to take over multidisciplinary lead consultancy design services on the Crescent Development Project, with construction works ongoing.
Site of The Crescent Hotel
The plot for "The Crescent Hotel" lies within an area in the Caspian Sea. In May 2012, hehe setting was started. These piles were installed in two rows around the perimeter of the future hotel's location. A double metal fence was then installed around the site which restricted any additional water entering the area.[citation needed] Once the fence was completed, water was pumped from the site, and it was filled with sand to create the foundation of the building. As of early 2013, the soil creating the artificial island has been formed, and foundation work for the Western and Eastern towers is completed. The piles constructed for "The Crescent Hotel", with a diameter 1500–2000 mm and a length 76.1 meters, are the biggest ever built in Azerbaijan. It was planned to build 464 piles by the end of 2013. By the beginning of 2015, development of both the Eastern and Western Towers had begun on the artificial island.
Given the complexity of the building’s geometry, a number of contracting companies from the world-wide were engaged in the construction. Many of them faced challenges in achieving their goals. So, Derby Design Engineering cited that the main challenge was to design a constructible solution for the link-bridge between the column-like towers. This arch has a span of 90 meters which supports 5 hotel levels, hanging off the link-bridge truss. The Koltay Facades website stated that curved sides of the hotel represent an exciting challenge for engineers and designers; floor by floor, the slope of the glass is changing, and so are the components of the reaction forces on the slab, the appearance of the glass, the safety requirements, amongst the others.
Sites of The Crescent City and Crescent Place
Construction of the onshore foundation started in October 2009. For all parts of the coastline (sites of "The Crescent City" and "The Crescent Place"), 691 short piles with a diameter of 1.2 m and a depth of 26 meters have been installed . For the tower “The Crescent city” 118 deep piles (diameter 1500 mm, depth of 52-61,5 meters) were constructed.
By November 2013, 4 taps had been installed on the site of "The Crescent Place". The first floors of the podium were appearing above the fence. The construction of the residential tower, "The Crescent Place", had been started. By the beginning of 2015, 35th floor of The Crescent Place Tower was being constructed.
By March 2014, the foundation of "Crescent City Tower" had been ready for concrete core pouring.[citation needed] As of beginning 2015, The Crescent City Tower was being constructed at 16-17 levels. In August 2015, the concrete core of the building reached up to the 30th level. By December 2015, the 43rd level of the concrete core of the Crescent City was completed.
According to a spokesman of Ilk Construction, completion of the shell and core of "The Crescent Place" is scheduled for January 2015; the site of "The Crescent City" must be finished by May of the same year.[6] Completion of the entire project was planned for the second half of 2017 but as of February 2019, technical difficulties have prevented the completion of the arch section that will ultimately join the two towers. The completion date is currently estimated as late 2020.
At the Community Activity Center on Camp Casey May 29, civilians and Soldiers of the U.S. Army Garrison Red Cloud and Area I attend a professional development session geared especially to those in leadership positions. The audience of 145 leaders heard briefings on a range of topics that included customer service, mentoring subordinates, administrative and maintenance matters, and leadership itself. Speakers included Col. John M. Scott, Commander, USAG Red Cloud and Area I, and other garrison officials. The afternoon was capped by an indoor supper of hot dogs and hamburgers.
On any given day, you will have various customers dropping by for all sorts of things. This Audi S3 was in for an ECU remap/tune. The customer left with a huge grin on his face! :)
Can make out the rooms now. Concrete walls should keep out the sound of someone snoring in the next room.
Alto Malcantone is a Swiss municipality of 1,414 inhabitants in the Canton of Ticino , in the district of Lugano .
The municipality is located in Malcantone , on the southern slopes of the Monte Lema - Monte Tamaro chain . The Magliasina , which crosses the territory, originates on Mount Gradiccioli , which is also the highest point in the municipality at 1936 m above sea level .
The municipality was established on 14 March 2005 with the merger of the suppressed municipalities of Arosio , Breno , Fescoggia , Mugena and Vezio ; the municipal capital is Breno.
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is geographically divided among the Swiss Plateau, the Alps and the Jura; the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, whereas most of the country's population of 9 million are concentrated on the plateau, which hosts its largest cities and economic centres, including Zürich, Geneva and Basel.
Switzerland originates from the Old Swiss Confederacy established in the Late Middle Ages, following a series of military successes against Austria and Burgundy; the Federal Charter of 1291 is considered the country's founding document. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognised in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. Switzerland has maintained a policy of armed neutrality since the 16th century and has not fought an international war since 1815. It joined the United Nations only in 2002 but pursues an active foreign policy that includes frequent involvement in peace building.
Switzerland is the birthplace of the Red Cross and hosts the headquarters or offices of most major international institutions, including the WTO, the WHO, the ILO, FIFA, and the United Nations. It is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), but not part of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area, or the eurozone; however, it participates in the European single market and the Schengen Area. Switzerland is a federal republic composed of 26 cantons, with federal authorities based in Bern.
Switzerland is one of the world's most developed countries, with the highest nominal wealth per adult and the eighth-highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. Switzerland ranks first in the Human Development Index since 2021 and performs highly also on several international metrics, including economic competitiveness and democratic governance. Cities such as Zürich, Geneva and Basel rank among the highest in terms of quality of life, albeit with some of the highest costs of living.
It has four main linguistic and cultural regions: German, French, Italian and Romansh. Although most Swiss are German-speaking, national identity is fairly cohesive, being rooted in a common historical background, shared values such as federalism and direct democracy, and Alpine symbolism. Swiss identity transcends language, ethnicity, and religion, leading to Switzerland being described as a Willensnation ("nation of volition") rather than a nation state.
Since 1848 the Swiss Confederation has been a federal republic of relatively autonomous cantons, some of which have a history of federation that goes back more than 700 years, putting them among the world's oldest surviving republics.
The early history of the region is tied to that of Alpine culture. Switzerland was inhabited by the Helvetii, and it came under Roman rule in the 1st century BC. The Gallo-Roman culture was amalgamated with Germanic influence during Late Antiquity, with the eastern part of Switzerland becoming Alemannic territory. The area of Switzerland was incorporated into the Frankish Empire in the 6th century. In the High Middle Ages, the eastern part became part of the Duchy of Swabia within the Holy Roman Empire, while the western part was part of Burgundy.
The Old Swiss Confederacy in the Late Middle Ages (the Eight Cantons) established its independence from the House of Habsburg and the Duchy of Burgundy, and in the Italian Wars gained territory south of the Alps from the Duchy of Milan. The Swiss Reformation divided the Confederacy and resulted in a drawn-out history of internal strife between the Thirteen Cantons in the Early Modern period. In the wake of the French Revolution, Switzerland fell to a French invasion in 1798 and was reformed into the Helvetic Republic, a French client state. Napoleon's Act of Mediation in 1803 restored the status of Switzerland as a Confederation, and after the end of the Napoleonic period, the Swiss Confederation underwent a period of turmoil culminating in a brief civil war in 1847 and the creation of a federal constitution in 1848.
The history of Switzerland since 1848 has been largely one of success and prosperity. Industrialisation transformed the traditional agricultural economy, and Swiss neutrality during the World Wars and the success of the banking industry furthered the ascent of Switzerland to its status as one of the world's most stable economies.
Switzerland signed a free-trade agreement with the European Economic Community in 1972 and has participated in the process of European integration by way of bilateral treaties, but it has notably resisted full accession to the European Union (EU) even though its territory almost completely (except for the microstate Liechtenstein) has been surrounded by EU member states since 1995. In 2002, Switzerland joined the United Nations.
Archeological evidence suggests that hunter-gatherers were already settled in the lowlands north of the Alps in the Middle Paleolithic period 150,000 years ago. Agriculture in Switzerland began around 5500 BC. By the Neolithic period, the area was relatively densely populated. Remains of Bronze Age pile dwellings from as early as 3800 BC have been found in the shallow areas of many lakes. Around 1500 BC, Celtic tribes settled in the area. The Raetians lived in the eastern regions, while the west was occupied by the Helvetii.
A female who died in about 200 B.C. was found buried in a carved tree trunk during a construction project at the Kern school complex in March 2017 in Aussersihl. Archaeologists revealed that she was approximately 40 years old when she died and likely carried out little physical labor when she was alive. A sheepskin coat, a belt chain, a fancy wool dress, a scarf and a pendant made of glass, and amber beads were also discovered with the woman.
In 58 BC, the Helvetii tried to evade migratory pressure from Germanic tribes by moving into Gaul, but were defeated by Julius Caesar's armies and then sent back. The alpine region became integrated into the Roman Empire and was extensively romanized in the course of the following centuries. The center of Roman administration was at Aventicum (Avenches). In 259, Alamanni tribes overran the Limes, putting the settlements on Swiss territory on the frontier of the Roman Empire.
With the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Germanic tribes entered the area. Burgundians settled in the west; while in the north, Alamanni settlers slowly forced the earlier Celto-Roman population to retreat into the mountains. Burgundy became a part of the kingdom of the Franks in 534; two years later, the dukedom of the Alamans followed suit. In the Alaman-controlled region, only isolated Christian communities continued to exist and Irish monks re-introduced the Christian faith in the early 7th century.
Under the Carolingian kings, the feudal system proliferated, and monasteries and bishoprics were important bases for maintaining the rule. The Treaty of Verdun of 843 assigned Upper Burgundy (the western part of what is today Switzerland) to Lotharingia, and Alemannia (the eastern part) to the eastern kingdom of Louis the German which would become part of the Holy Roman Empire.
In the 10th century, as the rule of the Carolingians waned, Magyars destroyed Basel in 917 and St. Gallen in 926. Only after the victory of King Otto I over the Magyars in 955 in the Battle of Lechfeld, were the Swiss territories reintegrated into the empire.
In the 12th century, the dukes of Zähringen were given authority over part of the Burgundy territories which covered the western part of modern Switzerland. They founded many cities, including Fribourg in 1157, and Bern in 1191. The Zähringer dynasty ended with the death of Berchtold V in 1218, and their cities subsequently became reichsfrei (essentially a city-state within the Holy Roman Empire), while the dukes of Kyburg competed with the house of Habsburg over control of the rural regions of the former Zähringer territory.
Under the Hohenstaufen rule, the alpine passes in Raetia and the St Gotthard Pass gained importance. The latter especially became an important direct route through the mountains. Uri (in 1231) and Schwyz (in 1240) were accorded the Reichsfreiheit to grant the empire direct control over the mountain pass. Most of the territory of Unterwalden at this time belonged to monasteries that had previously become reichsfrei.
The extinction of the Kyburg dynasty paved the way for the Habsburg dynasty to bring much of the territory south of the Rhine under their control, aiding their rise to power. Rudolph of Habsburg, who became King of Germany in 1273, effectively revoked the status of Reichsfreiheit granted to the "Forest Cantons" of Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden. The Forest Cantons thus lost their independent status and were governed by reeves.
By 1353, the three original cantons had been joined by the cantons of Glarus and Zug and the city-states of Lucerne, Zürich, and Bern, forming the "Old Federation" of eight states that persisted during much of the 15th century. The Holy Roman Empire built roads and bridges to connect the industrial region of north Italy with the Rhine (linked with the other industrial area of Middle Age Europe, the Burgundian Netherlands), making the peasants and bankers on the road rich, allowing them to buy specialized Italian armor and to stop paying the road collecting taxes to the Empire who built the road. At the Battle of Sempach in 1386, the Swiss defeated the Habsburgs, gaining increased autonomy within the Holy Roman Empire.
Zürich was expelled from the Confederation from 1440 to 1450 due to a conflict over the territory of Toggenburg (the Old Zürich War). The Confederation's power and wealth increased significantly, with victories over Charles the Bold of Burgundy during the Burgundian Wars (1474–1477), greatly due to the success of the Swiss mercenaries, a powerful infantry force constituted by professional soldiers originally from the cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy. They were notable for their service in foreign armies, especially among the military forces of the Kings of France, throughout the Early Modern period of European history, from the Late Middle Ages to the Renaissance. Their service as mercenaries was at its peak during the Renaissance when their proven battlefield capabilities made them sought-after mercenary troops. The traditional listing order of the cantons of Switzerland reflects this state, listing the eight "Old Cantons" first, with the city-states preceding the founding cantons, followed by cantons that joined the Confederation after 1481, in historical order.
The Swiss defeated the Swabian League in 1499 and gained greater collective autonomy within the Holy Roman Empire, including exemption from the Imperial reforms of 1495 and immunity from most Imperial courts. In 1506, Pope Julius II engaged the Swiss Guard, which continues to serve the papacy to the present day. The expansion of the Confederation and the reputation of invincibility acquired during the earlier wars suffered its first setback in 1515 with the Swiss defeat in the Battle of Marignano and Battle of Bicocca.
The Reformation in Switzerland began in 1523, led by Huldrych Zwingli, priest of the Great Minster church in Zürich since 1518. Zürich adopted the Protestant religion, joined by Berne, Basel, and Schaffhausen, while Lucerne, Uri, Schwyz, Nidwalden, Zug, Fribourg, and Solothurn remained Catholic. Glarus and Appenzell were split. This led to multiple inter-cantonal religious wars (Kappeler Kriege) in 1529 and 1531, as each canton usually made the opposing religion illegal, and to the formation of two diets, the Protestant one meeting in Aarau and the Catholic one in Lucerne (as well as the formal full diet still meeting usually in Baden), despite this the Confederation survived.
During the Thirty Years' War, Switzerland was a relative "oasis of peace and prosperity" (Grimmelshausen) in war-torn Europe, mostly because all major powers in Europe depended on Swiss mercenaries, and would not let Switzerland fall into the hands of one of their rivals. Politically, they all tried to take influence, by way of mercenary commanders such as Jörg Jenatsch or Johann Rudolf Wettstein. The Drei Bünde of Grisons, at that point not yet a member of the Confederacy, were involved in the war from 1620, which led to their loss of the Valtellina in 1623.
At the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, Switzerland attained legal independence from the Holy Roman Empire. The Valtellina became a dependency of the Drei Bünde again after the Treaty and remained so until the founding of the Cisalpine Republic by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1797.
In 1653, peasants of territories subject to Lucerne, Bern, Solothurn, and Basel revolted because of currency devaluation. Although the authorities prevailed in this Swiss peasant war, they did pass some tax reforms and the incident in the long term prevented an absolutist development as would occur at some other courts of Europe. The confessional tensions remained, however, and erupted again in the First War of Villmergen, in 1656, and the Toggenburg War (or Second War of Villmergen), in 1712.
During the French Revolutionary Wars, the French army invaded Switzerland and turned it into an ally known as the "Helvetic Republic" (1798–1803). It had a central government with little role for cantons. The interference with localism and traditional liberties was deeply resented, although some modernizing reforms took place.
Resistance was strongest in the more traditional Catholic bastions, with armed uprisings breaking out in spring 1798 in the central part of Switzerland. The French Army suppressed the uprisings but support for revolutionary ideas steadily declined. The reform element was weak, and most Swiss resented their loss of local democracy, centralization, new taxes, warfare, and hostility to religion.
Major steps taken to emancipate the Jews included the repeal of special taxes and oaths in 1798. However, many such reforms were turned back in 1815, and not until 1879 were the Jews granted equal rights with the Christians.
In 1803, Napoleon's Act of Mediation partially restored the sovereignty of the cantons, and the former tributary and allied territories of Aargau, Thurgau, Grisons, St. Gallen, Vaud, and Ticino became cantons with equal rights. Napoleon and his enemies fought numerous campaigns in Switzerland that ruined many localities.
The Congress of Vienna of 1814–15 fully re-established Swiss independence and the European powers agreed to recognize permanent Swiss neutrality. At this time, Valais, Neuchâtel, and Geneva also joined Switzerland as new cantons, thereby extending Swiss territory to its current boundaries.
The long-term impact of the French Revolution has been assessed (by William Martin):
It proclaimed the equality of citizens before the law, equality of languages, and freedom of thought and faith; it created Swiss citizenship, the basis of our modern nationality, and the separation of powers, of which the old regime had no conception; it suppressed internal tariffs and other economic restraints; it unified weights and measures, reformed civil and penal law, authorized mixed marriages (between Catholics and Protestants), suppressed torture and improved justice; it developed education and public works.
On 6 April 1814, the so-called "Long Diet" (delegates from all the nineteen cantons) met at Zürich to replace the constitution.
Cantonal constitutions were worked out independently from 1814, in general restoring the late feudal conditions of the 17th and 18th centuries. The Tagsatzung was reorganized by the Federal Treaty (Bundesvertrag) of 7 August 1815.
The liberal Free Democratic Party of Switzerland was strong in the largely Protestant cantons and obtained the majority in the Federal Diet in the early 1840s. It proposed a new Constitution for the Swiss Confederation which would draw the several cantons into a closer relationship. In addition to the centralization of the Swiss government, the new Constitution also included protections for trade and other progressive reform measures. The Federal Diet, with the approval of a majority of cantons, had taken measures against the Catholic Church such as the closure of monasteries and convents in Aargau in 1841, and the seizure of their properties. Catholic Lucerne, in retaliation,1844 recalled the Jesuits to head its education. That succeeded and seven Catholic cantons formed the "Sonderbund." This caused a liberal-radical move in the Protestant cantons to take control of the national Diet in 1847. The Diet ordered the Sonderbund dissolved, igniting a small-scale civil war against rural cantons that were strongholds of pro-Catholic ultramontanism.
The Radical-liberal-Protestant element charged that the Sonderbund violated the Federal Treaty of 1815, § 6 of which expressly forbade such separate alliances. Forming a majority in the Tagsatzung they decided to dissolve the Sonderbund on October 21, 1847. The odds were against the Catholics, who were heavily outnumbered in population; they were outnumbered in soldiers by 79,000 to 99,000 and lacked enough well-trained soldiers, officers, and generals. When the Sonderbund refused to disband, the national army attacked in a brief civil war between the Catholic and the Protestant cantons, known as the Sonderbundskrieg ("Sonderbund War".) The national army was composed of soldiers from all the other cantons except Neuchâtel and Appenzell Innerrhoden (which remained neutral). The Sonderbund was easily defeated in less than a month; there were about 130 killed. Apart from small riots, this was the last armed conflict on Swiss territory. Many Sonderbund leaders fled to Italy, but the victors were generous. They invited the defeated cantons to join them in a program of federal reform, and a new constitution was drafted along American lines. National issues were to be under the control of the national parliament, and the Jesuits were expelled. The Swiss voted heavily in favor of the new constitution by 2 million against 300,000. Switzerland became calm. However, conservatives around Europe became frightened and prepared their forces to meet possible challenges, which indeed soon exploded the Revolutions of 1848. In those violent revolutions, outside Switzerland, the conservatives were always successful.
As a consequence of the civil war, Switzerland adopted a federal constitution in 1848, amending it extensively in 1874 and establishing federal responsibility for defense, trade, and legal matters, leaving all other matters to the cantonal governments. From then, and over much of the 20th century, continuous political, economic, and social improvement has characterized Swiss history.
While Switzerland was primarily rural, the cities experienced an industrial revolution in the late 19th century, focused especially on textiles. In Basel, for example, textiles, including silk, were the leading industry. In 1888 women made up 44% of the wage earners. Nearly half the women worked in the textile mills, with household servants as the second largest job category. The share of women in the workforce was higher between 1890 and 1910 than it was in the late 1960s and 1970s.
Swiss Universities in the late 19th century are notable for the number of female students receiving medical education.
The major powers respected Switzerland's neutrality during World War I. In the Grimm–Hoffmann Affair, the Allies denounced a proposal by one politician to negotiate peace on the Eastern Front; they wanted the war there to continue to tie Germany down.
While the industrial sector began to grow in the mid-19th century, Switzerland's emergence as one of the most prosperous nations in Europe—the "Swiss miracle"—was a development of the short 20th century, among other things tied to the role of Switzerland during the World Wars.
Germany considered invading Switzerland during World War II but never attacked. Under General Henri Guisan, the Swiss army prepared for the mass mobilization of militia forces against invasion and prepared strong, well-stockpiled positions high in the Alps known as the Réduit. Switzerland remained independent and neutral through a combination of military deterrence, economic concessions to Germany, and good fortune as larger events during the war delayed an invasion.
Attempts by Switzerland's small Nazi party to cause an Anschluss with Germany failed miserably, largely due to Switzerland's multicultural heritage, a strong sense of national identity, and long tradition of direct democracy and civil liberties. The Swiss press vigorously criticized the Third Reich, often infuriating German leaders. Switzerland was an important base for espionage by both sides in the conflict and often mediated communications between the Axis and Allied powers.
Switzerland's trade was blockaded by both the Allies and the Axis. Both sides openly exerted pressure on Switzerland not to trade with the other. Economic cooperation and extension of credit to the Third Reich varied according to the perceived likelihood of invasion, and the availability of other trading partners. Concessions reached their zenith after a crucial rail link through Vichy France was severed in 1942, leaving Switzerland surrounded by the Axis. Switzerland relied on trade for half of its food and essentially all of its fuel, but controlled vital trans-alpine rail tunnels between Germany and Italy.
Switzerland's most important exports during the war were precision machine tools, watches, jewel bearings (used in bombsights), electricity, and dairy products. During World War Two, the Swiss franc was the only remaining major freely convertible currency in the world, and both the Allies and the Germans sold large amounts of gold to the Swiss National Bank. Between 1940 and 1945, the German Reichsbank sold 1.3 billion francs worth of gold to Swiss Banks in exchange for Swiss francs and other foreign currency.
Hundreds of millions of francs worth of this gold was monetary gold plundered from the central banks of occupied countries. 581,000 francs of "Melmer" gold taken from Holocaust victims in eastern Europe was sold to Swiss banks. In total, trade between Germany and Switzerland contributed about 0.5% to the German war effort but did not significantly lengthen the war.
Over the course of the war, Switzerland interned 300,000 refugees. 104,000 of these were foreign troops interned according to the Rights and Duties of Neutral Powers outlined in the Hague Conventions. The rest were foreign civilians and were either interned or granted tolerance or residence permits by the cantonal authorities. Refugees were not allowed to hold jobs. 60,000 of the refugees were civilians escaping persecution by the Nazis. Of these, 26,000 to 27,000 were Jews. Between 10,000 and 25,000 civilian refugees were refused entry. At the beginning of the war, Switzerland had a Jewish population of between 18,000 and 28,000 and a total population of about 4 million.
Within Switzerland at the time of the conflict, there was moderate polarization. Some were pacifists. Some took sides according to international capitalism or international communism. Others leaned more towards their language group, with some in French-speaking areas more pro-Allied, and some in Swiss-German areas more pro-Axis. The government attempted to thwart the activities of any individual, party, or faction in Switzerland that acted with extremism or attempted to break the unity of the nation. The Swiss-German speaking areas moved linguistically further away from the standard (high) German spoken in Germany, with more emphasis on local Swiss dialects.
In the 1960s, significant controversy arose among historians regarding the nation's relations with Nazi Germany.
By the 1990s the controversies included a class-action lawsuit brought in New York over Jewish assets in Holocaust-era bank accounts. The government commissioned an authoritative study of Switzerland's interaction with the Nazi regime. The final report by this independent panel of international scholars, known as the Bergier Commission, was issued in 2002.
During the Cold War, Swiss authorities considered the construction of a Swiss nuclear bomb. Leading nuclear physicists at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich such as Paul Scherrer made this a realistic possibility. However, financial problems with the defense budget prevented substantial funds from being allocated, and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 was seen as a valid alternative. All remaining plans for building nuclear weapons were dropped by 1988.
From 1959, the Federal Council, elected by the parliament, is composed of members of the four major parties, the Protestant Free Democrats, the Catholic Christian Democrats, the left-wing Social Democrats, and the right-wing People's Party, essentially creating a system without a sizeable parliamentary opposition (see concordance system), reflecting the powerful position of an opposition in a direct democracy.
In 1963, Switzerland joined the Council of Europe. In 1979, parts of the canton of Bern attained independence, forming the new canton of Jura.
Switzerland's role in many United Nations and international organizations helped to mitigate the country's concern for neutrality. In 2002, Switzerland voters gave 55% of their vote in favour of the UN and joined the United Nations. This followed decades of debate and its previous rejection of membership in 1986 by a 3-1 popular vote.
Swiss women gained the right to vote in national-level elections in 1971, and an equal rights amendment was ratified in 1981, however it was not until 1990 that the courts established full nationwide voting rights for women in all elections.
Switzerland is not a member state of the EU but has been (together with Liechtenstein) surrounded by EU territory since the joining of Austria in 1995. In 2005, Switzerland agreed to join the Schengen treaty and Dublin Convention by popular vote. In February 2014, Swiss voters approved a referendum to reinstitute quotas on immigration to Switzerland, setting off a period of finding an implementation that would not violate the EU's freedom of movement accords that Switzerland adopted.
Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Switzerland decided to adopt all EU sanctions against Russia. According to the Swiss President Ignazio Cassis, the measures were "unprecedented but consistent with Swiss neutrality". The administration also confirmed that Switzerland would continue to offer its services to find a peaceful solution to the conflict. Switzerland only participates in humanitarian missions and provides relief supplies to the Ukrainian population and neighbouring countries.
The hand auger technique used by researchers of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission's Puerto Rice Nuclear Center in obtaining bottom samples from a turtle grass bed. Circa 1972.
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Event: 2016 Integrated Product Development Trade Show
Location: Ross School of Business
Photographer: Philip Dattilo
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Malcolm Knapp and Inveneo are designing a GSM sensor using Arduino, an open source electronics prototyping platform, to program digital temperature sensors to send real-time status updates over GSM networks. Here, Malcolm is testing the micro controller board operations.
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At the Community Activity Center on Camp Casey May 29, civilians and Soldiers of the U.S. Army Garrison Red Cloud and Area I attend a professional development session geared especially to those in leadership positions. The audience of 145 leaders heard briefings on a range of topics that included customer service, mentoring subordinates, administrative and maintenance matters, and leadership itself. Speakers included Col. John M. Scott, Commander, USAG Red Cloud and Area I, and other garrison officials. The afternoon was capped by an indoor supper of hot dogs and hamburgers.